Before I can complete the expanded edition of “Roman Workbenches,” I have to build a reproduction of the bench I saw at Saalburg this summer – the oldest surviving workbench I know of (about 187 A.D.). I took complete measurements of the intact bench during my visit and I will reproduce the bench as best I can, right down to the unusual dovetail-shaped recesses in one edge of the benchtop. What I won’t be reproducing, however, is the bench’s ... read more

For the purposes of blogging I'm calling the finishing cabinet done.  The drawers are finished and the only thing left to do is paint the fronts of them and the front edge of the two shelves. I may or may not post glamour shots after that. It depends upon whether or not I remember to do it. Tomorrow I can start on something else.2 came in todayI would have bet a lung I ordered 3 of these, 2 brass and 1 chrome. The ... read more

Everyone has a desire to do something, to be something, to be someone.  You may not know this, but you have completed the third task the day you were born; You, are Someone.  Everything else has a long steep hill that needs to be climbed to achieve it. Your desire to achieve this must match your discipline, but the problem with us all is that we want it yesterday. You can’t have it yesterday nor today, but with every step you ... read more

A few days ago my finest waterstone shattered. I can’t complain; it had given me over ten years of service and was $30 well spent. This afternoon a replacement waterstone came in the mail and I took it out for a spin. I find honing an edge to be a relaxing experience and a form of active meditation. These days I do most of my honing freehand so there are no jigs and gizmos to deal with. I like waterstones ... read more

Today, birds and birds. This first one in American sycamore (Platanus occidentalis) – is going to get painted on the outside, then carved through the paint. This tiny one, split out with the guidance of Dave Fisher, is birch – I forget which one. No paint, just carved today. Some spoons getting finished up in preparation for this weekend’s Lie-Nielsen workshop – full this time. More spoon carving classes to be announced through Plymouth CRAFT soon. Then, some ... read more

I don’t own a lathe so, when possible I’ve been going up to Pratt Fine Arts and getting lessons from whomever will teach me .. so it’s going very slowly.  I tried speeding up the stretchers by the octagon method … Continue reading → ... read more

Image courtesy of Lost Art PressWe're often asked if we'll ever offer a bench building video, or complete videos on how to install our vises. And the answer is, not anytime soon. You may be wondering if this is shortsightedness on our part, lack of interest, or that we're too cheap to shell out the money for a video studio, which is significant. The reason is, there are others out there who can do it better than us. Here they ... read more

As a restorer  I often am taking something apart and reassembling it. Often the screws that I am removing are slotted. I know, I know. Most of you hate slotted. But I on the other hand love them. So what do you do when a screw doesn't want to budge? Well a long time ago I learned by heating the head of the screw with a soldering iron you can make the wood pull away from the heat. Also if ... read more

The world needs more sharpening info and especially from me like it needs more dovetail cutting advice, so I'm going to try to keep it brief here today. Still, if you are reading this then you probablyHave already read Schwarz's "Sharpen this"  notesKnow that I'm cheap and like to come up with my own things. so here's my story.For many years I struggled in ignorance, not realizing what "sharp" really was and using (with varying degrees of success) the Scary ... read more

Whether you're a SketchUp beginner or have been using it for years, Dave Richards will show you how to totally change the scale of a piece in an efficient manner ... read more

After so many good suggestions offered I almost chose one until this one came to mind. The lost scrolls of handwork I also like quirks and beads and at the workbench but the lost scrolls of handwork is like the forgotten handtools which is exactly what we are trying to revive. Let me know if you like it. I've already reserved the name but haven't paid for it yet. ... read more

The explanation why an iron is important for woodworking will be part of this weeks post. Beside of some progress on the balcony bench project. But first things first. It is a crazy summer. And I'm not sure any longer, if we can speak about summer. Since late June the weather is changing every second day. One day it is warm and sunny, the next day it is raining cats and dogs. It ... read more

Closing in on the cabinet being done. I glued the slips on the drawers tonight and I'll let them cook until tomorrow. One thing I'm not sure of is whether or not I have any 1/4" birch plywood for the drawers. The small alignment pieces I used came from the shorts bin and I didn't look to see if I had any bigger pieces. That may put a stop on the drawers come tomorrow.planing epoxyI planed the back into the middle and ... read more

I spent the better part of my shop time last week and this past weekend trying to get the shop cleaned up and organized.  It is amazing how far out of hand something can get before you really stop and say enough.  So I took the time to get things under control and take care of some basic housekeeping type projects before committing to my next full-fledged project. I organized the wood pile.  (I’m too ashamed to show you a ... read more

      Tune-up your think melons and caption this painting. The painting is 17th-century and by an unknown Italian artist. The companion painting featured unclad blacksmiths. –Suzanne EllisonFiled under: Historical Images, Personal Favorites ... read more

