A router without bits is an interesting paperweight. A car without fuel in it is a nice piece of modern sculpture.

And, a hand plane without an iron is nice to look at, but that’s about it.

That’s why Ron Hock of Fort Bragg, California does what he does today. You see, Ron makes some of the world’s best plane irons for some of the world’s best woodworkers.

It all started back in 1981 when Ron, a budding knife maker, got his start the same month James Krenov opened his classroom at the College of the Redwoods. “Even though we were new to the area it was not difficult to feel an excited buzz in the community over the fact that the College of the Redwoods would be hosting his Fine Woodworking Program here.”

While Ron’s fame was made as the plane iron maker to Mr. Krenov, it was actually a different instructor and his student who first approached Ron for plane irons. After what Ron describes as a less-than-perfect first batch of irons, he refined his methods and the iron forms. Today, woodworkers can buy the same basic design as that second batch made way back in 1981.

Ron made it clear to me that he doesn’t forge his irons. “No sir, we’re not blacksmiths. We are machinists.” Using World War II era technology and vintage equipment, Ron and his associates follow the simple formula to success. First, the bar stock is sawn to size, slots are milled, bevels are ground and the maker’s logo is stamped. These raw irons get sent out for heat treatment and, once they come back, they are wire brushed to get the chalky oxide layer off. The bevels are reground and they are coated with a rust resistant oil. “This is not rocket science,” Ron joked.

While many of the irons are made in Hock Tools’ California shop, most others are made at a French facility which uses the latest technology. “Now, they use all the latest high-tech machinery: computer controlled lasers and grinders, cryogenic treatment. Even laser-etching the logo. In many ways, that IS rocket science!”

While there are many steel alloys out there, Ron’s irons come in two ‘flavors’ – O1 and A2. The O1 alloy is your basic high-carbon steel as was used decades ago. The addition of a pinch of manganese allows the blade to quench in oil, not water. A2 has added chromium, which makes the steel much tougher. The O1 blades are easier to sharpen, the A2 blades hold a honed edge longer.

While Ron does make replacement irons, the real fun comes when woodworkers want to build their own planes. From the early days of Mr. Krenov making his own planes, the hand-made movement has gathered a tremendous amount of steam. There are scores of simple plans for woodworkers to construct a custom plane to suit their purposes. The choice of woods for the plane body is tremendous, and Hock Tools offers plane irons for just this purpose. Ron often gets pictures of completed planes where the woodworker’s pride and enthusiasm is easy to see. “These are certainly exciting times to be a tool maker.”

While you think Ron would be satisfied keeping to the plane irons he does best, he has actually stretched into a new field of interest – shellac. “My brother-in-law owns a paint company. His sons who worked there at the time asked, ‘Hey Uncle Ron, what about some wood finishing products with your name on them?’ To which I said, ‘Got shellac?’”

Ron says that shellac is a wonderful finish that is more intriguing the more you learn about it. It’s non-toxic, easy to apply, easy to repair, and it’s one of very few insect products that we humans routinely use. Shellac is extremely useful old-fashioned stuff and an entertaining adjunct to the old-fashioned tools he makes. “I like to say, ‘With shellac, we’ve taken another giant step back…’”

While Ron’s website is a valuable source of information about planecraft, it’s not the only place you will be able to read all about it. “I’ve just finished writing a book on sharpening for Popular Woodworking Books: The Perfect Edge is due out this fall. It’s heavy on theory and metallurgy, lots about heat treatment and rust. Abrasives, too: what they are and which one does what best, etc. I’ve found woodworkers to be eager for information about all aspects of their craft and there are very few woodworking operations that don’t include a piece of steel somewhere between the worker and the wood. A better understanding of that piece of steel can’t be a bad thing so I’ve included as much as I could about the metal side of woodworking, along with the how-to sections for the various edges in the shop.”

