Woodworking Blog Posts, Articles, and Videos for Skill Building

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CNC Beer Flight Board

If you like to drink beer, chances are that you’ve been to a brew pub and seen some of the clever beer flight boards that are used to tote the craft beers around. They are often as beautiful and unique as the beers themselves. George has captured the spirit of the microbrew trend as he…
Kumiko Woodworking

Kumiko is a beautiful Japanese technique developed in 600-700 AD that involves assembling thin wooden pieces without the use of nails. Pieces are grooved, punched and mortised before being individually fitted using a plane, saw, chisel and other tools for fine adjustments. Steve Rothwell has been doing Kumiko for quite some time and joined us…
How to Apply Finish to a Table

Wood finish can be tricky. It’s nice to have techniques to help you out. Here’s my approach to finishing tables. It doesn’t matter what your finish method is-brush, wipe on, spray-this will help you out. Start with screws The table starts upside down on the bench but, while the finish is still wet, it’ll get…
What You Can Do On a Drum Sander

Over the years I’ve been asked about drum sanders MANY times. Here’s an opportunity to see what a drum sander can do for you, and learn about the differences between drum sanders and planers. Abrasive planing With 36-grit sandpaper on your drum sander you can quickly clean up a surface, taking it from rough sawn…
Understanding Janka Hardness

With over 60,000 species of trees in existence, we woodworkers have an overwhelming number of wood choices available to us. So, how do you choose the right wood for your project? Cost, local availability, color, and figure are important characteristics to consider, and can be pretty easily assessed. Depending on your project, hardness might also…
Make Dovetail Sockets on your Table Saw

The dovetail joint is not only one of the strongest joints due to the mechanical strength that it provides, it is also widely considered to be one of the most beautiful joints that you can create. This combination of strength and beauty make dovetail joinery one of the hallmarks of craftsmanship, so it’s a great…
Safely Cutting Plexiglass

Cutting plexiglass can be an important step in some projects; perhaps for a glass door panel or protective cover for a table top. In a woodshop full of tools that are designed to part wood fibers, however, how can you produce a clean cut on something as fragile as plexiglass? And is cutting plexiglas a…
Simplify Cuts on Your Miter Saw

I use my miter saw for precise length cuts all the time, but I also frequently use it to rough cut stock to size. When I’m rough cutting parts to size the parts don’t have to be an exact length. Adding simple lines to my miter saw stand really simplified the rough cutting process for…
You Should Know About Lever Clamps

You may have a boat load of clamps in your shop that have screw threads. As you spin a handle the threads turn and tighten or loosen the clamp. Lever clamps are completely different. They have more of a gear/ratchet/cam system. As you move the lever an offset cam puts pressure on the clamp head,…
Fall 2021 Product Showcase: Aquacoat

Do water-based finishing products provide the same protection as solvent-based products? Spoiler alert…yes. We did the KCMA (Kitchen Cabinet Manufacturers Association) test on three Aquacoat products, and they passed with flying colors! The test Grab some kitchen items you’d hate to have spilled on a table and we’ll get the test going. We’re using grain…