|
|

 |
|
|
| |
| |
| |
 |
Chris Marshall reports back on what's new with Milwaukee Electric Tools. |
Last weekend, I visited the woodworking school of our contributing editor, George Vondriska. He was hosting an interesting event to help veterans with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). |
Chris Marshall is getting some face time this week with the folks at Milwaukee Electric Tools, and he's looking for tool feedback to share with them. Do you have any? |
LiLi Jackson takes a look around the Furniture Society Conference that took place June 16-19, 2010 in Cambridge, Massachussetts |
How much do you like benchtop power tools? Our field editor shares some thoughts about three of his favorites. |
Reader Denzil Bell sent in these photos of a blanket chase made of cherry, walnut and maple. |
Are you willing to admit a woodworking mistake you sometimes make? Share it on our blog. |
While this reader project submission came in before our recent "Five Good Reasons to Get Framed" blog post, it's a great example of what Chris had in mind |
Chris Marshall previews the latest print issue coming your way. |
Last week, your intrepid editor flew to New York City at the invitation of Stanley Bostitch. |
If you're reading this, I'll bet I'm on pretty safe ground thinking you've got a serious interest in the craft of woodworking. |
Got any shop improvement projects planned this summer? We'd like to hear about them. |
Sealers and Pore Fillers
Strictly speaking, any finish that forms a film on wood can be used as
a sealer. Some coatings are so good at this task by themselves that
they are called "self-sealing" finishes. Other finishes are not, and
they benefit from special sealers. |
Skill Builder: Miter Joints

There are lots of different ways to cut parts for a basic miter-joined
frame: with a handsaw and miter box , with a table saw and
miter gauge or special miter jig, or using a dedicated
crosscut saw, such as a radial-arm saw, compound-miter saw or sliding
compound miter saw.
|
Coloring Redux: Glaze and Toner
Another common method of adding color to wood after it has been
sealed is with glaze. You can use glaze to highlight carvings or flutes, create
sunbursts and cameos, turn a painted surface into antique white, add
age to wood, or even create patterns like fake wood grain and marble. |
Skill Builder: Basic Butt Joints
Butt joints can be used in a lot of different ways to join two boards
or panels: edge to edge, end to side, end to edge, etc. To make a
simple square or rectangular frame, cabinet, box or drawer using butt
joints is very easy. |
Skill Builder: Hand Cut Mortise and Tenons
If you're doing woodworking on a shoestring budget, you'll be happy to
know that the only tools you need to cut tight-fitting mortise and
tenon joints are a square, knife and marking gauge, a fine-toothed saw,
and couple of sharp chisels and mallet. |
Wipe-on Finishes and More

Most
coatings are formulated to work best with a particular type of
applicator, but some work nicely with more than one. Knowing which
coatings favor which application techniques can help you get better
results. To that end, here's a rundown of the various common finishes
and some of the best application strategies for each. |
Rubbing Out: The Final Step to a Great Finish
You can rub out all types of film forming finishes, including shellac,
lacquer, oil based varnish and polyurethane, waterbased coatings and
catalyzed or conversion coatings. There are three strong reasons for
doing so. |
Skill Builder: Rabbets, Dadoes and Grooves
Not the showiest or most complex of woodworking joints, rabbets,
dadoes and grooves are, nonetheless, three of the most practical and
versatile joints you’ll ever cut. Best suited to cabinet and furniture
carcass construction using plywood, MDF and similar sheet goods, all
three joints are also good for some solid-wood applications, such as
building simple boxes and drawers. |
Skill Builder: Finishing Flow Chart
I'll expand on the finishing flow chart first published in the July
2005 issue of Woodworker's Journal by adding full descriptions of each
step in the process. The end result, if you keep them all, will be a
complete finishing primer. |
|
Making the Most of Your Router Bits: Glue Joint Bit

Gluing boards together to form larger panels is something of a mystery
to novice woodworkers. Boards don't line up properly, and clamps can
tend to force the edges out of alignment. Boards may have a slight bow
along their length and just try to get a clamp into the middle of your
panel to fix it. There is a wide array of joining systems out there to
help, but my personal favorite is still the Glue Joint router bit. |
Making the Most of Your Router Bits: Not Just a Door Bit
I used to teach router table classes and the most popular part was,
hands down, making cabinet doors. Virtually every bit manufacturer
offers door making bits in several profiles. These come in a set, where
the mating profiles are two separate bits, and a single bit form, where
both cuts are contained in one bit. The bit I'm using is the single
cutter type. |
Making the Most of Your Router Bits: The Butterfly Spline Bit
At first glance, the Butterfly Spline Bit seems like a very simple and
limited use tool. But look closer and you can find a lot of useful
applications for these splines.
The bit cuts a butterfly profile, essentially two dovetail keys joined
at the smaller width. |
Making the Most of Your Router Bits: Sash Bit
Many manufacturers make sash bits, but most are designed as 'stub'
tenon bits, working more like a stile and rail door set. The Freud set
is designed to make long tenons in the joint connections, making a
vastly stronger window. Because of this, the bits require a bit more
work, but the extra effort is well worth it. |
Making the Most of Your Router Bits: Dish Carving Bit

There are many projects that require the milling of pockets. Antique
game tables nearly always had dished-out areas for candles and game
chips. Signmakers often raise letters by removing the background
around them, and all sorts of serving trays, bowls and stands are
dished out to provide a rim for keeping things in. |
|
 |
|
|
|