A moisture meter is a device that lets you see the future. It allows you to avoid mistakes where your furniture will – literally – fall to pieces. But convincing woodworkers to buy one is like trying to push water uphill. This weekend, Brendan Gaffney and I were each working on some chair projects and got on the topic of moisture meters. Brendan has an idea for how to make […] The post Yes, a Moisture Meter is Essential Equipment ... read more

When I was a kid, and we would sit on the gym floor in elementary school for assembly, I would squirm from the minute my hiney hit the floor. For the life of me I couldn’t figure out how the other kids could stand it. I remember once, sitting on that gym floor, watching a live performance of The Princess and the Pea and really feeling like I knew what that poor girl was going through. I have (and have ... read more

I pretend I exist in a bubble or cocoon. Each day I’m at home, I get up & have breakfast with the family, and then make my way out the back door to the workshop. Open up the windows to let in the sounds of the birds, check the river – tide in or out? Coming or going? And then sort the day’s projects – am I cutting these mortises, carving which pieces – most of my concerns are ... read more

Hello and welcome to my blog!  This series begins a build in which I’m creating custom kitchen cabinetry.  Kitchen cabinets are a significant departure from my usual work, but my shoji client, pleased with my efforts, has encouraged me to take on the job.  The homeowner in this case is himself a very capable person with much experience in the trades and so was willing to do the rough framing work that I do not do as a cabinet maker. ... read more

Among the Japanese tools I’ve seen over the years, I haven’t seen much in the way of drills in the sense of the brad point/auger/twist bit drills that we’re familiar with in western woodworking. There are Japanese gimlets, small hand held tools used to make small holes. These holes would be used to make pilot holes for metal, wood, or bamboo nails. The business end of the tool has a square profile, and the four sides come to a point.In use, ... read more

It was hard to choose what to expend calories on in the shop tonight. I have the binder box that is mostly complete and it has a couple coats of finish on it too. I am undecided on how I want to pin the hinge arms to the box. Depending upon how that goes, it may add some days before the completion date.The drawers for the finishing cabinet are now at the fitting stage. I have to clean them up, do ... read more

Right off the bat thanks to everyone who responded. Matt offered some really great ones and two stood out the most. Planes, Chisel and Saw And At The Workbench The first one is a title from a book my friend Tony Konovaloff wrote so I can’t use that, but it’s great and definitely complements what this magazine’s about But I equally like At the Workbench and I’ve secured it pending payment which means no one gets it till ... read more

Commenting on a recent post, a reader asked: Do you typically use your DeWalt 735 for planing, and your Hammer A3-31 for jointing? I am starting to look at combo jointer-planer units, and would be interested in knowing if you typically use separate machines for these two functions. You mentioned in a previous article you […] ... read more

First impression of the Narex firmer chisels is good, the chisels have nice balance, the backs, of at least the 26mm, are very slightly concave. Less than 3 minutes on the 400 Atomic and it was flat. The bevel and back honed up quickly on the med India and Hard Black Ark developing a nice burr quickly and got a beautiful 'polish' on one of the hard JNAT's.They may be keepers,kenP.S. Ralph you shouldn't have but It looks like a ... read more

Not much done today. They gave me a "happy pill" so I could stay in the MRI tube long enough to get the needed image.  Damn it is a loud sucker, it would help if they gave you a countdown clock so you would know how much longer. Anyway bottom line I was an adult and did as told with the help of meds.It's after 1700 here and still no UPS girl with the vise screw. I'm also waiting for ... read more

While Katy’s soft wax is great for furniture surfaces – especially interiors – she has a new devoted customer: Crucible Tool. Unbeknownst to me, Raney and John have been using the soft wax on our improved-pattern dividers as the final finishing step. In fact, Raney asked me to make a big batch for him so we didn’t waste so many little 4 oz. tins. If you’d like to give soft wax a try, Katy has a batch in her ... read more

I chose HANDWORK as the title of our magazine as it best describes what we do, but as I tried to register the name yesterday through ASIC they tell me a little old lady has taken this name.  Not only did she take this name she registered multiple spellings of handwork.  So, now I need another title for the magazine and I tried several others; Handcraft – taken Handkraft – taken Handcraftd – taken woodworking with hand tools – too ... read more

Some old-school time lapse photography of mowing rougher vegetation. Continue reading → ... read more

Your responses to the last blog came as no surprise. As people accept the ever more mundane of mass making, skills automatically become dumbed down. Manufacturers that once had loyalty on a more local level have gradually sold out and what we thought was still being made domestically by local skills was hidden behind bland … Read the full post No Surprises on Paul Sellers' Blog. ... read more

For as long as I have been writing about woodworking, I have wanted to build a dugout chair. I first encountered the form in one of the many furniture books we had a Popular Woodworking Magazine. Soon after I started working at the magazine in 1996 I began poring through the books whenever I had a spare moment – attempting to get up to speed with all the different furniture […] The post The ‘Dugout Chair’ Begins With a Rotted ... read more