Innholdsfortegnelse for February/March 2022 i Woodsmith

Place the Flower. The decorative corners are what you use to position the flower in the inlay. The paper spacers provide the proper gap. Mix the Epoxy. Mix the epoxy and the colorant in a small cup (detail ‘a’). To prevent the epoxy from accelerating, pour it in a wide shallow pan. Patience is a Virtue. A wooden stick (a popsicle stick, or a chop stick works nicely) is an ideal tool for transferring the epoxy to the inlay opening. Sanding Flush. The final step is to sand the inlay flush along with any irregularities in the surface. Be careful not to round the edges of the panel.…

For some, talking about routing grooves and slots has all the appeal of advice to eat your vegetables or to get enough sleep. I think this line of thinking stems from the familiarity of these joints and the idea that they are “basics” when we want to focus on the cool stuff. In my shop, I come back to these joints with a more “focus on the fundamentals” sort of mindset. Well-fit grooves and slots sit at the heart of all kinds of projects from heirloom masterpieces to shop cabinets. Upon closer examination then, we’ll find that grooves and slots have a wide range of applications as well as opportunities to get better results, if you put in the time. The terms grooves and slots are interchangeable. They define a…

The end table you see above was inspired by the work of Wendell Castle. To many he was known as the father of the art furniture movement. At the core of most all of his projects are layers of wood strategically laminated together then shaped into organic, liquid-like pieces that seem to defy gravity. This end table is not quite that ambitious. But the base has the same laminated DNA as it’s fancier siblings, so making those layers is where you’ll start. 1"-thick walnut sized from 5/4 boards make up the 23 layers of the body of the end table base. You’ll need eight templates to shape the layers of the base. The full-size patterns are online at Woodsmith.com/259. MASTER TEMPLATE. To make the whole base uniform in shape, you…

Slot Cutter. At the router table, load up a slot cutter. Use a triangle shaped backer board to back up the shelf bracket halves as you feed them through the slot cutter, creating the slot for the splines. Shape The Bracket. After the brackets are glued together, shape them at the band saw. Clean them up with rasps and sandpaper. Dowel Holes. After final shaping, lay out the locations for the holes that the dowels seat into. Use a simple, clamp-on style, doweling jig to position the drill bit.…

Back in the day, router tables were cobbled together without much thought to longevity. A piece of plywood with a hole cut in it and the router base bolted to the underside and you were in business. It got the job done. Also in those days there was a show on PBS called The Router Workshop which showcased the versatility of what you can do with a router. Their dedication and enthusiasm was infectious and can be credited with a lot of the growth of the tool we call the router table. It’s not as powerful or as expensive as a shaper, but it works fine for your everyday woodshop. Over time the tables got fancier, and the routers bigger. Then router lifts came along, followed by routers that were…

Top-of-the-line tools exert a strong attraction to woodworkers. Especially when combined in equal parts with can-do enthusiasm, and a sense of thriftiness. For evidence, take a look at any of the “old-iron” restorations you can find online. A few years ago, ShopNotes featured a floor-standing 12" disc sander that proved pretty popular. Chris Fitch offered an upgrade: How about a 20" model? Other than one-upmanship, the reason to feature this project is that 12" commercial sanders are easier (and cheaper) to come by. But building your own 20" model allows you to maximize the savings potential. This sander offers a study of contrasts: a 20" disc is larger than you can typically find, but doesn’t take up much more space than a common 12" machine. Modestly priced building materials work…

When I need to add some extra strength to a corner, my first choice is a finger joint. The interlocking pins offer more than enough glue surface to ensure a long-lasting joint, and the patterned corner of the joint is a great aesthetic addition to many projects. However, my favorite thing about the joint is that I can make the perfectly mated parts entirely on the table saw with just a simple, shop-made jig. Of course, for the joint to be effective, the pieces must fit perfectly. That level of accuracy usually means some careful setup, but by building a little adjustability into this jig fine-tuning the fit becomes much simpler. The key is how you make the jig and attach it to your miter gauge. THE DESIGN. This jig…

Cord Reel This easy weekend project is a great way to keep your extension cords (up to 100') untangled and ready for use, as well as reel them back up at record speed. While the loose end of the cord plugs into the wall, the reel itself can be moved around the shop to where you’re working. When it comes time to pack the cord up, all you need to do is clamp the reel down, tighten a hand drill chuck over the threaded rod, and run it until it’s all reeled up. Following the drawing and detail below, the cord reel can easily be made from ¾ " plywood, some hardware, and a little time in the shop. Gene Adams Frisco, Texas Panel Cart Workstation I made a grid-based…

The Perfect Pattern. First, cut the panel of the door to final size. Then, use spray adhesive to attach the pattern to the panel. Use a sharp knife to remove the center of the pattern. Rout the Panel. A plunge router and various sizes of straight bits will remove most of the waste. Don’t try and trim to the final line, you’ll do that in the next step. Trim the Profile. To make a perfect floral profile use a variety of chisels and carving tools. Nibble and slice away at the profile while holding the tools square to the panel. Scroll Saw Work. Your scroll saw is the ideal tool for roughing out all the parts of the flower inlay. Be sure to stay to the waste side of each…

Furniture is just a collection of boards and hardware that are milled, cut, and fashioned in a manner that then can be joined together to serve a specific task. Unfortunately, a lot of furniture is just as boring as that description. But that’s not true of the piece you see in these photos. Just looking at this organizer (it also can serve as a desk) you know an artist that cared was involved in its design. His name is Harvey Ellis. Harvey Ellis was an architect and artist from Rochester, New York. His artistic drive took him to Minnesota and Missouri, but ultimately he ended up back in New York working for Gustav Stickley. He didn’t work long for Stickley (about seven months), but long enough that the influence of…

The sleek lines and rich walnut of this modular wall unit create a piece of furniture that’s purpose is fairly flexible. What I mean by that is that I can see this wall unit fitting in a variety of spaces, and none of them seem out of place. Add a series of drawer units along the bottom, and all of a sudden, this becomes the perfect focal point of a bedroom. Add in the desk unit and it becomes a great workstation for the office, or an entertainment center. Like the idea of built-ins, but want something more trim? Perfect. MID-CENTURY VIBES. Now, I’ll be one to tell you that mid-century isn’t my jam. For some reason, it reminds me of my elementary school’s principle’s office. Of course, I was…

Jig Deck. To get even better quality finger joints, I added a strip to the bottom of the front fence, acting as a deck. While it isn’t a necessary addition for the jig, it does help to keep pieces more stable during the cut by providing a platform for them to ride on, and it allows you to set the spacer directly between the key and the blade when adjusting the jig. Use a ¼"- thick, 2½"-wide strip of hardboard or veneered MDF, gluing it to the bottom of the front fence after placing the key, but before screwing the rear fence onto the front.…