But fortunately, woodworking is one of those hobbies that can help keep us — more specifically, our brains — younger. I ran across this article this morning in the Imperial Valley News out of San Diego.

To quote the article:

“A hobby like woodworking, which stimulates the mind through complex measurements, visualization and creative problem solving, can have significant positive effects on the aging brain.”

To me, it’s just another reason to head out to the shop.

Some of the clutter was the remnants from fun projects. But mostly it was the residue of home maintenance – sound familiar? After cleaning the benchtop, I got to thinking about what items I would allow to remain.

Now, there are the tools that we own, and then there are the tools that we actually use (a much smaller list). I like to keep my benchtop clean and not use it as a storage shelf. But, I’ve got a couple of tools that never seem to leave my benchtop because I use them constantly. They include a small square, block plane, dust brush, mallet, measuring tape, a mechanical pencil, and finally a bench knife.

A bench knife can quickly round the edge of a tenon that needs to fit into a routed mortise, clean a tight joint, bevel an edge, and do many tasks quickly and easily. And it is a wonderful companion to my block plane and chisel.

Now, by bench knife, I don’t mean a utility knife. Utility knives are great for straight down scoring and cutting thin materials like carpet, tar paper, matboard, and the like, but, utility knives are not woodworking tools. The blades wiggle about, are too wide, and the handles are designed only for an inline power grip making fine control very difficult.

A bench knife is a woodworker’s tool. It should have an appropriate handle size and shape, one that can easily be gripped and pulled in conjunction with using the thumb to brace against the workpiece, similar to the motion of making a fist, or firmly and comfortably gripped to push the blade away, or make a piercing cut.

A bench knife should have a tapered blade so that the tip can get into tight spaces yet the base of the blade is stout enough for heavy cuts. Also, the blade should not flex (flexible blades are for peeling fruit) and a cross section that can “roll” into and out of a cut.

And forget about A2, cryogenic steel, molecular packing, or any steel-related voodoo you may have heard about. Tried-and-true high carbon steel that has been properly heat treated makes a wonderful blade that has the right combination of toughness and edge-holding ability.

For a purchased knife, my favorite is a 2″ knife by Frost. It’s a plain unadorned knife and the price is reasonable. I used this knife daily for years carving figures as part of my former life as a craftsperson, so, I can vouch that the blade is of good quality with a shape that makes it quite versatile. The center swelling of the handle is comfortable and allows for a variety of grips.

So think about adding a bench knife to your benchtop. There are the tools we own, then there are the tools that we use. A good bench knife is a tool that you will use.

P.S. Off in the future the making of a bench knife may be a project in ShopNotes. My first prototype uses a purchased knife blank to which custom wood scales have been riveted on. The nameplate is a fun addition. (Who doesn’t like to personalize their tools?) I may also custom make a knife blank from tool steel.

To quote Wood Werks Supply:

“This won’t be just any saw. We start with the award winning Powermatic PM2000 10″ table Saw. We’ll Blanchard Grind the top, add the reliablility of an American Made Baldor® motor, then install your favorite accessories. You’ll decide exactly what color it will be, and we’ll finish it off by prominently displaying your name on the front of your perfect saw.”

Create and order your customized Powermatic PM2000 here. I created the one you see in the photo here with just a few clicks. It’s got a 3hp, single-phase motor; paint colors to honor the OSU Buckeyes; and a cast iron extension wing with cast iron legs.

If you’d like to find out more and join in on the long-running discussion over on WoodNet, click here.

You can find out all about the recall here on the CPSC web site. You can take your drill to your nearest service center for a free inspection and free repair, if needed. Click here for instructions on DeWalt’s web site.

When I first brought it home, I fired it up and ran a few boards through it. It seemed to work great, but I didn’t need it right away, so I stored it under the bench. Let me say right here that when Sears calls this a “benchtop” planer, that’s an outright lie. This monster is heavy. I’ve got to build a stand for it one of these days. But I’m getting sidetracked.

While I was in the process of building the project mentioned in this previous post (where I injured my thumb on the table saw), I needed to plane some 3/4″ curly maple boards down to 1/2″ thickness. (Yes, it broke my heart to see 1/4″ of those boards go to waste as chips.) As I was planing, I noticed that there was a wide, shallow groove along one edge of the boards along the entire length. Since the two boards I was planing were cut from longer stock, I thought that the boards were rough-planed that way and that’s how I brought them home. A couple of shallow passes later it dawned on me that the groove wasn’t going away. “Great,” I thought. I was going to have to tear down this planer to see what was going on.

Fortunately, this planer is designed to make it fairly easy to get to the cutterhead. A few screws remove the dust shroud to gain access to the knives. As I rotated the cutterhead around, I couldn’t believe what I saw. The gib holding the knife in place was bent outwards and the remaining cavity between it and the knife was crammed full of chips. You can see what I mean in the drawing at right. (I tried to hightlight the area in red.) The item labeled ’65′ is the gib. Item ’64′ is the knife. (Item ’60′ is the cutterhead.) Now, what to do?

Figuring that the worst-case scenario was ordering a new gib, I attempted to straighten it. I clamped the bent area in heavy-duty vise and torqued it as far as I could go. That took care of the majority of the bend. Then some carefully placed taps on the leading edge of the gib with a wood block and hammer took care of the rest. Some minor filing was all it took to get a smooth, straight edge. I re-installed the blade and gib and ran a few boards through it. No sign of a “groove.” I was relieved and glad that I was able to repair it.

But the question remains…what caused the gib to bend in the first place? It’s possible that it was like that when I first bought it. But the mystery remains. When I talk to the other guys in our shop, no one can come up with a plausible explanation. Very strange. If you’ve got any thoughts, leave a comment here.

Then I saw it. The workpiece was not the only thing I was cutting. The end of my right thumb had somehow come down directly on the spinning blade. I hadn’t even felt it.  Yet. My wife saw the whole thing happen.

The end result after some microsurgery is a shorter thumb without a thumbnail. I’ll spare you all the gory details. The prognosis for a full recovery is good after some physical therapy.

But what I have left to deal with now are all the questions. And anger and blaming myself for letting it happen. I haven’t been back to the “scene of the crime” since it happened. I suppose I’ll have to face up to it here in the next day or so.

I lay awake at night second-guessing myself. Not believing that I’ve been woodworking for over 30 years without serious injury.  The full range of emotions and “what-if” scenarios.

