Tricks of the Trade
If there’s one thing a woodworker loves as much as a new tool, it’s a new trick! There’s nothing like discovering a slick new maneuver or a cool jig that makes life sweeter in the shop. Fortunately, Popular Woodworking Magazine readers are a clever bunch, and happy to share their bright ideas.
In every “Tricks of the Trade” column, you’ll find a cornucopia of great ideas submitted by your fellow readers. They cover everything from hand tool tips, machine jigs, and clever shop accessories to great advice for better finishing, joinery, layout, and sharpening, among other time-saving, skill-building tricks. To read some of our recent “Tricks of the Trade” and to watch our “Tricks-in-Action” videos, scroll down below.
To learn how to submit an idea to Tricks of the Trade, click here.
Make a Rabbet Block Plane
I recently converted a common #220 Stanley block plane into an effective rabbet plane. I think a block plane’s comfort, low profile and blade angle can provide precision for paring tenons, rabbets and bevels of raised panels (and it’s significantly cheaper than the typical rabbet plane). To begin, drill a 5⁄16″ hole through the side Continue reading»
Do Double-duty with a Dovetail Jig
I was intrigued with Nick Engler’s Ingenious Jigs article from December 2001 that showed you how to make a jig for cutting perfect dados in the sides of case pieces. After my last project, where the routing was the most repetitious and boring part of the piece, I thought there should be an easier way. Continue reading»
How-to Draw Accurate Lines Around Corners
Many years ago my carpenter square mysteriously disappeared at the start of my basement finishing project. So I started using a butt hinge to mark lumber. It worked better than I had hoped. My carpenter square is still hiding from me, but I still use a 31⁄2″ x 31⁄2″ full-mortise butt hinge for transferring my Continue reading»
Make Forstner-powered Dovetail Pins
Chiseling and paring away the waste between dovetail pins can be largely eliminated by using a Forstner bit to remove the waste. Set up a Forstner bit (the diameter equal to your drawer side thickness) in your drill press and set the depth stop to just shy of the bottom layout line. Drill into the Continue reading»
How to Sharpen Dull Router Bits
Most shops have two types of router bits – dull and sharp ones. It’s easy to tell the difference because the sharp bits ease through the wood while the dull bits labor. Sometimes a good cleaning is all the bit needs. Any good blade solvent will rid bits of pitch and resin. Once the bit Continue reading»
Tricks of the Trade: Easy Way to Biscuit-join Edgebanding
by James Quinlivan
Page 12
I edge-band plywood shelves with solid wood, attaching the edge-banding with #20 biscuits. It’s no problem at all to hold the plywood shelf solidly while cutting the slot; that’s what bench dogs and an end vise do so well. But the edgebanding itself can be a little squirmy, either bending or rotating when held between dogs or slipping if held by the ends in a vise.
I finally realized I could use the Veritas Wonder Pup (#05G10.03 at leevalley.com) to capture the edgebanding between the Wonder Pup and a dog while another dog kept the edgebanding from rotating. With the biscuit cutter registering off the benchtop, this setup is nice and secure.
Video: Watch videos of some of our tricks at work at popularwoodworking.com/tricks.
Sturdy, Fold-away Work Horses
Here are some useful sawhorses for woodworkers like me, who have limited room to work, and even less room dedicated to storage. I cannot claim design rights for these because I got the general configuration from a workman who came to my house several years ago to install a water purifier. His were made using Continue reading»
