Tricks of the Trade

Applying contact cement with a roller is my preferred method, as opposed to spraying it on. There’s not as much clean-up, and I don’t have to deal with overspray. There are drawbacks [...]

Using an awl to precisely locate a hole for drilling can be problematic. Sometimes the awl will drift, going slightly off mark as it’s deflected by the wood’s growth rings. I found [...]

Emptying my dust collector has never been something I looked forward to. For years I wrestled with the unit to empty the contents. First, I’d remove the bag and empty it into a plastic [...]

A large bridle joint requires an open-ended mortise that may be too deep to cut with a 10″ tablesaw. I encountered this problem when I used my saw to make bridle joints on an exterior door. [...]

Initially lining up the edges of two boards for gluing up a jig is pretty easy. But when you add clamps or screws, one board often shifts out of place. If that alignment is critical, I [...]

Simple Storage by Bill Wells Storage space in a small shop is hard to come by. My tool collection keeps growing, but my shop stays the same size! I needed to organize, so I bought a couple milk [...]

Turning Tool Tamer by Richard Tendick I was turning a vase recently, and as I got deeper into the turning, the vase’s rotation pulled the tool’s tip down, making it very difficult to [...]

Sometimes I prefer to sand by hand using a rubber block. This method gives me a better feel for the work than using a random-orbit sander does. Blocks like mine have been around for many years, [...]

A can of lubricant is very useful around the shop, and so is the little red straw… if you can find it after the first use! I figured out that the straw fits in the groove in the top of …

Applying putty with your finger works great, but it’s messy. Instead of using my finger, I just stick a blob of putty on a pencil eraser. It works great, and my finger stays clean! -Dick [...]

C-clamps can make nasty dents that are tough to sand out. Pads or block will prevent this, but they’re often awkward to hold in place while you tighten the clamps. I make pads that [...]

While doing the dishes the other night, I looked at the drying rack and thought, “Wow! I need one of these in my shop.” First I drilled centered 5/8″ diameter holes every 3″ along [...]