I’ve already wrestled with the 100 different ways I could have accomplished my goal that night. And what I should have done differently. The constant blame game you play in your mind.

But that’s behind me and life must go on. My point of telling my story is that you should always listen to that voice in your head that says, “Perhaps I should do this another way.” For that’s exactly what I was thinking precisely one-half second before I permanently injured my thumb.

If you’re a subscriber to Woodsmith or ShopNotes magazine, or live in the state of Iowa, you probably already know that we’ve been busy around here. We’ve been working hard on a new TV show that has been airing on public television (PBS) stations in Iowa and will soon be available nationally in December.

The Woodsmith Shop is unlike any other woodworking show you’ve seen. It’s the first one to be filmed and produced (by Iowa Public Television) in High Definition. That means the picture quality is unsurpassed. You’ll see all the details of the tips and techniques we talk about on the show.

Second, The Woodsmith Shop isn’t a project-based show. What I mean is we’ll spend an entire episode talking about a particular woodworking joint, tool, or technique instead of building a project. That means you’ll get more detail about woodworking than you’ll find on any other show. And you’ll have the opportunity to download project plans and articles from our web site that are related to the show’s content.

We’ve been getting a lot of positive feedback so far from those that have seen the show. And a lot of folks nationwide are anxious to take a look. Now is the time to take a minute to email or call your local public television station and tell them you heard about The Woodsmith Shop and want to see it in your area. This link will take you to the show’s web site where you can find out if the show is airing in your area. You’ll also get a list of PBS stations in your area and a contact link for each station.

Let us know what you think of the show.

Here’s the hazard they’re reporting:

“The saw handle’s switch can fail, causing the saw to smoke, spark, and trip circuit breakers, and disable the safety brake. The saw also can keep operating unless the unit is unplugged, posing a laceration hazard to consumers.”  

Yikes.  You can contact WMH Tool Group for a new saw or a full refund if your saw is included in the recall.

For additional information, contact WMH at (800) 689-9928 between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. ET Monday through Friday, or visit the firm’s Web site at www.wmhtoolgroup.com.

You can read the entire text of the recall notice here.

Now, my cheapness may come back to haunt me. The Consumer Product Safety Commission has sent out notification of a product recall for shop lights made by Cooper Lighting. You can read all about the recall here. To see the announcement on the CPSC web site, click here.

Well, since my shop lights look suspiciously like the ones that are being recalled, looks like I’ll have to climb a ladder and check them out. And if yours look like the one shown in the photo here, you should do the same.

She wanted a white board put up in the kitchen so she’d have a place to write her grocery list, notes, and whatever else came to mind. Our 1960′s-vintage kitchen still has the original cabinets with the rabbeted plywood doors. But the way the cabinets were built, there’s a bumpout in one corner that is essentially the back side of a closet. Strange floor plan, I know, but this whole house is strange. Anyway, where the wall cabinets meet this bumpout, there’s an adjacent empty space on the wall that had been framed in 1×2′s. The area is about 28″ high by 14″ wide. A perfect size and location for a whiteboard, my wife so strongly hints.

So here’s the challenge:  Can I get a ¼” whiteboard panel to fit inside this framed area without having to add trim to hide any gaps? I brought in my framing square and was pleasantly surprised to find out that one corner was only out of square by about 1/8″ over the 28″ length. “Hmmm. Not bad,” I thought.  “This will be easier than I thought.”  (Usually, this thought gets me into serious trouble…but not this time.)

I cut the panel just about 1/16″ oversized on my table saw and kept trimming a little off until the panel just started to slide into the “narrow” end of the frame. Knowing that I had to take about another 1/16″ off the other end of the panel, I went back to my table saw, folded up an old business card to four thickness, and put it between my panel and the rip fence at one end. That effectively “tapered” the cut. I checked the fit of the panel and it was real close to fitting. So I brought my small block plane into the kitchen and kept shaving the edges here and there until the panel could be held in place with friction only. Of course, my ten-year old walks in while I was planing and says, “Dad, why are you doing that in the kitchen?”

After a few rounds of planing and test-fitting, I ended up not needing any glue or screws to hold the panel in place. And there was barely any noticable gap around the panel. Nothing beats a block plane for final trimming and fitting.

I was happy to get another project checked off my list and my lovely bride was happy to have a place to make a list.

In ShopNotes No. 96, we had an article about Choosing and Using Bit and Blade Cleaners, including home-made cleaners.  A number of folks wrote in to tell us that some of our ideas were crazy or that their solution worked better.  We’ve had suggestions from oven cleaner to Formula 409. I say, use whatever works for you.  For me, I tend toward the commercial cleaners.  Our guys here in the shop seem to like CMT’s Formula 2050 Blade and Bit Cleaner.

Whatever chemical you use, chance are you’re going to need to use a little elbow grease, too.  As a matter of fact, it took a couple of applications of cleaner while I was busy scrubbing the residue off of the teeth.  I had the blade on several thicknesses of old newspaper and sprayed on the cleaner.  After scrubbing one side clean, I flipped the blade over and worked on it.  That left all the crud in between the teeth and on the face of each tooth.  Here, I stood the blade up, sprayed on some more cleaner, and worked my way around the blade with the toothbrush.  A little wiping with a rag removed the last of the residue and cleaner.

You’ll be amazed at how your blades look after a good cleaning. I inspected mine closely and couldn’t find any chipped or dull teeth. But it’s hard to make that judgement on looks alone.  I’m anxious to make a few test cuts and see if I need to take the next step and actually have them sharpened.

My first decent pocket knife I purchased for myself was a small, two-bladed Buck knife. It had stainless steel blades and real wood scales.  I bought it on my honeymoon and carried it with me every day for about 15 years. Imagine how heartbroken I was when I emptied my pockets one evening and it wasn’t there. I looked all over, but couldn’t find it. A few weeks later, I resigned myself to the fact that it was long gone. Soon after, I replaced it with a Case knife. It, too, had stainless steel blades.  Some months later, I pulled into our gravel driveway, and as I was getting out of the car, I saw what remained of my original Buck knife.  Actually, it was pretty intact, but the combination of gravel and cars running over it removed one of the wood scales.

When I carried a pocket knife, I used it mostly for opening packages, cutting cardboard, and tightening the occasional screw.  (I know…don’t tell my dad.)  Every so often, I’d take it out to the shop and sharpen it. But it seemed like it never held an edge for very long (even when I didn’t use it as a screwdriver). I’m no metallurgist and certainly don’t understand the finer points of blade steel, but I wondered if the stainless steel blades were the problem.

