Lost Art Press

LAP Open Wire, Aug. 9, 2025

Posted on by fitz

Comments are now closed. See you on Oct. 25!

Got a woodworking question or a question about what’s cooking at Lost Art Press? It’s your lucky day –it’s time for Open Wire!

You have until 5 p.m. Eastern to pose your question in the comments section below, and we’ll respond – hopefully with a informed and useful answer…but no promises on that front. (And it’s possible your fellow readers will have answers, too – and perhaps you’ll have an answer for someone else!).

– Fitz

p.s. The remaining Open Wire dates for 2025 are October 25 and December 13.

177 thoughts on “LAP Open Wire, Aug. 9, 2025”

  1. I have been inspired by Chris’s travels abroad and his trips to see furniture in the museums. My wife and I are planning a trip to Scotland and Dublin in the September and was wondering if anyone has suggestions for us–well, really me–to see any old furniture. Thanks for any help.

    1. In Dublin, the National Museum of Ireland has some good furniture to see. The Irish Agricultural Museum at Johnstown Castle has the best public collection of Irish vernacular furniture that I’ve seen. https://johnstowncastle.ie/irish-agricultural-museum/

      I don’t know Scotland well enough to give you and guidance. Look for open-air museums. Museums of farm/rural/folk life. That’s how I do it.

    2. A Woodworkers Travel Guide would be an amazing resource! Does anything like that exist?
      I’ll be in Ireland for a week in September and have been adding folklife museums and other destinations to our itinerary, but it would be fantastic to have a central resource for “must-see” sites for woodworkers around the world.

  2. Question for the community: looking for recommendations of car boot sale locations or vintage stores in greater London that may have vintage woodworking tools. Thanks.

  3. Chris, how do you do find the time to write blog posts, substack posts, respond to comments, teach classes, do personal woodworking, develop new glue and paint recipes, test tools, etc etc? It;s crazy impressive. How many hours do you sleep per night and would you ever consider using an AI version of yourself to help write posts?

    1. Thanks (I think). I sleep eight hours per night. I think my output is a product of:

      1) My training as a newspaper journalist. Writing is easy and quick for me
      2) I’ve given up hobbies (mostly playing music) to focus on woodworking
      3) This is what I do for a living. I don’t have a real job

      As to the second part of your question, I haven’t seen a single bit of AI that impresses me. The writing it turns out is pale garbage. The “art”… even worse. It’s great for summarizing documents and donkey coding work. But as of now, I have no interest in using it for much.

  4. If you’re open to it I’m really curious about the business model of LAP. It has been referenced in some places in mention of its goals but the structure/specifics haven’t been laid out that I can find. Sorry if that’s like asking to see your underwear.

    1. I’m always happy to answer questions about our business. The “model” is pretty simple. Pay authors the highest royalty possible so they will write excellent books. Make everything in the USA so you are helping your neighbors (and not helping people who exploit/enslave others). Don’t focus on growing the company, focus on making it un-killable. Have no debt. Pay employees well so they stay. Treat everyone the same. Sell direct to the customer (no distributors; no Amazon).

      And mostly, be happy with the fact that this kind of business will not make you rich.

  5. What is the most recent version of your saw bench design? Where can I get a copy of those plans?

  6. Chris/Megan: I mentioned in a previous openwire the concept of a “hybrid” toolchest, with aspects of the Dutch and English (Anarchist) designs you have been focusing on the last few years. You were not aware of any attempts at this. I have nearly completed such a “bastard” , and was wondering if you were interested in photos and a description of some of the conundra I ran into while constructing it. Where can I send the photos/notes? Its not anything as extensive as Mattias Hallin’s opus magnus. If you’re not interested in it , no problem, I don’t mind and understand. Suffice it to say there are good reasons to stick with the designs you’ve been writing about, and this is definitely not a weekend classroom project.
    -M Robert Weiss

  8. How does the open working time or your Piggly Wiggly glue compare to traditional hide glue?

    1. PNW is a liquid hide glue, with salt added to extend the open time to 15-18 minutes. Traditional hide glue is hot hide glue, which can tack within 30 seconds.

    2. Hot hide glue gives you two minutes of open time before it gels (depending on the temperature in your shop). Liquid hide glue gives you 10-20 minutes, depending on the temperature in your shop.

  9. Chris: in your recent blog “3 Tools from Overseas” you say you used the Abranet ACE HD sandpaper to “saddle seats in red elm and oak.” Is that to say you ONLY used the sandpaper to do that job, or did you hog out the bulk of the material first then use the sandpaper to clean it up?

    1. Sorry that I wasn’t communicating well.

      Power sanding is about three minutes of the process. I scorp out most of the waste. Use a travisher to clean that up. Then a little sanding/scraping to blend all the surfaces.

      I do not shape seats with sandpaper.

