Popular Woodworking Magazine » Power Tools

Tool Test: Micro Fence Micro Plunge Base

Article Index — Tue, 04 Dec 2012 21:08:11 +0000

By Steve Shanesy Page 16In the world of routers and routing accessories, it seems that small is big these days. The popularity of trim routers has been growing for some time; in fact, it’s now been a couple years since we praised Micro Fence’s plunge router base for the Bosch Colt, and we recently reviewed Makita’s compact router.Video: Watch a short video on line-and-berry inlay using a router. Read more »

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Do Power Tools Have Soul?

Matthew Teague — Sat, 24 Nov 2012 19:33:03 +0000

I don’t generally think of power tools in the same reverential, (perhaps) overly romanticized tones that come to mind when I consider hand tools. I can stare at my grandfather’s 8 oz. Kentucky Bluegrass claw hammer for hours daydreaming about what may have caused the nicks and wear. Or imagine the unknown maker who’s hands … Read more »

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Tool Test: Makita PJ7000 Biscuit Joiner

Article Index — Mon, 22 Oct 2012 19:37:44 +0000

By Steve Shanesy Page 18The biscuit or plate joiner category of the hand-held power tool world has been pretty sleepy over the past few years. But Makita has introduced a new model that, while not revolutionary, adds some nice, user-friendly features.The PJ7000 packs plenty of power in its 5.6-amp motor, yet the motor has a relatively small circumference making it comfortable to grip, even for smaller hands. The top handle is comfortable as well. Combined, these holding features provide solid control and less user fatigue. And at just 5.5 pounds, it’s relatively lightweight – about 20 percent less than most competitor models.Article: Read “A New Manual for Biscuit Joiners” on our web site. Read more »

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Tool Test: Bosch 23-gauge Pin Nailer

Article Index — Mon, 22 Oct 2012 19:36:18 +0000

By Robert W. Lang Page 18Whenever I use a 23-gauge pneumatic pin nailer, I feel like I’m cheating. It is a fast, easy and reliable way to attach moulding or other parts without much need to disguise the evidence. The slim fasteners leave tiny holes behind that are nearly invisible. This new gun from Bosch has several features in a well-designed tool that make it a great choice at a reasonable price.Bosch has devoted its efforts recently to tools that are lighter and more powerful than previous versions. The FNS138-23 has 10 percent more power than the previous model, allowing for deeper sinking of fasteners, or operation with lower air pressure.Articles: Visit our web site to read more tool tests from our editors. Read more »

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Better Dados for Casework

Article Index — Tue, 07 Aug 2012 14:36:41 +0000

We wanted perfect dados: precise in size and location. All it took was a router and a simple T-square jig. By Robert Lang From the Spring 2005 issue of Woodworking Magazine, pages 25-27 Dados are a “bread and butter” kind of joint. They’re simple and strong, and a router with a straight bit and a … Read more »

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Tool Test: Festool Domino XL DF 700

Article Index — Mon, 16 Jul 2012 14:25:16 +0000

By Matthew Teague Page 16Festool recently released the Domino XL DF 700, big brother to its revolutionary Domino DF 500, one of the most innovative tools of the last few decades. Aside from the size, the loose-tenon joints created by the XL are the same as with the earlier version. From a machine that resembles a biscuit joiner, a router-type bit both plunges and oscillates to cut mortises in mating parts. Into each mortise fits a loose tenon, or “Domino.”How’s the fit? As good as I’ve seen, whether cut by hand or power. And lining up the joint couldn’t be easier.Cut butt joints on square or angled parts, align the two mating pieces and mark the tenon location on both pieces with one quick swipe of your pencil. Line up the machine and make the plunge cuts. The XL also has an improved indexing system that allows for even less measuring.For the combination of speed and strength, this joinery system is tough to beat.Video: See a collection of XL reviews. Read more »

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Tool Test: M-Power CRB7 Combination Router Base

Article Index — Mon, 16 Jul 2012 14:20:56 +0000

By Steve Shanesy Page 16M-Power Tools offers an aftermarket router base that offers a number of features at the very reasonable price of about $90. It can be mounted to any router that has 5/16"-diameter edge-guide holes spaced between 35/64"and 51/8".One key feature is an indexed micro-adjusting wheel that lets you dial in the router bit to a measurement or layout line – it’s particularly useful when routing dados or grooves in combination with a guide rail or circle-cutting jig.And speaking of cutting circles, the base comes with a pivot pin and pre-drilled holes for cutting circles as small as 3/4" and up to nearly 9" in diameter.Video: See the CRB7 in action. Read more »

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California Closer to State Table Saw Regulations

Robert W. Lang — Tue, 10 Jul 2012 14:26:45 +0000

While proposed standards for table saw safety move slowly through the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s rule making process, the State of California moved one step closer to enacting legislation that would require “flesh detecting technology” on all new table saws sold in that state beginning in 2015, according to a July 4 story in the … Read more »

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Mafell Chain Mortiser. Dang.

Christopher Schwarz — Fri, 15 Jun 2012 11:08:29 +0000

My least-favorite joint to cut by hand is – hands down – a deep mortise. But when you build a French-style workbench, you need to make about a dozen of them. And if you do it by hand, you are talking about a lot of boring, chopping, paring and sweating. When I mentioned this to … Read more »

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