It occurred to me that the reason my dad’s knife is always sharp might not be just that he sharpens it often, but perhaps his has a high-carbon steel blade. (I’ll have to ask next time I see him.) I think carbon steel can be sharpened to a finer edge and holds its edge better than stainless steel. All I want is a knife you can almost shave with. I could never get that with my stainless steel knives.

I’ve been intrigued by these little Opinel knives from Lee Valley. The smallest one is small enough to carry in a pocket. And the blades are made from high-carbon steel. The price is right at just under $11US each for the two smaller ones. I’ve been carrying one around in my pocket for a few weeks, so maybe I’ll get a feel for how well the blade holds up to packing tape and cardboard and maybe the occasional whittling (but no tightening of screws). When I got it, it just took a little honing to get it impressively sharp.  A lot sharper than my Buck or Case stainless steel knives, anyway.  So far, for being an inexpensive knife, I’ve been impressed.

But there’s a problem I’ve always had with steel rules. I have a hard time seeing the graduations. At least in my shop, I have to angle the rule just right in the light to be able to see what I’m doing. That’s true even for the better-quality rules that are etched (instead of stamped) and have a matte chrome finish.

I finally found something better, at least for my poor eyes. Enco sells a line of EZ-View® Rules that I really like. What’s different about them is that they have a matte black finish and filled white etchings for the numbers and graduations. You can see them on this catalog page. I have the 6″ pocket rule and the 12″ and 18″ steel rules. All of the ones I have are type “4R” (8th’s and 16th’s on one side, 32nd’s and 64th’s on the other). The ones I have are rigid, but they’re available in flexible versions, too.

As many of you know by now, the first episode of The Woodsmith Shop will air on Iowa Public Television at 6:30pm on Friday, October 5th. And hopefully, by the end of the year when the feed will be available to the rest of the country, the show will be picked up by stations around the U.S. (For more information, go to WoodsmithShop.com. Randy Maxey will also post more about the show soon.)

The same tradition is being carried on every week during the woodworking seminars at the Woodsmith Store in Clive, Ia. They’re held each Thursday evening (from September through April) in a 200-seat auditorium with a fully-equipped shop. Seminar topics for this fall range from “Top 5 Shop-Built Router Jigs” to “Tips for Working with Plywood.” Season and single tickets are on sale now at the store. Plus, this year the one-hour seminars will be supplemented by two 4-hour hands-on workshops held in December. Space is limited to six for these sessions though, so sign up soon.

We talk a lot around here about the Woodsmith Store. For a little over fifteen years, it was a small, out-of-the-way haven for woodworkers tucked into the Beaverdale neighborhood of Des Moines. Then in 2003 everything changed.

That was when the old Payless Cashways building in Clive was remodeled and Des Moines became home to one of the largest independently-owned woodworking stores in the country. It is truly a regional destination store for woodworkers from all over the Midwest. The store, now over 20,000 square feet in size, is filled with woodworking supplies, tools, machinery and hardwoods. Think Cabella’s, Bass Pro Shops, or L.L. Bean.

This coming weekend, Friday, Saturday and Sunday (September 21st, 22nd and 23rd), the Woodsmith Store will celebrate its 20th Anniversary with a Fall Fair event. There will be a lot going on, not only in the woodworking departments, but in the painting and gardening departments as well. I just thought it deserved a shameless plug here. Hope you can stop by.

For example, a few months after 9/11, I became involved with a project sponsored by the club and Woodworkers United for America to build Memorial Flag Boxes for the families of victims of the terrorist attacks. It was a gratifying experience and I ended up building a few extras for my family members.

Then, just the other day I heard a member of the club on a local public radio station talking about their latest community project — building special caskets for preemie babies. The Infant Casket Program is an off-shoot of the Precious Angels Organization. Their goal is to help families who have lost children and may not be able for whatever reason to afford a quality casket or other services. You can find out more about this organization here.

Des Moines Woodworkers club members can build caskets from plans provided on their website. The club also provides wood to any member who requests it to build caskets. They announced the plans to help out at their last meeting and the hope is that members will bring their projects to the September meeting where they’ll be presented to Vicki Dischner, the young lady who runs the program for SpecialAngelsIA.org. The Des Moines Woodworkers have also contacted clubs in Omaha, NE., and Ames, Cedar Falls, and Cedar Rapids in Iowa to become involved in this worthy project.

Contact Russ Wilson, the community service director for the club, if you’d like to be involved.

Dave called to tell me that he made a Shop-Built Mallet we featured in ShopNotes 95. He said he really enjoyed the article and was especially tickled and surprised when I told him I wrote it. He said he had a little trouble planing the resawn stock to thickness. Here’s what Dave said about the project:

“The mallet was fun to make and was a challenging project. One problem that I encountered was that the double faced tape did not work out very well because it continually got saw dust in it. So, what I did was put a ¾” board on the planer table and ran the thin pieces through on top of this board. That seemed to work out well.”

Dave also commented that he really thought the simple resaw pivot block for the band saw was a great idea. He built one and used it for this project.

Thanks for sharing, Dave.

Inniswood Metro Gardens

As noted on his web site, David sculpted these creatures using various combinations of whole trees found standing or fallen dead, cut green saplings selectively harvested from the willow family, dry branches, and other forest materials. The different shapes, colors and textures of these materials provide these sculptures with character, definition, and a sense of motion.

If you get a chance to see this exhibit in your area, it’s worth taking the whole family. Just keep your kids away from the jaws of the beetle.

I grew up in the AutoCAD world (since version 2.52 for those of you keeping notes). So I’m familiar with high-priced CAD packages. And I’ve gotta’ say that SketchUp can’t be beat for the price. AutoCAD started back in the 1980′s as a two-dimensional drawing program and as such, has never quite been able to shake off that legacy. It’s become a powerful drawing program, but it doesn’t hold a candle to some of the newer 3-D packages. While SketchUp isn’t meant for creating detailed CAD drawings, it’s ideal for conceptual 3-D design.

A lot of woodworkers have discovered the ease of use in designing projects using SketchUp. And the challenge has been made over on WoodNet to show off your SketchUp models. Some folks have even placed their models up on Google’s 3D Warehouse so you can download them into SketchUp and modify them.