  10. If I recall correctly, the late, great Bob Flexner stated and you agreed that finishing pieces from both sides is unnecessary and wasn’t typically done in pre-modern times. Are there caveats or exceptions to this?

    I recently glued up some 3/4” thick, 1 1/2” wide rift and quartersawn oak strips into cabinet doors. I milled the strips dead straight and they stayed that way throughout the process. I had one strip left over, which I used for testing finish options (Osmo hardwax oil, some Liberon oil, and the LAP shop finish). It was from the same tree as the other strips and milled identically. I applied the finish test areas on one side of the strip only, and within 15 minutes it had clearly bowed along its length towards the finished side.

    Does the ”not finishing both sides rule” only apply in cases where the finished piece consists of glueups and joinery that keep the piece in tension, resisting deformations? I can’t explain the bowed strip in any way that doesn’t involve its single side finish when none of its siblings deformed at all. I even let the strips rest for a day between the milling and the glueup.

    1. Bowed along its length? That’s weird. I’ve not seen that happen as a reaction to finish. Usually the whole argument is about cupping across the width.

      Wood is weird, so I can’t make any proclamations. And little strips of wood can do goofy things. But it sounds to me like the the strip had some tension in it.

  11. Any thoughts about LAP branching into books about Asian woodworking tools and techniques?

  12. Hi I am new to hand tools, and all the talk about how high of a grit to sand to for finishing. How does this apply to hand planned surfaces?

    1. Hi, Daniel Shomo! I wrote a response to your question. It appears later in the question chain!

  13. Is there a good reason to use regular shellac (with wax) versus dewaxed shellac for a final finish? Specifically I’m using either the Bullseye regular Shellac or the Bullseye “sealer”, which is dewaxed.

    -Sam

  14. Not quite “woodworking,” but I hope that it will still prove acceptable: any suggestions on how to sharpen the curved portion of a brush hook? They get banged up a lot on rocks, old barbed wire, etc.

  15. Good morning, my wife and I will be in Cardiff this fall, aside from St Fagan’s National Museum of History, what are the other suggested places to see (woodworking or pub)? Thank you.

    1. Cardiff’s a compact city but St Fagans is on the outskirts, about 5 miles out going west. Even so, be prepared to spend all day there.
      It’s free entry and you may consider taking a packed lunch if the weather’s good…. Essential really, as it is a huge site – many acres and it is all walking. Basically, it concentrates on preserving Welsh vernacular buildings intact, moved lock0stock-and-barrel from all corners of the country and re-erected, so furniture is scattered all over in various buildings.

      In the centre of Cardiff is the National Museum, just a stone-throw from the castle, also free entry and it is HUGE. Another all-day visit to do it justice and an excellent art gallery there, one of the best outside London.

      Pubs? Most of the old pubs I used to drink in are long, long gone, cleaned out… but as Rugby is the second religion in this part of the world, try to look up ‘The Old Arcade’ in Church Street; it is much change (modernised) – an old Rugby haunt, especially on international match days. ,
      It still sells a decent pint. It is at the side entrance to the Old Market where you can get all sorts of what is now termed ‘street food’, and just two minutes’ walk from the Castle.

      There is a lot to see in the Capital, but try to travel north in the country, there’s much more beside.

      Da iawn, bach, croeso i Gymru! Welcome and have a good time.

  16. As always, thanks for doing this. I am building the Curved Arm Stickchair from the book and I do not have a lathe (I have one but it’s pen sized and not large enough to turn legs). I like the non-tapered look and sharper transition into the tenon, but I am struggling with getting the end tapered enough to seat into the tenon cutter. I know you need to be around max 1″ for the length that will go into the tapered tenon cutter but am struggling to get the taper to look right for the leg.

    Second, the 1″ Veritas tenon cutter looks to be out of stock, so I am considering the plug cutter or the bandsaw method in the Make a Chair from CaCa book. Any preferences ?

    Finally, did you ever find a source for the chamfering tool ?

    Thank you

  17. My two cents. The working time seems to be the same with Piggly and Old Brown glue. It’s all dependent on temperature. In summer the Old Brown needs very little warming to make it flow. The Piggly is thicker and definitely needs warming. I use both, depending on what I’m doing. Sometimes thicker is helpful, sometimes runny is.

  18. I have made 2 pieces of boarded furniture and I like the style. Do you think that you will ever write or publish a book on boarded furniture?
    Does anybody make wrought clenching nails?
    On YouTube I see knife sharpeners using diamond past on strops. Do you know if it is better than the green compound woodworkers use?
    What is the white glue I see European woodworkers use?
    Do you make any money from the videos Popular Woodworking sells that you made.

  19. I’ll be in Kentucky in November, and plan on visiting the Pleasant Hill Shaker Village for a couple of days. I know there are more Shaker settlements in that general area. Is there much to see and do at those other sites?

