Woodworking Posts

During the last few years as I have turned my back on finishes with lots of volatile organic compounds, I’ve begun looking for traditional high-quality finishes that won’t shorten my lifespan. I’ve bought a lot of beeswax from a lot of different sources, from national manufacturers to the individual beekeeper. They all work, but the nicest stuff I’ve found is from Don and Carolyn Williams at donsbarn.com. Don has spent […]

The post Anarchist’s 2015 Gift Guide, Day 8: Better Beeswax appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.

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.