SketchUp’s online help and resources are second to none and worth checking out if you want to get the most out of SketchUp. And there’s an independent online community you can join at www.Sketchucation.com.

So don’t be shy! Head on over to WoodNet and post your best SketchUp models.

‘Twas only a kit of carpenter’s tools
We were chancing off that night.

The man who owned the tools was there
A carpenter whose hair was white.
To draw the stubs until the winning share
Would place the tools within another’s care.

Aye! Only a kit of tools you say
Objects of metal hard and bright.
No! We chanced off something else that day
Something that didn’t seem just right.

All the labor of yesteryear.
Homes that they built for those in the past
Of service come to an end at last.
Leaving his heart, his head, his hand

In a chest of tools, this white-haired man.
To end his days in a home for them
Whose years of service were at an end.
The sad look on that aged face

As each number shortened the space.
Of time when he must bid farewell for good
To old friends of his, of metal and wood.
He had used them for years, they were always there.

‘Twas awfully sad, the whole affair.
Like playing pitch with an old man’s soul.
Pushing him on to the final goal.

Into the sidelines and out of the race
While a younger man takes up his place.

The tools of his trade, the hammer and saw
It struck me with wonder and something of awe.
As we laughingly shout and loudly cry
To see who the winning share did buy.

How stupid of us, we were such fools
To think we were chancing off
Only CARPENTER’S TOOLS

      —Julius Frerich

_________________________________
Originally appeared in Carpenter Magazine many years ago. It’s a monthly publication published by the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America. It contains articles on labor issues, lessons on how to build things, and “human interest items” submitted by the local union secretaries.

Bob Smalser kindly posted this over on WoodNet and I thought it was good enough to share.

In Design News, there’s a great article about how Norm got started and how he managed to make it into his 20th season this year on New Yankee Workshop. Did you know that Norm attended college with the intent of getting an engineering degree?  Here’s an intersesting quote from the article:

“I hated sitting in a class of 600 in a thermodynamics class, but I loved being in the lab working with metals. I hung in there for a couple of years and said this isn’t for me. You can learn a lot from school and books, but you really learn from experience,” he says. Going with a gut feeling, he switched to production management in business school, sensing he wanted to be a building contractor. He came close but never earned a degree because midstream in college he “felt it was time to go to work.”  

And the rest is history, as they say.

And if your a fan of old catalogs, photos, and other paper items related to old manufacturers of hand tools, check out Gary Robert’s Toolemera web site. Gary collects, studies, and enjoys old tools and related books and ephemera. There you’ll find old bills of sale, postcards, letterhead, books, pamphlets, and assorted other items from Gary’s collection. I’ve got one of his old photos as wallpaper on my computer screen. It’s fun just browsing through Gary’s site.

Eagle Jigs is a small company out of Kansas City, Missouri that seem to come up with some good ideas. They’ve got several products that you might want to consider for your shop. They seem to have a knack for developing products that solve real problems in the woodworking shop. Maybe that’s because they’re woodworkers themselves.

One such product is the Versa-Block. It’s one of those things that looks so simple, but the more you use it, the more uses you’ll find for it. It’s an octagon-shaped piece of solid alumimum. Each face has another octagon shape milled onto the surface. Each edge of the smaller octagon is offset from the corresponding edge of the main body. It’s easier to understand once you see the photos and hold it in your hand. On one side, the offsets are in 1/16″ increments. On the other side, the offsets are in 1/8″ increments.

You can use the Versa-Block for a number of things. The most obvious is setting bit heights on your router and blade heights on your table saw. But you can also mark offsets from the edge of a workpiece up to one inch. And you can use the Versa-Block as a square during glue-ups. Like their web site says, “This is an accessory that the more you use, the more uses you will find to use it.”

Another handy item they’ve come up with is the Laser-Cut Triangle. They come in 3″ and 6″ sizes. The triangles are similar to the aluminum Swanson Speed Square you’d use for framing a house. But these are plastic and laser-etched for accuracy. One side of the triangle has small holes — like the Incra Marking Rules — for the tip of your pencil for drawing and marking lines parallel to an edge. The base of the triangle is etched in 1/16″ increments. The “hypotenuse” of the triangle has angular markings etched so that you can use it as a protractor. The prices are reasonable enough that you can afford to have a few in the shop.

E-Z Lok is a manufacturer of threaded inserts for a variety of industries and applications. And I’ve recently discovered that their web site is a valuable resource of information you can use when building projects that make use of threaded inserts. Their web site contains PDF documents that contain detailed dimemensioned drawings and complete charts listing dimensions and recommended hole sizes for their inserts. (They caution you to try out the insert on a scrap piece to get the exact hole size.)

Click here for a chart of their inserts for hardwood.

Click here for a listing of the knife-thread inserts for softwood.

I like to use press-in “Finserts” whenever I can (see photo at left). I don’t have to thread them and risk not getting them in straight. You can simply press or tap them in place. Click here for more information on finserts.

If you scroll to the bottom of these pages, you’ll see links for PDF documents of drawings and charts.

E-Z Lok’s products are sold through a variety of distributors like McMaster-Carr, Reid Tool, and MSC.

3M is taking sanding to a whole new level with the introduction of its unique Clean Sanding Discs for woodworking. The new, innovative discs can deliver longer life than standard high-performance discs, thanks to their breakthrough surface configuration and abrasive technology.

Designed to be used with random orbital sanders, Clean Sanding Discs offer improved dust extraction when used with a vacuum system. Less dust contributes to improved cutting action when sanding. The unique, patented hole pattern on the discs’ surface helps to effectively remove dust from the work area, which prevents disc loading and provides a fast, consistent and efficient cut rate. I watched them in action during the show and was impressed with the fact that they didn’t load up like traditional discs. And the best thing is, they’ll work with any hole pattern and you don’t have to worry about aligning the holes.

Clean Sanding Discs are available in 5″ and 6″ diameters in grades P80 to P1000 and feature the secure Hookit attachment system from 3M.

You can find out more about them by clicking here.  As for availability, Clean Sanding Discs are sold through distributors for the industrial market. But 3M reps tell me that they expect them to be available from their online eStore sometime soon. Let’s hope they make their way into woodworking catalogs and home centers, too.

Rhino Ultra Glue shares some of the same characteristics as other polyurethane glues: it’ll bond just about anything. But there is one important difference. This stuff sets up fast. After 40 minutes, you can “plane it, sand it, and stain it” as their bottle says. But get this — If you dampen the surface of the material to be bonded first, Rhino Ultra Glue sets up in half that time. That means that you only need to clamp it for 20 minutes.