    1. The Whitewater Shaker Village is 20 minutes west of Cincinnati. It’s unrestored and the buildings are rarely open to the public. But it’s worth seeing.

      https://www.whitewatervillage.org/

      The Harmon Museum in Lebanon (20 minutes east) has a very large collection of Western Shaker furniture.

      https://www.wchsmuseum.org/

      Go next door to the Golden Lamb and have lunch (very old tavern). Then explore the upstairs and you will find some rooms that are viewable that have Shaker pieces.

      https://www.goldenlamb.com/#view-1

      Otterbien Senior Life has the old Union Shaker Village meeting hall as its offices. They have furniture on display. And if you ask nice, they might take you upstairs into the attic…..

      https://otterbein.org/find-a-location/lebanon/

      https://blog.lostartpress.com/2018/05/20/union-the-lost-shaker-village/

      This is a few minutes away from the Harmon Museum.

      If you are willing to drive 3 hours to Bowling Green, Kentucky, the South Union Shaker Village is the biggest goldmine of Shaker furniture I’ve ever seen.

      https://southunionshakervillage.com/

      So, there is LOTS to see.

      1. :thumbsup: The first bench I ever built was the one you linked to. I like it but I found out quickly that the long brace interferes with a holdfast

  21. Chris, do you use your American Trestle Table with a tablecloth, or leave it bare?

  22. Good morning. Two questions please.
    1.) Any suggestions for stick chair leg forms that don’t leave deep depressions in pile carpet?
    2.) Can you have round leg tenons and stretchers?
    Thank you.

    1. I’m afraid any chair with pointy legs is going to spoil the carpet. But I don’t have any carpet, so I’m no expert.

      On your second question: Absolutely yes. Many legs and stretchers for stick chairs are round.

  23. Hi guys!

    I have heard in interviews and blog posts over the last couple of years that Peter Follansbee is working on a book about craft genealogy with LAP. Is that still a live project and can you share any details?

    Thanks

    Martyn, UK.

  24. For the “Never Sponsored” Substack newsletter, have you ever considered reviewing the merits and demerits of various kinds of the humble marking gauge, metal and wood? There are some, like Jeff Hamilton’s, that never seem to have been properly evaluated and judged in any magazine of which I know. I’d love to see comparisons between the variety of gaugees, whether Jeff’s, Tite-Mark or older traditional gauges (such as those manufactured by Marples or Crown). It’s such an essential tool, I’m just surprised, from all I know, no one has carefully reviewed them. (David Charlesworth, I’m aware, preferred more pointed gauges so he could make more precise marks. Others like fences that are wider or ones where the cutters aren’t exposed to your fingers (like round, rolling cutters are). And then there is the weight and the ergonomics to take into account (not to mention clamping power and whether it will roll off your bench, or whether you can use it with your material flat on your bench, not hanging off). I take your reviews very seriously, as I’m sure many do. Thanks for considering this.

    1. Thanks. We reviewed the Tite Mark and its clones. But not any pin gauges. I’ll be honest, I don’t much like them. I’d always rather have a cutting gauge or a pencil gauge.

      Perhaps I would use a pin gauge if I surfaced lumber by hand a lot, but I don’t.

      I’ll give it some thought.

  25. Roman work bench question:
    Would the bench be too tippy at 10” wide? Should I bring the legs out wider closer to the edge? Or leave the same? Is 10” wide too narrow for the bench top anyway? I would like to keep the legs under the bench like the video to avoid tripping over them.

    Thank you for doing this!

    1. I don’t think a 10″-wide top would make it too tippy. But that’s just my gut feeling. The 11″ doesn’t feel tippy at all, so i suspect a 1″ difference won’t change much.

  26. Knockdown workbench question. For attaching workbench legs to stretcher, for a knockdown bench, you could run lag bolts through the leg to the stretcher. Same for the top, run a lag bolt through the top stretcher into the bottom of the top. However if you disassemble too many times the threads in the wood might get messed up. What about putting a threaded insert into the bottom side of the top (Rampa in Germany makes good ones) then attach a carriage bolt that runs through a hole in the top stretcher (hole could be larger than the bolt to allow for wood movement)? Or is there an alternative?

    1. For this bench, we used inserts that are simple to install and durable for the long term:

      https://blog.lostartpress.com/2014/09/08/download-free-plans-for-the-knockdown-nicholson-workbench/

      You can also use hex bolts. Using fender washers will prevent the wood from getting too compressed or chewed up. Most people move their bench only a few times, so you don’t have to go nuclear on it. If you need your bench to break down every day, then I’m not sure what to recommend.

  27. No questions but just wanted to support this with a big thank you. It’s very interesting to read the array of questions & answers.

  28. Morning folks… two quick questions… do you plan on making a “pocket” for your other pocket reference books similar to the first aid one? And secondly… what’s your source for decent pine needed for the tool chest build. Here in central Ohio, I can get great great quality hardwoods, but the pine that’s available is… well… underwhelming.
    Thanks.

