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You can hold anything on your workbench with just pegs, wedges & notches – no fancy vises required. It’s difficult for most woodworkers to imagine a workbench without screw-driven vises. But [...]

These notched sticks simplify your workholding at the bench. Workbenches didn’t always have vises. In fact, for most of human history, workbenches around the world were nothing more than a [...]

This workbench form is uncommon today, but it is still a sound bench because it allows you to perform all of the critical workbench operations with relative ease. Benches are a triumph of [...]

Why liquid hide glue should be your first choice as an adhesive. Since the beginnings of civilization up until World War II, most pieces of furniture were assembled using animal-based glues. That [...]

This much-maligned fastener has a place in the finest furniture. Here’s why. Among furniture makers, the reputation of the simple nail is somewhere south of expired glue and tacos made from [...]

This nearly lost layout tool is surprisingly accurate and useful. A surprising number of woodworking tools and furniture forms have been lost to time. Some for the better (the motorized coping [...]

It’s fast, forgiving and affordable – and you don’t need a spray booth. The hardest part about learning to spray finishes is becoming convinced that you can learn to spray finishes. Of all the [...]

Tool: Auger Bits for Braces Manufacturer: Tools For Working Wood MSRP: $39.45+ Finding good auger bits that work in a brace is almost impossible in places of the world that don’t have a lot of [...]

Chris Vesper strives for precision and perfection in toolmaking (and dancing). Editor’s note: this article originally appeared in the December 2013 issue of Popular Woodworking When it [...]

Don’t reinvent the wheel when storing your tools. A proper chest is still the best. When I tell people that I’ve worked out of a traditional tool chest for 15 years, they look at me as if I’m [...]

A St. Louis physician spent years assembling the perfect shop. The problem with many “dream shops” is that their visionaries never wake up and get on with building any furniture. There’s nothing [...]

With $100 in lumber and two days, you can build this sturdy stowaway bench. Many knockdown workbenches suffer from unfortunate compromises. Inexpensive commercial benches that can be knocked down [...]