Innholdsfortegnelse for December/January 2022 i Woodsmith

New and improved! Version 2.0! Enhanced Features! These are just a few of the marketing slogans we’ve heard. Sometimes it’s hot air — all wind up and no pitch. Other times it’s a solid claim and a good, new thing. That’s what we’re trying here, some new things for the Great Gear department. The goal is to highlight more tools in each issue with shorter, honest, and light-hearted appraisals of the merits and capabilities of the tools we’re impressed with — new and old. CARTER MAGNAFENCE Fences for band saws often have to be able to adjust to the drift of the blade. I’ve got an old shop-made fence that tackles the drift problem just fine. But after playing with the fence you see above, my old fence might mysteriously…

Mortise and tenons might be my favorite joint. They’re strong, reliable, and easy to hide if you don’t want to see them (though I’ve always enjoyed the look of through tenons myself). Tenons aren’t too hard to make most of the time. I tend to cut my tenons on the table saw, as it usually goes pretty quick. However, when it comes to long or oddly shaped workpieces, tenons can get a little more difficult. The project I’d been working on was coming along nicely, but the next step presented a real challenge — cutting a tenon on the ends of several long rails. At the table saw, I would have to set up a support to keep it balanced, and even then the leverage can cause a piece to…

Grooves First. A dado blade in your table saw is how you start the centered groove. Flip the workpiece between passes and adjust the fence to arrive at the proper groove size. Tongues Next. To make the mating tongues,the dado blade is buried in an auxiliary fence. Raise the blade in steps, like making the groove, you want to sneak up on a perfect fit. Tongues for Dividers. The three parts that make up the divider assembly have tongues that you cut at the table saw with the same setup as the tongues on the frame pieces. Making Shoulders. To cut the shoulders on the front workpiece you have to stand the piece on edge. Use your miter gauge with an auxiliary fence to do this safely.…

Mirror, mirror, on the wall who’s the ... I’ll leave inquiring questions up to you. But it’s true that there is a certain magic to mirrors. That magic mostly comes from the alchemy that appears to happen when you apply silvering to the back of a piece of glass — the simple act of physics transforms the glass, giving it the magical power we call a reflection. This reflection will add light and depth to the environment it resides in. It also helps in the more mundane activities of life, like straightening your tie, or a final check for little green bits left from lunch hiding in your teeth. But this mirror is also graced with the Craftsman inspired frame you see in the photos on this page. The design…

A Leg Halves (8) 1 1/2 x 3 - 33 B Bottom Rails (2) 1 1/2 x 5 - 30 C Top Rails (2) 1 1/2 x 3 - 30 D Pegboards (2) 1/4 pgbd. - 19 x 24 E Pegboard Cleats 1/2 x 5/8 - 336 rgh. F Bottom Stretchers (2) 1 1/2 x 5 - 55 1/4 G Top Stretchers (2) 1 1/2 x 3 - 55 1/4 H Cleats 1 1/2 x 1 1/2 - 289 rgh. I Shelf (1) 3/4 MDF - 21 x 54 1/4 J Top Layers (2) 3/4 MDF - 30 x 85 1/2 K Edge Fillers (4) 3/4 MDF - 6 x 85 1/2 L Side Fillers (4) 3/4 MDF - 17 1/4 x 18 M Side Edging (2) 1 1/2 x…

There are many metal hand planes available today, but they tend to fall into two categories: high-end and expensive or poorly made and cheap. This can be a deterrent for people looking to get into woodworking. Companies like Lie-Nielsen and Veritas make outstanding products, but the price is reflective of the quality and North American manufacturing. On the other end, we have what I call ‘planelike’ objects that certainly appear to be hand planes until you try to adjust and use them. The vintage market can be a good source for decent quality tools, but you have to know how to tune them up as they almost certainly require fussing and repair to get them up to a usable state. Thankfully there is an affordable and quality option that many…

Necessity is the mother of invention. The industrial modern style rose to popularity within the last fifteen years, as populations grew where no new housing could be built. In response, old and abandoned buildings were renovated into living spaces. These commercial and industrial buildings often featured exposed structural elements (brickwork, beams, ducts, piping) that weren’t considered conventionally attractive in a home. The time and effort that would be needed to hide these elements was considerable in a lot of cases, leading many people to choose to live with them instead. The old raw and rough elements were left there, while sleek, chic designs were introduced to juxtapose them. This look became the industrial modern style, and what is often hidden in other styles is a key part of this look.…

