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I added a pair of powerful handled magnets [buy on Amazon] to my shop-made featherboard. They fit snugly into two notches and hold the featherboard absolutely rigid. The magnets enable me to [...]

I made a clamping device for my bench that can quickly snug up a board just by swinging a lever. The lever has a cam that pushes a sliding stop tight against the board. I made all the parts from [...]

To protect the edges of small carving tools, stick a wine bottle cork on them. Synthetic corks work best because they don’t break apart as easily as natural cork. Allow the cork to dry for a [...]

Self-Storing Glue Kit Gluing up a project can turn ugly in a hurry if you don’t have all your supplies on hand. I put together a kit that contains everything I need: a small white-nylon [...]

A scraper’s edge is very delicate. I used to keep my card scrapers loose in a drawer, but to avoid nicking their edges, I decided to make a simple stand for them. I cut a few slots in a [...]

Universal Drawer Holder When I make dovetailed drawers, I usually plane the sides to even up the joints and fine-tune the drawer’s fit. Years ago, I found that you can’t accurately [...]

A Backer Board Prevents Chip-Out Chip-out is always an issue when you even up the stiles and rails of a door with a plane. If you plane all the way across the door, from one end to the other, [...]

1. Paraffin Lube When you rout a dovetail joint, your sense of feel is important. Your router should slide easily around the jig’s fingers, without hesitating, so you can tell which [...]

Old wooden planes are usually coated with a layer of grime that obscures their true beauty. I clean them using a homemade solution that removes the dirt and grease without damaging the [...]

Some objects aren’t easy to hold for drilling. When I run into a situation like this, I use a wooden-jawed handscrew that has sandpaper glued to one side of it, so it doesn’t move [...]

When your hands aren’t strong or large enough to put the last squeeze on a big clamp, try clamping the clamp. My ingenious wife, who has very small hands, invented this solution. She works [...]

Think of it almost like a DIY track saw. Crosscutting a full sheet of plywood on a tablesaw is pretty difficult, particularly when you don’t have any help. I use a circular saw and this [...]