Lie-Nielsen’s shipment of Rivierre die-forged nails have arrived in Maine and the company has started to sell the nails on its website here.
I ordered one box of each size and style to take a look at the blued finish and the hammered-head variants. (Previously all the Rivierre nails I’ve used were black and had the diamond heads.) Yes, I paid full retail. All the nails are very nice. The blue is nice and dark – almost black. The difference is subtle and is something most casual observers would overlook (in other words: either is fine).
If you are looking for a good assortment to begin with, here are some guidelines:
30mm nails: Fastening 3/8”-thick stuff.
35mm to 40mm nails: Fastening 1/2”-thick stuff.
50mm to 55mm nails: Fastening 3/4”-thick stuff.
You’ll probably use 35mm and 40mm nails more than the other sizes. That’s because they are ideal for cabinet backs and bottoms. And once you reduce the thickness of a 3/4” cabinet side to 1/2” for a dado or rabbet, you’ll grab a 35mm or 40mm nail for that joint as well.
In general, the longer the nail, the more fastening power it provides, but the extra length also makes the fastener more likely to split the work or bend to follow the grain. The good news is that these nails are robust and don’t tend to follow the grain much (I have yet to have one wander, which is a significant concern with softer cut nails).
It took a long time for Lie-Nielsen to get these nails, so if you order I would err on the side of ordering a few extra boxes (nails don’t go bad – like chicken).
I have a terrible weakness for marking and measuring tools. Even though most of my work eschews hitting a particular number, I am a sucker for squares, knives and marking gauges. Let’s start with squares.
Squares I have three Starrett combination squares. Two have been with me for 20 years. The third is a new acquisition. My 12” Starrett square was probably the first quality tool I bought when I was hired by Popular Woodworking Magazine. I was terrified by the price at the time – about $65 – but I was hooked after using a fellow employee’s Starrett square.
I also have a 6” Starrett combination square I bought at a flea market for $20 (Cincinnati is awash in machinist tools).
This year I bought a 24” Starrett combination square with the oversized H8 head. It was my reward to myself for finishing “The Anarchist’s Design Book.” With this square and its 24”-long blade I was able to retire my framing square and trade up in accuracy. I would never call this a “must-have” tool. But I’ve always wanted one.
Despite the above, I’m not much of a spokeman for Starrett. The quality of the new stuff seems to be falling lately. I hope it’s temporary.
I also have two squares from Chris Vesper. I have his 7” try square and his fantastic double square (with all the accessory blades). The 7” try square is the ultimate arbiter of squareness in the shop. The double square measures things in places that no other square can go.
Marking Knives I have two marking knives. A Blue Spruce Toolworks knife that is the only tool in my chest that I did not purchase. It was a gift from a reader in Arkansas who was dying and asked me to have it. The handle is some fantastic burl and the blade is, of course, the high quality you expect from Dave Jeske at Blue Spruce.
My other marking knife is a Veritas with a black plastic handle. Despite the plastic handle, it’s an excellent knife and is the tool I use when I am working out of town. I love how it won’t roll off my bench.
Marking Gauges I have four Tite-Mark gauges. I wish had four more. Don’t buy imitators or from people who ripped off Kevin Drake’s work. Your gauge lines will go astray and you’ll get a gypsy curse to boot (and then Marta will have to remove it).
Dividers and Compasses I have two pairs of small dividers from Starrett. One is vintage; one is new. The new one is not in the same league as the vintage one. I also own two Starrett compasses – one new and one vintage. The quality hasn’t slipped on these. These compasses allow you to swap the pencil for a second point, and so they serve me well for large layout chores.
Sliding Bevel Gauges I have two of them, a 7” and 4”, both from Chris Vesper. Before I could afford Vesper’s work, I was a sucker for the Stanley No. 18 butt-locking gauge.
Pencils I use a variety of mechanical pencils and lead holders for rough marking of the material. I also use the fine-lead pencils to accentuate knife lines so I can see them.
Trammels & Odd Bits I finally gave up my grandfather’s Japanese trammels and picked up the Veritas ones. I have wooden shop-made winding sticks, a straightedge and pinch rods stashed in the front chamber of my chest next to my saws. Somewhere in there is also a plastic protractor.
For marking dovetails, I have the Sterling Saddle-Tail. Love it.
And Tape Measures I can’t imagine working without a tape measure on my belt. And I get the funniest looks when I walk into the local hardware store with it. It’s a 12’ Stanley Powerlock – the kind with the metal case. Contractors look at me like I’m wearing a dress or a dominatrix outfit. In our hardware store it’s 50’ or go home.
I also have a few Lufkins floating around that I use when I go to the lumberyard or need to get a rough measurement. But for measuring anything “for keeps,” I use the Stanley. Every tape measure is a little different and a little off from its brothers and sisters.
Next up: Chisels and such.
— Christopher Schwarz
Part 1 of this series on handplanes can be found here.
Part 2 on saws is here.
Part 2-1/2 on frame saws is here.
I don’t know why my brain refused to acknowledge the two frame saws in my chest while I was writing part 2 of this series. So here’s part 2-1/2 of the series on my coping saw and fretsaw.
Ah, now I remember why my brain froze, I didn’t want to revisit the topic of coping saws. I’ve still not found one that satisfies me on all fronts. I’ve tried, cheap, expensive, vintage, yellow and rare. All have some aspect that I don’t like.