  29. I came by an old rocking chair made by the Sikes Company in Philadelphia circa 1906. The back slats were broken out and the rails damaged. Planning to repair and wondered about anyone’s experience with disassembly assuming construction was with hide glue. Thanks

    1. There are lots of books out there (check you local library) that deal with disassembling old furniture for repair. When we do it, we inject vinegar into joints when we can. And then we wrap joints with wet towels and heat the joint with a heat gun. Spreader clamps are a huge help. Look for nails and screws you can remove (they are added to “reinforce” wobbly joints).

  30. Greetings!
    Thanks for taking the time…
    Not really a question, but more of an opportunity for someone.
    I recently built a “bench on bench” and often wonder why I didn’t do so earlier in my woodworking journey. My back now thanks me many times over! There are many problems however with a smaller, portable bench. Specifically, storage when not in use, and limited bench top size when dealing with a large project, but need the height.
    Anyways…the opportunity is for someone to design/build a height adjustable bench that can take a pounding. Maybe something for the next workbench book?

      1. Thanks! The chair was a great project by the way, really demystified the whole chair making thing

  32. I’m building a trestle table inspired by your American trestle table. I’ve made the top thicker, 1-7/8” and am making the legs and feet thicker: 3.5”. I’ve wondered if I should make the profile of the legs/feet/braces rectangular instead of square. I’m pretty sure I want the size and strength of the square but thought I’d ask for a designers input.

    Also, when you flatten your workbench, do you also plane down your vise chop so it matches?

    1. I’d have to draw it out to have an opinion on rectangular vs. square. I’m sure either could work, but I will say that I am fond of the square profile.

      And yes, I do plane down the top of the vise chop when I flatten a benchtop.

  33. I really like the tweaks to your recent comb-back chairs, particularly the arrangement of the back sticks in this example https://blog.lostartpress.com/2025/05/12/for-sale-comb-back-stick-chair-in-red-elm-oak/ .

    It looks like the outer long sticks have some bend to them. Is this a trick of perspective and they are just in a different sight line? If they are bent how much do you plan to bend a stick when you’re laying out the seat, arm, and crest?

    1. The back sticks fan out. The mortise spacing at the seat, arm and comb create the fan. There is a little bit of bending the outermost sticks, but that’s because the radius of the comb is larger than the radius of the arm. I published complete plans for this seven-stick chair on my substack. It’s paywalled, but you can sign up for a free trial to download it.

      https://christopherschwarz.substack.com/p/free-plans-and-patterns-7-stick-comb

  34. Hello!

    I love the grocery store glue and happily have been using the recipe since it was first published in the American peasant substack. I recently had a problem where I left things (specifically an applied moulding) in clamps for only an hour and that was massively insufficient. I would love to hear if folks have a more nuanced rule of thumb on clamp time for the grocery store glue.

    1. The glue should hold without clamps after an hour or two. And harden up overnight to an almost crystalline solid.

      If it doesn’t, then here are the likely culprits.

      1. The glue was overheated past 150° F at some point, causing the adhesive to break down.
      2. The glue suffered mold/bacterial attack (you can’t always see it). And the organisms ate the long-chain polymers.
      3. There is moisture in the wood that is preventing the from fully evaporating and hardening.

      One thing about mold/bacteria: If you see it, the bottle is toast. Removing the damaged/moldy bits doesn’t fix the problem. A lot of the mold is invisible to us.

      Hope this helps.

  35. Good morning. I like the hide glue and have used it in several situation, but I am curious whether it would soften or lose strength if the furniture was exposed to very hot conditions, like an attic in summer. Have you had any experience with this, or tested for this?

    1. I suppose it could, but FWIW, I have a hide-glued table on my top floor (aka attic) that is regularly subjected to 100° F temps in the summer and it hasn’t fallen apart yet. But given that you can reverse hide glue with water and heat, enough of those together could be a problem.

  36. Perfect! Thank you… and can’t wait for the “pocket” to be available!

  37. I understand that LAP avoids VOCs more than most woodworking outfits. Hence the use of milk paint, linseed oil paint, and soft wax. I am curious if y’all use BLO at all, given that it has those heavy metal driers and usually calls for being cut with mineral spirits.

  38. I just finished a desk made of red oak and was going to use Tried and True Danish Oil to finish it. Would you consider soft wax to be a better alternative?

    1. I know what’s in our finish, and I don’t know what’s in the T&T, so I do prefer hours. I am biased. But better? I don’t know. That’s kind of a personal question. I suggest you do test boards on off cuts of your wood and see which one you prefer. Neither proivides a lot of long-term protection, but both can be reapplied as necessary.

  39. I swear I’ve read something from Chris/LAP about arranging boards for a table top so that the grain aligns to mimic one large slab… where joints aren’t that noticeable. I can’t find it. Any help?

