Woodworking Posts

I came across Andrew’s work on Instagram and Reddit and thought it was a creative build. Andrew uses skateboards that were broken or headed to the garbage to create colorful projects. In the video above he turned a baseball bat – on his Instagram feed you’ll see canoe paddles, drumsticks and coffee stampers. He’s creative and learning fast. I enjoyed his story, I captured part of it for blog post found […]

The post How to Make a Baseball Bat Out of Recycled Skateboards: Interview with Andrew Szeto appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.

When you hang around woodworkers there is always talk of hand tools versus power tools. You’ll meet people who love the idea of doing everything they can by hand and really connecting with their material. And you’ll meet folks who like to take advantage of the speed and convenience that modern machines afford. And then there are those who believe in employing the best of both worlds: using power tools […]

The post Book Giveaway: Hybrid Woodworking appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.

The very idea of digital woodworking is something new and strange to a lot of woodworkers, so it’s only natural there are a lot of questions. For many, the big question is “where do I start?” The answer is easy. Learn to draw using Computer Aided Drawing (CAD) drawing tools. You don’t have to own an expensive CNC router to get the biggest benefit of going digital. You can remain a […]

The post CAD is the Secret Sauce appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.

A woodworker asked me recently, “What the heck is a witness line?” Well, this opens up an interesting discussion. One of my pet peeves since I began teaching finishing, has been people creating new terminology when quite adequate terminology already exists. There’s no better example than “witness lines,” which is a new term for “ghosting” or “layering” that appears when you sand or rub through one layer of finish into […]

The post Witness Lines: A New Name for an Old Problem appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.

  A frequently heard argument about Japanese planes is that they are harder to setup than Western planes. Recently, we filmed “How to Use Japanese Woodworking Tools” with Wilbur Pan, in Frank Klausz’s shop. So naturally, we had many conversations during the shoot, and one that came up was on just this topic. One of Frank’s favorite planes is a wood-bodied plane with a similar setup to a Japanese plane (tapping the […]

The post How to Setup a Handplane: It’s Easier to Learn How to Use a Western Handplane appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.

I’m a huge fan of installing a grippy liner on your bench vise. Wood faces grip your work OK. Add the right liner and the grip will become fantastic. Here are some details on choosing and installing a liner. What’s a Good Liner? Most people prefer leather, cork, felt or a rubber such as Crubber. Each has advantages and disadvantages. Peel-and-stick cork is fast to install but isn’t very durable. […]

The post Install a Grippy Liner on Your Bench Vise appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.