David Munkittrick, Author at WoodWorkers Guild of America

In the Shop: Turned Walnut Plates

June 17, 2016 By David Munkittrick & filed under Blog, In the Shop.

Every once in a while we like to check in on the WWGOA editors to see what they’re up to in the shop. Here’s your chance to get to know the faces and personalities behind WWGOA and take a peek into their own worlds. I just finished a nice turning commission. It’s a set of…

How to Build a Bat House

March 18, 2016 By David Munkittrick & filed under Easy Wood Projects, Plans and Projects, Woodworking Projects.

Why a Bat House? I have bats in my belfry. Well, actually, they’re in my barn where I store my lumber and I’d like to get them out. Although my initial research was aimed at getting rid of the bats, I ended up building them a house. Here’s why: I discovered that many of my…

How to Make a Turned Wood Lidded Box

February 1, 2016 By David Munkittrick & filed under Last Minute Woodworking Gifts, Plans and Projects, Woodturning Projects.

This turned lidded box has the power to make your sweetheart smile on Valentine’s Day, or any other day for that matter. Small is beautiful. That’s because this intermediate level turning project can be done in an afternoon at a cost that can be next to nothing. If you have some rescued firewood or off-cuts…

Dust Right® Universal Small Port Hose Kit: Product Review

January 13, 2016 By David Munkittrick & filed under Buying Advice, Product Review, Skill Building.

When I started working wood 35 years ago the power tools never came with dust ports. Those were the days of paper masks, clouds of dust and wading through shavings on the floor. Today, all sanding, shaping or cutting tools have built in dust ports. That’s a good thing. The bad thing is lack of…

Invisible Shelf Pins

December 7, 2014 By David Munkittrick & filed under Cabinet Making, Skill Building.

Adjustable shelf pins add versatility to any cabinet. Here’s a way to make the pins invisible, and use them to lock the shelves into the case.

How to Make Cabriole Legs

April 22, 2014 By David Munkittrick & filed under Uncategorized.

If you think cabriole legs are out of reach, think again. With a few hand tools and a little hand/eye coordination, you too can make these beautiful traditional treasures for your furniture projects. In this story I make Queen Anne style cabriole legs out of walnut. The legs were part of a recent jewelry chest…

How to Make a Wood Handled Bottle Opener

November 18, 2013 By David Munkittrick & filed under Last Minute Woodworking Gifts, Plans and Projects, Woodworking Projects.

This Christmas, why not make something new from something old for that certain someone? A little prized scrap wood is all it takes to transform a humdrum plastic handled bottle opener into handcrafted wood handled bottle opener. I found two such bottle openers knocking around my kitchen. The first had a short, narrow tang with…

Why I Bought a SawStop

March 14, 2013 By David Munkittrick & filed under Buying Advice, Tool Education.

I recently bought a SawStop tablesaw. (Is that the sound of applause I’m hearing?) On the one hand, it was an easy decision. Who wouldn’t want the blade brake safety feature only SawStop offers. On the other hand, it wasn’t a snap decision. In fact, years went by between the time I first used a…

Repair Veneer on an Antique

May 2, 2012 By David Munkittrick & filed under Gluing and Clamping, Skill Building.

A recent restoration job required that I replace the badly damaged oak veneer on the top of an antique table. The piece was an old salesman sample of a sewing table. Back in the day,salesmen would bring these scale models on sales calls. This sample was from the White Sewing Company but the quartersawn white…

Workaround: Make Any Size Hole

January 6, 2012 By David Munkittrick & filed under Shop Tips, Skill Building.

I know circle cutters aren’t a lot of money. But the thought of a steel arm swinging around at face level with a knife makes me nervous. Besides, that single blade tends to tear up the grain around the hole. Buying a dedicated hole saw for every size you may need is an expensive proposition.…