Tricks of the Trade
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Get a Handle on Stuck Tape
Double-sided tape sticks to everything, and that’s why we woodworkers love the stuff. But it can be hard to remove unless you know my trick.
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Chuck in a Chuck
My wife recently took up scroll sawing, and she needs to drill small starter holes for the blades to make tiny cutouts.
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Chalk Lines Take a Powder
If you snap many chalk lines, you know that the red or blue chalk leaves stains that are hard to get out of the wood.
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New Twist on Tricky Tenons
I make walking canes from tree limbs fitted to their handles with a round tenon.
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Homemade Wax String Screw Lube
Dabbing wax on the end of a screw will help it drive easily, but I find more wax gets squished out of the pilot hole than into it.
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Disposable Finish Decanter
When I buy a new gallon of finish, I can’t seem to pour some out without spilling.
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Wrangling that Shop Snake
Here’s how I tame the vacuum hose “anaconda” that lives in my shop.
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Slides First, Drawers Second
Here’s a trick that can save you headaches when installing slides: mount the hardware before you even build the drawers.
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Coping with Power
After using a coping saw for years to cope the inside corners of crown molding, I figured there had to be an easier way to do it. There is.
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New Spin on an Old Grind
I always thought my benchtop belt sander would make a decent sharpening station, but I could never find a blade-holding jig designed for it.