Episode 26 - Bombe Series - Gluing the Divider
September 28, 2007
The stress is showing as Tommy glues the first set of dividers into the pigeonhole assembly. A last minute save rescues days of work, but in the end Tommy's spirits soar as the painstakingly shaped dividers glide right in. Read More →
Woodworker’s Prayer
September 27, 2007
TheWoodworker’s Prayer Oh lord,So far today I’ve not cut myself nor anyone else. I’ve not coveted my neighbour’s tools and I’ve not damaged any of my own. For I’ve not been tempted to buy one of those fancy laser guided clamps that Norm uses on the New Yankee Workshop. I’ve not messed up any of my projects, nor had any cause to take thy name in vain.For this I give thanks.But lord... I’m going to get out of bed soon and then I’ll need all the help THAT you can offer. Read More →
The Woodstock Wood Show
September 26, 2007
The Woodstock Wood Show took place on September 28,29,30 in Woodstock, Ont. This is one of my favourite shows all year. I don't know if it is the time of year or just the size of the show but I do look forward to this weekend each year. I went with the wife this year as she too enjoys the show and between weddings and funerals this past weekend we made it to the show on sunday and the weather was spectacular. The show was not as busy as I thought it would be seeing how the weather was so nice. The...
Episode 25 - Bombe Series - Shaping the Dividers
September 25, 2007
Tommy is building up steam on the Bombe Secretary now and the next step is to shape the dividers of the pigeonhole assembly. rounding over 3/16" stock isn't a job for a router so Tommy makes a scratch stock out of an old scrapper. With 3 different radiuses in the scrapper he starts with a larger opening and rounds over the edge and then works his way down to the final size needed. Read More →
Ep 10 Carlo Mollino 01
September 22, 2007
So welcome to the world of Carlo. Carlo Mollino that is. This is the first Episode of interpretting a glass top coffee table, inspired by Italian Designer Carlo Mollino. It's a bent plywood piece that we'll produce with a finished surface of Bird-eye Maple and maple trim. Furniture design moves forward and stalls then forward again only to stall, Carlo Mollino was a Furniture Designer always in forward position. Come along for the ride as we investigate the life and interprret one of...
Fall 2007 Woodworking Seminars
September 20, 2007
Every fall for the last 15 years or so, the Woodsmith Store has ended the month of September with two events — the annual Fall Fair and the start of the woodworking seminar season. This year is no exception with one small difference. This will be the first year that several of the presenters at the seminars will also be cast members on America’s newest woodworking TV show — The Woodsmith Shop on public television. As many of you know by now, the first episode of The Woodsmith...
Episode 24 - Bombe Series - Planing the Dividers
September 20, 2007
Preparing the stock for the pigeonhole dividers isn't as easy as it looks. The stock needs to be milled to a 3/16" thickness, but in making it that thin it's way more likely to crack or split. The solution: support the wood as it runs through the planer. Tommy does this with a piece of MFD clamped down to the planer which provides the support the stock needs to stay in one piece as it passes through. Once Tommy has the stock milled to the correct thickness and the sides of the cabinet routed at the...
Tool Talk Podcast #25
September 17, 2007
Join Sean and me as we discuss Sean’s new table project — and all the cool projects readers posted over the weekend in the Flickr pool. As always, we also run down the week’s top five posts as selected by Toolmonger readers, taking some time at the end to call out a few posts we thought deserved attention. Highlights: we comment on how when you’re building bookcases everything looks like a book, stand in awe at Toolmonger’s first (and thankfully short) political discussion,...
20th Anniversary of the Woodsmith Store
September 17, 2007
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...
Episode 23 - Bombe Series - Pigeonhole Dados
September 14, 2007
Back on track after the doubler do-over, Tommy routes out the dados for the main piegeonhole assembly using MDF as a fence. Setting the two center partitions is the key getting the assembly process started. Once the dados are run, Tommy inserts the main partitions with a nice simple bead detail. Read More →
Scilly time again (Holiday)
September 13, 2007
Another week in the wonderful Isles of Scilly.Theresa will be manning office, Monday, Wednesday and Friday afternoons, approximately 2.45 - 3-45.Short ... Read More →
Hand Planing In Popular Woodworking
September 10, 2007
Photo taken at the Marc Adams School courtesy of Marc Adams. I ... Read More →
Tool Talk Podcast #24
September 10, 2007
Join Sean and me as we wrap up Toolmonger’s glove week and pass on some behind-the-scenes secrets about our glove testing. As always, we also run down the week’s top five posts as selected by Toolmonger readers, taking some time at the end to call out a few posts we thought deserved attention. Highlights: we reveal some of our testing procedures and personal feelings about various gloves, cover what’s probably one of the sweetest week’s tool-wise on TM in recent history,...
