It's the beginning of a new month and that means it's time for Router Bit of the Month!!  For the entire month of April, 2008 Woodcraft is featuring Whiteside's 1/4" radius Cove and Bead Edge Profiling bit. 

This little decorative edge profiling bit is like getting two bits in one.  The combination of a 1/4" radius cove profile and a 1/4" radius bead give plain old square and chunky edges a beautiful decorative look that's very pleasing to the eye.

The great thing about Whiteside's cove and bead bit is that when you use it in your router table it's like getting four profiles for the price of one.  By running your stock flat against the router table you get an edge with the bead leading the profile, but by standing the stock on edge and running it up against the router table fence you get an decorative edge with the cove leading the profile.

Or, if you're just looking to use the cove or the bead profiles by themselves it's once again a matter of adjusting the height of the bit and moving the fence back and forth.  In a matter of minutes you're making separate profiles from this one combo bit.

If you're interested in ordering this month's Router Bit of the Month from Woodcraft.com just click on the picture:

Congrats to Frank Bylo, this month's winner of a Whiteside router bit!!  If you haven't entered your name for free schwag or just have a comment, question or feedback, drop me a line at mattsbasementworkshop@gmail.com.

For anyone interested, coming up on April 11 & 12, 2008 there's a great little tool demo and woodworking school openhouse going on at J. Miller Handcrafted Furniture in Chicago. The details can be found at Lie-Nielsen.  There will be some great demos by a number of well known woodworkers and I'm planning on checking it out myself.

Don't forget to get your questions in for Hendrik's next visit in April, we're talking lumber defects and how to work around them. 

And I am still a little stunned.

Riley and I just came in from the shop - lesson one of hand cutting dovetails. We had finished dinner early and I looked over at the clock - 6:45. Hmmm... I wonder if there is enough time? Jill gave us her blessing so we headed out.

As we did the long walk to the shop, I realized I did not really know where to begin teaching Riley how to do this. Where do I start? Stock preparation? No... that is a lesson all on its own. How to hold a saw? No... experience is the best teacher for this. Show examples of how they look? Geeze... I was getting bogged down in the details. K.I.S.S. with emphasis on the simple.

I grabbed a scrap piece of 1x6 pine, cut it to 7" long, ripped it on the bandsaw to two equal width pieces - stock prep done. I did have a sample box that I built while at Rosewood studios several years back. We used that as reference for what through dovetails look like.

I could tell Riley was in the right headspace for doing this - he gently unpacked and admired his Wenzloff saws. I gathered the tools: the Tite-mark gauge, the 4" adjustable square, the sliding bevel and a pencil.

The first task was to define the baselines with the Tite-mark. I showed Riley how it worked, and he layed them all out. I was a little surprised that he had the sense to hold the fence firmly against the stock - I was anticipating having to gently remind him a few times.

We did not bother measuring to locate the tail lines - he just marked them wherever - and they were surprisingly well placed. Then he transferred the tail lines on the top and back down the other side. Again - he held the square correctly against the stock. This was going surprisingly well!



Next was sawing. I explained the difference between a crosscut and rip saw and marked each saws with a quick piece of masking tape (sorry Mike:) I then explained that it was easier to use a saw when you were making vertical cut as opposed to a sideways one. So Riley positioned the wood in the vice so the tail line was vertical (according to his eye) and then he started to cut. Note the index finger!



He held the saw incredibly well. We marked the waste with a Sharpie marker. He switched saws and cut off the waste. The shoulders were surprisingly strait and square.

Onto the pins. We used the tail to mark the pins and drew a big “X” on the waste. Riley grabbed the square to draw in the vertical lines... did I even need to be here???



He reached for the rip saw again, and used his own finger to help start the cut. The two shoulder kerfs were really good - now for the waste. For a second, I debated between coping or chopping the waste. We opted for chopping. Riley was a little nervous about using the chisels... but he soon got over it knowing he was going to get to use the green mallet. We chopped half way through from one side - I held the chisel. The second side went very quick and suddenly - we were done. I was preparing to break into a long speech about how they never fit the first time and would need some fine-tuning... when Riley grabbed the two pieces and pushed them together.

My jaw hit the floor - he was beaming.

The joint was a little loose - but it fit, it had square shoulders and kerfs and it was magnificent. I am not sure who was more proud at that moment.

As we walked back to the house Riley said he wanted to do a four sided one next time. I looked at the clock - 7:30.

