Three (Unoriginal) Sharpening Tips

Some things about sharpening everyone knows (it’s two metal surfaces, an abrasive and friction). Other things nobody knows (such as the best system ever). And there is a third category...

Rethinking Carcase Saws

We’ve been testing six carcase saws for the Autumn 2009 issue of Woodworking Magazine. And while I can’t share the results of the test with you just yet, I want...

Big Teeth, Little Teeth

I have three favorite jokes. One of them starts out with, “What’s brown and sticky?” The second one is from journalism school. It goes like so: “People complain about bias...

'Wood Smart' Wood Samples

Growing up in Arkansas, it seemed we had two kinds of wood: yellow pine and pine that was yellow. I didn’t really start to understand the crazy diversity of lumber...

Make Your Own Dovetail Chisel

As a beginning dovetailer, I had a crappy set of plastic-handled chisels, a newspaperman’s salary and a copy of the Japan Woodworker catalog. All three things conspired to make me...