Doug Stowe has up a new article on the therapeutic value of creative manual labor such as hand tool woodworking. He has some food for thought that many of us can back up from personal experience even if we don't understand the technical and chemical processes involved.

Here is a quote from the article: "By getting lost in our work, transcending the sense of self, losing all track of time in our creative efforts we generate the same neurohormones that we excite through mind altering drugs and alcohol... We ignore the needs of our children for creative expression only to introduce and enforce their tragic addiction to other things."  read more »

Beautiful Mesquite Cabinets require the hand of a craftsman and Mesquite HardWood from ADM.



Photo Courtesy of Warsaw Woodworks

Fine Mesquite Cabinets installed By Craftsmen Like Joe Mozdziock of Warsaw Woodworks of Chino Valley Arizona really make an impression. This Kitchen Center Island was installed by Joe in the Prescott area. The Kitchen can become a place of warmth and beauty , and premium lumber from Arizona Desert Mesquite is the place to start. Here's a shot of some cabinets in the kitchen.

 

Contact :

Warsaw Woodworks
Joe Mozdziock
P.O Box # 2625
Chino Valley AZ  86323
(928) 636-0197

joemoz@netzero.net

Today I had to delete and repost an entry because of spam commenting (the comment didn't even have something to do with Woodworking). As a result, I've turned on comment moderation so I can stop this type of abuse before it happens. Don't worry: I'll only block your comments if they are somehow inappropriate for the site.

My last post showed how a piece of pine being used in my current project looks before I start working on it.

After running the board through the planer and jointer, it then looks like this:


The planer gets rid of the nasty looking rough surface and leaves what resembles a typical looking board.

This typical looking board is then glued to another typical looking board to create a wider typical looking board. When that wider typical looking board is sanded, it looks more like this:


stay tuned as progress continues...

You can sharpen your woodworking skills with helpful tips and techniques from the editors of Woodsmith and ShopNotes magazines. Get a FREE tips sent to your email address each week! Got to Woodworking Tips.com and sign up today.

Here’s last week’s tip from Woodsmith online editor Ted Raife:

It always breaks my heart when a project gets its first scratch. But I know that even with the best of care, it’s bound to happen. So rather than stew over a minor blemish, I came up with an easy way to make it disappear.

My repair system started with an investment in an assortment of touch-up markers. You can get these from many woodworking and finishing supply companies. My set includes about a dozen different colors and this gives me a good shot at finding a close match to the project. But the trick is finding the best color match without relying on a lucky guess.

To help make a more informed choice, I created a sample sheet on a piece of clear acetate. The sheet contains a small, labeled swatch from each marker. As you see in the photo, I simply hold the sheet up to the project to find a good match. After choosing a marker and performing a quick touchup, the project looks as good as new and I feel a whole lot better.

For more helpful project tips, techniques, and plans, visit PlansNOW.

Good Woodworking,

Ted Raife
Online Editor, Woodsmith

I've successfully added a new feature to the Norse Woodsmith website - blog feeds directly from some of my favorite woodworking bloggers - including Chris Schwarz, Adam Cherubni, Alice Frampton (Alf, at the Cornish Workshop), Gary Robert's Toolemera blog, and others.  There are links to their latest blogs at the bottom of the page, and a link to a list view of posts arranged by individual blogger) or, if you prefer, the latest posts in their entirety by following the links in the "Community" pull down menu above.

I'll be adding more as I come across more that I feel have relevant content...  and blogs older than 16 weeks are automatically purged.  I enjoy reading all of these blogs on a regular basis, and hope you find them interesting as well.

Leif

Post Script:  These blogs are not located on this web site - they are simply RSS feeds from the individual's sites and contain only content available via RSS (no web site content).  Clicking on some of these links (such as those at the bottom of the page) will take you to those web-sites directly.  I am not responsible for the content of these feeds.

Note - if you are the owner of one of these feeds and do not wish me to publish it here, just let me know and it will be removed.  But if that is the case, for your benefit I would suggest you not publish the content via RSS...  Or set your teaser length to get people to click a link to "read more" on your own site.

Here is part one of laying out and shaping Carlo’s Plum Pudding. So many design elements to consider specific to the structural integrity of the Carlo Mollino coffee table and its ability to withstand the manufacturing process. In this episode we take the furniture design through the paces of machining and with minor safeguards and careful craftsmanship, the table, structurally takes the stress. The episode is loaded with design analysis of the piece and options to its final look.

