Shop Blog

The April 2013 issue of Popular Woodworking Magazine, which we are currently in the process of editing, will be the last with me at the helm.  Working at Popular Woodworking Magazine...

I bought a box of 1,600 pneumatic nails about two presidential administrations ago that cost about a half penny each (yes, I know I overpaid). So why in the world...

The link to download the February 2013 issue just went out to digital subscribers…and there’s a wee error in it – so you’ll be getting another e-mail, with that wee...

Q & A: Pencil Mark Cleanup Q: How do I get the pencil marks off my oak plywood bookcase? I tried using an eraser, but that didn’t get down into...

Q & A: Cupped Door Panels Q: Recently I glued up some 1⁄4-in. panels for cabinet doors.My other life kept me out of the shop for a week and when...

Though planes have been around for millennia, they haven’t always been the essential woodworking tool that we may think they were. In Medieval Europe, and especially England, lots of good...

I’m in the midst of making my mom’s Christmas present*, and though I did the machine work at the “office” today, I decided to bring the surfaced and mortised pieces...

While I think a tool chest is the best place to store your tools, the chest can also become a rusty tomb if you aren’t careful. Woodworking shops can be...

This evening, I whiled away an hour leafing through “The Wise Practical Home Furniture Builder: Simple Plans for the Amateur Craftsman,” a book from 1952 that is similar to the...

I used plywood for my “Machinist’s Tool Test” project (in the October 2012 issue, and continued in February 2013 issue). In the past, I regarded plywood as being unworkable by...

The other headline I considered for this blog entry was: Fare thee well, pinheads. As I sorted through the box of castings and metal bits in my Benchcrafted Crisscross kit...

Woodworkers from all across the country have been signing up in droves for our 31 Days of Christmas Sweepstakes. Hopefully you’re already in on the action – but in case...