Ep 9 - Lingerie Finale
September 10, 2007
Well we've come to the end of the Contemporary Lingerie Cabinet. In this Episode we evaluate the entire finished case, we revisit some of the important design elements, discuss how important they are in the final appearance of the Quarter Sawn Ash Lingerie Cabinet, and answer some e-mail questions. This is a Modern piece of furniture done with a minimalist approach so there is nowhere to hide poor craftsmanship. The cabinet is a very, very good build. Enjoy and look forward to our next project as...
Des Moines Woodworkers Pitch In
September 7, 2007
The Des Moines Woodworkers Association makes it clear that their mission is to dedicate their time and effort (and a considerable amount of expertise) “…to education, community service, and sharing of knowledge for those of all ages and skill levels…” who are interested in woodworking. 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...
Shop-Built Mallet by a ShopNotes Reader
September 7, 2007
While I was vacationing near my hometown in Ohio in August, I received a phone call from a long-time family friend, Dave Corwin, from Delaware, Ohio. He and my dad are friends with a history spanning several decades. When I married, our first home was across the street from Dave’s, so we became friends as well as neighbors. The best part was, he was a fellow woodworker. There were three of us woodworkers on the block, so we could often be found in each other’s shop on any given day...
Episode 22 - Bombe Series - Repairing the Doubler
September 7, 2007
These are the Days of Our Bombe... Last time out, Tommy was heartbroken over the bombe secretary's mis-sized doubler. Just a hair off, but for Tommy that was a hair too much. With a tissue in one hand and a chisel in the other Tommy makes it right - chipping out the old doubler piece by piece and then starting from scratch to work the new. Read More →
A Study in Moldings
September 6, 2007
Have you ever designed a project from scratch and tried to decide what molding profile to use on the edge of the top? Why is it some moldings make a project appear “heavy” and some make a project seem light, like it defies gravity? Here’s a web site I ran across that’s got a great article and graphics on architectural moldings. It’s written by Donald M. Rattner, Director of the Institute for the Study of Classical Architecture at the Real Estate Institute of New...
Big Bugs made out of Wood
September 5, 2007
I recently traveled back to my hometown in central Ohio to see family and our new granddaughter. While I was there, my wife discovered the Big Bugs exhibit by David Rogers at Inniswood Metro Gardens in Westerville, Ohio. As you can see in the photo at left, a beetle is about to amputate my son’s leg. The most impressive bug we saw was the praying mantis, shown on the right. As noted on his web site, David sculpted these creatures using various combinations of whole trees found standing...
Labour Day “Log” Weekend
September 4, 2007
This is a 100+ year slab from a maple tree in Port Dalhousie that had been cut down. This slab is 4" thick, 5 feet round and weighs I'm guessing about 200 pounds. Here it is in the van when I got it home. Here the slab is out of the van and propped up on sawhorses. I am going to smooth out all the chainsaw marks on both sides and make a table out of this gorgeous piece of history. As you can see the slab was cut just prior to the crotch of the tree and has three piths or centers. I have counted...
Showing Off Your SketchUp Models
September 4, 2007
You’ve probably heard of Google’s SketchUp. It’s a 3-D design and drawing program that’s easy to learn but very powerful. (I wrote about SketchUp in Woodsmith 167.) And there’s a free version you can download here (the Pro version costs $495 — still a bargain compared to other design software). I use it to draw up rough sketches of projects I’m designing or to work out some tricky dimensions. I grew up in the AutoCAD world (since version 2.52 for those...
Tool Talk Podcast #23
September 3, 2007
Join Sean and me as we wrap up Toolmonger’s hands-on week and discuss everything we learned from the experience. And, as always, we run down the week’s top five posts as selected by Toolmonger readers, taking some time at the end to call out a few posts we thought deserved attention. Highlights: we talk Dremel (both large and small), introduce some new TM contributors, and explore Sean’s love of all vehicles treaded. Remember, if you’ve got a question or comment you...
A Labor Day Tribute to the Carpenter
September 1, 2007
‘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...
