Tool: FREE Aware Bluetooth Earbuds Shop Now  Manufacturer: ISOtunes MSRP:$199.99 I’ve written before about the impressive ISOtunes Aware headphones, which use a built-in microphone that allows the user to hear their environment while preventing hearing loss from loud sounds. ISOtunes has added a new product to that lineup today, the FREE Aware. I’ve been using…

Seasoned professionals also benefit from woodworking safety. Regardless of your experience level, it never hurts to review the basics. In fact, I believe there are a number of standard safety items and practices that not only help keep you safer in the shop, but also could very well improve the quality of your work. Personal…

Ordinary push pads tend to slip, I’ve found, when face-jointing a board. I modified one of mine by cutting 1/2″ of the rubber padding off its back end and then screwing on a 1/2″ x 1/2″ cleat. Now the rear push pad hooks the back end of the board. No more slipping! –Mike Cyr

A push stick is a familiar device to prevent kickback while ripping a board, but I prefer to use a “push shoe.” It’s shaped like a shoe with a handle, and has a heel, just like a boot. The heel pushes the work through the saw. I’m more comfortable using a push shoe because the…

Trailing along a power cord when I’m routing can really be awkward. All too often, my cord hangs up on a corner of the project or gets tangled around my legs. Adding a dust collection hose, which can run off in a different direction, just makes matters worse. One day I got so balled up…

Protecting our ears in loud environments is paramount for our audio health, but blocking our ears from listening to our surroundings can throw off our spatial awareness, which can lead to bodily injuries. I am not claiming that humans are like bats (who totally rely on their hearing capacity for in-flight navigation) but from my…

Runaway Router My first router, a 1968 Stanley, was a heavy, single-speed machine. I remember it well because of what happened the very first time I used it. I chucked up a Roman ogee bit and made my very first pass. As I marveled, spellbound, at the professional-looking profile I’d just created, I switched off…

Shavings Shower Last spring I reorganized my shop and moved my planer near the garage door so it could spew its shavings harmlessly onto the driveway. Now that it’s colder, I work with the garage door closed. One night recently I planed a bunch of boards for a new project. Chips and shavings piled high…

Disc Break Back when I bought my radial arm saw, onboard braking systems didn’t exist. But I’m a gadget freak, so I bought an electronic brake and mounted it on top of the saw. The brake worked by converting the AC input to DC, essentially turning the saw motor into a big magnet to stop…

Hammered Cat The handle on my favorite hammer needed to be refinished, so I sanded it, sprayed on a coat of polyurethane and hung it over the edge of the picnic table to dry. A moment later I heard a blood-curdling yowl, and looked around to see my big fuzzy yellow cat sailing across the…

The Ol’ 1–2 I volunteered to drill the holes for the halogen light fixtures in the 6′ tall display cabinet that my cohorts and I were building at the architectural millwork company where we worked. I chucked a hole saw in my trusty 1/2″ electric drill and climbed up on a stepladder, so I could…

Bee Gone  So, I’m using a wire brush chucked in a drill to clean the rust off of some old metal brackets that I’m planning to use in my new lumber rack. I’ve got a bracket in one hand and the drill in the other when a bee lands on my chest. That little voice…