Changes are a comin’. Delta/Porter-Cable announced at a gathering at AWFS last night a major revamping of their product line. Lower-end products are going away. Newer products are on the horizon. The focus will be on quality with an emphasis on a new look and major efforts in industrial design of the products. One example cited was a new Unisaw with both wheel cranks on the front of the saw. It’s a unique concept that should have been done years ago. The new Unisaw will also have upgraded guards and all upgraded internal components. (It was interesting to note that the guard on the prototpye looked suspiciously like the guard on Bosch’s new benchtop saw.)

They announced a “re-branding” of sorts where you will see the Delta/Porter-Cable names together more and more as time goes on. Their design center will remain in Tennessee and they are sourcing major components from U.S. suppliers and not necessarily from Asian suppliers.

Company executives admitted that there have been some bumpy roads for the two brands since their purchase by Black and Decker three years ago. They expect that the dollars and man-hours that have gone into re-engineering their product lines will have benefits for the woodworker and their bottom line with improved sales. They may be facing an uphill battle, but hopefully we’ll see some new, quality innovation in tools. Both brands have a century of reputation in quality and hopefully, they’ll be able to regain that respect.

P.S. — I would have posted photos of some of the tools, but company execs prohibited cameras. Some of the products shown are prototypes and all features shown may not necessarily make it into production models. I can understand and respect that. So stay tuned. As we hear more, we’ll post it here.

UPDATE: See the Press Release from Delta/Porter-Cable here: REVOLUTION Press Release

Have you ever designed a project from scratch and tried to decide what molding profile to use on the edge of the top? Why is it some moldings make a project appear “heavy” and some make a project seem light, like it defies gravity? Here’s a web site I ran across that’s got a great article and graphics on architectural moldings. It’s written by Donald M. Rattner, Director of the Institute for the Study of Classical Architecture at the Real Estate Institute of New York University. The article is a bit technical, but I found it interesting to see the different styles of moldings and how they affect the overall look of a project. The article is focused on architectual design elements, but the basic principles apply to your projects around the house, too.

I'll try not to get into techno-garble but obviously we are all internet users here. I've started using an online app called Google Notebooks and it is a great tool for researching and sharing ideas and discoveries. I've been using it to organize notes and online info about tools and woodworking. You can publish your notebooks as webpages for others to use and also set it up to have multiple users add to the notebooks. The best thing is that it is easy to use and edit. Here are some notebooks I've made public Layout tools Workbenches Saws If anyone would like to join me in building these notebooks, just email me and I will add you to the list of editors. As these are filled in, it will create a great resource that is fully searchable.

Often our conversations with people start months before the work actually begins and so it's always gratifying to hear back from folks after our work is done. I get pretty attached to folks while chatting with them over a period of months and David develops a special relationship with people through making their rings. Dani and Schmick have been in our lives for awhile ~ another couple of wonderful people whose kindness humbles us and whose friendship we value.

LumberJocks Woodworking Awards Summer 2008

Itâs time to get busy and creative againâthe Summer 2008 edition of the LumberJocks Woodworking Awards is here.

Feel free to compete in one or both of the following categories:

One Manâs Junk â â is a LumberJockâs treasure! Weâre testing your creativity on this one.  So, put your woodworking caps on and think of an innovative way to reuse some old hardware, reclaimed wood and/or recycled junk and turn it into something unique and special.  In the description of your entry give us a bit of history on the âjunkâ and how it inspired you to create the end product.

Serve It Up With Class â Summer is the time to take your meals and refreshments outside.  Use your woodworking skills to create a serving tray using at least 2 different varieties of wood.  Use inlay, marquetry, carving, and/or stains to turn your serving tray into a piece of art!

 

Thanks to our great Awards Sponsors you can win some very cool prizes in each category.  You also have a chance of winning a unique rosewood trophy as the Best Overall LumberJock.  Excellent way of decorating your workshop, huh?
Continue reading the official announcement by clicking here... LumberJocks Woodworking Awards Summer 2008

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

It's the first Friday of the month and that means it's time for ROUTER BIT OF THE MONTH!!!

This month we've had a chance to try out Whiteside's 3 Flute Flush Trimmer Bit.  A really great bit for when you're working with veneers, laminates or any thin material that can easily splinter and tear when you're trimming it flush.

Just like with all the other Whiteside Router Bits we've tried before, this one is no different when it comes to construction and reliability, they're well worth the money.  And considering they're on sale at Woodcraft for the entire month of March the price is even better.

