Tricks of the Trade

After years of fumbling with clamps, I decided there must be a better way to attach featherboards to my tablesaw’s rip fence. Two T-tracks screwed to the fence allow me...

Square the table using this old machinists’ trick. Bend a piece of 1/4”. steel rod (available at home centers) into an S shape, as shown in the photo above. Mount...

I love having a cutting list close at hand. But hanging on to it when both hands are busy was a problem—until I bought 24 clothespins for $2 at the...

Microfiber cloth picks up tiny dust particles as well as, if not better than, a tack cloth. Unlike a tack cloth, microfiber cloths are washable and reusable. Rockler Sells Norton’s...

A mobile workbench is handy in a small shop—until you want it to stand still! These levers work like a cam and prevent the bench from wiggling.

Check out these cheap and easy ideas to make the most of your small shop space.

You can use a router to joint two boards at once. This is a really handy trick if you don’t have a long-bed jointer or you don’t have a jointer at...

A storage tray is a useful addition to any stationary tool. Add a table saw tray to your shop to keep tools handy, yet out of the way.

I wanted to use my benchtop belt sander as a safe and accurate way to grind my hand tools. By adding a little extension table that is co-planar with the...

A collection of our favorite router tricks recently unearthed from our archives. A router is truly one of the most versatile tools in the shop. Enjoy!

Go to your local building supply store, and find a cheap plunger (mine was $3). Then take the handle off and use it for a jam chuck on your lathe...

Following up on a promise from a previous trick, in this video, we take a look at how to replace the sandpaper on a disc sander. If “big deal” is...