There’s another difference. It’s higher-viscosity (thicker) formulation means it won’t run as easily as some other polyurethane glues. That’s real handy on complicated glue-ups where traditional glues run away from your joints before you can get things clamped together.

But what I like most about this product is the bottle. That’s right. The bottle has a flat side so you can store it on it’s side. That means that the glue will last longer because air can’t get to it. When the folks from Liquid Nails showed us this, we all said, “It’s about time.”

And there’s the long nozzle that helps get the glue where you need it. You can read all about the unique bottle features here.

Click here for more information about Rhino Ultra Glue.

Both jig saws feature anti-vibration technology for over 40% reduced vibration and noise than competitive models. The Makita 4350FCT (shown at left) and 4351FCT (shown on the right) combine power and superior feel, with less vibration and noise. Both jig saws include three orbital settings plus a straight-cut setting, and are powered by a 6.3 AMP motor for cutting in all varieties of materials. The electronic variable speed control maintains consistent speed throughout the cut for superior results.

Makita also engineered comfort and control features into the new jig saws. An L.E.D. light illuminates the line of cut, while a built-in dust blower clears the line of cut for greater visibility. The ergonomically designed rubberized grip on both the top handle and barrel grip models provides greater comfort and control. The 4351FCT model features a rubberized barrel grip design to provide a closer grip to the work surface during cutting.

The patented tool-less blade change system provides fast and easy installation and removal of tang-shank blades. The die-cast aluminum base adjusts up to 45 degrees right or left with a positive stop at 90 degrees for solid cutting performance. An on-board hex wrench is included for fast, accurate bevel adjustments. Both models are ideal for professional woodworkers, cabinetry makers, and specialized residential construction workers. They include a blade set, anti-splintering device, cover plate, and tool case. 

Oh by the way, if you don’t have an
iPhone yet, they also make a case for iPods!

I ordered inexpensive beakers, disposable pipettes (“eye droppers”), aluminum weighing dishes, wash bottles, and all sorts of other “lab supplies.” Now if you don’t know what any of these things are, you’re not alone. But as a woodworker, I’ve realized that a lot of these items can be real handy in the shop. Beakers can be used for measuring and mixing stains and finishes. The pipettes are great for squeezing glue into tight areas for repairs. Disposable aluminum weighing dishes make great mixing containers for epoxy or for holding small amounts of glue during assembly. Wash bottles are a lot more convenient for storing and dispensing solvents like paint thinner than those square metal cans.

My two favorite sources for lab supplies are U. S. Plastic Corporation and Lab Safety Supply. Take a browse through their web site or order a catalog. You’ll be surprised at what you’ll find that’ll be handy to have in the shop.

When the Dremel folks stopped by our office a couple of weeks ago, one of the products they were showing us is the new MultiVise. I’ll admit that my first thought was, “This can’t be a serious tool — it looks like it’s made out of plastic.” But I was soon to be impressed. The way this thing can twist and contort to clamp almost anything is amazing. 

It clamps to your workbench or table. A ball-and-socket joint can rotate the clamp 360° and tilt up to 50°. I was skeptical that this ball-and-socket couldn’t be locked too securely. But once you tighten the blue ring, it’s there to stay. The clamp itself as a 7½” capacity. And it has removable “soft jaws” for clamping delicate or irregularly-shaped objects. I was impressed.  Really.

Now, as a woodworker, the first question I had was if the clamp was available in longer lengths. The Dremel reps said that they honestly hadn’t considered it but really appreciated the comments. I suggested that they offer “accessory kits” with longer clamps for us woodworkers. The reason is that the clamps are great by themselves. They’ve got large “feet” that sit on your benchtop and won’t topple over as you clamp down. The only problem I had with the clamp was that the screw was rather stiff and took some effort to turn. But I suppose it would loosen up over time without compromising it’s clamping ability.

Oh…I almost forgot. It comes with an adapter and wrench so you can fasten your Dremel rotary tool to the vise. It’s great for grinding or sanding operations.

I’ve got to get one of these for my own shop.

One day not too long ago, I went to use the Work Sharp to hone some chisels for our new public television show, The Woodsmith Shop (more on that later).  Well, I couldn’t find all the parts to the Work Sharp, so I resorted to honing the chisels by hand using wet/dry sandpaper.  A few weeks later, I asked Steve Johnson, our shop craftsman, about the Work Sharp’s missing parts. He said that they weren’t missing and walked me around the corner of his work area and showed me the box that contained the “missing” parts. Turns out he had the Work Sharp squirreled away to keep it from disappearing.  He says he uses it all the time for touching up his chisels. For example, when he’s chopping mortises or cleaning up mortises, all he needs to do is walk over to the Work Sharp, and in just a few seconds he’s got a sharp edge.  He thinks it’s a great addition to his shop for keeping an edge on his tools.

Work Sharp has come out with a homeowner/DIY version of their system called the WS2000.  It uses the same motor as the WS3000 but doesn’t have the built-in speed reduction and doesn’t come with the finer grits of abrasive that you’d use for honing.  It’s meant for grinding a quick edge or, as one homeowner did, ground a sharp edge on his garden shovel.

You can read more about the Work Sharp systems here.

There’s a running discussion over on WoodNet about if, when, and how you flatten the backs of your chisels. Then there’s the question of what “flat” really means.

Personally, when I buy a new chisel, I’ll use wet/dry sandpaper on a granite tile and work through the grits until the back is polished. Then I’ll work on the bevel to get a sharp edge. After that, the only time I work on the back is to remove any burr after I’ve honed the edge. I’ve had good success with that method and my chisels seem to be plenty sharp. The same holds true with my plane irons.

With western chisels, I only worry about polishing the last ½” or so of the back. Japanese chisels are hollowed out on the back side, making them easier to flatten.

Head over to WoodNet and leave your 2¢ worth.

If you’ve wondered what tips you’ve missed, we’ve got some handy links for you look up any of our past eTips. For our older eTips (prior to August 2003), click here.  For more recent tips, you can click here. Between these two web pages, you’ll find a complete list of all our past eTips.

Remember to sign up here for free eTips if you don’t already receive them.

I had a chance to chat with one of the exhibitors, Chris Hedges. His furniture project (a high-boy/secretary) was getting a lot of attention. And it should have. Chris won three awards with his project: First Place in the Reproduction category, the People’s Choice award, and Best of Show.

