World’s Best-known Tool Cabinet

The amazing tool cabinet of piano-maker Henry O. Studley has fostered intense admiration and contemplation surrounding its origins and creator for nearly three decades. I’ve heard a lot of this...

Long-reach Golf Ball Clamps

Sometimes you need to clamp parts that are out of reach of the throat depth of standard clamps. Here’s a design for a long-reach clamp that can be made from...

Sideboard Fit for Tea

Design without compromise: An exercise in high-end handwork. Sometimes a cup of tea is more than a cup of tea. Its surface may be still, its color translucent and its...

Compound Angles; No Math

Once you understand ‘resultant’ angles, sawbenches (and chairs) are easy. Most first-time chairmakers are intimidated by the compound joinery used to fasten all the legs, stretchers, spindles and [...]

Floating Table

This handsome piece is simple to build and easily adapted to fit your stock. A friend asked me to design and build a table using a special piece of walnut....

The Solution to Finish Problems?

A combination of knowledge and experience. All sorts of damage can occur to a finish. I’ve written about the most common problems and how to fix them many times. Four...

Secrets of the Cyma Curve

Invisible lines and circles explain the beauty of a series of fair curves. I can still remember Holloway’s farmhouse. Even in summer when the fireplace was cold, the smell of...

Wired for Beauty

A rotary tool, hammer and a few shop-made tools are all it takes. I recently had the opportunity to explore a concept that has been rattling around the dark recesses...

Arbortech Contour Random Sander

Tool: Contour Sander Manufacturer: Arbortech MSRP: $79 I’ve been building a stacked-lamination piece with plenty of concave and convex curves that require a good deal of sanding. Arbortech’s new [...]