So I’ve given up and reverted to the German-made Olson coping saw I bought in 1996 or 1997. It’s been modified significantly, especially the blade-tensioning mechanism, and I’ve stretched the frame. And you can’t buy this saw new anymore. The Olson saw is now made overseas and I’m not a fan of what’s happened to it.
What I can recommend, however, are the blades for whatever coping saw you do end up settling for. I have been very happy with the Pegas coping saw blades, which are made in Switzerland and cut like a dream. And they are tough; I’ve had individual blades last for more than six months.
For fretsaws, I also went full-German. I’ve had an old German jeweler’s saw since the 1990s that tensions blades to a remarkable level. Why? Because I filed grooves into the pads of the blade-clamping mechanism. That improved its grip to “Coach Stan Turnipseed’s Handshake” level on the EU’s fretsaw clamping matrix.
You can find these jeweler’s saws on ebay for $10 to $20. The old ones are better than the new ones. Be sure to get some Pegas blades for these as well.
Though my days of teaching woodworking might be over, the process has left its mark on the tools I use. During the last 10 years, I made changes to my tool set to make it less intimidating to my students.
I gave my Eccentric Toolworks saws to a friend. I mothballed my Seaton saws from Mike Wenzloff. They were all fantastic tools that were made by people who I am proud to support. But they are unobtainable today. And I don’t want students to think there is anything magic about tools. The magic is in your fingers.
So here are the tools I use now. Only one is exotic. So let’s get that one out of the way immediately.
My tenon saw is a Wenzloff & Sons tool that was copied from the Benjamin Seaton tool chest. This saw was one of the first saws that Mike Wenzloff ever made – before he really decided to become a full-time sawmaker. It’s unsigned. It’s handle is polished and worn to fit my hands. I can no sooner get rid of this saw than sell a child. It’s sharpened rip at 10 ppi with just a bit of fleam.
My carcase saw is a vintage Wheeler, Madden & Clemson that I’ve owned forever. It’s sharpened crosscut at 14 ppi.
My dovetail saw is a Lie-Nielsen with an apple handle. Thomas Lie-Nielsen got his hands on a few chunks of apple and made this handle for me in exchange for a piece of furniture. While there are lots of good dovetail saws out there, it’s hard to beat the Lie-Nielsen. When I started woodworking they were made by Independence Tools (run by Pete Taran and Patrick Leach) and seemed exorbitantly priced at $125. Now the $125 seems the best bargain out there in saws (and I can’t believe it’s still $125).
The flush-cut saw in my chest is the Veritas one with the black plastic handle. I used to have the Veritas one with the bubinga handle, but after kinking its blade I went to order a new one and Lee Valley was out of stock of the bubinga saw. Hence the plastic one.
The saws I use for breaking down stock are vintage panel saws that Matt Cianci restored. I have a Disston panel saw that is sharpened crosscut at 8 ppi and a Spear & Jackson panel saw that is sharpened rip at 7 ppi.
And I would be remiss if I didn’t mention my Stanley Sharptooth saw that I use for breaking down rough stock. It lives in my truck, not my tool chest, but has been an important part of every project during the last five years. I want to hate the $10, plastic-handled (but made in the USA) thing. But that would be disingenuous.
Speaking of saws that don’t live in the chest, I have a vintage Langdon miter box below my bench that I use for precision crosscuts and miters. The original sawblade was trashed, so I replaced it with a Lie-Nielsen miter box saw.
A lot of people ask me about the Veritas saws with composite spines and wooden handles. Why don’t I use those? They are excellent saws. I’ve used many of them that were owned by students and I regularly recommend them to beginners. When I assembled my kit of tools, Veritas didn’t make joinery saws. If Veritas had made joinery saws back in 1999 I’m sure would have stocked my chest with those.
Next up: marking and measuring tools.
— Christopher Schwarz
Part 1 of this series on handplanes can be found here.
Pony Tools, which has made clamps in the United States since its founding in 1903, closed its doors earlier this month in an announcement that surprised woodworkers and other toolmakers.
However, the Easy Wood Tools subsidiary that Pony purchased last year, is continuing to operate and fill orders, according to company officials.
Details about the closure are scarce. The phone number for Pony’s public relations officer is no longer functioning and calls to the Chicago headquarters have been unanswered.
However Douglas Holman, the chairman and owner of Pony (and great-great grandson of the founder), issued a statement about the closing through Easy Wood’s social media:
“I am writing to inform you that on May 19, 2016, Adjustable Clamp Company d/b/a Pony Tools Inc. informed its Chicago employees that it was suspending operations in Chicago effective immediately. While this step was necessary due to issues unique to the Chicago business, the Company’s Easy Wood Tools division remains open and continues to operate its business. It is our hope that there will be minimal, if any, disruption to the business of Easy Wood Tools. This suspension of operations in Chicago has not affected our ability to fill Easy Wood Tools orders.
“The company is looking at all options in order to enable Easy Wood Tools to continue to operate. We are hopeful that you will continue to support Easy Wood Tools during this transition and we appreciate your past support. We will put forth our best efforts to keep you updated as more information becomes available.”
Pony’s orange clamps and wooden handscrews have been ubiquitous sights in woodworking shops all over the world.
While it seems Holman’s statement leaves the door open for the company to resume operations, perhaps under new ownership, you might want to stock up on orange clamps nonetheless.
