Issue 97
Issue 97
Garage Shop Season
I know that plenty of you live in an area where the words “snow” and “shovel” are never in the same sentence. I am also aware that some folks who live where a flake occasionally will fall have been planting gardens and even eating produce from said efforts for a bit of time already. But here in Minnesota (home to “God’s frozen people” as Garrison Keillor has dubbed us), things are just starting to green up and Prozac® sales are dropping.
Some folks have this peculiar notion that the change in season means it’s time to do yard work instead of woodworking. I just don’t get that. I mean, if you mow the lawn … you just have to mow it again a week later: how frustrating is that? But if you build a bookshelf, once you fill it with books, you never have to deal with it again … well, you get the idea.
Anyway, for those of us with garage workshops, this is by far the best time of year. It is neither too hot nor too cold. I leave both garage doors open to the great outdoors and make enough noise and sawdust to really get the neighbors’ attention. So let the grass grow and weed the garden later. Spring in the north country is the perfect time for woodworking.
Sincerely,
– Rob Johnstone, Woodworker’s Journal
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Trend USA: Offering Unique Tools For the American Woodworker
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European Approach to Woodworking
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Miter Cuts and Joinery
My parts seem perfect — squared and sanded and smoothed — yet I still end up with gaps in my miters. Being a self taught woodworker, have I missed some basic, simple steps in joining angles, mitering corners, etc?
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Staining and Glue
Do I need to avoid using stain (particularly oil-based such as Minwax) on the areas where glue (e.g., Titebond) will be applied? Or will the glue hold even on waxed areas?
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Tools for Rough-Cut Wood
I want to start with rough-cut wood. What are the “best” tools for preparing rough-cut wood and what are the “essential” tools?
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Trend Airshield: Come over to the Dust-Free Side!
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Feedback
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Comments on JET Customer Service
After reading how JET was reorganized to meet a growing interest in woodworking, John E. Brady wondered what the company was doing about customer service.
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Davin and Kesler: Turning a Profit with Ideas, Designs, Production and Marketing
Working in a nineteenth century mill overlooking Dorset Mill Pond in the Rhode Island countryside are Tom Davin and Mary Kesler.
