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It’s hard to underestimate the importance of the table saw in the modern home workshop. It’s great for ripping, crosscutting, cutting sheet goods down to size, and it handles dadoes, rabbets, and grooves with ease. But what if it hasn’t been set up correctly? Then it’s just a big anchor in the middle of an unused shop.

Vince Ancona takes us step-by-step through his routine for accurate set up and maintenance of a table saw. By the end of the seminar, you’ll have learned how to vastly improve the quality of the cuts you make with your table saw.

Get the seminar guide here: Table Saw Set Up & Maintenance

 

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I asked associate editor Randy Maxey why hand planes are an important part of a modern woodworking shop? Here is what he told me:

“I know a lot of people think I use hand planes just because I’m old-fashioned. The truth is, I love my machines. But if you want to do quality work in your wood shop, you need to learn to use hand planes. I use at least one of the three planes I’m demonstrating almost every time I’m in the shop. It has changed the way I do woodworking. I really agree with a line I read once in an old, old issue of Woodsmith magazine. It said, ‘…no machine can come close to the quality of work a hand plane will do.’”

Get the seminar guide here: Three Hand Planes Every Shop Should Have

 

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Phil Huber, a senior editor for ShopNotes magazine details in this seminar all the steps necessary for building a sturdy set of drawers on a router table.

First, he’ll demonstrate how to build drawers using a specialized drawer joint bit in just two simple steps. Then, for those of us who choose not to buy the special bit, Phil will take us through the steps of building drawers with an ordinary 1/4″-dia. straight bit.

Get the Seminar Guide here: Building Drawers Using Drawer Joint Bits

 

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The latest issue of ShopNotes magazine will be in your mailbox or hitting the newsstands soon. In this issue, instead of our regular three projects for your home workshop, you’ll find four projects.

The first is an incredible set of Calipers and Dividers. All four tools were designed by Chris Fitch, senior project designer for ShopNotes and Woodsmith. They’re so easy to make. All it takes are some basic tools you probably already have: a hacksaw, a few files, and a drill press. Another project designed by Chris are what we affectionately called the “hamster caskets” while they were being built. Chris wrote about the design process here a few weeks ago.

We made three versions of these Sharpening Stone Storage Boxes for the article. As you can see in the photo, Chris also designed several alternate versions. The outside profiles can be made with a table saw, router, or band saw and the recess on the inside of the boxes is made using a hand-held router and a simple shop-made template.

You’ll also find a great new jig for the table saw (photo at left). This handy Precision-Cutting Jig makes the table saw (normally a great tool for heavy work) a perfect tool for cutting small parts.

Finally, we’ve strayed from the shop just a bit with a fantastic new Modular Garage Storage unit. Inexpensive and easy to build, this wall-mounted
system is a great way to add versatile storage to the garage.

It’s time I finally addressed this topic. The seminar podcasts are NOT being discontinued.

As you know, August Home Publishing has branched out into television. The Woodsmith Shop just started its second season, which means our video production crew has been extremely busy taping and editing the shows that you’re now watching. Unfortunately, this means that podcast video production has been put on the back-burner.

We have been taping the seminars at the Woodsmith Store though and as soon as we get caught up, the podcasts will begin again. Thanks for your interest in the podcasts and I apologize for not keeping everyone up-to-date on our progress. Look for a new Woodsmith Seminar Podcast within the next few weeks.

Ready for a kitchen remodel complete with all-new cabinets? Finally building that entertainment center? Or are you just wondering how to cut a sheet of plywood down to size on your table saw? Then this seminar is for you.

There is no doubt that working with plywood can be a challenge. According to Dave Stone, a full sheet of 3/4″ hardwood plywood can weigh anywhere from 60 to 100 pounds. And the last thing you want to do is drop it on a corner or have excessive chip out when you cut a piece down to size.