      1. I can’t find the entry, perhaps PW took it down.

        Basically, you take a board with wide cathedrals. Trim the two long edges so they are parallel to the growth rings. Then take boards with lots of bastard/rift grain and cut them to follow the growth rings And add them to the long edges of the center cathedral board.

        You want to favor bastard boards that have a bit of taper to the rings so that you can make a board that is convincing – in other words, the slab should end up with growth rings on the edges are parallel.

        It’s hard to explain with words. This is the best I can do here.

  41. Long time listener first time caller here with a question about drawbored joints. When Chris built the trestle table back in 2006, it looks like he both wedged and drawbored the mortise and tenon joints. But the Anarchist’s Workbench just has them drawbored. If Chris were to build the table again today, would he still both wedge and drawbore?

    1. The workbench has blind mortises, so wedging them is possible but not easy. The trestle table has through-tenons, which are easily drawbored and wedged. So I do both whenever possible.

  42. I’m thinking making my own stain. One thing I don’t want is to keep cans of solvent product in the shop I will eventually need to dispose of. The DIY milk paint video got me onto this vision of having an environmentally and economically friendly shop. Have you done much exploration in this part of finishing or do you have any recommendations? Things you like or don’t like?

    1. I don’t know enough to guide you. Stains are either dyes, pigments or a combination of the two. And they have a binder. And there are lots of binders out there (including linseed oil).

      There are entire books devoted to making natural dyes. “Wild Color” is the one I’m familiar with.

      https://www.casacaribe.art/post/the-best-5-books-to-learn-natural-dye

      You can also investigate inks, which can be made with natural products and non-poisonous binders.

      Sorry I don’t have a one0stop resource for you.

  43. I’ve read this before, but I can’t remember where. Could you reiterate, or tell me where to look, please:
    Optimal angles for seat, chair back. Lounging, desk, table use, etc.

  44. Hi Chris and Meg
    A quick question. I built a table with the sliding dovetail battens like the work table in ADB. I noticed after several months in the house the battens seem to have expanded out about 1/16th on the non-glued side. When I finished the table in the shop, I flush cut the battens to the edge of the table, is this expansion normal?

    1. The top shrank, which is normal. This seasonal movement will happen with the change in seasons. In the book I mention gluing them in place along the front edge so that you push the movement to the back, where it can’t be easily seen.

      However, I don’t find this sort of movement to be offensive. It’s wood.

  45. Is there a reason why some traditions evolved pins first or tails first dovetails? My guess is that pins first made more sense without a proper vise, as you transfer the pins by simply standing them on the tailboard. But that then begs the question if tge English tradition has always been tails first? What does the historical record say?
    (This question isn’t meant as a ‘which is better’ btw, just which is done where and why).
    Thanks!

    1. As Peter Follansbee would say: Everyone who knows is dead.

      There are no primary sources on “why” there is a cultural difference. We can speculate. Or we can cut dovetails.

  46. My first two batches of grocery glue are very liquid at 140 degrees and after at least 4 hours clamped broke when smashed right along the glue line with gooey glue still in the middle. For batch 4 should I reduce the water and salt? I swear I am following the recipe correctly.

    1. It might have gotten a little too hot during the process…. You only need to get it to about 95° to 100° F for it to flow nicely.

      Try a lower temperature with some test blocks.

  47. if you could only bring one dovetal saw to a desert island which one would it be?

    1. My trusty Bad Axe 10″ (no longer available) – it’s an extension of my arm after more than a decade of use. But I recommend the Lie-Nielsen, ’cause it’s excellent and fits most hands well.

    2. Probably the Lie-Nielsen. Because I could replace it when I got off the island. I love my Two Lawyers saw, but it’s mostly for drawer dovetails. The LN is a beautiful balance of speed and finesse. And easily obtainable.

  48. I had much better luck at the house clearance stalls in street markets e.g. Deptford, the ones around the Albany theatre. You never know what will turn up so regular weekly visits are necessary and also as they have such a lot of stuff to clear the prices are/were much lower.
    This was before Covid and I haven’t been since.

  49. The rule of thumb is it depends. If you are using an oil type finish you generally don’t want to use sandpaper after hand planing. If you are using a film finish, like varnish or urathanes it doesn’t matter whether you plane or sandpaper your wood!

    Sandpaper makes the wood “fluffy” on a microscopic level! The film finishes solidify that! Handplaning shears the wood fibers and leaves a glossy look in most cases. Oil finishes enhance that!

    If you are sanding wood it also somewhat depends on the wood! How hard is the wood: Pine or Cherry or some exotic! The softer it is you want to stop at about 220-240. Harder woods might go to 320-340.

    Lastly, are you staining the wood? If so, you want to sand edge grain to one level higher than the face grain! End grain will soak up stain like nobodies business and appear very dark compared to the face grain!

