Tool: PRO Aware Shop Now  Manufacturer: ISOtunes MSRP: $129.99 Every once in a while a new product comes along that’s a real game-changer in the workshop, and the new ISOtunes PRO Aware headphones is one of those tools. Many of you are familiar now with the ISOtunes family of OSHA-compliant hearing protectors with music streaming capabilities….

After years of use, I could hardly see through my table saw’s guard. While at a car show, I heard that polish for renewing aluminum wheels also worked to clear up old headlight lenses—so I tried it on my saw’s guard. After two applications, it was as good as new! Since then, I’ve cleaned all…

Tool: Benchtop DC Personal Dust Collector Shop Now  Manufacturer: Oneida MSRP: $599 Dust really is the bane of the power tool woodworker. It’s also hazardous, especially if you spend much of your time woodworking. Dust collection on stationary tools and portable tools (hooked to a dust extractor) is getting better and better, but there are still times…

When I need to cut a bunch of small, equally sized pieces, I install this simple jig. It holds short pieces securely during and after cutting, so they don’t get caught by the blade and thrown around the shop. My jig is just a hold-down clamp attached to a squarely-cut piece of plywood. This clamp…

Tool: Thin Rip Tablesaw Jig Shop Now  Manufacturer: Rockler MSRP: $34.99 This tablesaw jig allows you to rip consistent thin strips safely and accurately. The jig clamps in the miter slot to the left of the blade. After each cut, you move the rip fence until the board touches the jig—then rip again for another perfect strip….

Tool: XTRA 2.0 Buy Now LINK Buy Now  Manufacturer: ISOtunes MSRP: $79.99 each Bluetooth Hearing Protection The ISOtunes family of hearing-protection headphones has grown by two recently, with the addition of the XTRA 2.0 and LINK. Like other ISOtunes headphones, these are compliant with OSHA and NIOSH regulations and feature a noise reduction rating of 27 and 24…

SURE SHOT When I found out my wife was pregnant with our first child, I decided to make a cradle. Nine months seemed like plenty of time, but naturally, I finished building the cradle with only a week to spare. I decided to apply the oil finish outside, thinking it would speed up the drying…

Snake Surprise While I was visiting my brother in Florida, he showed me his latest toy, a Wood-Mizer portable sawmill. A huge hickory log was mounted on the cutting platform. Sawdust puffed as the blade effortlessly sliced a 3″ thick section from the top of the log. “That was the ‘clean cut,’” he said. “The…

SUPER GLUED After making a small repair with super glue, I put the tube in my pocket and forgot about it. Later, when I saw the tube’s cap sitting on my workbench, I instinctively reached into my pocket— and discovered that my pants were securely glued to my thigh. I headed to the bathroom, and…

Backside Out After dabbling with woodworking for a couple of years, I finally got up the courage to build some kitchen cabinets, starting with an 8′ long upper unit. I composed a detailed drawing, cut all the pieces, and glued the cabinet together. Everything went smoothly, and I was really enjoying myself. Before stopping for…

Kitchen Kalamity The cherry salad tongs I’d made needed repairs. They were steam-bent, so they would “spring” when you squeezed them together. But the top portion where the two arms attached was messed up. Cutting off this section significantly shortened the tongs, so there wasn’t much “spring” left. No problem; I could simply re-steam the…

Clamp-Ka-Bob This morning I glued up a 4′ x 6′ tabletop made of maple 2x2s on my assembly table. I positioned 6′ pipe clamps alternately on the top and bottom faces of the glue-up (spaced 8″ apart) and tightened them. Then I removed all the squeezed-out glue. To free up the assembly table, I decided…