Lost Art Press

Tools to Make ‘Smalls’

Posted on by Lost Art Press

Our new “Smalls” pocket book contains plans for 18 on-the-wee-side projects that will help use up nice offcuts from your scrap bin. And if you ever need to whip up a last-minute handmade gift, “Smalls” will be a big help.

A few beginning woodworkers have asked us what tools they’ll need to build the projects in the book. So we compiled a complete list of tools mentioned in the book, and we listed them below.

Don’t freak out. You don’t need all these tools. Instead, you can choose from path A, B or C. Read on, and it will all make sense.

Saws
• Band saw
• Coping saw (with fine blades)
• Crosscut and rip backsaws
• Table saw (if not using hand tools for dados, rabbets and grooves)

A small band saw (such as a 10″ benchtop model) will allow you to make all the straight and curved cuts necessary to build the projects in the book. Or, if you want to do things by hand, get two backsaws and a coping saw to handle the straight and curved cuts. A table saw will let you make all the straight cuts – and it can help you make a lot of the joints, too. 

Striking
• Mallet
• 8-10 oz. hammer
• 16 oz. hammer

You could get by with just one of these tools if need be. I’d probably choose the 16 ounce hammer, which is a standard size in most workshops.

Engraving
• Engraving tool

One of the projects (the six-board chest) uses our Crucible engraving tool to decorate its front. 

Marking & Measuring
• Compass
• Sliding bevel
• 12″ and 6″ combination square
• Protractor

You don’t need all of these tools. A combination square (either size) will be the most handy. If the project uses angles other than 90°, you’ll also need the sliding bevel and a protractor. The compass helps you lay out arcs and use the engraving tool.

Planes
• Block plane
• Jack plane
• Smoothing plane
• Skew rabbet plane
• Router plane
• Plow plane
• Beading plane

I know, I know, that’s a long list of planes. You don’t need them all. You can get by with only one of the three general-purpose planes: block, jack or smooth plane. The next three planes are for hand joinery. If you have a table saw, you can skip these. And the beading plane is for decoration.

Chisels/Gouges
• 1/4″ and 1/2″ chisel
• Any “tight sweep” carving gouge

You need at least one chisel to make anything out of wood. If you are going to buy only one for this book, get the 1/4″ tool. Also, a carving gouge is helpful in adding decorative details. 

Shaping & Finishing
• Rasp (fine and coarse)
• Sandpaper (#120, #220)
• Fine sanding sponge

After you make your curved cuts, you’ll need to clean up the work with either a rasp or sandpaper. You don’t have to have both. The fine sanding sponge is for achieving a smooth finish after a coat of paint or film finish.

Etc.
• Drill/driver
• Drill press
• Pin nailer
• 1″ tenon cutter
• Drawknife
• Spokeshave
• 1″ auger bit
• Router (with thumbnail bit)
• Adhesive spray

A drill/driver is a must in our workshop. You can use that instead of a drill press for almost any drilling operation called for in “Smalls.” A pin nailer is only necessary if you don’t want to drive your nails with a hammer. The next four items – 1″ tenon cutter, drawknife, spokeshave, 1″ auger bit – are necessary only if you want to build the stool in the book. And the adhesive spray is very helpful for attaching patterns to wood (the book contains a lot of patterns…).

— Christopher Schwarz & Kale Vogt

9 thoughts on “Tools to Make ‘Smalls’”

  1. I would just note that personally, getting wood in thin dimensions has been a real pain for me. Re-sawing on the bandsaw is not as easy without a perfectly calibrated bandsaw, the table saw method scares the crap out of me, and handsawing is quite a workout and can be as inaccurate as a poorly calibrated bandsaw (i swear i follow all the bandsaw calibration techniques and it stills doesnt end up square!), so this leaves planing with all the waste associated. Yes I know the bandsaw can be blamed on poor skills, but I also suspect some used bandsaws like my delta 14″ 28-276 just don’t calibrate well.

    What are your shop’s methods in order of favorite to least favorite?

    1. Usually we use scraps of any dimension and run them through the planer to get what we want. We aren’t talking about a lot of wood here, so we are fine putting some shavings out for the chickens.

      We do some resawing on the band saw. We also start the process on the table saw (sawing through the thickness on all four edges, and finish by sawing out the middle or splitting things apart if the grain is straight.

    2. I have the newer version of the Delta 14 saw. I had issues also getting accurate cuts. I ended up replacing the guides with Carter Gide blocks for both upper and lower guides. Then I added the Carter blades tension spring. One issue with this saw, is the upper blade guide post changes rhe upper blade guide in relation to the blade, and needs readjusted if the blade is hitting one side of the guide more than the other. Next you need a good, sharp re-sawing blade, I got the one Hartville Hardware sells, they work great, nice fine cuts.
      Next make sure your upper and lower blade wheels are co-planer, mine needed one shimmed, (Hartville may have the shim kit for this saw), or look on line. Now to get the blade tracking without drifting, get the gullet of the blade running on the Blade Wheel in the center, on the crown. Next get your table,and blade square to each other, so you can get your fence parallel to the blade. Now the wood should track straight and true through the saw. The other mistake I made, is trying to force the wood through the saw. Push the stock through the saw slowly, letting the saw blade do,the work at the pace it likes. Good luck
      Cheers

  2. Chris, Did you make a video of carving the front of the 6 board chest? Was it done by hand? Thanks!

    1. I didn’t do a video. I used our engraving tool and a straightedge. There are videos on the store’s page for the engraving tool that show how its used. Very simple

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