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Practical solutions for a cleaner shop Vacuum-Assisted Bench I got tired of hooking my bench tools to my shop vac. Now I simply plug their dust collection hoses into the bench. I drilled and [...]

Sculpting the Tree Branches Part 1: Introduction • Part 2: Push and Peel Knife Maneuvers • Part 3: Parting and Pulling Techniques • Part 4: Rounding the Tree • Part 6: Attach to The Base [...]

Cutting miters so they are ‘just right’ is a problem faced by all woodworkers. Here’s how to sneak up on the perfect miter with scrap wood and a plane. You find yourself in a quandary. To ensure [...]

Water can cause many problems to finished and unfinished wood. As woodworkers, most of us have come across problems caused by water that we may be asked to repair. The problems can occur in the [...]

There’s no need to fear the most versatile machine in the modern shop. There are good reasons that the table saw is at the center of many shops. This machine revolutionized the way we make [...]

If you use a cyclone dust collector, you’ve no doubt struggled with emptying the barrel. When it’s filled with dust, it’s really heavy, not to mention the face full of dust you [...]

Get Great Results without Rubbing Out Maybe I’m crazy, but I like to brush polyurethane. I’ve built more than 50 dining room tables, and I’ve brush-finished every one, using a simple system that [...]

Rounding the Tree Part 1: Introduction • Part 2: Push and Peel Knife Maneuvers • Part 3: Parting and Pulling Techniques • Part 5: Sculpting the Branches • Part 6: Attach to The Base In our [...]

An old-timer showed me this trick years ago and I’ve used it ever since. Plain old waxed paper is great for lubricating my tools’ cast iron tables and miter gauge bars. Whenever I start to feel [...]

When you know what you’re doing, chisels can be wonderfully helpful tools. If all you want to do with your chisels is adjust machine-cut joints or slice glue drips, any technique or tool will [...]

These simple shop-made helpers will make marking less of a chore. Marking out dovetails for hand cutting goes much easier with these helpers. Held in place while hooked over the end of a board, [...]

I don’t use my machinist’s vise often enough to dedicate any of my limited bench space to it. Instead, I keep it tucked under a nearby cabinet for occasional use. I bolted the vise to a board [...]