While making high-quality plane irons has its challenges, Ron is very happy to have landed where he has. “I am so fortunate to have fallen into this industry. Not just that I happened along at the exact right time but that it’s this industry. Woodworkers are the friendliest, most interesting, decent people and I can’t tell you how grateful I am to find myself doing what I do and dealing with the kind of people I deal with. You’re the best part of what I do. You keep up the good work and I’ll do my best to do the same.”

The woodworking world is certainly more interesting and entertaining with Ron Hock around…

The pace of change in our schools has been tremendous.

The incessant clatter of students taking typing classes has been replaced by the more muffled sound of computer keyboarding.  Many schools have abandoned ordered rows of students for a more collaborative ‘working group’ arrangement.

And, in many cases, classes like phys ed, home economics and wood shop have been replaced with video production and internet design.

There are, however, people working to ensure that kids get a far more rounded education than they can get from sitting in front of a computer.  Paul Meisel is one of those people.

At the Flagship Academy – a private school just outside of Minneapolis, Minnesota, Paul teaches his 10 – 14 year old students just how analytical, mathematically engaging and fun woodworking can be.

Paul’s system for teaching woodworking is called Study Technology.  Basically, he breaks all functions down to their elemental parts, and then instructs his students to repeat those basics until they have them down cold. Hammering.  Drilling.  Cutting. Smoothing.  Not only does this ensure accuracy in work and – most importantly – safety, it also builds a great deal of confidence in his students.

“Many of the students in my classes have never used a woodworking tool in their lives,” said Paul. “Giving them the skills they need to overcome their fears and inexperience is a liberating experience for them. Many of the students are so energized by the process, they actually become shop assistants, shepherding their classmates forward.”

Once those basics are mastered, well, they sky is the limit.  Just as a martial arts student is drilled on the basics, and then turns those basics into a flowing routine, Paul’s students advance to make projects.  Simple at first, the projects provide ample opportunity for Paul’s eager learners to reinforce what they learned and to see exactly how the skills build upon each other.

The projects are some of the basics you would expect to find taught to children in this age range – bird feeders, window planters and peg jump games.  However, some of the projects are not quite what you would expect. “One group of students built a series of bee houses to provide shelter for our local wild bee colonies.  With the current colony collapse syndrome wiping out entire bee populations, our students wanted to do something to help make a difference and provide a safe haven for the wild colonies.”  Paul even pointed out that the project got the attention of the local TV news programs, giving more exposure to the effort.

Paul is currently in the process of writing a book about his teaching techniques featuring many of his hard-learned lessons. He has offered to send me a copy once published, and I’ll be sure to post a review once it’s available.

But, why woodworking as the medium?  While this method could be used to teach other subjects, the ‘industrial arts’ provide a tangible way to gauge progress and  a visual tool to instruct the finer points. “If one of the students becomes confused or makes a mistake in the project, it’s easy for him or her to to retrace the last few steps to see where the error crept in. This way, we can go back to the point of confusion and see how they can improve their basic fundamental skills.” Paul joked, “There are many adults who haven’t mastered that skill yet.  I believe these students will have a much better grounding and can apply these skills regardless of their field of study.”

If you have an interest in teaching woodworking to kids, e-mail Paul at Paul@Meiselwoodhobby.com.

Renowned 20th Century Woodworker Sam Maloof Passes at age 93…

When you look in the dictionary for the word decoy, you will find that it’s something used to fool people or things.

However, on the island of Chincoteague, Virginia, you will find the genuine article – the Virginia Duc Man.

I had the opportunity to meet Roe Terry by accident at the National  Hurricane Conference last year in Orlando, Florida. We quickly hit it off, exchanging war stories about storms, but soon I discovered that Roe has a very poorly kept secret – he has been making exquisite duck and other waterfowl decoys for the past 40 years.

His journey to decoy carving success had a pretty tough start. “My dad had Lou Gehrig’s Disease and couldn’t walk, and I was a kid looking to do what the other kids in the area were doing for fun – duck hunting.  An old timer in Chincoteague took me under my wing and started to teach me the skills of gunning and decoy carving.  It turns out that the man was Doug Jester, Jr., the son of the most famous decoy carver Chincoteague ever produced.”

