Indholdsfortegnelse for February 2016 i Woodworker's Journal

NOT AGAIN! Woodworkersjournal.com is changing again? It’s only been a year since we updated to a new design that ever yone really likes. Why would we change something that’s working? Maybe change is the wrong word — we’re adding — adding a lot more to the site for our magazine subscribers. What do I mean by “a lot more”? I mean every past issue of the magazine. Every issue! Every plan, technique, tip and article printed from 1977 up to the most recent. Plus, more new videos, articles and plans! Everything that’s on the site now will still be available for anyone to view, but there will be “a lot more” for you, the magazine subscribers. Wait a minute; in this case, change is good! Keep an eye on our…

I often get questions about the feasibility of making an income from woodturning. Most people asking this question are planning on making artistic bowls as their product. My first thought is: why spoil a perfectly good hobby? I do not say this out loud; instead, I try to argue for a more profitable product line. My advice is, if one forgets the bowl idea, you can make a decent side income turning spindles. The problem with bowls is that import houses sell bowls made in the Third World for $40, and this sets the public’s perceived value. By the time you chainsaw a blank, transport it to your shop, turn it, sand it and finish it, you have a heck of a lot of time and energy invested. If you…

As the 21st century becomes more embeded in woodworking shops around the country, projects designed around using high-tech tools are still a bit rare. Here is a simple but useful project (especially with New Year’s celebrations coming up quickly) that makes use of a couple of computer-driven tools. For you analog woodworkers, do not fear: we have downloadable PDF-based patterns so that you can make the basic puzzle tray using a scroll saw. And, if you don’t have a laser, you can always give woodburning a try if you want the decorations. Food and Drink What’s a puzzle tray? Well, if you try to hold a plate and a wine glass at the same time, you’ll find you must put the glass down to feed yourself — unless you are…

Michael Dresdner is a nationally known finishing expert. He shares his expertise on the DVD The Way to Woodwork: Step-by-Step to a Perfect Finish, available through the store at woodworkersjournal.com. Gloss finishes lend elegance to wood, both by reflecting light and by adding depth and clarity. Thus, a clear gloss finish should be transparent enough to see the wood beneath, and shiny enough to dazzle the eye. For that to happen, we’ll need to choose a very clear finish, then level it to a fare-thee-well. What Makes a Surface Appear Glossy? Gloss is all about light reflection — the more light reflected, the glossier the surface. What reflects light best is a surface that is flat and smooth. As light hits a surface, it is either reflected back to our…

If you can remember back to our September/October 2015 issue, you might recall that I built a slab topped table and proposed three different leg options to complete the table. Then, we gave you an option of going online and voting for which style of legs you thought best suited the top ... aesthetically, practically — whatever you decided. So now that the votes have been totaled and the results registered with a top 5 accounting company, which style of legs did you prefer? Um, none of them, really. It seems that you were totally underwhelmed with the suggestions I created. And while several of you wrote to explain what sort of legs you thought would have been better (see the letters that follow this editorial), we did get a…

A basic bookcase is not only one of the most functional pieces of furniture you can make, it’s also a mini seminar in several woodworking skills and techniques, wrapped in a single project. Dado, rabbet and pocket-hole joinery are highly adaptable to just about any more advanced project, and you can never get enough practice with basic shop tasks like cutting workpieces to size, sanding and finishing. This project can kick-start your skills, not to mention your creative juices. In line with our theme of sticking to basics, all the materials for this bookcase come from just about any “big box” home improvement center. You can make this project with simple pine if you like, but we opted for hardwood and chose solid red oak for appearance and durability. For…

Sponsored By Quick Way to Pop the Top I used to reach for a screwdriver to pry up the nozzle of my glue bottle when it would get stuck — but there’s an easier way to do it. On Titebond® bottles, a 9/16" wrench fits under the nozzle’s flared edges perfectly. Then lever the wrench down to pop up the top. Works great! John Crouse Wolcott, New York Zero-clearance Insert for Plywood Cutting Sheet goods are too bulky to lift onto my table saw, so I prefer to use my cordless circular saw. Trouble was, the tearout was awful. I installed a $6 plywood cutting blade (100-tooth), then stuck a hardboard sub-base to the underside of the saw’s base with carpet tape. With the saw immobilized, I plunge-cut down through…

These days, my shop is in a rental space, but there are still plenty of projects to do around my home, so I needed to come up with a functional workbench that would not take up parking space when not in use. The obvious solution was to create a foldaway bench. The result is this article. The 4-ft.-wide by 3-ft.-deep workbench is built as a torsion box to make it strong, stiff and light. The cabinet is bolted to the wall to keep it secure and stable, and the work surface covers the tools and upper storage area when closed. Cutting the Parts I prefer to use a circular saw and straightedge to reduce full sheets of ply as much as possible prior to final trimming at the table saw.…

2ND ANNUAL In every issue of 2015, we presented an array of tools and accessories, often bestowing a Woodworker’s Journal Best Bet award in the process. Then, we took the extra step of asking our readers to tell us which tool they chose as best! In our second annual Readers’ Choice Awards, we put all the tools featured in our pages during the past year in an online survey and asked for readers’ top picks. Here, with a few editorial comments from Woodworker’s Journal, are the 2nd Annual Readers’ Choice selections. Portable Power Tools Woodworkers love routers. Proof of that was senior editor Chris Marshall’s selection of the DWP611PK as an item that he would choose for a Father’s Day gift. The tool’s surprising power, versatility (especially in the PK…