He’s 32 years old originally from the Circleville, Ohio area. He says he’s happily married and has a 3 year old daughter. When not making furniture and spending time with his family, Chris enjoys trap shooting and golfing. Chris says, “Although my wife and I lived in Athens, Ohio for 12 years before relocating to Knoxville, Tennessee. I earned a Masters from Ohio University (I taught sociology for four years after graduating) and then spent two years at University of Rio Grande in the Fine Woodworking program.”

When I asked him how he got started in woodworking, here’s what he said: “I really had no experience with woodworking as a child, other than nailing end grain to make ‘bookshelves’ for my dad. Most of the training I have before starting Rio’s program was theoretical — meaning I read as many books as I could. Although I could take apart a table saw in my head, I didn’t actually touch one until I started at Rio.”

As for the secretary Chris built, as a second year student he was encouraged to build something that was both technically and academically challenging. Having seen a number of similiar secretaries in the DuPont collection at Winterthur, Chris was highly intriqued by their swiss army knife-like nature and thought that building the secretary would truly challenge his acquired skills. “While plans were provided, I felt it would be to my benefit to stray as far from those plans as possible in an effort to distinguish myself from the rest of the pack,” Chris said. 

All in all, the research and production process took nine months, including the creation of scale drawings from photographs, designing the upper case, getting materials, then building the project. Chris used curly quartersawn cherry (from Irion Lumber Company) as the primary wood and madrone burl for the veneer from Certainly Wood. All secondary wood is poplar.

All wood was dimensioned to within 1/32″ of the final dimension with power tools and finished up with hand tools. As for joinery, all dovetails were cut by hand. Mortise and tenons and sliding dovetails were cut using power tools. While most of the work was done at school, a lot of the hand work was done at home, including dovetails, carvings, and turnings. “At the time that I built the desk, all I had at home was a lathe and a bunch of handtools,” Chris stated.

I think Chris has an excellent future as a woodworker based on what I saw. His craftsmanship is excellent and his attention to detail is impeccable.

I remember about a year or so ago, Tony Schrank called me. His uncle had patented a new type of clamping system called the VersaClamp™. Tony and his brother designed it for manufacturing. I had him send me one to take a look at. I recall at the time that it was unique in its ability to transform from a clamp to a vise with the addition of a couple of brackets you can mount to your bench. 

Since that time, Tony has licensed the VersaClamp to PennTek Tools for manufacturing. (I wrote about PennTek Tools in this post.) 

Here are some of the key features of the VersaClamp:

• Cam Locking Feature is easily activated with the Easy-Grip Handle and locks the work piece in place with up to 400 pounds of force
• Power of the clamp is not limited by the hand strength of the user
• Handle has multiple positions and pivots out of the way as needed
• When mounted as a vise, jaws turn to work at any angle 
• Soft, non-marring jaws firmly hold the work piece
• Available in 12”, 20”, 36 and 48” openings – comes with mounting brackets and hardware
• Patented Cam Locking System
• Made in the USA
• Limited Lifetime Warranty

You can order the VersaClamp from Garrett Wade, Woodcraft, or directly from the VersaClamp web site.

The flood is starting already. In addition to launching a new web site (www.deltaportercable.com), Porter-Cable today announced the availability of a new plunge base for their 890-series routers. From their press release:  

The plunge base is offered as part of multi-base kits, models 893PK, 894PK and 895PK, as well as an accessory, model 8931. With machined brass brushings and steel guide rods, the upgraded base offers an extremely smooth and durable plunge stroke for greater user control and accuracy. In addition, a through-the-column dust collection system supports efficient dust removal, and yields improved bit and cut-line visibility when used with a durable, clear Lexan® sub-base and dust shroud, which come as standard.

To further enhance precision and ease of operation, the base features a six-position adjustable turret stop for stepped plunge cuts; a single, flat side on the base that allows routing to be done in tighter spaces while also providing a straight reference point; a lever release for quick motor transitions between bases; and rubber overmolded handles for a comfortable grip.

The versatile plunge base, which accommodates the existing 890 series motor, is ideal for a variety of woodworking applications, including general purpose cutting, dado stops, fluting, rabbetting stops, and hinge cutting. The plunge base, model 8931, and multi-base kits, models 893PK, 894PK and 895PK, will be available for purchase in July 2007 for $115, $269, $289 and $289, respectively.

They announced a “re-branding” of sorts where you will see the Delta/Porter-Cable names together more and more as time goes on. Their design center will remain in Tennessee and they are sourcing major components from U.S. suppliers and not necessarily from Asian suppliers.

Company executives admitted that there have been some bumpy roads for the two brands since their purchase by Black and Decker three years ago. They expect that the dollars and man-hours that have gone into re-engineering their product lines will have benefits for the woodworker and their bottom line with improved sales. They may be facing an uphill battle, but hopefully we’ll see some new, quality innovation in tools. Both brands have a century of reputation in quality and hopefully, they’ll be able to regain that respect.

P.S. — I would have posted photos of some of the tools, but company execs prohibited cameras. Some of the products shown are prototypes and all features shown may not necessarily make it into production models. I can understand and respect that. So stay tuned. As we hear more, we’ll post it here.

UPDATE: See the Press Release from Delta/Porter-Cable here: REVOLUTION Press Release

Makita is coming out with some exciting new “black and white’ cordless tools that will appeal to the home woodworker and do-it-yourselfer. They’re 18v tools with 1.5 amp-hour batteries that will recharge in 15 minutes, according to Wayne Hart, Communications Manager for Makita. To me, these tools look the same as their traditional teal-colored tools. The only difference is the smaller battery size to make them lighter in weight. The larger, higher-capacity 3 amp-hour batteries can also be used on these “black and white” tools. One thing about Makita tools that becomes apparent when you pick them up is their quality. The operation of the cordless drills and impact drivers is smooth. The trigger action is effortless. The combo kit you see pictured here retails for around $329. That’s a bargain, considering the drill alone retails for around $200. This kit includes a flashlight, drill, impact driver, radio, and an “intelligent” battery charger (each battery has a built-in CPU to monitor voltage and prevent over-charging).