From those humble beginnings, Roe’s talent – and passion – for carving decoys  took off.  His work is full of detail in both the carving and the painting. “The process starts off with a block of wood which I band saw to rough shape.  From there, I chop out the body with a hatchet and use a draw knife and carving knife to sweeten up the form.”

Roe builds both decorative (known as shelf decoys) and working decoys.  Surprisingly, there is very little difference between the two. “The carving is the same for both.  The main difference is in balancing it up so the decoy will float properly. I normally hollow out the working decoy and sometimes the keel so I can add melted lead to make it float level when it hits the water. It takes some time to get it right, but it’s something that makes the decoys a pleasure to use.”  Roe was eager to point out that when you throw a decoy into the water in the early morning darkness, it’s comforting to know it will float properly and not require any nocturnal maneuvers to right it.

The painting on his decoys is vibrantly detailed, requiring intense focus and patience.  He’ll do a great deal of research in reference books and with the animals themselves to get the coloring and feather shapes just right.  Since Roe carves decoys of many different species, he can’t rely on repetition to get things right. “I make all different kinds of species of ducks, geese, swans and shorebirds – sorry, I don’t do birds of prey or other animals.  The variety is pretty spectacular.”

Just how many decoys does Roe make annually?  “I average nearly 300 birds a year.  I do most of the band saw work in the winter when it’s cooler in my saw room.  Then, it takes a few months to chop out the bodies and then another month or so carving out the heads.  Finally, it’s sanding, undercoating and paint, paint, paint.”   When I spoke with Roe over the phone, he was busy painting about a dozen of his decoys.

Looking at shots from Roe’s shop, it’s easy to see just how busy he is.  Racks and racks of decoys fill the rooms in his workshop – some needing a little carving, others needing paint.  The variety of shapes in his decoys is pretty dramatic.

Remember, also, that he’s doing all of this decoy carving part time. When groups visit Chincoteague, he’ll often hold seminars where he tells about and demonstrates the skills practiced by carvers for more than a century.  His seminars last about an hour and a half, and leave the visitors with a much better understanding of the history of the craft in this beautiful corner of the country.

And, if this wasn’t enough, Roe is also the Public Information Officer for the Chincoteague Volunteer Fire Company (where he is involved in the annual round up of the wild ponies that call the island home) and tracks weather satellites for the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).  “I do work hard, but I try to take off a couple of months in the summer to fish and a couple of months in the winter to gun for ducks. Building decoys gets old after 40 years, but the money ain’t bad.”

And, what’s it like working near the quiet, unspoiled Virginia shoreline near the mouth of Chesapeake Bay?  “I really love it in the winter, when we have only 3,000 people out here.  The summers are starting to get a little like Florida – we may have 10,000 people a day come to the island.  But, the highs and the lows do offset each other.  Besides, I just love living here.”

If you have been to a home construction site over the past few decades, you have seen a forest of standard dimensional lumber being assembled with pneumatic nail guns.  The predominant building practice today is to build these homes with platform framing using standard sizes of lumber.

But, then you may come across an exception to the rule.  There are homes out there being assembled out of large timbers.  These buildings have soaring, graceful hand-carved timbers from the floor to the roof line defining an open, comfortable living area.  Traditional timber framing, while not the most common construction method, is alive and well and being taught to a new generation of woodworkers.

Clark Bremer, the owner of Northern Lights Timber Framing and a timber frame instructor, fell in love with the craft quite by accident.  “I’m a timber framer because I’m not a very good painter!  Seriously, my wife wanted to paint the window trim of our lake cabin, and to keep me out of her hair, she enrolled me in a woodworking class at North House Folk School in Grand Marais, Minnesota.  The only woodworking class that was offered that weekend was an introduction to Timber Framing.  That was 12 years ago.  I then built several small frames for myself, took more classes, joined the Timber Framers Guild of North America and left my job as a researcher for Bell Labs, and started timber framing full time.  So far, no regrets!”