So if you're interested in picking one up for your next veneer or laminate project head to your local Woodcraft or just click on the picture below to find it at Woodcraft.com

Don't forget to get your name in for upcoming schwag drawings if you haven't already, or if you have a question, topic suggestion or feedback.  Send them all to mattsbasementworkshop@gmail.com .

Do you have questions about wood movement, acclimation or storage?  Submit them soon for our next talk with Hendrik.

When I first started to put together my workshop in the beginning of my woodworking career (if you can call it that).  I wasn't convinced that I had a need for a dedicated dust collection system, that instead my shop vac was more than enough.

Time went on, and I realized that I was mistaken, and once I had my first and current dust collector I quickly understood the limitations of the shop vac as the heart of a dust collection system.

For anyone interested, coming up on April 11 & 12, 2008 there's a great little tool demo and woodworking school openhouse going on at J. Miller Handcrafted Furniture in Chicago. The details can be found at Lie-Nielsen.  There will be some great demos by a number of well known woodworkers and I'm planning on checking it out myself.

For comments, questions and schwag entries drop me a line at mattsbasementworkshop@gmail.com.

 

Listen to today's show by clicking on the player below

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Playing with inlays. This is powdered copper in walnut with 4 coats of lacquer.

Wood Ring Custom Order

You can order your custom wooden wedding ring set at simplywoodrings.com. If you have a special wood that you have a deep connection with or just the love of nature and a desire to live in harmony with the earth, in an eco-frendly way. I will be glad to put something to gather for you. Visitme at http://www.simplywoodrings.com

This is the last day of the year when the 400th anniversary of the founding of the Jamestown settlement was celebrated in America and some ...

Watching the crew build the full-sized replica of a Roman catapult (in the video embedded in my last post) I was struck by a number of things the Romans did not have when they created these monstrous machines: they did not have fork lifts, chainsaws, power drills, circular saws, cranes, and other powered machinery. But even in those ancient times they had almost all of the hand-powered hand tools that modern woodworker has, and most of these we would recognize.

According to Roman Woodworking, the book I mentioned in a prior post, a woodworker in those times would have had a full compliment of tools for building in wood. I was surprised to see how many of these tools looked essentially identical to those we use today. Here's a quick list I compiled from the book:

• Workbench
• Adze
• Auger
• Chisel (both paring and mortising)
• Gouge
• Drill
• Knife
• Draw knife
  
• Spokeshave
• Lathe
• Plane
• Saw
• Wedge
• Hammer
• Mallet
• Calipers
• Dividers
• Compass
• Plumb Line
• Level
• Ruler
• Square
• Bench dog
• Clamp

In all, a fairly complete list of hand tools for building in wood. As for moving the massive timbers around and assembling the machine, they would have had to do this all the hard way?with levers, wedges, mallets, hammers, pulleys, and raw muscle. Wow.

The next Woodturner's Group meeting is coming up on Tuesday. At our last meeting, one of the guys did a demonstration for us on how he constructed his segmented bowls. I'm working on a project that incorporates those methods and I'd like to be able to bring it with me on Tuesday.

I'm pretty sure I have all of the components I need, it's just the detail work in putting it all together. And yes, this is a big tease, as I'm not going to show you anything yet...

The Des Moines Woodworkers Association makes it clear that their mission is to dedicate their time and effort (and a considerable amount of expertise) “…to education, community service, and sharing of knowledge for those of all ages and skill levels…” who are interested in woodworking.

For example, a few months after 9/11, I became involved with a project sponsored by the club and Woodworkers United for America to build Memorial Flag Boxes for the families of victims of the terrorist attacks. It was a gratifying experience and I ended up building a few extras for my family members.

Then, just the other day I heard a member of the club on a local public radio station talking about their latest community project — building special caskets for preemie babies. The Infant Casket Program is an off-shoot of the Precious Angels Organization. Their goal is to help families who have lost children and may not be able for whatever reason to afford a quality casket or other services. You can find out more about this organization here.

Des Moines Woodworkers club members can build caskets from plans provided on their website. The club also provides wood to any member who requests it to build caskets. They announced the plans to help out at their last meeting and the hope is that members will bring their projects to the September meeting where they’ll be presented to Vicki Dischner, the young lady who runs the program for SpecialAngelsIA.org. The Des Moines Woodworkers have also contacted clubs in Omaha, NE., and Ames, Cedar Falls, and Cedar Rapids in Iowa to become involved in this worthy project.

Contact Russ Wilson, the community service director for the club, if you’d like to be involved.