Of course, the big buzz on the show floor concerns the “stone-faced” tools from Steel City Tool Works. I spoke at length with Mark Strahler, President of Steel City about his new line of tools with granite tables. The table saw with granite table is based on their hybrid saw. This gets around the problem of mounting the trunnion assembly to the table top as with most contractor saws. The granite tops are really flat…dead flat. So flat in fact, that one of Steel City’s customers requested that Steel City supply them with some granite surfaces to use as reference tables in their machine shop. The other advantage is that they will never rust.

Granite will be available for only a small upgrade charge on their table saws, band saws, and jointers (for the fences). Steel City will guarantee the granite for ten years. It’s an interesting concept that proves that Steel City is thinking “outside the box” when it comes to the design of their tools.

Speaking of thinking outside the box, Mark showed me a pre-production sample of the new Steel City “Dust Collector in a Box.” It is literally small enough to fit inside a small shopping bag. It’s designed for benchtop planers in shops that don’t have a traditional dust collector. It’s a small blower motor and housing that attaches with a flexible rubber connector to your planer. The dust chute exits into a large bag off to the side. The expected retail price will be around $99. Pretty cool.

Perhaps the most interesting thing I’ve seen today is made by Penn United Technologies, manufacturer of Penntek tools. These are the guys that originally produced the Robo-Grip pliers which have been redesigned into the newer MagnumGrip pliers. They also licensed the Versa-Clamp and are producing it. But the most unusual thing they had was a new hammer call the PowerPull. The first thought I had was, “How can you improve on the traditional hammer?” They took a traditional framing hammer and added a pop-up “foot” that provides extra leverage when pulling nails. When retracted, it looks just like a “button” on top of the hammer head. When extended, it gives you several addtional pounds of leverage to pull that stubborn nail. It gets around the problem of having to use a scrap piece of wood for extra leverage. Very unique.

Tonight, I’ve been invited to a “press party” by Porter-Cable. As I said yesterday, they’re going to be announcing some new products. More on that tomorrow.

As we stood there chatting, he was using his Pfeil carving tools to smooth out the body shape of a horse figure.  You could tell his tools were very sharp.  He was effortlessly taking thin chips out of the basswood figure.  I asked him how he keeps his tools so sharp.  He uses a buffing wheel to hone the edge as needed.

One of my boys asked him how many times he’s cut himself.  He smiled and pointed to his tool roll you see here on the left.  He includes bandages as part of his tool kit.

As time went on, he commented to passers-by that they’ve got seven full-time carvers on staff at the shop.  He said that the figure he was carving on that day is going to be a training aid for his carvers.  As we were talking, he flipped the figure over to show how he had carved the musculature and rib cage of the horse on one side.  His point is that unless a carver knows the anatomy of a horse, he’s going to have a difficult time carving one.  The detail was fascinating and realistic.

The discussion turned to painting.  He says they use three coats of primer, sanding between coats.  Then the colors are brushed on.  Finally, five coats of clearcoat are applied for durability.

Besides building new carousels using wood figures, The Carousel Works also does restoration of old carousels.  To me, it was refreshing to see that there are still companies out there working hard to keep craftsmanship alive.

Over on WoodNet, Bob Strawn (aka “CedarSlayer”) is showing off his portable “roll-up” tool tote.  He even went so far as to use a home-brew finish on it. 

Here’s what Bob said about the construction of the tote:

All the details are there, and it is a good first work. It gives you a place for tools and most of the materials are inexpensive. The leather strap can be a bit more expensive. I made mine out of pine, brass screws, brass tacks, epoxy, screw posts and horse butt. The horse butt was the most expensive, but then I can strop with the straps. I would advise going to a saddle shop and getting vegetable tan leather for the inner fittings, so that you don’t have too many salts in the leather eating your tools. Getting straps from them or using belts from a resale shop would do well.

As far as the one I made goes, The Hex end on mine has 4″ long sides. The boards are 24″ long and 1/2 thick. The end peices are a touch thicker. The inside straps are 1″ wide, the outside straps are 2″ To avoid near impossible clamping issues, I taped the whole thing together and marked boards and ends. I predrilled the three fixed boards, screw holes, to the end pieces. I used masking tape to avoid a mess with the epoxy, and used a slower set epoxy and brass screws to hold the sides together during gluing.

I wanted a rougher finish than the mirror smooth one that came out of my thickness planer, so I sanded at an angle across the grain with 80 grit, to give the look and feel I wanted. Sort of an old sawmill look. This way dings and scratches add character instead of ruining the appearance.

Click here to read more and see more photos of this handy tool tote.

(Photo courtesy of DesMoinesArtsFestival.org)

The Des Moines Arts Festival, rated among the Top 5 in the U.S., celebrates it 10th year in 2007. Featured will be over 150 premier juried artists and 24 “emerging” artists from the state of Iowa. Artists will exhibit in 14 categories, including wood, metalworks, and sculpture.

I think this is the second year that the festival will be located in Des Moines’ new Gateway Park, just down the street from the August Home Publishing offices. I’m excited about attending this year and so I’ve spent a few hours looking through the galleries of all the artists that will attend. I always get a lot of inspiration for my woodworking hobby from shows like this, and I’ll even go through a phase occasionally where I’ll work only on boxes or chairs for a period of time after I see something I like at a show.

For the last several years the Des Moines Arts Festival has attracted over 200,000 people and it’s also become a great place for young artists, like Matthew Obbink (whose tables are featured in the photo at the top of the page), an Iowa State University student competing in the Emerging Iowa Artists Program category.

They have a subsidiary company that specializes in supplying laboratories — Lab Safety Supply (they have some cool stuff you can use in the shop, too).  I used to order a lot of lab supplies from them.

Turns out that Lab Safety Supply is broadening their market.  They recently acquired McFeely’s.  You know McFeely’s from their cartoonish catalog covers of Jim Ray, the owner.  They rose to fame in woodworking circles by supplying square-drive screws.  I love to use square-drive screws in my shop.  And if you use pocket hole joinery, you already know the benefits of square drive screws.  McFeely’s has an interesting history that you can read about here.

According to this press release:

“McFeely’s will be marketed as an independent brand by LSS, the leading direct marketer of targeted, specialty business products in the safety, industrial, environmental and homeland security markets. Through a similar direct marketing model, McFeely’s serves over 70,000 active customers including serious woodworkers, handymen, home improvement professionals, construction companies and cabinet makers.”

But not only have tools changed over the years, our attitudes and methods have changed, too.  To get an idea of what I mean, look in on this discussion on WoodNet.  Add your 2¢ on how woodworking has changed in your lifetime.