But, what is the attraction of building with this time-honored yet labor intensive method?  “Generally, a timber frame home will be more expensive than a stick framed home.  But a timber frame home always has an open floor plan with no need for load bearing walls vaulted ceilings because the trusses are too pretty to hide, and lots of beautiful woodwork.  If you ask a conventional builder for those things, you’ve now moved up to a higher price point, and timber framing becomes very competitive.”

Not only competitive, but green as well.  “Modern timber frames are often enclosed with structural insulated panels, which are applied to the outside of the frame.  This creates an unbroken blanket of insulation around the house, which is extremely energy efficient.  And like the timber frame itself, the panels are pre-cut in the shop before being brought to the site, making installation very easy for a trained timber framer to install.  In a moderate sized home, the frame can be erected and enclosed in panels in 1-2 weeks, minimizing the risk of a weather delay.”

When he’s not building timber framed homes, Clark is busy instructing students in the craft and the newest techniques which make this venerable construction method even more enjoyable.  “We hold workshops here in our Minneapolis shop, and I also teach at North House Folk School in Grand Marais, Minnesota.  I’m also a proud member of the Timber Framer’s Guild of North America, where I teach 3D CAD software to professional timber framers.”

It’s true that timber framing looks complex and on a massive scale, but once the individual elements are broken down, it’s not that difficult for any woodworker to master. “This is mortise and tenon joinery, after all, and woodworkers all know the precision required to make that look good.”

Wood selection is another area of emphasis in these classes.  Clark likes to work with eastern white pine and Douglas fir, but he’s also worked in white oak and white cedar.  These woods are very well behaved, but they do have their moments. “One of the biggest challenges is coping with the imperfect nature of the timbers.  Often the timbers are not very dry and are susceptible to movement.  Sometimes we reclaim timbers from a previous structure, and there can be lots of issues with those.  It’s a lot more difficult to lay out and execute the joinery on imperfect material that’s often twisted and bowed.”

And then there are the tools.  At Clark’s shop, he and his crew work extensively with hand tools.  This carries through to his teaching methods as well.  “Sure, there are CNC machines that can cut entire timbers, but these machines are very expensive, and they do not have the hands and eyes of a craftsman, who can read the grain, avoid tear out, and feel pride in the quality of their work.  That’s why we love antique tools, and take the time to send them through “rehab” and get them back into a productive life. We use chisels, hand planes, slicks and draw knives every day.  I also have an old hand-crank boring machine that we bring out for classes and demonstrations.”

While working with the wood is a pleasure, it’s the people he meets that provide Clark most of his enjoyable surprises. “I do enjoy teaching, and it’s also a way of giving back.  Many of my students are amateur woodworkers who have a particular project they want to tackle.  I also get professional carpenters looking to expand their skills.  And sometimes just folks who are curious and looking to try something completely different, just like I did.”

For people who are interested in learning more about this venerable craft, Clark strongly recommends checking out the Timber Framer’s Guild.  There, you can be linked to timber framers around the country and learn who is offering classes and demonstrations.  “Who knows,” mused Clark, “You just might find yourself building something that can be passed down for generations.”

Not every advance in woodworking is tied to a new, groundbreaking development.  Sometimes, a blend of ancient techniques and modern, cutting edge materials is all it takes to revolutionize the craft.

There are few examples as clear-cut as pocket hole technology.  While boring holes at an angle and screwing pieces together isn’t the newest idea in the world (ancient Egyptians actually developed a method of boring angled holes into wood, inserting glued dowels and cutting them flush), figuring a way to bring an easy, repeatable method of doing so for the average woodworker was the obstacle that needed to be overcome.

And, that’s just what Craig Sommerfield struck on while renovating his kitchen back in 1986.  Looking for a hidden way to attach face frames to the cabinets.  Having one of those monkey-and-the-monolith moments as seen in 2001: A Space Odyssey, Craig fashioned the first Craig’s Jig from aluminum and steel.  The follow-on development of the self-tapping screw really allowed pocket-hole joinery to hit the mainstream and become one of the most popular methods of joinery today.

