Quercus Maeroearpa
As a sawyer, I find my lumber stash sometimes gets out of hand. I saw a bunch of material and dry it, then end up with a ton of stock in my lumber rack. It works out great—I always have …
Project no. 3 – er, no. 4
Your early projects don’t have to end up as firewood. When people see the Philadelphia-style secretary I built, they inevitably want to know how long I have been making furniture and how many [...]
Human Moisture Meter
You, too, can determine moisture content simply by feeling a board. Murphy had never bought lumber from us before. He watched his boards carefully as they were loaded onto his truck. “They look [...]
The Folks in the Guild
No doubt, you’ll fit right in. A woodworking club offers countless rewards to the aspiring craftsman. It provides a platform for displaying your work. It offers the chance to learn new [...]
Quit Crying and Get to Work
So you can’t afford (insert dream tool here). Boo hoo. Hit the flea markets then start making sawdust. Yeah, you heard me. Oh sure, I know exactly how it is. The new catalogs come piling into [...]
Adventures of a Porch Rocker
Walk down Main Street in Anysmalltown, U.S.A., and people acknowledge your existence from their porch rockers. They don’t have to say anything, just use their body to move the chair in a [...]
Almost a Plane Wreck
The perilous flight of the world’s most valuable tool. Half of the airplane’s hydraulic system had failed at take-off; the other half failed as the plane was 10 minutes from the Atlanta airport. [...]
A Puzzling Beginning
How one woodworker got over her fear of dismemberment: more fear. Industrial Technology. That was the name of the course I took in the autumn of 1993. Beats me as to why it was entitled thus, [...]
Fighting Evil Alien Technology
Beating it requires knowing the right way to nail a board. When I was about 8 years old, I decided that I needed to construct a sturdy fort to protect myself from the army of aliens (who cleverly [...]
Sharpeners’ Anonymous
A 12-step program for regrowing forearm hair. I head through the main doors, down the stairs to the basement, arriving at the third door on the right. Like everyone else, I grab a cup of coffee [...]
Protecting Tools from Kids
Sometimes a little talking-to (and video surveillance) is all it takes. I have noticed three things about tools and kids. Kids can find tools even if it requires tunneling under the garage wall. [...]
Turning Pro
No sick days, no paid vacations and no IT department – but it’s worth it. Ah, going pro – telling your boss to take your day job and stick it in his ear while you go off to earn your …