Where to Buy Vintage Tools
In my book, there is one rule for buying vintage tools: Buy them from someone who will take them them back if the tool stinks. That rule keeps me on...
Three (Unoriginal) Sharpening Tips
Some things about sharpening everyone knows (it’s two metal surfaces, an abrasive and friction). Other things nobody knows (such as the best system ever). And there is a third category...
Make Your Own Dovetail Chisel
As a beginning dovetailer, I had a crappy set of plastic-handled chisels, a newspaperman’s salary and a copy of the Japan Woodworker catalog. All three things conspired to make me...
M.Power Sharpening System
Editor Christopher Schwarz is out of town , so we’ve commandeered his blog for a few days. Don’t worry , the socks on squirrels and monkey references will soon return....
Three Magnets Make Sharpening Easier
The most miserable aspect of hand work is setting up the tools for the first time. Removing the coarse manufacturing scratches from the unbeveled faces of your edge tools can...
Sharpening: Here's What I See
I’m fairly well convinced that my ears are different than yours. The music I like isn’t going to sound the same to you. It’s almost impossible for me to share...
Dovetailing, Eyetailing and Guttailing
The hardest thing about dovetailing isn’t the sawing or the chiseling or the layout. It’s the seeing. I don’t think I can teach anyone to see, but I can show...
Plastic Marries Wood in a New Mallet
Plastic mallets can be highly durable, but they always look like plastic. Wooden mallets look great, but they sure get beat up after a few years of use. Now Dave...
Why Some New Tools Have Poor Edge Life
Sometimes brand-new chisels and planes (even from the best manufacturers) don’t hold an edge well. I’ve seen some edges crumple like tin foil after two whacks with a mallet or...
Origami Chisel Protectors
Reaching underneath my tool rack can be like sticking my hand in a lion’s mouth. All of the dangling edge tools have alternately shaved, nicked and scared the bejeezus out...
First Look: Blue Spruce Bench Chisels
Dave Jeske’s tool-making shop in Oregon City, Ore., is in exactly the same place as his new bench chisel: halfway between the islands and toolmaking traditions of Japan and England....
New Premium Chisels Coming From Stanley in November
Stanley Works will unveil a new premium bevel-edge chisel this year that bears some similarities to the company’s vaunted Everlasting line of chisels that were made between 1911 and 1942....
