Issue 618

Whoa…What?

“I need you to build a table that looks like an upside-down pill bottle.”

This was one of those good news/bad news events for me many years ago. I was contacted to build a fixture for a tradeshow company, and they were willing to pay well for my time. Then they told me what I was going to build … Alarm bells went off in my head.

“Can you give me the drawings?” I asked.

“Sure, they are right here!” The representative handed me a yellow legal pad with a pencil sketch (a generous description, mind you) and three dimensions indicated. “When can you get it done?” was his next question.

Well, it took my buddy and me about three days, and it required a bunch of 1x2s, bending plywood and a lot of Bondo®. Now it’s one of my favorite building memories, as odd things often are. So my question to you is this: what really unusual things have you built? I can’t wait to hear your answers!

Rob Johnstone, Woodworker’s Journal

How to Minimize Thickness Planer Snipe

Whether you use a stationary planer or one of many benchtop planers on the market, you’ve probably wondered how to deal with a common problem called snipe. Now, snipe refers to the planer’s cutterhead taking a slightly deeper bite into the ends of the board, leaving shallow depressions that you can often see and feel. In this video, we’ll show you several tips that will help prevent or at least minimize planer snipe.

How to Cut Accurate Circles in Plywood?

This reader wants to cut accurate circles in a top grade of plywood to be made into Lazy Susans. Our experts weigh in on the best jigs and methods to help ease the task.

From Our Sponsor

Looking for a way to make tricky taper cuts easy? What if you could take care of tapers (and straight edge cuts, too!) simply by adjusting a knob or two? You can! Watch the video to see how you can get it done with one jig on your table saw.

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