  50. Looking to rehandle a small set of chisels with tapered octagonal handles that are as close a match as possible to the Pfeil bevel edge chisel handle (like the one in the chisel comparison Chris and Megan did some months back). I’ve taken measurements and tried a couple freehand with spokeshaves but the results are meh.

    Any advice on how to accurately and consistently create an octagonal taper like that?

    Asking here, thinking it might beat don’t similarities to octagonal tapered chair spindle shaping.

    2. I make double-tapered octagons almost every day. I start with an octagonal stick and draw my target diameters on the ends. If there’s a lot of material to remove I’ll do the work in two stages. Then I make taper cuts with a block plane or jack plane. I find that the sole of the plane helps me keep things consistent. It’s too easy to wander off with a shave.

      Hope this helps…

  52. Thanks, as always, for doing this! This is a timely list – I’m planning a visit in October. I had forgotten about the Golden Lamb, but it was a favorite haunt of my mother’s while I was growing up, and will make a good lunch stop after visiting the Great Serpent Mound (this won’t just be a woodworking trip).

    A question: where can I find the cranked chest hinges that are shown on the revised ATC photos? I’ve only been able to find longer/unequal strap hinges.

  53. Ditto!!! Just look at most handsaw descriptions on eBay and AI “help chat’s” aren’t much better!

  54. The white glue is PVA wood glue, all brands I know of here make their glue white.

  55. Allbäcks make a wax out of linseed oil and beeswax that is tinted with earth pigments, could be worth checking out. Ottossons makes linseed paint based stains. There is also a danish company, linolie & pigment that makes a linseed oil based stain called satin wood that is excellent.

  56. Thank you for response. My second question was poorly worded (sorry) – I’d like to know if stretchers can be used with legs that use cylindrical tenons.

  58. Know anyone who has explored “Eastlake Style” from a woodworker’s perspective?

  59. Chris, You’d mentioned in the past that you do some stretching each day before starting your woodwork. Can you detail what those stretches/exercises are and maybe a word or two about why those?

    Meghan, do you have any particular things you do to prepare?

    Thanks.

    2. I do stretches that strengthen my lower back muscles. I’m lying on my back when I do these. I’m sure they have fancy names, but I call them:

      Kiss the knees: I grab my knees and pull then up to my chest, pulling them as hard as I can for 30 seconds. Release. Repeat nine times.

      F&^k the Ceiling: I lift my pelvis off the floor as much as possible. Hold for 30 seconds. Release. Repeat.

  60. Well, Hamilton’s use cutters, not pins (as do Crown gauges). Neither have the micro-adjusters, of course, but they may have other advantages, as mentioned above. Just wanted to know what you thought. Thanks again!

  61. So, I’ve been on the hunt for quark so that I to can make my own milk paint. I live the in the metropolitan sprawl of the 4th largest city here in the states and cannot find it. We have multitudes of natural, organic types specialty stores in the area and I’ve had no luck. Is there a commercially available substitute that will suffice? Fat free cottage cheese perhaps?

    1. No problem! It takes 5 minutes of work (and overnight wait) to make great quark from skim milk.

      Just warm 1 quart or liter of skim (fat free) milk up to 90° Fahrenheit (not Celsius, RIP that one commenter’s kitchen) in a pan, turn off the heat, and pour in 1/3 cup of distilled vinegar. DO NOT STIR. Cover with pot lid and let it sit overnight.

      The quark should really nicely separate by morning. Rinse as best you can, but don’t bother with a cheesecloth. A basic colander and gentle washing is enough.

      Congrats, you’ve now got fresh quark that’s ready to use for paint. You can let it sit another night in a Tupperware in the fridge to let the excess water drain, or you can just squeeze it by hand until you have a pretty solid texture, like crumbly sour cream.

      This is much better starting point than cottage cheese, because it hasn’t been over processed. I won’t stop you from experimenting, but please try this recipe once first.

    2. Joshua Farnsworth of Youtube channel “Wood and Shop” makes his quark by adding 2 cups of white distilled vinegar to 1 gallon skim milk (both at room temp) and letting it sit overnight. After this, the quark solids are separated from the whey. with cheesecloth and so on.

    3. Making your own is easy (see other commenters). Most Whole Foods carry it under the name Farmer’s Cheese. You can even buy it through Amazon….

  62. Slotted screws have either got thinner slots over the years or I’m not looking in the right places for screwdrivers. Slotted screws on old furniture seem thicker and often longer as well. Any resources you can think of that might explain what is going on? Thanks

  63. I’m working my way through Rudy Everts’ Chair From Green Wood videos. I know the seat is an elm slab but I would like to know what tree species he harvested in the ‘Harvesting’ episode. Several episodes in I believe he says sugar maple, but my hearing ain’t what it used to be. Don’t @ me for not recognizing the tree by it’s bark, I’ve been west of the Rockies the last 50 years or so and even when I was back east I only knew maples by their leaves. 🙂
    Excellent series by the way, and thanks for all you do.
    Cheers, Neil

  64. I’m going to make the Irish Stick Chair from FW, first attempt at a chair. Is there a progression of projects that you would recommend to get familiar with the trickier parts, or just learn it on the chair build and then do another one…. I bought two sticks of 8/4 hickory for it. Do I need biscuits in the edge joint for the seat or will glue be enough?

