The Modern High-traction Doe’s Foot

The notched batten – also called a “doe’s foot” – is a great way to restrain your work on the bench without a tail vise. With a holdfast and a doe’s foot, you can even work across the grain [...]

Grandpa’s Shop-made Gunstock Scraper

I was in Florida for a few days last week visiting my brother, niece, mom and stepfather. I stayed with my brother, Ian, who, like me (and other family members), inherited some woodworking tools [...]

Improve Your Tool Chest Hinges

Old tool chests typically have two weak spots: the bottom and the hinges. The bottom gets rotted out because tool chests end up in unfriendly, poorly drained areas. That’s why many tool chest [...]

Two-piece Cap Irons

The two-piece cap iron a unique design and for some it’s a royal PITA; for others it’s a useful addition to a well-tuned bench plane. These days you’ll find them on the Clifton [...]

My Virtual Inspiration Folder

When I first began building things, I kept a manila folder in which I stored pages torn from magazines and museum catalogs, as well as photos of pieces (and other things) that inspired me. It was [...]

Band Saw Buying Advice (Cheap & Easy)

When the history of 20th-century woodworking machinery is written, someone will compose a poem, ode or opera to the Delta 14” band saw that was made in the United States. There are many flavors [...]

Coffin Smoother Tune-up

To try and inspire you to give wooden planes a try I have endeavored to keep things within this post as simple as possible, but before we get started a bit of preamble. I’m going to avoid [...]