Tricks of the Trade

I make my own zero-clearance throat plates for my table saw to minimize exit tear-out on workpieces and to prevent narrow pieces from dropping into the saw. When raising the blade through the [...]

The traditional way to make a square finial on a bandsaw is to mark and cut the pattern on one side of the blank, then tape the offcut back on in order to guide the cuts on the adjacent side. …

I like to augment tabletops and drawer fronts with decorative banding, inlaying it around the perimeter. The problem has always been the fussy trimming of the mitered corners. It’s hard to cut [...]

Sanding between coats of polyurethane is tough on sandpaper. And I make it tougher, because I never wait the recommended 72 hours before recoating. But if the finish isn’t bone-dry, the paper is [...]

After our last family birthday party I spent an hour scraping big globs of candle wax from several tables and our wood mantel. The next day, in response to my complaining, a coworker told me to [...]

Crouching to operate my compressor’s drain valve was no big deal until my football-ravaged knees started acting up. To keep from grimacing in the sawdust, I devised a more civilized way to clear [...]

I got tired of jury-rigging extra light for finishing, so I built this light stand from a 4‘ length of 2“ x 2“ and 1/4“ plywood. The 6“ x 17“ legs include …

A router can be one of the most versatile tools in your shop. We've brought together a few of our favorite tips and tricks to help you get the most out of your router.

I hated the black hole that appeared when I installed corner bifold doors in my kitchen cabinets. To get rid of this annoying gap, I decided to make the main door (the one with the hinges) [...]

My workbench is beautiful and I want to keep it that way, so I cover the top with builder’s paper whenever I’m gluing or staining. But the heavy roll was hard to handle and a nuisance to store [...]

My small air compressor cycled so often during use that the noise almost drove me crazy. As much as I hated to spend money, it looked like a bigger compressor would be my only option. That’s when [...]

Countersink first, drill the pilot hole second. That may sound backward, but it’s the easiest way to ensure a perfect countersink.