If you are a regular visitor you will notice that my website has a completely new design.

This is very exciting as it coincides ...

So since we're already in the neighborhood talking about Shop Vacs I had a few more thoughts I decided I would share with you.

This time my thoughts on Shop Vacs are a lot more positive than in the last episode and I have a few ideas about what to look for in a good Shop Vac.  Some are pretty obvious and others might seem frivalous but I think they're important to me.

While I don't think Shop Vacs are good for a central dust collection system I do think they have an important role in the workshop.

For anyone interested, coming up on April 11 & 12, 2008 there's a great little tool demo and woodworking school openhouse going on at J. Miller Handcrafted Furniture in Chicago. The details can be found at Lie-Nielsen.  There will be some great demos by a number of well known woodworkers and I'm planning on checking it out myself.

For comments, questions and schwag entries drop me a line at mattsbasementworkshop@gmail.com.

 

Listen to today's show by clicking on the player below

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Referring back to Flattening Traditional Oilstones on 15th Nov 07, here is a picture of the rounding or bellying of a chisel ...

One of the fundamental definitions of a sharp edge is the intersection of two flat surfaces that meet at some angle. Whether it’s a chisel or plane iron, if one of the surfaces isn’t flat, you can’t expect to get a sharp edge.

There’s a running discussion over on WoodNet about if, when, and how you flatten the backs of your chisels. Then there’s the question of what “flat” really means.

Personally, when I buy a new chisel, I’ll use wet/dry sandpaper on a granite tile and work through the grits until the back is polished. Then I’ll work on the bevel to get a sharp edge. After that, the only time I work on the back is to remove any burr after I’ve honed the edge. I’ve had good success with that method and my chisels seem to be plenty sharp. The same holds true with my plane irons.

With western chisels, I only worry about polishing the last ½” or so of the back. Japanese chisels are hollowed out on the back side, making them easier to flatten.

Head over to WoodNet and leave your 2¢ worth.

Well, between my new employer wanting me to actually work, and the quest to find a new house to live in, last week saw no update to the blog.

However, during my my 3 ½ hour drive from Holland, Michigan to Indianapolis this morning I managed to let my brain achieve that higher stage of consciousness that so often leads to my random deep thoughts and/or arrest for creating an unlawful disturbance.

Obviously, most of these relate to music or driving, given I scribbled them out while cruising down the highway. Let's jump right in and see what new and insightful life lessons I have for you today:

Somewhere there is a Saab driver who knows what the hell they are doing, but I still haven't met her yet.

Despite what the group America says, Oz also gave the Tin Man directions to a very good seafood restaurant.

Why don't CHEATING and CREATING rhyme? I mean look at them…they're practically twins!!!!

Did Manfred Mann have bands on other planets in our solar system?

Am I the only one who thinks Paul Young's voice is about 400 times better than Neil Young's?

Ya know, John Waite's English really isn't all that "Bad" for someone born in the UK.

Given their name, I think MODERN ENGLISH should have been a BAD ENGLISH tribute band.

Pound for pound, Karen Carpenter had the prettiest voice of all time. Which reminds me:

It is worth noting that there are just two months left to vote for the best Skiving Off one-liner of 2008. At this time the polls indicate our leader is:

"Somewhere between Karen Carpenter and Mama Cass there is a happy middle ground."

followed closely by:

"I'd give my left arm to be ambidextrous."

There is one variation of usage which has struck me forcibly after many years of reading American magazines and Reviews.

Larry Williams' wooden moulding ...

The Bombe Secretary has been on display for a week at the Massachusetts Historical Society, and Tommy talks to the institute's librarian about some documents from the era placed on the piece.

It's April and Hendrik is back to answer more of your questions.  This month we're talking about dealing with troubled stock.  Since nothing is worse than dealing with cupped, bowed, twisted or crooked boards we answer your questions about how to tame these problems or maybe even avoid them.

Today is part 1 of our discussion, and since it's Friday that means it's Feature Friday so one of you lucky listeners is winning some free schwag!  Are you the lucky listener??

For anyone interested, coming up on April 11 & 12, 2008 there's a great little tool demo and woodworking school openhouse going on at J. Miller Handcrafted Furniture in Chicago. The details can be found at Lie-Nielsen.  There will be some great demos by a number of well known woodworkers and I'm planning on checking it out myself.

Remember for comments, questions and schwag entries drop me a line at mattsbasementworkshop@gmail.com.

 Listen to today's show by clicking on the player below

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