Quick Polls

Quick Poll

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Block planesThere was this TV commercial once that proclaimed a certain brand of potato chips was so good, you couldn’t eat just one…

When it comes to woodworking tools, there are some that are just like those potato chips.  One tool that springs to mind is the block plane.  Small, easy to tune, relatively inexpensive (when compared with their bigger bench plane cousins) and handy as all get out, these tools are frequently the go-to tools when you just need to get that final tuning fit for a joint.

Back in the day, Stanley, Record and other companies pumped these babies out in huge quantities, and some woodworkers have inherited quite a selection.

So, are block planes just like those potato chips where you can’t just  stop with one, or are they something you have never thought about owning…

Just how many block planes do you own?

[poll id=”46″]

Link of the week

Link of the week

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David J. Marks’ website

David J. MarksAnyone who has watched an episode of Woodworks has seen the creativity, skill and calm demenor of David J. Marks.  Sure, this Santa-Rosa, California based woodworker is famous for his shows, but they only touch the surface of this extremely talented man.

He’s a multiple award winner, frequent contributor to woodworking magazines and all around busy guy.  His work is featured in collections and art galleries throughout the country.

David describes his work in his bio:

My inspiration is derived from a fusion of styles including ancient Egyptian, African, Art Nouveau, Art Deco and Asian. But essential to all my designs is the attention I pay to fine details.

David has also inspired several up-and-coming woodworkers, including Marc Spagnuolo, the Wood Whisperer.  And, yet, he still remains exceptionally approachable and down to earth.

A visit to David’s site will inspire.

Tools

An awesome find…

2 Comments

3/8″ Mortise Chisel

  • Won on eBay – October 2008 – $9.99

After drooling at some new mortising chisels, and bemoaning the fact that high-quality models started at $60 and up, I combed eBay looking for some old steel to get my hands on.

A friend of mine drew my attention to this little gem.  The description was intriguing:

Antique Page Whitmann & Co 3/8″ wide Mortising Chisel. This lot features a scarce cast steel mortising chisel manufactured by Page Whitmann & Co.  The heavy blade allows the chisel to be used as a lever against the side of the mortise. This scarce socket chisel is marked “Page Whitmann & Co W. Fitchburg”, “Cast Steel Warranted”. This dates this chisel to 1850’s, Civil War Era. Page-Whitman & Co started when Albert Page left Abel Simonds in early 1845 to for A G Page & Co and through mergers became Page Whitmann & Co. There is no handle.The blade measures 3/8″ wide. In good condition. Overall measurement is 11 1/2″ long. Great browning age patina. This is a rare chisel for your collection or use.

eBay picture of chisel

Hey, it was worth a bid.  Fortunately, I was the winner on the auction, and it recently arrived at my home.  The first thing I had to do was make a handle, and I’m KICKING myself that I didn’t set up my camera to show how I did it.  Basically, I followed the directions written by Bob Smalser on how to make a chisel handle.  I used a chunk of maple that was thick enough to work with, and came up with this…

Mortising chisel with Blue Chip for comparison
The Marples 3/8″ bench chisel is there just as a comparison… this chisel is HUGE and heavy.   After I got the handle fitted, I ran the flat of the blade against the grinding wheel of my Work Sharp.  That took a whole lot of scale and pitting out of the blade without removing all of the patina of age, then I reground the bevel to the 30 degree angle that helps keep this beefy chisel’s blade from chipping.

Just for giggles, I took a piece of 2 x 4 scrap which was sitting around the shop, quickly marked out the lines for a sample mortise and went to work.

Three minutes later – I cut my first mortise with a mortising chisel…

My sample mortise...

Wow… this chisel wants to cut straight, deep mortises. Granted, this is kinda rough and into construction grade lumber, but WOW, I can see myself cutting mortises with this grand old tool for years to come.

Now, I just have to get a complete set of mortising chisels…

Projects

Spoooky Stuff I’ve Built

3 Comments

Decorative Halloween Coffin

  • October 2008

Scary Helpers with the CoffinWalking into any large retail store is always an Jack O' Lanterninteresting experience.  Because mass merchandisers have to think well into the coming months, they have to push the products for events quite a long time from now.

My kids were barely out of school for summer break (maybe a month) when retailers started putting out their back-to-school selections.  Once the tykes were back in class, the displays shifted again – this time, the Halloween stuff came out.  Of course, now we’re looking at Christmas items everywhere…

When the Halloween stuff hit the shelves, the wheels started spinning in my head.  This project is a miniature pinch-toed coffin made out of one sheet of 1/2″ CDX plywood.  Most of it was assembled with glue and brad nails, and glue blocks add some reinforcement for the sides and bottom. The toughest part of the build was getting the angles right on the sides. To get the angles right, I bisected the angles using a compass and used a sliding T-Bevel to set the blade properly.

Bisecting the SCARY angles...I got some galvanized T-hinges from the hardware section and used those to operate the lid.  When we are out of the season, I’ll put all of the decorations into it and use it for storage up in the attic.

I finished it by rolling on two coats of an exterior primer and two coats of exterior house paint.  Hey, it’s going to be out in the elements.  I went to the local crafts store and got the large RIP letters for the lid.  A nice touch.

Eerie Fog coming from the coffin...I have it chained to a tree in front of my house (unfortunately, in my neighborhood, nice seasonal decorations have recently developed this nasty habit of ‘walking’ away…).  To complete the look, I added a green flood light and a fog machine, which spills an unearthly green lit fog across the lawn when it’s activated.  Pretty cool stuff.

Quick Polls

Quick poll

7 Comments

Edge JointingIn order to get tight joinery and excellent results with your woodworking projects, you have to start with flat, straight and true boards.  And, when it comes to edge jointing your boards, there are lots of options out there.

From shelling out big bucks for an aircraft carrier sized jointer to some clever and creative work arounds, everyone has their favorite method for getting their boards edge jointed.

So, what is your preference?  How  do you get  those arrow straight board edges when it comes time to mill your lumber?

[poll id=”45″]

Link of the week

Link of the week

2 Comments

Woodbin’s Sagulator

Sagging shelvesSo, you want to build a bookcase with some shelves to hold a few nick-nacks in the living room.  Rather than spend lots of money, you opt to build them out of painted MDF.  After a few months of holding ceramic kitties and a vase of flowers, your spouse says, “Don’t you think it wold be cool if we put my 1957 collection of the Encyclopedia Brittanica up there?  They look so good.”

After a few books go up on the shelves, you notice a huge sag in the middle of the shelf span.  Bummer.

How were you to know?  Well, if you had checked with Woodbin’s Sagulator, you would have known exactly how much those shelves would have sagged.

This ingenious calculator allows you to determine the amount of sag you can expect based on the shelving material, thickness, width of the shelves and the weight of the goods they can be expected to hold.  You can even calculate how adding an edge to the shelves can improve their ability to hold weight.

If your plans include building some shelving, the Sagulator is an excellent resource to use in the design phase.

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