Enjoy Part1 … Part 2 is right behind!!!

Formats available: Quicktime (.mov)

This ring is made from Ancient Kauri wood and 99.9% pure fine silver.

Alan Turner and Mario Rodriguez*, two well-known and talented woodworkers, were the guest speakers at our most recent woodworking club meeting, a combined meeting with another club. Alan started his own woodworking school several years ago, The Philadelphia Furniture Workshop, where both he and Mario are instructors.

Mario demonstrated mitered through-dovetails and Alan demonstrated how to sharpen a scraper. Alan sharpens them a little differently than I do, so I decided to have a showdown between his technique and mine. I used the same scraper, a Sandvik, and sharpened one edge with my technique and the other edge with Alan's.

Here?s my process:

Chuck the scraper in a vise, and using a smooth file, square each edge 90º to the sides. Switching to an 8,000 grit waterstone, hone the edge. Skew the scraper as you hone, so you don't plow a groove in the waterstone. Next, hone 1/2" of the face of both flat sides. Put some oil on a burnisher (some people use the handle of a screwdriver, but I have better luck with a burnisher), hold the scraper in your hand** and, using a fair amount of downward pressure, slide the burnisher 3-5º along both sides of each long edge, 5 or 6 times. The idea is to create a hook on both sides of the edge so you can use both sides to scrape.

Here?s Alan?s process:

First, he oiled the scraper and the burnisher. Then he laid the scraper flat on the workbench near the edge and used the burnisher to draw the metal out along each long edge on both sides of the scraper, creating a ?U? shape of metal along each edge. Then he chucked the scraper in a vise and filed the edges to 90º. He added more oil to the scraper and burnisher, then he drew the metal out once more on the workbench. Back to the vise, he burnished each side of each long edge 2-5º.

To use the scraper, flex the blade between your thumbs and hold the scraper at 45º to the work surface. The moment of truth....

They looked the same to me. I was surprised because I thought Alan's would work much better. I still think his is a better sharpening technique that will produce more consistent results. But, take your pick!















*Photos of Alan and Mario courtesy of Robert Aspey.
**It's possible to cut yourself by holding the scraper in your hand while using the burnisher, so to be totally safe, you can secure it in a vise instead.

I have been scratching my head for a while wondering where to start figuring out the various periods of furniture design. I just came across a chart that I want to share a link to.

While the timeline might not be terribly useful in and of itself, assuming it is reasonably accurate, it should provide a great jumping off place to do some further research on wikipedia, google, amazon.com or even at your local library or museum.

Go ahead over and check it out.

Here’s something you’ll want to put on your calendar. PBS will be airing a show entitled, “Craft in America: A Journey to the Artists, Origins, and Techniques of American Craft.” It will air in three episodes beginning on May 30. The most notable artist to be featured—as far as woodworkers are concerned—is Sam Maloof. You can see a list of other artists to be featured here. The web site has a cool virtual exhibit that will show you some of the work of the artisans.

To find out when Craft in America airs in your local area, click here.

After having decided on a layout for the interior, I proceeded to take measurements of the
drawer case mockups. With these measurements in hand, I then create a cut list. The cut list provides me a clear idea of the amount of wood necessary to make both the drawer cases. The cut list also allows me to optimize the individual components for the drawer cases in order to minimize the wood necessary. This is only valid to a point however, as the wood components need to be selected with careful consideration to grain orientation and to maintain the harmony of the individual drawer cases.

With this information in hand, I selected an area of a large beech plank to cut my blanks from. Fortunately, I have some very nice European Beech planks in my studio I had acquired a while ago. The planks are rift to quarter-sawn in grain orientation and fairly thick at approximately 2.5 inches. The blanks are slightly different in size and are rift-sawn. The difference in blank size is attributed to the different size of either of the drawer cases. In the photo above, the two blanks can be seen along with my measurements and cut list. I also drew the components of the drawer cases out on another sheet of cardboard as a visual aid in laying out the components. Since the depth of the drawer cases is fairly large, I will be gluing two pieces of beech for each of the tops, bottoms and sides of the drawer cases. In doing this, I will try to maintain grain orientation and harmony to create fairly seamless components for the drawer cases.

Next I will layout and mark the boards to be cut from both of these beech blanks. After cutting the blanks in half and squaring one face and one edge of the individual halves , I will slice the boards off using a bandsaw similar to resawing.

