Popular Woodworking Magazine » Handplanes

Is Your Handplane Tuned? Acacia melanoxylon Knows

Christopher Schwarz — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 13:01:21 +0000

One of the best things about getting older has been the fact that I can now do more woodworking tasks “by feel” than “by eye.” As my already-crappy eyesight has become dulled by middle age, I’ve found that my other senses – particularly my sense of touch – have become heightened. I cannot always see … Read more »

The post Is Your Handplane Tuned? Acacia melanoxylon Knows appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.

What the Deceased Say About Dragging Your Planes

Christopher Schwarz — Tue, 05 Feb 2013 00:23:37 +0000

Though dragging your plane backward on the return stroke can make your iron dull faster, not all the old books agree that you should avoid the practice. In fact, many of my books are silent on the issue. “Spons’ Mechanics’ Own Book,” a massive tome on woodworking and other trades, has nothing (at least that … Read more »

The post What the Deceased Say About Dragging Your Planes appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.

When Planing, I Can Be a Real Drag

Christopher Schwarz — Mon, 04 Feb 2013 18:10:49 +0000

I’m the first to admit that I have some bad habits. I drink beer. I occasionally curse. And I sometimes drag my planes back across my work on the return stroke. When you receive traditional training, dragging a plane back across your work will get your knuckles rapped by the shop nun. That’s because when … Read more »

The post When Planing, I Can Be a Real Drag appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.

Sharpening Angles for Dullards

Christopher Schwarz — Wed, 23 Jan 2013 21:30:38 +0000

The most embarrassing jig I’ve ever owned has been photographed, measured and pondered more than any single piece of fine furniture I’ve built. It’s a stupid little block of wood with stops on it for many common sharpening angles I use with my side-clamp honing guide – sometimes called the “Eclipse” guide because that was … Read more »

The post Sharpening Angles for Dullards appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.

Back Bevels on Block Planes

Christopher Schwarz — Mon, 12 Nov 2012 17:11:04 +0000

When I was taught to sharpen in 1992, the flat back of the iron was holy ground. We were taught to flatten it completely and polish it like a mirror. Never mind that none of the old tools we were buying at flea markets looked like that. With the old tools, there was rarely much … Read more »

The post Back Bevels on Block Planes appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.

Tool Test: Veritas’s New Top-secret Steel

Article Index — Mon, 16 Jul 2012 14:25:56 +0000

Canadian company creates a steel combining the best of the old and new.By Christoper Schwarz Page 14I’ve long been suspicious of the so-called “super steels” that promise long edge life between sharpenings. That has always meant that you have to spend a long time sharpening the tool on your stones or – even worse – you have to buy fancy equipment to even get a serviceable edge.Plus, no new steel I’ve tried has ever had the feel of old-fashioned high-carbon steel. Until now.Veritas is using a powdered steel (a closely guarded formula) that seems to defy many of the normal laws of high-carbon and alloy steels. Powdered metal is nothing new in woodworking. During the last decade, I’ve tried out several plane irons and chisels that were made using the sintering process.In a nutshell, powdered metals are where you take your raw materials, combine them in liquid form and then atomize them to form a powder. The powder is sifted through a screen for consistency, put into a mould and then heated to form a solid billet. This sintering process allows you to make materials with remarkable consistency that can have properties that would be impossible to make by smelting.Blog: Read more about PM-V11 on Christopher Schwarz's blog. Web site: Visit the official PM-V11 web site. Read more »

The post Tool Test: Veritas’s New Top-secret Steel appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.

More Experiments with Chipbreakers

Christopher Schwarz — Sun, 15 Jul 2012 01:28:41 +0000

This week I’ve been surfacing a lot of wood by hand, from pedestrian sugar pine to funky metals that have wood-like properties (e.g. purpleheart). And all the while I have been testing, testing, testing things with my chipbreakers and the cutting angle of the iron of my handplane. Huh? You might say. Yes, there might … Read more »

The post More Experiments with Chipbreakers appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.

The Joy of Chests

Christopher Schwarz — Wed, 11 Jul 2012 19:03:51 +0000

I can build a six-board chest entirely by hand in about 10 hours of shop time. That time starts with one 8’-long and one 12’-long board and ends with a paint job. In fact, I just did. The above statement is not a boast. Instead, it is a way to encourage you to build one … Read more »

The post The Joy of Chests appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.

First Look: Lie-Nielsen 610 Low-angle Rabbeting Jack Plane

Christopher Schwarz — Sun, 08 Jul 2012 12:52:46 +0000

If you have attended any of the Lie-Nielsen Hand Tool Events in the last year and you have a sharp eye, then you probably noticed an odd-looking low-angle jack plane on one of the benches. It’s much like the No. 62 that Lie-Nielsen has been making for many years, but its sidewalls are open so … Read more »

The post First Look: Lie-Nielsen 610 Low-angle Rabbeting Jack Plane appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.

Veritas’s New PM-V11 Steel Coming Soon

Christopher Schwarz — Sat, 23 Jun 2012 15:17:00 +0000

Unlike many hand-tool woodworkers (and turners), I’m not much of a steel nerd. I’m not on a quest for the steel that promises the ultimate in edge life. The reason I’ve not experimented with lots of exotic steels is that every time I used CMP-10V, CMP-3V, D2 or whatever I found that these steels achieved … Read more »

The post Veritas’s New PM-V11 Steel Coming Soon appeared first on Popular Woodworking Magazine.