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Modern benches generally have spindle vises with two metal guide spindles and a metal screw between them. They are usually less than 2” below the benchtop. To grip anything more than this distance, it has to be to one side of a spindle, usually the right side. The front jaw of the vise cocks when tightened, ruining the corner of the work and giving a indeterminate hold. This is not progress.
poor hold of modern spindle vise
Serious woodworking started at least in Egyptian times: it is amongst the oldest of crafts. By the 18th century, the workbench was pretty well thought-out, but came to absolute perfection after 1850. The second half of the 20th Century has seen a gradual decline of the workbench. I place the blame for this on well-meaning engineers who may be bright young graduates of prestigious schools, but sadly deficient in any real understanding of woodworking. These meddlers have tweaked workbench design in the name of “streamlining” manufacture,” adding “usability” to the product or simply satisfying the latest marketing research.
Euro Bench with Emmert type vise added
For the most part, woodworking has been a solitary activity for me. Over the years, I’ve taught myself most of what I know. I’ve made plenty of mistakes along the way — and either cursed or laughed about them without any witnesses or commiserators. At the same time, by going it “solo” so much of the time, I haven’t really shared the successes and breakthroughs that also happen as we gain experience. It’s been a pretty quiet life in the shop.
Then the other day a new friend of mine asked me to do a small commissioned piece for him. He’s a pipe smoker and wanted a pipe (more…)
The folks at our sister company Rockler have put together the following video of an ultra-slow motion view of common woodworking tools in use.
Good luck NOT getting excited and wanting to head into the shop immediately to start on your next project.
Enjoy!
Matt Becker
Internet Production Coordinator
“Hey, Rob, do you think I could make some stools from these?” was the question posed to me last November while I stood next to the young man’s pickup truck in the church parking lot. A University of Minnesota student and family friend, Levi, was showing me a pile of 4-inch thick disks that he had sliced off an 18-inch diameter oak tree earlier in the week. (Levi was more than comfortable with a chain saw, as he had grown up working in his family’s apple orchard in Wisconsin.)
Calling all flooring guys out there! I’ve got a flooring conundrum to share with you. Care to offer some advice?
Here’s the deal: I’ve had a hardwood flooring project on my to-do list for a long time. It’s my shop floor, actually. A couple of years ago, I got a great deal on 900 square feet of hard maple “shorts.” Tongue and groove, beautiful stuff. My plan has been to lay it over the current flooring in my shop, which is plywood subfloor. Not that I mind plywood, but it gets banged up pretty easily and doesn’t look as nice as a hardwood floor. At $1 per square foot, it was a deal too good to pass up.
It’s ironic (and embarrassing) how I push things down my “to do” list, especially when it comes to shop improvements. Case in point: three years ago I bought a window air conditioner to get through those steamy summer days. I don’t mind sweat equity when working hard on a project, but I really don’t like to drip sweat on cast-iron tools or into a wet finish. That, and my boss was coming into town for a big photoshoot. I wanted the shop to be nice and cool. My version of a red carpet, I suppose.
Anyway, I installed the air conditioner in a south-facing window because it was the best option. We got through our photoshoot in cool comfort. Then, a week or so later the rains started. (more…)
This little blue-flamed wonder added months to my woodworking season during many cold Minnesota winters.
The other day I was out in the shop blowing a summer’s worth of dust off of my furnace filter. Call it the Minnesotan in me, but I’m already hunkering down and getting ready for much colder days to come. I guess it’s one of those instinctive things you do when you’re used to winters that last from sometime in October to past the fishing opener. You make sure the heat is ready to go.
I take my furnace for granted. Although I leave the heat off when I’m not working, my little forced air furnace can bring the temps up from the mid 30s to a balmy 62 in about 15 minutes flat. It’s a wonderful luxury, and it isn’t much bigger than an air conditioner.
It’s pre-dawn on Thanksgiving morning as I write this. The sun is just starting to color the eastern sky, and the house is still quiet. I’ve downed my first cup of coffee, and the cranial hard drive is coming up to speed. All in all, a very good time to reflect on things.
While I’m generally not one to wax poetic, I also don’t spend enough time thinking about the many good fortunes I have and actually verbalizing them. The simplest things are the easiest to overlook, especially in the frenetic pace we tend to live our lives.
So, here goes…a few personal reasons for thanks:
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