With the banding now cut, it's time to put on the cuff. Tommy outlines how to construct the table foot and cuff then reviews some user submissions.

I am looking forward to another USA trip in May 07.

This starts with a weekend class at the Marc Adams School in Indiana. ...

Got your attention, didn't I?

Well then, lend your attention to www.woodtreks.com.

You can thank me later.

Keith Cruickshank's video blog is the latest blog I am tracking here at www.unpluggedshop.com on the blog aggregator on the front page.

Oh, and don't forget to leave a comment or send an email, and let Keith know how much you appreciate his stuff.

Hook, crooked, bent knives, whatever you like to call them (they are the same depending on what part of the world your in), are an exceptionally versatile tool if made well. Carvers, craftspeople, and woodworkers of every stripe would benefit from having a good sturdy hook in their tool box. I know a plumber who would not be without one. A strong hook gets into places nothing else will. First, the steel. Tool steel bought from a supplier is perfectly annealed and easy to work with, but I recover mill bandsaw blade 12"wide x 30" or gang saw which is 18"diameter x 1" because of its qualities and strength. It is a Swedish steel with a combination of molybdenum, chromium, nickel as well as a high carbon content. When filers (a mill working trade) toss band saw out they cut them up into 4" or 5" lengths. If you can get some it is well worth using, especially for hooks and swan necks, because of its exceptional tensile strength which lends itself to an excellent edge. I was taught old school. Files, no glue, and hardening and tempering. The most important factor in making any knife with reclaimed steel is the annealing process. For a hook of medium size using sawblade (with any hard high carbon steel the process is the same) have a piece of steel ¾" x 1/8" x 6". Bring the length of steel to a cherry red slowly over 5 or 6 minutes and let it sit at that colour for at least 5 minutes (20 is ideal). Place the cherry red steel--don't let it get any hotter or you'll burn out carbon--into a large coffee can filled with wood ash or lime or wrap the steel with ceramic wool, anything that completely envelopes the cherry red steel and insulates it well. In the case of a coffee can you will need a cover and make sure the steel doesn't touch the can. Let it cool slowly overnight. In the morning you should be able to bend the steel with your fingers. Annealing relaxes the carbon molecules It can now be filed, drilled, sanded and bent. With this practice you can start from scratch putting your own shape, hardness, temper, strength and marks into the steel. Now you have a piece 1/8" x ¾" x 6" long and annealed. Whatever size of blade, it should have the same proportions. If, for instance, it is 1/16" steel, it will be half the length and width of blade. The handle end (the tang) should not be less than 2" long. With this idea you can build very small, 1/16 inch hooks, 1" long, beautiful for detail. Smaller hooks require a slightly different process. Dedicate the nicest side, the side with no nicks or scratches, as the back. Then designate one end as the tip end. Draw a line across the middle of the blade. Now there is a back and top and 3 inches of tang and 3 inches of blade. Now draw a line lengthwise right down the centre of the blade, from end to end. The two lines will cross in the centre of the blade. On the tang, one inch down from the centre cross line, mark your first bolt hole on the length line, then mark a hole point ½" from the end of the tang, on the centre length line. From the tip end, draw 2 lines, one on either side of the lengthwise centre line, creating an isosceles triangle to the cross centre line. On the equal sides of the triangle, draw slow curved lines for the cutting edges Now grind to the curved lines. Keep the steel cool dipping it into a can of water as the steel heats up. There are two more parts, edge and shaping and hardening and tempering, to this article. Cariboo Blades Handforged Tools and Knives

Just a brief update… I have added new (and highly requested) Contests tab to the main navigation. It links to the page that lists our past and present Awards and Challenges together with the corresponding dates.

Check it out now – I’m sure you’ll be pleased to see LJ history in the making ;)

What's the best way to ensure a perfect dado? With a router plane. Tommy demonstrates why and how to use the router plane, a simple but valuable tool in a woodworker's arsenal.

If you’re a subscriber to Woodsmith or ShopNotes magazine, or live in the state of Iowa, you probably already know that we’ve been busy around here. We’ve been working hard on a new TV show that has been airing on public television (PBS) stations in Iowa and will soon be available nationally in December.

The Woodsmith Shop is unlike any other woodworking show you’ve seen. It’s the first one to be filmed and produced (by Iowa Public Television) in High Definition. That means the picture quality is unsurpassed. You’ll see all the details of the tips and techniques we talk about on the show.

