Issue 199
Issue 199
Lottery Dream Shop
A few weeks ago, a friend of mine bought a lottery ticket. Of course, by purchasing said ticket, the odds of him actually winning the lottery were only slightly better than if he had never been born. Ignoring that grim shadow of gambling reality, he began a mental exercise of what he would do with the money if he did win. After ticking off a few altruistic deeds: making his parents financially comfortable, sending his kids all the way through grad school, he really got down to brass tacks.
“I am going to build a sweet workshop!” he said, “It’s going to have a big-screen TV, a beer fridge, coffeemaker, Barcalounger and a super-high-speed Internet hook-up.” He also mentioned heating and air conditioning; large, screened windows and specialty lighting.
I found it just a tiny bit ironic that he did not mention a single woodworking tool upgrade for his dream shop. But hey, it was his dream workshop, not mine.
His flights of fancy did get me thinking of my dream woodworking shop. I don’t really play the lottery, so my chances of building my own high-tech shop are as unlikely as my buddy’s (Just so I don’t keep you in suspense: he didn’t win.) Even so, it was a really enjoyable few minutes, thinking of what it would be like to outfit a new shop from stem to stern. I guarantee that you would be jealous of my swanky, souped-up shop. But with woodworking being as individual as it is, I am guessing it would be different from yours. So what would your no-holds-barred shop contain? Tools or a TV? I had one friend who thought it would be great to put a woodshop on a really big sailboat — then he could sail one day, woodwork the next and never leave home. Band sawing on a bobbing boat?
Rob Johnstone, Woodworker’s Journal
What's In Store
-
Craftsman Oscillating Spindle Sander
Craftsman’s new Oscillating Spindle Sander has an extra-large cast-iron work table.
-
Forrest Dampener Disks
Forrest Manufacturing’s Dampener Disks are meant to be mounted next to the saw blade on a table, panel or radial arm saw.
-
Linden Carpenter’s Helper
The Pocket-Size Carpenter’s Helper from Linden is a 3-1/4 x 6-inch booklet, chock-full of charts, formulas and quick hints.
-
Rockler Folding Workbench: Saving Space
Is your “shop” in that location that other people call by the “g” word? Where they might, for instance, think that they are supposed to park their vehicles during a blizzard?
Tricks of the Trade
-
Rub Collar Wrap-up
During a recent project where I was required to do a good deal of template routing, I stumbled on a slick way to keep router guide collars from vibrating loose during cutting.
-
Circle-cutting Attachment
I needed a circle-cutting attachment for my Porter-Cable plunge router, so I decided to modify the existing guide.
-
Angle Sanding Fence
This drawing shows my simple and inexpensive idea for sanding angles on the disc sander.
Today's Woodworker
-
Seth Rolland: Exploded Wood, Expanded Creativity
“My mom, who was an architect, taught me to use a hammer when I was pretty young,” Seth Rolland told me when I asked him about his earliest woodworking experiences.
Q & A
-
Saw Blade Stalls
I inherited my father’s 1958 DeWalt nine inch radial arm saw, but the saw is easily stalled with both 10-inch and seven-inch blades. Any ideas what the problem may be?
-
Primer Bleed-through
I have a problem with primer. I stir it and brush it on, but it doesn’t cover well, so I still get bleed-through after two coats. What am I doing wrong?
-
Different Types of Plywood
What are the differences in the various plywood types with names like CDX, MDF, MDO, OSB and so on?
-
Cutting Angle Larger Than Saw
How can I cut a 45 degree angle in a 10-centimeter thickness of wood when my blade only goes up to eight centimeters?
Industry Interviews
-
The Northwest School of Wooden Boatbuilding: Hope Floats
When you call a school for a magazine interview, you really don’t expect to find one of their students acting as spokesperson, but that’s exactly what happened when I contacted the Northwest School of Wooden Boatbuilding.
Feedback
-
Cottonwood, Cotton Duck, Gorilla and Thrift
A question about appropriate uses for cottonwood prompted these responses.
Contributing Bloggers
-
Good Tools Make a Better Me
I have two sets of measuring tools in the tool chest. One comes out for those carpentry jobs or marking rough stock. That’s about it.
