Falling Off the Wagon in Style

Those of you who follow my personal woodworking blog know that I have been selling off a lot of my excess tools and upgrading my shop at home. Since August,...

Do You Sharpen Too Much?

When I teach people to sharpen I notice a bad habit that many of them have: They think that rubbing the tool against a stone is sharpening. The more they...

Quick Update on the Stanley Chisels

Stanley’s Sweetheart socket chisels should be for sale in the United States in about six to eight weeks, according to a company product manager. The chisels are in the final...

Video: Stupid Shim Tricks

Some wide chisels and narrow plane irons don’t work well with the cheap-o side-clamp honing guide. They are too narrow to fit between the walls on the top of the...

The Power of the Pixel

People gripe that the vintage tools and books I write about often go up in price after I post an entry. I actually think the effect is mild and temporary,...

File Under: Handplane Maintenance

When your handplane won’t create a perfect surface, there are several things to check. Here’s how I diagnose the problem when it looks like I’m making plane tracks in my...