Archives

Safety is #1 in the workshop. Before you’re ready to lift a single hammer or cut a single board, you’re going to want to understand the impact of safety in the shop. Accidents can happen to [...]

It looks like the SawStop battle is over, at least for now. It was only a year ago when it seemed a certainty that the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission was about to implement standards and [...]

Three weeks ago, I decided to check the small shop vac I had hooked up to my Delta bandsaw. To my surprise, it was packed full of sawdust—years’ worth of fine shavings quietly captured since I [...]

Injuries and fatalities caused by tipping furniture happen a lot more than you probably know. According to the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC), about 17,800 injuries are caused [...]

Do the clothes really make the man? Try taking a tip from turners and dress up for dust. Wear a jumpsuit and a face shield when you can’t collect sawdust at the source. This is the outfit turners [...]

Welcome to The Splinter Report, where I gather the assorted interesting and amusing things I’ve seen in the woodworking world. This week we’re looking at bad stock photography, nail [...]

Not every woodworker needs a hardhat. In fact, very few need one at all unless mandated by an employer to meet OSHA requirements on a jobsite. Still, there are lots of occasions in the woodshop [...]

Everyone can use some creative storage solutions in their shop, which is why we dug through the American Woodworker archives for some classic storage tips. Portable Hose Reel Instead of mounting [...]

Can Lithium-ion batteries really catch fire? A friend of mine proved it beyond a doubt. I’ve never liked the idea of knock-off, counterfeit or no-name tool batteries. Inexpensive, but [...]

Trimming small parts on a table saw using a miter gauge can be a little nerve wracking. In order to trim small parts safely, I mounted a handscrew to a piece of plywood. First I trimmed the [...]

This hand surgeon likes meeting fellow woodworkers – but not at work. I long ago lost track of how many people, upon learning of my interest in woodworking, have puzzled aloud over my table saw. [...]

Any push stick adds a measure of safety, but I prefer using one that straddles the saw’s fence. It lifts right off when I’m done. A saddle-style push stick has two clear advantages. First, [...]