      1. Thanks! And do I need biscuit joints (I don’t have a joiner) or floating tenons or anything to glue up boards for the seat?

        1. You can, if you like overkill. A simple edge joint with glue is usually enough, however. As you are getting started, I’d just start with an edge joint.

  65. I’m working my way through Rudy Everts’ Chair From Green Wood videos. I know the seat is an elm slab but I would like to know what tree species he harvested in the ‘Harvesting’ episode. Several episodes in I believe he says sugar maple, but my hearing ain’t what it used to be. Don’t @ me for not recognizing the tree by it’s bark, I’ve been west of the Rockies the last 50 years or so and even when I was back east I only knew maples by their leaves. 🙂
    Excellent series by the way, and thanks for all you do.
    Cheers, Neil

  66. What does the term “racking” mean? I’ve seen it in various places (with context clues of something breaking or getting damaged) but couldn’t really figure out the exact meaning. Thank you!

    1. Imagine a square frame with mortise-and-tenon joints at the corners. No imagine it forced into a parallelogram shape. That’s racking.

    2. Chris & Meaghan thank you for the time and effort you expend to present the LAP open wire.
      The knowledge and expertise you share with your readers is beyond helpful and the opportunity to hear from your widespread base of followers is an additional benefit.
      Just wanted you to know your work is appreciated.
      Best Regards
      Bob Bell

  67. I built your Anarchists Workbench from the free pdf out of a secondhand 16′ glue lam beam, half for the top, everything else out of the rest.. I thought I was being clever because I didn’t own the clamps or a jointer, but I had seen the Parks and Rec guy level a slab with a router. That took over my existing workbench until I finished it. Eight months later it came together beautifully. Then I bought the book. Thanks for putting it out there.

  68. WW travel guide would be great! Despite all its’ faults, I’ve had success using ChatGPT to find woodworking related itineraries.

    1. if you have a list of names, with State/Province, County and Country, that would be very useful. I’m trying to update the list that is in Charles Hayward’s Woodworker’s Pocket Book p100-101 “Old Woodwork – Accessible to the Public” which is only England. Thanks

  69. For ATC and DTC, I’ve read you both mention to only finish the inside with shellac but best with no finish. But I think I’ve seen some places where you might also suggest the soft wax. Do you think it would be ok to finish the cherry inside pieces with soft wax? Will they cure and not smell? (Pine carcass left raw)

    Another question if I can-
    Can you provide a link to the orange huck towels? I see a few options and don’t want to get the wrong ones!

  70. I have made several of your chairs from The Stick Chair Book (with varying degrees of success) and have been kicking around the idea of modifying one of the designs to make a counter stool. Do you guys have any insight about potential points of failure in adding some altitude to the designs from the book? Have you tried making a staked counter stool before? Thank you!!

    1. I have a sort-of counter stool in “The Anarchist’s Design Book” (a free download).

      My advice is to go to a decent furniture store that has counter stools with a tape measure and camera. Learn what sort of angles and thicknesses they use. Where they put the stretchers. Sit in them to see how they work.

      Take the good parts. And make a stool that has better joints.

  71. Recently completed Will Myer’s Moravian workbench, minus the holes. The top is only 13 3/4” wide and I’m curious your opinion on the ideal layout for dog/holdfast holes. I read AWB, but that pattern didn’t apply due to the narrow width of this bench. The historical layout for this design was just one row up front, but I’m thinking a second/staggered row would be beneficial?Appreciate any thoughts. Thank you.

    1. The pattern I use is simply two rows of staggered holes. If the reach of the holdfast’s beak is 7″, then the holes are 14″ apart. This gives me complete coverage. With a narrow bench, you can get away with one row down the middle.

  72. I used to make a spinny thing to hold knitter’s yarn. A glorified paper towel holder. Using a lathe. One part of the process, no matter what I tried, was unpredictable. How do you drill a straight 3/16 hole into a blank, to the depth of the drill bit, but not all the way through the ends, without it deviating off center? 50/50 success rate at best. I’ve used a variety of ways to hold the blank, and lots of finesse to try to get good outcomes. The dowel becomes a spike with a tenon that fits into a disk, and that sits on a post so it can spin freely. I’d get the spike close to finished while between centers only to find out the hole is off axis.