I had a chance to speak with Derek Balsley, a marketing and communications specialist with Kreg Tool, who spelled out the advantages of pocket hole joinery in great detail.

• Math is easier: Instead of remembering to add the length of tenons for a project piece, pocket hole joinery requires no additional measurement – cut the piece to size and join.
• Speed is increased:  Because the screws act like miniature clamps, there is no need to clamp a piece up and wait for glue to dry.  Once an assembly is put together, you can move right to the next step without the lag time.
• It’s half the work:  Mortise and tenon.  Dovetail pins and tails.  Matching half laps. Dowels and biscuits. Most joinery methods require that mating joints be cut in both work pieces which are being assembled. This may require moving a jig or doing a completely new machine set up.  With pocket screws, the angled holes are drilled into only one member, eliminating the chances for inaccuracy.
• Fewer commitments:  Many woodworkers are hesitant to cut particular types of joints for their projects due to the economic realities of tooling up for certain tasks.  Special router bits, hollow chisel mortisers and dovetail jigs all have considerable costs.  With a pocket screw jig, woodworkers can build quickly without needing an arsenal of specialized tools and a large supply of clamps.

According to Derek, “The tool has made woodworking a whole lot easier for beginning and advanced woodworkers alike.  Sure, there may be some who prefer more traditional joints, but for building fast,strong, and easy, pocket screws are a great choice.”

While pocket hole joinery is a very popular method of joining wood, some questions still linger in woodworkers’ minds.  For instance, just how strong are the joints?  According to Kreg’s tests, a properly assembled pocket screw joint has the potential for more shear strength than even a mortise and tenon.  “Unlike other joinery methods, pocket screw joinery utilizes the mechanical advantage of self-tapping steel screws to maximize your joint-strength over the long haul. You get a fast, strong joint that works very well in lots of different applications.”

The other question is heard as frequently as the well-worn debate of boxers vs. briefs.  Should you use glue for your pocket screw joints or not?  “Well, let’s just say both methods are ‘right.’  If you plan on building furniture that you will have to knock down for shipping or storage, without glue is the way to go.  Just unscrew and pack away.  This is something most other joinery techniques can’t match.  However, for the strongest joint possible, add some glue. Since the pocket screws provide tremendous clamping pressure inside of the joint, there’s no need to clamp your joints after connecting. Just drill the screws and move on… start sanding or whatever the next step may be.”

The variety of pocket hole cutting jigs offered by Kreg is pretty staggering.  There are pneumatic, high-volume set ups for furniture factories all the way to the simplest single hole jigs offered for the handy DIYer.  By far, their most popular model is the Kreg Jig Master System (model K3), the system favored by most woodworkers.  Complete with set ups for semi-production and portable bases, the Master System is an improvement over the K2000, the former sales leader.  “Even something as simple and elementary as moving the clamp handle to the front of the jig was a huge convenience for woodworkers.  Now, instead of having to reach around the back of a large panel to secure the work piece, they can do it all from the front.”

Understanding that some specialized tools are also required to make pocket hole assembly easier, Kreg also offers an array of face frame clamps, corner clamps and quick action clamps that attach to workbenches, making holding the pieces that much easier.  “Our in-house engineers are really a clever and creative bunch.  We have a dedicated new-product team who pours over various opportunities and various customer feedback to try and figure out which products and services would help our customers the most.”

And it’s not only pocket screws when it comes to Kreg.  In 2003, the company started building a line of highly accurate (and well reviewed) fences and guides for band saws, router tables, miter saws, table saws and other shop tools.  “So far, all of our precision guides, fences and jigs have all been met with broad support, and our customers have been very happy with what we’ve come up with.”  Even more recently, Kreg has announced an entire line of Klamp System™ components designed to improve clamping around anyone’s shop and a family of Precision Routing products including the new Precision Router Table which includes a table saw style fence which self squares with the table’s miter slot.

