I bought this old 18” bandsaw for a song from a used machinery dealer over 30 years ago. “It came from a local high school,” he said. “I heard that it was purchased by the school back in the [...]
Get more from your router and router table with these fantastic accessories. A router may be one of the most versatile tools in the shop. As a hand tool nut, that hurts me a little bit to say, [...]
I’m not sure if I qualify as a tool nut–machine crazy is more like it. I started out using a ShopSmith, but I now have 17 industrial-grade machines. It all started when my wife saw an ad in [...]
Tool: Magnetic Straightedge Shop Now Manufacturer: Lee Valley MSRP: $7.50 Don’t have a drafting table? Can’t draw freehand to save your life? Here’s a tool from Lee Valley that lets you [...]
Here’s a surefire method to ensure flat glue-ups. Use cauls, top and bottom, made from Unistrut. This steel channel is used for light-duty structural support in electrical and plumbing [...]
I really like bright-colored speed squares because they’re easy to locate on the job, but I find them difficult to read. To solve this problem, I spray-painted my speed squares black. After [...]
Tool: Multiscribe Shop Now Manufacturer: Trend MSRP: $70 I like tools that can do more than one thing—they keep the clutter down. When I read that Trend’s Multiscribe performs 15 [...]
Match the size to the job–that’s the key Hand planes come in a bewildering variety of sizes. Why are there so many? I’ll help explain this mystery by dividing the field into four groups, in order [...]
Here’s what one pro always keeps in his toolbox. My favorite tools are the ones that I use every day—around the house, in the shop or at a jobsite. They’ve become old friends. They’re not [...]
About 30 years ago, my girlfriend led me to a dark, cluttered basement workshop to meet a sweet, 70-ish gem of a man: her grandfather, Hayes. He was surrounded by a lifetime’s collection of [...]
My lathe tool rack is based on a fishing rod rack that I made some time ago. Made from 3/4-in.-thick walnut, it measures 3-1/8-in. by 10-in. by 30- in. I made the matching front and back tool [...]
It can save you lots of money—and grief! Are you a scrounger? Always looking for a deal? Self-reliant? Those words fit a lot of woodworkers, particularly those who search for unusual or [...]