  73. Thanks this helps! The glue did hold after resting overnight so I think maybe I should err on the 2 hour side. I might do some tests and report back

  74. Thanks for the reply. So do all finishes stick to planed surfaces? Do the finish company’s just assume everybody sands to make their recommendations on how high of a grit to sand. I do not want to sand if at all possible. What does oil finishes mean exactly, urethanes, tung oil, BLO? What about hard wax oils? Thanks for any info.

    1. As far as I know, yes. All finishes stick to planed surfaces.

      Oil finishes are made with some sort of oil, usually a drying oil such as linseed or tung. These drying oils polymerize and make a film.

      A “urethane” is simply plastic resin in an oil carrier.

      Hard oil/waxes are another animal. We don’t know that much about them. So I have no info there for you. Best advice is to buy a good book on finishing. The internet is awash in Finishing Misinformation.

  75. Thanks Nick & Ndaener – going to give it a try this weekend. As far as Whole Foods – unless their website is incorrect – they list quark but don’t have it in stock.

    1. Good luck! FYI homemade quark will should keep for at least a few days in the fridge so you can make it ahead of time if needed. The paint itself is best used fresh or within a day, but also keeps a few days.

  76. Doing this with an old child’s rocking chair at present: hot water in the joints, followed by a hair dryer to heat further then spreader clamps (actually pipe clamps with end reversed and a couple bits of small wood to keep the end reasonably flat to the wood – hacking normal clamp to be a spreader clamp). Mine was made early 1900s in England. Joints all round mortise and tenons and virtually all have come apart pretty easily, so guessing they used hide glue. A couple more left to do.

  77. Applicable quote from Aristotle: “The more you know, the more you realize how little you know.” Another good one attributed to him: “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” Reminds me I need to practice dovetails tomorrow…

  78. I’ve been asked for recommendations for a starter hand plane. The two basic pieces of advice are obvious – by the best tool you can afford and learn to sharpen. I don’t want to send them down the “rehabbing vintage Stanley planes” path I took. I’m thinking a Lie Nielson 60 1/2 and a low angle jack plane to start. And to tell them it’s worth delaying a little bit to be able to save for good ones. Any thoughts?

    1. I think that is outstanding advice. We start apprentices with a 60-1/2 so they can learn to sharpen and care for a plane. Then we go to the low-angle jack next so that can do almost anything. Finally, a smoothing plane that suits their hands.

  79. Hi all,

    I have been looking for any information on ancient Egyptian woodworking. Anything is great, tools, styles, woods used, joinery. Whatever. I thank you for your assistance.

    1. There is a series of three inexpensive books by Geoffrey Killen on Egyptian woodworking. They discuss everything you are asking and come from a person who has devoted his life to the subject. Highly recommended.

      Any sear at ABEbooks will turn them up.

  80. Thanks to the OP for asking this question. I have wanted to ask this same question for a very long time but was hesitant. And thanks Chris, for answering it. If I could tack on one question of my own, do you think LAP has been so successful with this business model (I am referring to selling direct to customers here), because woodworking is a niche hobby and the customer base is small? How well do you think this could translate to other businesses or even a publishing in a subject that is not so niche?

    1. Lots of large-ish businesses sell direct and have ethics (LL Bean used to be one of these companies). Of course it would work.

      The problem is greed. Eventually people get their hands on the business who don’t care about the mission. They only care about the margin and growth. And that’s why LL Bean and so many other once-great businesses suck eggs.

  81. I should have asked this in the comments about the upcoming milk paint book. Does anyone have suggestions on good places to source artists pigments in the US? The best source I was able to find was https://shop.kremerpigments.com/us/; seems good, not insanely priced, but I don’t think any paint made with these will be cheaper than RMP.

  82. One more milk paint question: when a pigment is incompatible with lime, that means it won’t work with the milk paint recipe (since it uses lime) right?

    2. Went on a deep dive on this the other day with the EarthPigments website Chris mentioned, and they said that milk paint uses so little hydrated/slaked lime that it slant qualify as “lime paint” so you should be fine. If it works with casein then it’ll be fine.
      Or so I read.

  84. Hi, for the crucible plane stopper, my workbench is only 2 inch thick. Is that thick enough?

    Thank you

  85. I’m building my first chair, with the help of your Gibson video. Regarding the chair pattern: do you shape your pieces to the outside or the inside of the line?

  86. Thanks again for allowing and answering all of our questions.

    I love the badge you released with the first copies of the Revised ATC, as well as the return of the red shirt.

    Do you plan on releasing any additional related merchandise? Like the letter press poster from years ago? Also, wasn’t there also a bandana to celebrate one of the anniversaries?

    I’m excited for anything ATC, it has been such an influential book on my woodworking.

    1. Hi David,

      We have a lovely handmade ATC mug coming out in a week or so. And we will re-introduce the blue ATC shirts again before Christmas. The ATC toilet seat covers were held up at the border. And the ATC suppositories were impounded by the FDA.

      But I’m sure we’ll come up with a few more things.

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