Issue 310
Issue 310
Trees to Lumber
Last Sunday at church, my friend Jay started asking me about making a butcher-block table. He is a handy young man, and had decided that the butcher-block tables that he and his wife had been looking at were simply too rich for his blood. He asked me what I thought purchasing the lumber to make the table would cost. While admitting that it was the wildest of guesses, I gave him my estimate. That number was apparently not to his liking either — so he asked me if he cut some trees down on his property, could he build a butcher-block table from that? (Jay has the heart of a woodworker, for sure!)
Which got me to thinking, so many of us have wanted to chop a tree down, make it into lumber and then “build something.” For woodworkers, it is a common goal. So my question is … how many of you have done it? And if you did, how did the effort go?
Let me know, and I will put the best of your letters in the Feedback department.
Rob Johnstone, Woodworker’s Journal
What's In Store
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Rockler Sawhorse Clips
Rockler’s new Sawhorse Clips for Bench Cookie Plus Work Grippers are a new metal accessory that works with panhead screws and Bench Cookies to attach workpieces of any dimension to a sawhorse.
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Porter-Cable Corded Oscillating Multi-Tool Kit (PCE605K)
Porter-Cable’s new Corded Oscillating Multi-Tool Kit has a 3-amp motor for quick completion of a variety of applications in different materials.
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Big Book of Intarsia Woodworking
The Big Book of Intarsia Woodworking compiles information on techniques like how to design intarsia patterns, selecting wood, creating effects with wood grain, adding color and more.
Tricks of the Trade
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Keep a Router Bit in Place When Tightening the Collet
Since it requires two wrenches (and two hands) to tighten the collet on most routers the bit will often slip too far down into the collet while both hands are busy.
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Homemade Portable Worklight
With a clip on light, a length of stock, and a 12 inch handscrew, you’ll be able to quickly make a portable light source for the workshop.
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Extend the Life of Your Respirator Cartridges
Respirator cartridges for gases and vapors have a limited life. You can help extend it.
Today's Woodworker
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John Yarema: From Fixer-Upper to Fabulous Floors
Years ago, John Yarema and his wife bought a house. “The only thing we could find that we both liked was an old one-room schoolhouse.”
Q & A
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Should Dresser Interiors be Finished?
Is it common practice to stain and finish the interior surfaces of the dresser?
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Options for Breaking Edges?
I understand that this may be personal preference, but do you take the time to rout or shape, say, a 3/16″ or 1/8″ edge, or do you use a hand style edger, or a sander, or hand sand?
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How Should I Spice Up Table Legs?
Can you give me some ideas on how to spice up the legs? I will use 4×4 or 3×3 to keep the cost down.
Industry Interviews
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Oliver Machinery: Continuing a Legacy, Despite Change
Founded more than 120 years ago, Oliver Machinery still offers a full selection of heavy-duty woodworking machinery and now, CNC too.
Reader's Project Gallery
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Red Oak Entertainment Center
Looked for a ready-made entertainment center for ‘time’ issues. Was not happy with anything I found, so I took the best of two different designs and came up with this!
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Queen Size Cherry Sleigh Bed
My latest project, a queen size sleigh bed made of cherry. Legs are four pieces of 3/4 cherry glued together and shaped on a bandsaw.
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Heart-Shaped Jewelry Box
Made with one piece maple bottom and walnut lids with red flocking.
