Breadboard End Joints
Cut precision joints on a large top. Breadboard ends are old devices for improving a solid-wood top. They act like cleats to hold the top flat, which is particularly important when there’s [...]
Attaching Solid Wood Tabletops With Power Tools
Methods that allow wood to move with the seasons. About a decade ago, I made a drop-leaf table for a book of projects. When it came time to mount the top, I just drilled pilot holes and drove cut [...]
Jointing with a Planer
Jointing with a Planer I across some wonderful oak boards for a small table I wanted to build. The problem was the boards were too wide for my jointer, and I didn’t want to rip them any narrower. [...]
Board-Stretching Joint
Board-Stretching Joint I bought a planer/molder so I could make my own moldings. My living room required one 28‘.-long molding, but all I had to make it were 12‘. boards. I didn’t [...]
Which Kreg Pocket-Hole Jig Should I Get?
Kreg recently rolled out their new line of pocket hole jigs, meaning that the hold K3/4/5 hierarchy is no more. In its place is a new series of jigs aimed at woodworkers of all levels. So which [...]
Joyners vs. Carpenters, 1631
Period woodworking trades in London were strictly regulated. I’ve temporarily put down my 5⁄16” joiner’s mortising chisel in favor of a 2″ chisel for chopping carpenter’s mortises. [...]
Lock Miter Setup Jig
Tool: Groove Center Buy Now Manufacturer: Prazi MSRP: $149 A lock miter is an excellent joint for building boxes and small cases. It creates lots of surface area for glue and a tight [...]
Impossible Dovetails
Baffle your friends with perplexing joints Press a dovetailed board into another board with matching sockets, and you’ve created woodworking’s most iconic joint. The dovetails and [...]
Beadlock Pro Joinery Kit
b Tool: Beadlock Pro Manufacturer: Rockler MSRP: $149.99 I looked to the Beadlock Pro recently when I found myself needing four loose-tenon joints for a project – I wanted an economic but quick [...]
Arts & Crafts Occasional Table
Conquer some fun joinery challenges with this geometric Baillie Scott build. As soon as I saw Mackay Hugh Baillie Scott’s 1901 occasional table on display at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, [...]
Blue Spruce Joiner’s Mallets
Tool: Rectangular Mallet Manufacturer: Blue Spruce Toolworks MSRP: $85 For some woodworkers, building your own mallet is a rite of passage. After using dozens of student-made mallets, however, I [...]
An Ideal Joint for Small Drawers
When you slide open a small drawer that fits nice and tight, it’s a pleasure to see well-crafted joints. Small, handcut dovetails answer well, but sawing and chopping them requires a lot [...]
