Go for the Big Stuff

I’m not sure if I qualify as a tool nut–machine crazy is more like it. I started out using a ShopSmith, but I now have 17 industrial-grade machines. It all started when my wife saw an ad in [...]

Wedged Woodworker

Wedged Woodworker Winter comes early here in Oregon, a fact I’d forgotten as I carried a custom kitchen cabinet to my truck. This cabinet was long and slender, to go above an extra-wide range. As [...]

Suction Box

If your shop is inside or attached to your house, you know that migrating sawdust is a problem, especially if you do a lot of power carving.  To minimize dust, I cut out one side of a 65-quart [...]

Disposable Drill Press Table

Instead of making disposable inserts for my drill press table, I found that it’s faster and cheaper to make disposable fence/table assemblies. I can use the entire surface of my disposable [...]

Modern 12 Drawer Dresser

A master craftsman’s method for making perfectly spaced drawers. I made this dresser for a client whose father designed and built similar furniture back in the 1950s. Its grid system is very [...]

The Spindle Roughing Gouge

Master this most basic turning tool. When I introduce someone to woodturning, I choose the spindle roughing gouge. When I work with kids, it’s the first tool I place in their hands. Why? [...]

My Penmaker’s Workshop

Editor’s note: This article originally appeared in American Woodwork #142, June/July 2009. I stumbled onto pen making seven years ago, as I was scouring through my husband Jerry’s [...]

Cheap Shop Supplies

When buying supplies for my shop, I often visit a store where stuff costs around $1. Many items sell for much more at a home improvement store, so I save a pile of money. You never know what [...]

Safely Rip Thin Strips

Tool: Thin Rip Tablesaw Jig Shop Now  Manufacturer: Rockler MSRP: $34.99 This tablesaw jig allows you to rip consistent thin strips safely and accurately. The jig clamps in the [...]

Space-Saving Workbench

Tool: Festool MFT/3 Multifunction Table Buy Now Manufacturer: Festool MSRP: $735 If you work in a small space, on a jobsite, or must stow all your tools when you’re done, check out the [...]

Spindle Sander Extras

My oscillating spindle sander’s auxiliary table makes quick work of edge sanding short boards and forming perfect circles. Make the table from melamine or a laminate-covered material and fasten [...]

Routing for Oval Inlay

Get a perfect fit using a shop-made jig. Oval and circular inlays are a time-honored method of adding class to a project, such as the top of a jewelry box. It’s an interesting challenge to [...]

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