Issue 472

Old Dog, New Tricks

Some of you may know that I have been dabbling in CNC woodworking for a while now. To say that I am a whiz at it would be a lie. To say that I enjoy it would be completely true. There is something really cool about pushing a button and then seeing a machine crank out the sawdust and create a … whatever. (I know, the robots will eventually take over the world and humans will just be an organic repair crew … I’ve seen Battlestar Galactica. But I will be way gone by then.)

My latest go-around with the CNC is the table you’ll see in this issue’s Free Plans. Freud asked me to put their new router bits through a workout. (They are awesome, by the way.) We came up with this little table, which really takes advantage of the things CNCs do well, and let me do a couple of old school techniques as well. There is a video if you’d like to see what I am talking about. This old dog had big fun with that little project.

Rob Johnstone, Woodworker’s Journal

P.S. Talking about back to basics woodworking — Rockler is celebrating National Woodworking Month (April) with a series of Make and Take classes at their stores. If there is someone you are interested in introducing to woodworking … this would be a fun way to do it.