Make Drift a Myth
You can tune up your band saw to resaw veneer without expensive fences or blades. The subject most often written about in woodworking magazines is probably cutting dovetails. In second...
Adjustable Dado-routing Jig
I wanted to rout some shelf dados, but I didn’t have the correct-size bit for the job. Fortunately, my dad stopped by and, as usual, had the answer to my...
Minas Tirith Shutters
No joints. Just jigsaw and go. After Hobbit Frodo Baggins destroys the One Ring in Peter Jackson’s epic film “The Return of the King,” there’s an emotional reunion scene when...
Labor of Love
After 50 years of woodworking, I’ve got a confession to make. I enjoy fixing up an old machine or rearranging my shop more than woodworking itself. A few years ago...
Unexpected Out of the Box Chair Restoration – Part 6
As you recall, a few months ago, I wrote about a beautiful chair made of solid mahogany that we bought and found out that it was sadly damaged during shipping....
Leaning Shelves
We improve a contemporary design to make it sturdier, a bit curvier and easier to build. Editor’s note: This article originally appeared in the August 2005 issue of Popular Woodworking...
Contoured Sanding Block
To sand a lot of molding, glue 80-grit sandpaper to several inches of the molding. Rub a block of Styrofoam on the sandpaper until the block conforms to the molding’s...
Fighting Evil Alien Technology
Beating it requires knowing the right way to nail a board. When I was about 8 years old, I decided that I needed to construct a sturdy fort to protect...
Common Woodworking Mistakes
There are many things we do wrong but we don’t know they’re wrong. In woodworking there are two kinds of mistakes: There’s the garden-variety gaffe where we simply cut a...
ShopNotes Podcast Episode 143
Phil, Logan, and John are back on the ShopNotes Podcast talking about “What Grinds Your Chisels” and other updates on the latest issue of PopWood Magazine and so much more!...
Brush Care 101
How to choose, condition, and clean a finishing brush. It’s really tempting to buy an inexpensive brush for finishing. Say you spend $4 on a standard paint brush and throw...
One Stick, All the Info
Measured drawings for some, story sticks for me (and others). I once had a job making a couple of wainscot chairs and chests for the National Park Service. After barely...