Second, The Woodsmith Shop isn’t a project-based show. What I mean is we’ll spend an entire episode talking about a particular woodworking joint, tool, or technique instead of building a project. That means you’ll get more detail about woodworking than you’ll find on any other show. And you’ll have the opportunity to download project plans and articles from our web site that are related to the show’s content.

We’ve been getting a lot of positive feedback so far from those that have seen the show. And a lot of folks nationwide are anxious to take a look. Now is the time to take a minute to email or call your local public television station and tell them you heard about The Woodsmith Shop and want to see it in your area. This link will take you to the show’s web site where you can find out if the show is airing in your area. You’ll also get a list of PBS stations in your area and a contact link for each station.

Let us know what you think of the show.

A while back I was going nuts. I usually love sanding as part of woodworking, but I was extremely frustrated trying to sand a purpleheart inlay flush with a maple binder. The purpleheart was just so dense it was taking forever!

A post over on Woodnet got someone suggesting getting a card scraper to get that purpleheart flush. I'd been wanting one, but never had a need for it. Until that day.

I bought a set for $20 with 4 different scrapers, and dropped another $20 on a burnishing rod.

After playing with them and learning how to sharpen a card scraper, I discovered something: They make the wood SMOOOOOOOOTH!!!

Not just dense woods, but even pine is given a nice treatment with the scrapers!

I'm not going to give step-by-step instructions on how to sharpen or use a card scraper. There are plenty of sites out there for that. Google it up.

What I will tell you is that this is absolutely something you want to learn. Properly sharpened and used, a card scraper will create a smoother surface than most power tools, and smoother than you can get wood with sandpaper (without burnishing it and hurting the woods ability to absorb stain).

Plus you have much more control over the tool than you do with a thickness or surface planer. You can remove material in a very precise manner, getting just the area you want, and leaving the rest untouched.

The photos attached to this post are of some edge glued purpleheart I'm using to make a coffee grinder using one of the Rockler Coffee Mill mechanisms and the free plans they provide. I am scraping the glue as well as bringing the two pieces into a more perfect alignment. The second photo is of the shavings after just a few passes with a scraper. You want tiny fluffy curly shavings. Not dust. The scraper is more like a micro-planer and cuts instead of scrapes.

Using a card scraper will improve your woodworking and ease up on your use of sandpaper. Give one a shot! You don't have to buy the stuff I did either. Any bit of hardened steel can act as a burnishing rod, and individual cards are around $5.

Try one and see!

Everybody has their little secrets. Mine is moonshine. Moonshine works for me. It allows me to focus, to get the job done, in fact, without moonshine, I'ld have to find...

[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Kleenex box alert! Even an ace make mistakes, and for Tommy, a slight miscalculation early on means a heavy load of heartache today. The hours spent hand carving the doubler are down the tubes as Tommy takes a router to his mis-sized masterpiece. Could he have fudged it a little and made it fit? Sure, but that's is simply not the way he works. So Tommy sucks it up, rips it out and starts all over again. Didn't a famous home improvement guy once say, measure twice, cut once? He hopes he won't make that mistake again.

For the second year in a row, the readers of Atlanta's Sunday Paper have voted Highland Woodworking (also known as Highland Hardware) the metro area's best hardware store. Coming in as runner-up to Highland Woodworking was Home Depot with its 20 metro Atlanta big box locations. Guess that really goes to show that you don't necessarily have to be the biggest to be regarded as the best. Thanks to all our customers and fans who helped select Highland Woodworking over all the dozens of other worthy hardware stores in and around Atlanta! And congratulations to Home Depot for coming in second!

Quoting the Sunday Paper:

BEST HARDWARE STORE: HIGHLAND HARDWARE

THE LOWDOWN: Is it the tool tutorials? The woodworking classes? The down-to-earth, helpful staff? What is it about Highland Hardware that our readers always seem to love? Perhaps it's the fact that in the chi-chi district of the Highlands, where nothing seems very useful, a hardware store is a reminder of purpose, a monument to getting things done, a touch of the "real."

THE BASICS: 1045 North Highland Ave. NE     MAP
800-241-6748   www.highlandwoodworking.com.

THE RUNNER-UP: Home Depot

I am delighted to note that Alan Peters' book
Cabinetmaking The Professional Approach is due to be republished in the autumn this ...

I'm hoping it grows on me, but right now... I really don't care for it.