Check out the Woodsmith Podcast Store, or get the Seminar Guide here: Tips for Working with Plywood

 

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ShopNotes magazine has finally given its readers a practical reason to download Google’s design and drawing software — SketchUp. In Issue No. 102, the magazine features a great plan for a Cabinetmaker’s Workbench. And for the first time, they’re providing an Online Extra feature that I think is really cool — a SketchUp model of the workbench in 3-D.

If you’re familiar with the program, you know how powerful a tool it is. And if you’re new to it, Google has provided dozens of video tutorials, an extensive Help Center and even live training classes that make it easy to start modeling your own projects right away.

ShopNotes associate editor Randy Maxey came up with the idea to add the model to the magazines’ website. He thought it would be fun to provide readers with a professionally-designed project that they can actually take apart to really get a feel for the way it goes together before deciding to build it. And best of all, if you want to modify the workbench — make it taller, longer, or even change it to feature an edge-grain top — you can take the model and make any changes you want to reflect your particular needs.

Other free downloads at the website include plans for the drawers, a short video animation of the workbench’s best features, and a fraction-to-decimal conversion chart.

If you’re looking to add versatility to your workbench, a patternmaker’s vise is a good way to do it.

At the turn of the 20th-century, Emmert Manufacturing produced a bench vise to help patternmakers make wood parts for castings used in manufacturing. Unlike typical vises, the Emmert vise could twist and turn in several directions and angles. This allowed patternmakers to adjust a workpiece to a comfortable position without having to loosen the vise, adjust the workpiece, and tighten it down again. Simply flip a lever here or a knob there, and position the vise (and the workpiece) right where it needs to be. While the company no longer exists, the Emmert is still a highly sought-after vise, commanding prices up to $800. Fortunately, other companies now make similar vises.

The vise shown at right is available from Highland Hardware (stock #168040). Similar vises are available from a number of manufacturer’s.

For more information on patternmaker’s vises and to learn about more great tips and techniques for updating your shop, consider subscribing to ShopNotes magazine. You can get a free preview issue of ShopNotes magazine here: ShopNotes Preview Issue

Oct 2 …Choosing the Best Workbench for Your Shop w/ Dennis Perkins

Oct 9 …Selecting Lumber: Get the Best Wood Possible for Your Projects w/ Dennis Perkins

Oct 16 …Straight, Flat, & Square: Three Tools that Make it Easy w/ Terry Zuck

Oct 23 …Mortise & Tenon Joinery: Simple Techniques for Strong Joints w/ Jim Downing

Oct 30 …Using Sheet Goods: Why “Strong, Stable, and Flat” is a Good Thing w/ Bob Zimmerman

Nov 6 …3 Solid Steps to Building a Workbench that Works w/ Phil Huber

Nov 13 …Spline & Groove Joinery: Tips for Keeping Large Pieces Aligned w/ Chris Fitch

Nov 20 …Shop Storage: Cabinet and Shelving Units w/ Carol Beronich

Dec 4 …Simple Techniques for Building Doors & Drawers w/ Dave Fremming

Dec 11 …Finishing Touches — Workbench Wrap Up w/ Vince Ancona

Get the full schedule of upcoming seminars and descriptions at WoodworkingSeminars.com

The seminars start on October 2nd and run through December 11th. Cost per seminar is $8, but the price includes a $5 $awbuck$ coupon good for any item in the Woodsmith Store (excluding seminar tickets and season tickets). Season Tickets are available for $70, a $10 savings over single tickets. Each season ticket purchase comes with ten $7 $awbuck$ coupons, which means the seminars are FREE!

Keeping your turning tools sharp — before, during, and after a turning session is extremely important. Brian Simmons prefers the Wolverine system from Oneway, using their grinding jig with the vari-grind attachment to put a fine edge on his turning tools. If you’ve seen earlier seminars presented by Brian, you know that he constantly uses his General 6″ bench grinder to sharpen his gouges, skews, scrapers and parting tools. Brian prefers this 1800rpm grinder and uses an 80-grit aluminum oxide stone for most applications.

Be sure to check out the Woodsmith Podcast Store for a link to the Seminar Guide that Brian used during this seminar, plus a few sharpening accessories for sale.

 

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