A craftsman makes the argument that bevel-up planes are easier to tune for end grain and difficult woods. I can clearly remember my first experience with bench planes. I was in high school shop class and while I was leveling a joint with coarse sandpaper wrapped around a sanding block, the instructor stepped up and…

Back in the late 1960’s, the folks at Record tools in Sheffield, England, redesigned their classic 044 plow plane (or plough plane, as they spelled it). It’s a tool used for making grooves by hand, and it’s hard to imagine why Record bothered to redesign it, with everything going electric back then. The 044 was…

Tool: Black 8″ Helical-Head Jointer JWJ-8HH-BLK Shop Now  Manufacturer: Jet MSRP: $2499.99 The company JPW (Jet, Powermatic, Wilton) has a long, rich history of offering quality, well-built power tools. (Note the side of my vintage Powermatic Planer in the photo above—circa early 1980’s, still running like the day it was new). Jet recently released a…

Tool:M18 FUEL 7-1/4″ Circular Saw 2834-21HD Shop Now  Manufacturer: Milwaukee MSRP: $449 (tool, 12ah battery and charger, framing blade, and bag) (Also available as 2834-20 bare tool) Don’t feel alarmed if you’re feeling a bit of deja vu; back in October I reviewed the new Milwaukee FUEL 6-1/2″ circular saw, and now that I have…

Tool: M12 FUEL Brushless 18-Gauge Compact Brad Nailer 2541-20 Shop Now  Manufacturer: Milwaukee MSRP: $249 (Bare Tool) I’ve been a slow converter to cordless power tools. However, with today’s advancement in batteries, you can do a heck of a lot with a fairly small battery. And, there’s something to be said for not having to…

Tool: ALPHA HW615 Band Saw Buy Now Manufacturer: Harvey MSRP:$3,399 A band saw is an invaluable tool in the shop. In fact, I know several extraordinary woodworkers that don’t even own a table saw, favoring a band saw instead. After seeing a few of the Harvey band saws in person at the IWF show in Atlanta,…

Tool: Gen II 18V One+ HP Compact Brushless Drill/Driver (PSBDD02K2) Buy Now Manufacturer: Ryobi MSRP: $139 (includes drill, two 1.5AH batteries, & charger) I have to confess this review is coming from a fairly biased space—the first generation ONE+ HP Compact Drill is probably my favorite drill I’ve ever owned. It was lightweight, powerful, perfectly balanced,…

Tool: 18V Brushless Colt Palm Router Kit (GKF18V-25PL14) Buy Now Manufacturer: Bosch MSRP: $399 (includes router, fixed base, plunge base, L-Boxx, 4ah 18v battery, charger, misc dust attachments) There is probably not a name more synonymous with compact routers than the Bosch Colt. For twenty years now, Bosch has been releasing compact routers under that moniker,…

Tool: Router Plane Shop Now  Manufacturer: Blue Spruce Toolworks MSRP: $269.99 One of the benefits of being in my position, is that I sometimes get to see tools that are in the works before they get released to the public. I’ve watched the development of the Blue Spruce Toolworks router plane for a while now,…

Perfection doesn’t exist. But you can come close. One of the first things any beginning woodworker must do is set up a workshop. Like so many other things a novice woodworker must do, the preparation of a workshop shapes the capabilities and enjoyment of the craft long after the novice has become an intermediate or…

Stop measuring and simply learn how to saw straight. The dovetail is an ancient joint widely used in cathedrals, barns and Egyptian furniture. It is the right joint for many items including fine furniture, carcases, drawers and jewelry boxes. They are all dovetailed together. I was only 27 years old when I came to this…

Devon Campbell is designing and building world-class tools from his shop in Queensland. Sometimes, the universe has a way of connecting the dots, whether you’re looking for it to or not. Back before the last Handworks Tool Show in the Amana Colonies, I was browsing some of the Facebook groups, seeing who was attending. Someone,…

No one can match Pfeil’s sharpening quality—Pfeil gouges arrive perfectly honed with ideal edge geometry. Unfortunately, this wasn’t the case with the Chinese knockoffs I tested. Both straight gouges had longer corners than the middle flute, causing them to catch during carving. Here’s how I corrected the issue and gave them a proper edge. I…

Over the last 40 to 50 years, Pfeil (Swiss Made) has become a highly respected brand in the woodworking community, widely recognized as the benchmark for premium-quality carving tools. This Swiss manufacturer produces beautiful and practical carving gouges, knives, and mallets—renowned for their exceptional steel quality and ergonomic comfort. In the United States, Woodcraft has…

Portable router tables are a great way to save space in your shop. We’re taking a look at the different options available and laying out the differences between them. Router tables are a mainstay in any serious shop, and sooner or later in your woodworking journey, you’ll need a way to mount a router in…

There’s new player in the loose tenon market. I’ve talked a couple times now about inexpensive jigs that turn a small router into a Festool Domino type tool. Available in a couple variations from different makers, the tools are innovative but not that easy or reliable to use. But you can’t keep a good idea down. A new entry into…

All-Day No-Chafe Comfort: What pants should you be wearing in the workshop? Woodworking is not a pants-optional environment, and a good pair of pants is worth its weight in cotton in the workshop. Whether you’re working with rough lumber or putting the finishing touches on a finish, you need workwear that can handle dust, sharp…

Book: Buchanan-Smith’s Axe Handbook Shop Now Authors: Peter Buchanan-Smith, Nick Zdon, Michael Getz, Ross McCammon Publisher: Abrams Books I’m a sucker for tools and good design, so Buchanan-Smith’s Axe Handbook was immediately added to my shopping cart when I found out about it. Simply put, it’s a book about axes, written by a person who…

Tool: Router Plane Shop Now  Manufacturer: Blue Spruce Toolworks MSRP: $269.99 One of the benefits of being in my position, is that I sometimes get to see tools that are in the works before they get released to the public. I’ve watched the development of the Blue Spruce Toolworks router plane for a while now,…

Tool: DiamondFinish Clear Shop Now  Manufacturer: KBS Coatings MSRP: $28+ It’s not often that a new type of finish is brought to the woodworking market. Recently, KBS Coatings, a company specializing in industrial coatings, started to make a push to bring their Diamond Clear finish to the home hobby woodworking market. I got in a…