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You’d think an engineered wood product would be completely square and flat, right?
Welcome to The Splinter Report, where I gather the assorted interesting and amusing things I’ve seen in the woodworking world. This week we’re looking at Superwood, puzzling furniture, and woodworking math.
I was at Woodworking in America last weekend, which was an invigorating experience. I tend to be assigned to photo duty at events like these, which gives me the freedom to attend different demonstrations without the pressure of having to present myself. There’s something there for everyone — Logan was running sawmill demos, Alexis Dolese was talking about wood movement, and Wilbur Pan was dropping mind-blowing thoughts on reading end grain, just to name a few. Also, the Splinter Report is a bit truncated this week because I was putting together my interview with Nick Offerman, which I highly recommend you read.
Tool News Quick Bites
Superwood is here: I feel like every 6 months this headline bounces around, but this time it seems like the announcement is for a commercially “available” product as opposed to something entirely theoretical. I put “available” in quotes because you can technically only reserve a spot in line, not just drive down to Lowes and pick some up. In any case, Superwood, from InventWood, is a type of wood that’s been treated to be stronger than steel but lighter. From a woodworking standpoint, I think a product like this would be neat for outdoor furniture, though I’m dubious on the claim that it maintains the workability of wood. I feel like this would eat through blades at an alarming rate.
Random Reddit: Woodworking Math
Most everyone knows what woodworking math is, right? It’s where your spouse wants a table from a high-end furniture store that costs $500, and you go “I can make that at home.” And then you go out and get $300 worth of lumber, $80 worth of hardware, and $1500 worth of tools, so you can tell your spouse you saved $120 on the cost of the table. Redditor u/WeekendWarrior experienced it firsthand recently when he built a $75 antique store end table for his girlfriend at the low low cost of $150. Given, in this case the project itself is part of the fun, so the extra cost was worth it. (For those who are curious, Marc Spagnoulo made a score sheet to help determine if a project is worth the time and money vs just purchasing it to begin with.)
Posts from the woodworking
community on Reddit
Out of Context Christopher Schwarz Quote
“A good chair should fight you at assembly time.”
Video of the Week: A Puzzling Chest
There’s a certain type of creative thinking that goes into puzzle boxes and hidden compartment furniture that I just can’t wrap my head around. YouTuber David Lundell has no such problem, and has built a business of creating furniture with hidden drawers and spring-loaded compartments that must be opened in a specific order to open everything up. The process is fascinating, utilizing not only woodworking skills but metalwork as well, to create the custom hardware needed to make everything work.
Anything interesting I missed this week, or that you want me to highlight in a future Splinter Report? Let me know on social media or drop me an email at cknoff@aimmedia.com.
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