Here are just a few of the things you can do with the Super Jigs:

• Variably Spaced Half-blind Dovetails
• Variably Spaced Through Dovetails
• Sliding Dovetails
• 5/16” and 5/8” Box Joints….that fit!
• Single Pass Half-blind dovetails – multiple sizes  

You won’t see the new Super Jigs on their web site just yet.  They don’t expect to start shipping them until mid-July. And the one you see here is shown with the optional $69 VRS vacuum attachment (available now). By the way, you’ll want to purchase the VRS — it’s available for ALL of Leigh’s jigs (even their original and older models). And it’s so practical for eliminating dust and chips. It’s amazing how it works. And the great thing is, it also provides a resting platform for your router.

There will be a 12″ ($199), 18″ ($259), and 24″ ($329) version of the Super Jig.  Street prices are expected to be lower. 

TRIVIA:  Do you know where the name “Leigh” comes from?  The founder of Leigh Industries, Ken Grisley, was born in “Leigh-on-Sea” in England.  Now you know.

My first router was a Sears Craftsman. Back then, where I grew up, the only place you could buy a router was from Sears. I didn’t know any better. It worked okay. Until the time I was building a stereo cabinet for my brother-in-law out of birch plywood. I was routing ¾”-wide dados across the side panels. As I was halfway across the panel, I noticed the pitch of the motor changed. By the time I realized what was happening, it was too late. The bit had slipped out of the collet and routed clear through my panel!  At that point, I shut the lights out and went to bed. I couldn’t afford to buy new plywood, so I made a plug out of scrap and carefully fit it into place. To this day, you can hardly tell that there was a mistake.

Just remember — being a good woodworker isn’t just one who knows how to put something together. He’s also one that knows how to fix mistakes.

The Mobile Planer Stand is just the ticket for giving your portable planer a permanent home. It provides plenty of extra storage space and its outfeed support makes working with long stock a breeze.  And while we’re at it, we’ll give you a step-by-step approach for tuning up your planer to create perfect boards in a short time.

And speaking of storage, you won’t believe how much this lightweight Tab-and-Slot Tool Tote can hold! Made from ¼” Baltic birch plywood, it’s easy to build for toting tools or craft supplies.

When it comes to tools you use on almost every project in the shop, you can’t beat a reliable square.  We’ll show you how to build your own Aluminum Square out of common bar stock you can get at the hardware store.  And to top it off, this square is adjustable…meaning that you can be sure that it stays a perfect 90° for a lifetime of use. We’ll also show you how to work with aluminum in your shop with just a few simple tools and supplies. 

And there’s more!  We’ll give you some tried-and-true tips for getting top-notch results from your profile router bits.  Plus we’ll tell you what you need to know when choosing and using metal drawer slides, how to “turn down the noise” in your shop, cut perfect dadoes on your table saw, and how a Yankee-style screwdriver deserves a spot in your toolbox.

Now, Sears is making available the Craftsman CompuCarve Compact Woodworking Machine.  It’s a computer-controlled machine that’ll carve in 3-D on workpieces up to 14-1/2″ wide by 5″ high and almost unlimited length.  And it’s priced at around $1,900.  It requires a PC hookup.  Think of it as sort of like a 3-D printer for your computer.  Except you’re carving wood.

The CompuCarve is made by LHR Technologies who makes the CarveWright machine.  It was developed by a couple of NASA robotics engineers (wouldn’t you know it) who happen to love woodworking.

I can already think of uses for it like sign-making and carving panels for cabinet doors.

The Sears product page says it’s temporarily out of stock.  But there’s a link where you can have them email you when the product is available.

First, Lee Valley just came out with a complete set of router bits that duplicate many of the cutter profiles that used to be available for the old Stanley “55″ plane. This plane was marketed by Stanley as “A Planing Mill Within Itself.” It had replaceable cutters of various profiles (“55″ of them) that you could use to create an endless variety of edge profiles. 

And if you can’t find one of those profiles that’ll work for you, Clark and Williams in Arkansas is still making traditional wooden molding planes the old fashioned way. If the traditional profiles won’t do the job, they’ll make a custom profile for you. Now admittedly it’s no small investment to own their planes, but if you do a lot of restoration or custom work, you’ll appreciate what they can do.

Larry Williams of Clark and Williams has been getting some press coverage lately. He was designated the 2006 Arkansas Living Treasure by the Arkansas Arts Council and the Department of Arkansas Heritage. You can read more about it here. 

THE TABLE TOP

With the legs completed, I switched to working on the top. I started by gluing up three pieces of 4/4 (13/16”) stock so it was big enough to get a 24” diameter circle out of it, see Fig. 33.

Fig. 33

Note to you “Eagle Eyes:” Yes that is another leg being glued up in the background of this photo (Fig. 33). I figured as long as I had everything all set up I would build an end table for the family room as well.

Once the glue dried on the top, I used a belt sander, hand plane, and random orbit sander to get both sides flat.

Next, I mounted my circle cutting jig (from Woodsmith No. 51) onto my band saw, see Fig. 34. (Yes, I know, that’s an old-school band saw! Once again it is an original. It was the first band saw owned by Woodsmith magazine. I bought it from the company at an auction. So it has some historical value, but I love it! I can switch blades on and off this saw and readjust it about ten times faster than most of the modern band saws.)

Fig. 34

Then I drilled a small hole in the bottom of the top blank to fit over the pivot point on the jig and cut the circle about 1/8” oversize, see Fig. 35. I cut it oversize knowing that the band saw would leave a rough cut. Then I trimmed it up with a router and router trammel, see Fig. 36.

Fig. 35

Fig. 36

Then I rounded over the top and bottom edges with a 1/8” roundover bit in the router, see Fig. 37.

Fig. 37

After final sanding, I signed and dated the bottom of the table top, and applied four coats of General Finishes Arm-R-Seal Oil & Urethane Topcoat to both sides of the top, see Fig. 38. (Note: I always sign, date, and write down the location where I built all of my projects. Hopefully, my great-grandchildren will appreciate it some day. Okay, that’s assuming I have great-grandchildren!)

Fig. 38

I topped the finish off with a coat of Briwax paste wax, rubbing with #0000 steel wool, see Fig. 39. After it dried, I buffed it with a soft cloth.

Fig. 39

The last step was to locate and screw the leg assembly onto the bottom of the table top. I positioned the leg assembly and measured it until each leg was equidistant from the edge and then marked the hole positions with an awl. Finally, I drilled small pilot holes and then screwed each leg down with a flathead woodscrew, see Fig. 40.

Fig. 40

COMPLETED!

Fig. 41 below shows the end table in place in our house. It’s remarkably close in appearance to the original photo of the cardboard prototype! About the only thing I might change is the thickness of the table top. Since I used 4/4 stock, it ended up just about ¾” thick. It might look a little better if I had used 5/4 or even 6/4 stock.

Fig. 41

Cathy decided to display some of her glass collection on the table, see Fig. 42. (Hmmm, it leaves less room for my lemonade!) There is one problem though. If we don’t move the glass collection occasionally, it will leave marks on the cherry that haven’t started to darken. You can see a square light spot in Fig. 43. (This would be really prominent if it was a doily!) But I’m not too worried. With the glass removed, this square will “catch-up” in darkness to the rest of the table before too long.

Fig. 42

Fig. 43

One final thought. If you’re wondering whether I have drawings with measurements available for this project, the answer is “not at this time.” Terry Strohman, the editor of Woodsmith magazine has shown some interest in maybe using it sometime in the future. But until that time, get out some cardboard and make your own prototype to fit your needs.