Category: Anarchist’s Gift Guide

When you start exploring the world that exists outside of 90°, it helps to have a couple tools to help you navigate the journey. One of those tools is a sliding bevel. The other nice one is a “tilt box” or “digital inclinometer.”

These little boxes allow you to set your machinery to a precise tilt angle (most people use it on the table saw’s blade). The magnet on the bottom of the tool grabs the steel saw blade. Then you tilt the blade until you hit the right angle.

But I use these tilt boxes in other ways. When I want to investigate a chair in the wild, I pack a camera, a tape measure and this tilt box. I can zero it to the floor to get the rake and splay of the legs. And I can zero it to the seat to get the angles of the spindles/sticks/backrest etc. It is a miracle tool for investigating chairs in antique stores or museums.

Oh, I almost forgot. The Beall version also has a “hold” button, which allows you to hold the last measurement on the screen. It’s great for people who forget little things – such as a handy “hold” button….

A couple people have complained that these devices are not accurate. I’ve confirmed mine 10 ways from Sunday against my drawings, my sliding bevel and my finished pieces. I suspect the user error is not holding the tilt box on the true front elevation or true profile.

The other complaint that I hear about these gizmos is that they eat batteries. To that I say: I suppose? I’ve used mine almost every week for two years, and I have replaced the batteries once. That seems like some slow digestion to me.

I like the Beall version because it has a rugged metal case. There are other versions out there, but I can’t speak for them. We had a bunch of these tools at our old shop at Popular Woodworking Magazine, but they always had dead batteries or dead electronics. The Beall has been a real survivor.

— Christopher Schwarz

Read other entries from The Anarchist’s Gift Guide here.

Call me Roman, but I use a lot of circles and arcs in my work. And while I have a bunch of compasses, they aren’t great for the small stuff – like a 1/8″-diameter circle. I also have some plastic circle templates, but they aren’t easy to center on my drawings.

Enter the Helix Angle and Circle Maker (here’s the Amazon link; I prefer to buy from Dick Blick). It’s about $5 to $6 and is a fantastic little tool for making all manner of circles. For the really small circles – 1/8″ to 1″ diameter – the Helix has traditional holes in the clear part of the tool. 

For bigger circles – 1″ up to 2″ – the Helix really shines. You place the centerpoint of the tool on your work. Then you choose a hole for the radius you desire – they are graduated in 1/16s. Then you inscribe the outside of the circle by spinning the clear disc in the middle of the tool. (It works like an old Spirograph, but more boring.)

The Helix also does some other cool tricks. It allows you to measure the radius of a circle easily, which is handy. And it works as a traditional protractor – the degrees are marked on the colored plastic ring.

I’m sure it does other tricks as well, though I have yet to find its bottle opener.

Yes, it’s a piece of plastic from China. But you can use its powers for good by building wooden furniture that lasts forever. (Ya know, using the tools of your oppressors and all.)

— Christopher Schwarz

Read other entries from The Anarchist’s Gift Guide here.

I’m no hippie, but I’ve never liked waste. It offends me to throw away something because it can’t be repaired. But that’s the norm in our society.

Take three-ring binders, for example. We use binders all the time to keep manuscripts organized as they move through the publishing process. But I also use binders to keep my furniture designs organized. With a three-hold punch, I can arrange all my drawings, supply lists, sketches and notes in one place where I can reference them again. 

Sadly, plastic binders are terrible. The plastic hinges wear out, and the covers become separated from the mechanism that holds the papers. You can fix it with duct tape, but that is usually a temporary solution.

Enter Wisdom Supply Co., a small company that focuses on eliminating waste with office supplies. They sell a binder “kit” that allows you to replace the parts that wear out. And you can easily recycle the worn-out bits.

Basically, the binder arrives disassembled. You screw the 1” binder mechanism to the exterior boards with post screws – a three-minute job. You also get some tabbed dividers and a pocket folder. The cardboard cover is made from recycled materials and can be recycled when it wears out. You can then buy a replacement cover for less than $6. 

And that is how all things should work – cars, tools, furniture, appliances.

Wisdom Supply also sells folders and planners that work on the same principle. I haven’t used them, but I hope to soon. As I love to both fold and plan. Ask anyone.

— Christopher Schwarz

Read other entries from The Anarchist’s Gift Guide here.

When Leatherman released its first multi-tool, I immediately bought one. I can’t tell you how many times I have been stuck somewhere without a set of tools. The Leatherman seemed to be a great stop-gap for when you needed some makeshift pliers, or a screwdriver, knife or file.

But after using it a few times, I found it insanely uncomfortable (among its other limitations). So I threw it in a drawer and instead filled a small Klein canvas bag with essential tools and stashed it in my truck.

Fast-forward more than 25 years. I’m at the farm of my friend Narayan, and he is using one of these tools in the field. Really using it. Carrying it on his belt every day. I asked to take a look.

It was the Leatherman Skeletool, and it was nothing like my old boxy Leatherman. The handles are ergonomic, the build quality is much better and all the tools work well, if not superbly.

Gone are all the oddball tools that you won’t need unless you are fishing on an asteroid. Instead, you have heavy-duty pliers with wire cutters. There’s a good knife that locks in the open position – like a traditional locking folding knife. Plus a hex-bit chuck (a Phillips and straight driver are on board) that will take standard hex bits Leatherman’s flat bits. You can buy lots of these flat bits from Leatherman (I did).

Plus there is a carabiner that works as a bottle opener.

The Skeletool comes in three colors (I got it in green so I could easily find it). And there are some customizable options for the fancy lads. The base Skeletool is $65, made from stainless steel and is made in Portland, Ore. I’ve been using mine regularly and am so glad I gave the company a second chance.

— Christopher Schwarz

Read other entries from The Anarchist’s Gift Guide here.

Back in May, I served up some high praise for the “Atlas of Furniture Design,” published by the Vitra Design Museum in Germany. If you haven’t bought this book for yourself, please have your family buy it for you for the holidays. 

The “Atlas of Furniture Design” is one of those books that is going to be discussed and referred to by many future generations. Primarily, it is a glimpse at furniture design of the 20th century, though it occasionally looks further afield.

It is part reference book – you can easily look up any piece by the name of its designer. And it is – apologies for the term – outstanding bathroom reading. You can open up this book to almost any page and read a bit about an outstanding design, the people who made these pieces or the social context in which they were made.

It also is a drop-dead gorgeous book. Crisply printed. Fantastic binding. As a publisher, I am jealous and somewhat amazed they could make this book (it was a 20-year project) and sell it for only about $180 U.S. The book is available in both English and German. You can buy it directly from the museum or from a variety of other sellers.

— Christopher Schwarz

Read other entries from The Anarchist’s Gift Guide here.