Workshop Tips: Clamp-Free Rip Fence

After years of fumbling with clamps, I decided there must be a better way to attach featherboards to my tablesaw’s rip fence. Two T-tracks screwed to the fence allow me to mount a piece of [...]

Workshop Tips: Square The Table

Square the table using this old machinists’ trick. Bend a piece of 1/4”. steel rod (available at home centers) into an S shape, as shown in the photo above. Mount it in the chuck and swing it by [...]

Workshop Tips: Clothespin Holder

I love having a cutting list close at hand. But hanging on to it when both hands are busy was a problem—until I bought 24 clothespins for $2 at the hardware store. I epoxied the wooden pins in [...]

Workshop Tips: Reusable Tack Cloth

Microfiber cloth picks up tiny dust particles as well as, if not better than, a tack cloth. Unlike a tack cloth, microfiber cloths are washable and reusable. Rockler Sells Norton’s microfiber [...]

How to Master Your Brad Nailer

Make your brad nailer safer and easier to use with these tips. From avoiding the blowout curse to making your nailer last longer, it’s surprisingly simple to get more out of this tool.

Cam-Style Bench Feet

A mobile workbench is handy in a small shop—until you want it to stand still! These levers work like a cam and prevent the bench from wiggling.

Excerpt: How to Draw an Ellipse

Various methods are used to create an ellipse. The method shown here, often called the trammel method, is relatively simple and you can use it to make an ellipse of just about any size.

Make a Custom Gouge Strop

Getting a mirror finish on the contoured profiles of carving gouges can be a real hassle. Fortunately, making a custom gouge strop is easy.