Author name: Enthusiast

Good nails have been used in fine furniture for centuries. But during the last 100 years, nails have earned a bad reputation among furniture makers. That’s because good nails (cut nails and forged Roman-style nails) disappeared and were replaced by wire nails. Wire nails are cheap, don’t need a pilot hole and don’t hold for crap – and that’s the nicest thing I can say about them. You can still […]

The post Anarchist’s 2015 Gift Guide, Day 7: Forged Roman-style Nails appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.

So it’s been busy! I’m sorry that I’ve not had the time to write – but fear not, plenty on the way. I’m pleased to have the Shaker Firewood Box project done (read Part 1 here), and here it is loaded with waste wood from our shop. Bear with me; I know the merits of firewood storage are unlikely to stoke the fires of passion but the fact remains I […]

The post Make a Shaker Firewood Box, Part 2 appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.

This year I have experimented a lot with using a soap finish on chairs and tables. Soap is a traditional Danish finish used on furniture and floors. It’s easy to apply, easy to renew, low on the toxicity scale and leaves a delightful low-sheen finish that is remarkably soft to the touch. The downside? It’s not very durable. After decades of using finishes that require bio-hazard gear, using a simple […]

The post Anarchist’s 2015 Gift Guide, Day 6: Soap Finish appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.

After 20 years, I finally wore out my grandfather’s Japanese-made trammel points. They were things of beauty, but the micro-adjustable friction mechanism began to slip and nothing could be done to fix it without the help of a machine shop. I’m going to get them repaired, but in the meantime I have lots of arcs to scribe. Megan Fitzpatrick, in a moment of pure generosity, ordered me this set of […]

The post Anarchist’s 2015 Gift Guide, Day 5: Veritas Trammel Points appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.

If you use only hand tools, this isn’t going to interest you much. If you use machines, read carefully. Lubrication makes a huge difference when you work alone. Moving heavy slabs across a jointer, table saw or through a planer can be difficult if you are on your own. For me, the difference between sore muscles and not sore muscles is B’laster Dry Lube, essentially Teflon in a can. No, […]

The post Anarchist’s 2015 Gift Guide, Day 4: B’laster Dry Lube appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.

I promise this is not an all-Starrett Christmas. Truth is (I hate to say) the last few things I’ve bought new from Starrett have been disappointing (especially a small pair of dividers). This tool, however, has not been a disappointment. Quite the opposite. For years I struggled with compasses in the shop. They were not hardy enough. They lost their settings. Even the expensive German ones I bought were just […]

The post Anarchist’s 2015 Gift Guide, Day 3: Starrett No. 92 Compass appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.