Knowing that the Kreg folks are convinced of the value of the pocket hole joinery, many woodworkers wonder if the company’s employees put any value on more traditional joinery methods.  “We absolutely do value the traditional methods.  We love them as much as all woodworkers do, and there’s a time and place for everything, especially when considering the needs of hobby woodworkers who have a natural curiosity for all things woodworking.  That being said, it’s always been our goal at Kreg to reduce or even eliminate the frustration felt by woodworkers of all levels.  What we’ve discovered is that the Kreg Jig and pocket hole joinery removes a lot of fears and gives people the confidence to build things they never would have attempted before.  And best of all… it’s a lot of fun!”

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We’re now entering spring, and that means a few important things.

First of all, my allergies are going haywire. But, that’s neither here nor there. It also means the start of the baseball season, lawnmowers will be coming out of their winter hibernation and the flowers will be blooming. Of course, this holds true if you live in the northern hemisphere… but, again, I’m getting away from myself.

It’s also the time that fashion designer start flocking to cutting-edge cities such as Paris, Milan and New York for the unveiling of the newest spring fashions. I’ve seen a few of these shows on TV, and, I have to confess, some of the designers must be playing with their Barbie dolls a little bit too much. There are very few self-respecting women who would admit to wearing any of those avant-garde designs right off the runway.

That’s why I like sensible clothes. Pants that are durable, shirts that fit and are comfortable and clothes that just don’t wear out when you are working hard.

In one small upper Midwestern city, that’s exactly what’s coming off the designer’s sketchpad. Duluth Trading, a company that sells clothes for working men and women, designs their work wear to last.

This company, which was founded in the late 1980’s by two brothers who invented the Bucket Boss, grew through the years to encompass other tool holders and a basic line of branded work wear.

Suzanne Harms, the company’s marketing director, said that it was important early on for Duluth Trading to reach out to woodworkers through the woodworking magazines. “Our brand and products are built around guys who thrive on the craftsmanship and challenge of working with their hands. Carpenters, woodworkers, cabinet makers, builders, remodelers, hobbyists, the guy building a deck, tinkers and gadget and gear heads, car enthusiasts, bikers, hobby farmers. As our business has grown rapidly in the last 8 years, we’re appealing to a broader range of hands-on men and women. And our focus is more clearly on designing apparel and gear that supports what Duluth customers do – and help them do what they do better and safer.”

All of their clothing – from the signature fire hose cotton canvas items down to belts, suspenders and other accessories, are designed with input from working men and women and then evaluated by the trades panel. “We have a trades panel of eight guys here locally, and the same type of test panel type group for women’s clothes. Our panel members are very direct and very connected to what works and what doesn’t.”

Features such as extremely durable stitching, oversized pockets and even longer zipper pulls were worked into the design of the clothes to provide longevity and convenience. In fact, the company is now offering a guarantee on their trademarked Fire Hose work pants. “If you can wear them out, send them back to us. We’ll buy you the next pair and take care of shipping as well.”

The same type of quality applies to the tools and tool bags offered in the catalogs. While Duluth Trading doesn’t offer large power tools or many hand tools, their offerings cover some interesting personal tools designed to be carried in a pocket. Pocket knives, small precision tool kits and flashlights don’t do a great deal of work, but they make working much easier. “We have gotten some outstanding reviews from Popular Mechanics, woodworking magazines, HGTVPro, woodworking school directors, contractors/remodeling magazines – the list can go on for a while.”

While their products very tough and useful, the Duluth Trading ad copywriters have a great deal of fun when describing and designing their products. One of the funniest and longest-lived ads deals with their extra long tail work t-shirts. They are advertised to cover the dreaded ‘plumber’s butt,’ and are sold in a small plastic pail marked ‘Crack Spackle.’ “The fun atmosphere here leads to some often unexpected humor. The storytelling and ‘MacGuyver meets Paul Bunyan’ approach to product development makes it a great place to work.”

The work wear industry is a crowded one, but Duluth Trading is happiest when blazing their own trail. “We are who we are and we do not want to be the competition – we want to provide the best resource and experience for our customers.”