There are a handful of things to do to have a successful assembly of the dresser case. Here’s a short list that will help. First, have the right accessories on hand. Rags and warm water for any mess the glue makes. I always apply a little beeswax to the threads of the screws that I’m using. And keep them in a bowl close to the drill. Also, after cleaning the area of unwanted items, I pre-gap and place the clamps close to where they’ll be needed. DRY RUN. The dry run allows you to pre-drill for the screws, removing any step that consumes time always helps. Making sure the edges of the sides and frames are flush is also done in this rehearsal. Finally, using slow-set glue will give you…

A Stiles (2) 1 x 3 - 33 B Bottom Rail (1) 1 x 4 - 39 3/8 C Middle Rail (1) 1 x 3 - 39 3/8 D Top Rail (1) 1 x 3 - 39 3/8 E Middle Stiles (6) 1 x 3 1/4 - 3 5/8 F Horizontal Fillers (14) 3/8 x 9/16 - 2 1/2 G Vertical Fillers (2) 3/8 x 9/16 - 3 5/8 H Top Tenon Plugs (4) 1/2 x 1/2 - 2 I Bottom Tenon Plugs (2) 1/2 x 1/2 - 3 J Cap (1) 1 x 1 3/4 - 46 1/8 K Mirror Back (1) 1/4 hdbd. x 20 7/8 - 38 1/8 • (1) 1/4 x 20 7/8 - 38 1/8 Mirror • (1) Mirror Hanging Hardware • (10) Mirror Clips…

The main job of a standard table saw blade is division. You rip one wide board into two or more narrow pieces. Or crosscut a panel into smaller fractions. A dado blade on the other hand works on the principle of addition by subtraction. This isn’t some form of new math. With a dado blade, you can add a groove to a workpiece by removing some of the material from that part. Cleverness aside, this concept of what a dado blade does helps you understand its practicality in the shop. With this in mind, we’ll look at what a dado blade is and how it works. From there, we can look into a few ways to get the cleanest cuts no matter the application. All saw blades, unlike a knife…

Making your own planes is not limited to bench planes. Wooden routers, grooving planes, and other specialty planes are extremely handy in the shop. It allows you to make custom tools that are designed to work the way you do. For example, for installing bottoms in drawers I often find myself needing a 6mm groove that is 6mm deep and offset 6mm from the edge of a board. So instead of playing around with an adjustable plow plane (when working with hand tools), I made a fixed grooving plane to cut the groove to the dimensions that I wanted (photo to the right.) Wooden planes and tools can be extremely useful in the shop. You can design them to suit the tasks you do and can save you a bit…

A piece of Craftsman furniture is a perfect example of an object that is greater than the sum of its parts. Simple rectangles of wood, a modest taper here, a gentle arc there, and a handful of squares moving quietly over the surface. These elements alone are respectable enough, but when you braid them together in the dresser you see here, there’s an earthy symphony that the eye never tires of. This dresser is the latest addition in a suite of Craftsman inspired projects for the bedroom that started with the gentleman’s dresser back in issue 219. Like its predecessor, it’s mostly white oak and maple frame and panels made with tongue and groove joinery. Lots of woodworking fun and challenges here. In the spirit of generous marketing quotes, “but…

A Stiles (4) 1 x 5 - 31 3/8 B Rails (4) 1 x 8 - 10 3/4 C Panels (2) 3/8 x 10 5/8 - 15 D Fillers (2) 3/8 x 3/8 - 1 E Back Stiles (2) 1 x 2 3/4 - 31 3/8 F Back Center Stiles (2) 1 x 3 - 19 1/8 G Back Rails (2) 1 x 4 - 38 3/4 H Back Panels (3) 3/8 x 11 5/16 - 19 I Frame Fronts (4) 1 x 5 - 42 5/8 J Frame Backs (4) 1 x 4 - 42 5/8 K Frame Centers (4) 1 x 3 - 10 3/4 L Frame Ends (8) 1 x 2 5/16 - 10 3/4 M Divider Front (1) 1 x 5 - 5 3/4 N Divider…

This simple but sturdy workbench ticks all the boxes when it comes to a reliable woodshop workcenter. It’s made of a trio of fairly economical materials — “two-by” Douglas fir forms the skeleton, pegboard in the sides, and MDF for the shelf and the top. Plus, all this stuff is available at local hardware stores and home centers. As simple as it is, this bench will answer the call of duty on multiple fronts. If you need a large flat surface to assemble a project, or repair a chair, you’ve got it here. But your more focused woodworking desires aren’t shortchanged either, notice the heavy duty vise bolted to the front. Also, the wood jaw has a pair of dog holes that align to the holes in the top. So…