To find out when Craft in America airs in your local area, click here.

Nestled in the heart of an Amish community is a small shop that makes high-end gun cabinets. But these aren’t your standard cabinets.  They use an exclusive locking mechanism that makes it very difficult, if not impossible, to steal the guns. 

The cabinets are made using traditional woodworking tools, but with a unique power source.  The Amish don’t use electricity. So there’s a complete cottage industry in the Amish communities that converts power tools to alternative forms of power.

You can get the whole story here.  It’s worth the read.

“The trolley I am working on is the Lisbon/Aspen P&MU. It was taken down to the frame and we are replacing most of the woodwork. We have been working on it for 2 years and expect to have it complete and in operation in about another year.”

Needless to say, there is a lot of woodworking that has to take place to restore these vehicles to their former glory. Check out some of the restoration work at the museum’s web site.

Around since 1993, the original WoodNet BBS was a way for Woodsmith magazine to further support their customer base. The BBS evolved into what is now WoodNet.net and it not only includes the forums, but you’ll also find project plans, woodworking tools and kits, tool reviews, and tips and techniques that are sent direct to your email address each week.

But, today, with eight forums in all (five dedicated to woodworking, one to home improvement, one off-topic forum and one for forum help) if you’re looking for answers from people with most of the same interests as you, the WoodNet forums is the place to be. The subject matter during any given day ranges from how to install kitchen cabinets, to the relative merits of a Stanley No. 4 over a No. 4-1/2, to questions about the best miter saw blade available. Proud forum members often post their “gloats” over the acquisition of a new tool or a particularly impressive wood stash.

It’s not all about talking woodworking though. There are guys (and some gals) who belong to the forums, that get together for regular gatherings (see photo). Or, one member may get a load of lumber and then drive all over the country connecting with other WoodNet members, delivering lumber, and getting some more to take home. The forum members also do lots of things to help members who find themselves caught in extreme circumstances (like illness or accidents), plus they assist active servicemen, as well as veterans.

There are over 19,500 registered users of the WoodNet forums, and probably several tens of thousands who visit the forums to “lurk” each day and simply read the forum posts, but never post themselves. In fact, during the month of April 2007, there were on average13,467 distinct visits to the forums each day. According to Google AdSense, the page impressions for all of April at the WoodNet forums totaled over 5.2 million visits.

Moderators of the forums have a “hands off” policy about forum management. So things are pretty relaxed compared to other woodworking forums. But they do have rules, and a dedicated group of member moderators, who keep things on track and without whom there would be no WoodNet Forums.

So if you’re interested, put on your helmet and flak jacket, come on in and pay them a visit.

Your measurements can be viewed in either decimal inches, decimal feet, centimeters, or feet and inches (as shown in thumbnail at right). And they can be saved in the memory. It also automatically adds the length of the case for inside measurements and you can flip the display for easy reading from either side of the tape. All this with the touch of a button.

The digital readout is accurate down to 1/16″ and the tape costs less than $50. It comes with a replaceable long-life battery and a set of easy-to-follow instructions.

Just like a brick-and-mortar museum, you can browse the works of craftsmen from all over the world. But unlike a brick-and-mortar museum, you can view these works from the comfort of your own home and at your own leisure. For example, you can look at the wood reproductions of heavy equipment by Chuck Hoggarth. You can see one of his projects in the photo on the left.

And speaking of craftsmanship, Bill Gould wrote a great article on our society’s perception of craftsmanship. Does our culture shun true craftsmanship? Why bother to strive for perfection in our craft? He defines craftsmen as “those who make things by hand, in a manner that exhibits mastery of their craft, whether as an avocation or profession.” Bill sums up the article with some things you and I can do to share our passion and value of true craftsmanship.

I hope that as you spend time in your shop, you give some thought to the projects you’re working on and apply your skills as a craftsman. Strive for perfection. Be patient in your work. Take your time to plan every move and every cut with a tool. Your work will show the difference. And even if nobody else appreciates your craftsmanship, you can take pride in the work of your hands, mind, and heart.

I’ve used the “3-4-5″ method which takes advantage of the Pythagorean Theorem. You remember what that is, right? It’s what we learned in geometry or trigonometry class.

The sum of the squares of the sides of a right triangle equals the square of the hypotenuse.

or

a² + b² = c²

So, with the “3-4-5″ method of laying out square lines, you substitute like this:

3² + 4² = 5²

or

9 + 16 = 25

So you can measure 3-feet along one edge of your panel, and 4-feet at a right angles to that (I use my framing square as a guide). The distance between those two points should be exactly 5-feet if your first two lines are at a right angle (90°).

James D. Thompson has written a handy set of articles on Layout Basics. In this article, he shows you how to use a compass to mark out a square reference line. It doesn’t require any math and works every time.

Enter the Veritas® Honing Guide Mk.XXXXII. It’s a new design that every shop needs for sharpening tools. I had Lee Valley send one of these to me for evaluation. I have to tell you that I’ve not been this excited about a new tool for a long time. I was able to have a complete set of chisels sharpened within ten minutes! And I could sharpen the irons in my No. 3, No. 4, No. 4½, No. 5, and No. 6 planes all at the same time!  What a time-saver!

My only complaint with the unit is the weight. It requires two steady hands to move back and forth across your sharpening media of choice.  But at around $140, I think the trade off is worth it!

_______________________________

Oh…by the way…Happy April Fool’s Day!  

One of our readers made his version of the Tall Kitchen Table and Stools seen here on the right. I think the embellishment he did to the legs adds some interest. He used the Legacy Ornamental Mill to shape the legs. And for the joinery, he used the Leigh FMT Mortise and Tenon Jig. You can read more about how he built this project over on WoodNet and see his progress photos here.

Besides the style of chair they specialize in, the biggest difference between the two seems to be their level of notoriety. Boggs has been published many times in woodworking magazines through the years and is well-known nationally. Until recently, I had never heard of Galbert, a man who has obviously found his purpose in life. He has taught at the John C. Campbell Folk School, the Penland School of Crafts in Penland, North Carolina and has presented seminars on chairmaking at Colonial Williamsburg.

“Each chair that leaves my shop is hand made by me, from the selection of the logs, to the rubbing down of the finish. I work the wood while it is still green and soft, enabling me to work almost completely with hand tools. Parts are hand split (not sawn) from the log, carefully shaved and steam bent before being fit and assembled.”