Updates from a very busy woodshop
I've been very busy in the shop, building two projects for upcoming Popular Woodworking articles. I still managed to work on a couple of personal projects. First, a Roman bench as popularized by Chris...
View ArticleLife goes on...
I've been struggling to get in the shop these last few months (OK, last few years). The Michigan winter refused to loosen her grip until just recently and my as-yet unheated shop is rather inhospitable...
View ArticleHome repair with hand tools (and some electric devils)
One of the projects on my summer to-do list is a complete restoration of my porches. My 1900-built farmhouse has two existing porches and one that was removed many years ago (it will be recreated at...
View ArticleMore porch progress
As detail in my last post, I have been working on the porches on my 1900-built farmhouse. Significant progress was made over the weekend despite receiving more than two inches of rain in less than 30...
View ArticlePorch swing installation
I've always wanted a traditional porch swing but have never made the time to install one. Over the weekend I corrected that. Though I may build one myself in the future, I opted for a pre-built example...
View Article18th century style tool chest
I've been working out of a large, traditional tool chest for some time, the form similar to the famous Anarchist's Tool Chest popularized by Chris Schwarz. This is a great solution to storing a...
View ArticlePost Drills and Tornados
A quick update from the shop. I've been literally tripping over this Champion #101 post drill since I bought it from a Martin Donnelly auction in 2012. It, along with several other tools which I still...
View ArticleFitting a Jacobs chuck to my old post drill
A couple of days ago I posted about a post drill which I've been tripping over since 2012. I bolted it to the middle bent in my timber frame shop the other day, thinking it would be of limited utility...
View ArticleDetails from my c.1770 Gabriel hollows and rounds
As some of you know, I'm the proud owner of a full set of 18th century hollows and rounds made by Christopher Gabriel c.1770. These planes could have been on the shelf next to those that found their...
View ArticleAnother use for the sash fillister
I don't usually need anything more than a gauge line to work to for bringing a board to thickness but, on jobs that require abnormal precision, sometimes a more distinct visual reference is called...
View ArticleMaking an ancient handplane
My curly birch version of a c.1300 plane Last Thursday, the Viking Museum Instragram feed posted a picture of a truly exciting plane that they use in the process of reconstructing Viking-era ships. It...
View ArticleChatoyance on hand planed pine
Chatoyance is the fancy term for wood that shimmers and shines in the light. It is most prevalent in certain types of wood, especially heavily figured examples, but can be observed in just about any...
View ArticleOur predecessors
The chimney of Thomas Jefferson's joinery at Monticello. Photo by Zachary Dillinger. "We are not wiser, we are not better, we are not stronger than our predecessors, but we have their accumulated...
View ArticleNo one is gone if you remember them and speak their name
To Jamie Bacon: friend, craftsman, and raconteur It's very difficult for me to believe it but it will soon be five years since Jamie Bacon of the Plane Shavings blog left our mortal world. I never had...
View ArticleSwedish-Estonian style breast drill - part 1
A couple of weeks ago, I finally had a chance to pick up Lost Art Press's version of "Woodworking in Estonia". Despite being an avowed acolyte of Roy Underhill, who states that this particular book is...
View ArticleSwedish-Estonian style breast drill - part 2
In Part 1, I discussed the inspiration for and the first steps towards building a unique breast drill that I found in the classic "Woodworking in Estonia". This post continues that project. With the...
View ArticleA few lockdown projects
First, let me say how incredibly thankful I am to all the healthcare professionals, front line emergency responders, and everyone else involved in the battle against the insidious Coronavirus and...
View ArticleScratch built spokeshave rehab and an infill plane restoration
My dad's corner in the shop: his Billy the Kid poster, Southern Comfort sign, and the catcher's mitt he used when we played baseball when I was a kid. One of the first tools I ever made from scratch,...
View ArticleLockdown! Tools and new book projects!
It's been an extremely productive lockdown here in mid-Michigan. Our Governor recently extended the stay at home order through April 30th, so we have a few more days at home with our daughter Abigail....
View ArticleCovid-19 Summer 2020 update
It's been one heck of a year, 2020. Aside from the obvious... I managed to seriously injure myself in my woodshop for the very first time in three decades of woodworking. Shortly after my last post, I...
View ArticleYe Olde Traditional Storm Hat
My dad always used to wear a storm hat. It was a beat up, old, nondescript thing that he only ever wore when we were in for bad weather. Being a crazy man, he would stand outside in the worst of it as...
View ArticleA highly recommended YouTube channel
I cannot recommend the TA Outdoors channel highly enough. I've been watching these guys basically non-stop for several weeks now. They have a hugely impressive library of historic shelter videos, all...
View ArticleUpcoming article in Mortise & Tenon Magazine
I'm happy to let you all know that I'll have an article in Mortise & Tenon Magazine Issue 9. I wrote for the very first issue of the magazine (now out of print and in high demand) and was featured...
View ArticleNew Shop Space Build
I've been working in my 12x16 timber frame shop for the last five or six years. I love it but a little extra has always been high on my list. I finally decided to do something about it and framed up...
View ArticleNew Shop Space Build part 2
I've made pretty good progress on my shop addition. It's a simple shed roof frame, nothing fancy, but will add another 50% in floor space and, perhaps more importantly, a ton of wall space for...
View Article
More Pages to Explore .....