My blog at Popular Woodworking- Like Your Woodworking Teacher? Maybe You Shouldn’tLast month I taught two short classes in Germany – a rare exception to my vow to avoid teaching and instead focus on new furniture designs. The reason I taught those two classes is quite personal, so I won’t discuss it here. But during the classes I was struck by an odd question I’ve struggled with for 30 years: Is it a good idea for students to personally l […]
- A Different Way to Use a Doe’s FootDuring the last few years, the doe’s foot has become one of my most important workbench appliances. Paired with a holdfast, the doe’s foot can eliminate the need for a tail vise on a workbench. I have about four of these doe’s feet at my bench, and I’ve found some surprising ways to use them. I’ve just finished an article for Popular Woodworking Magazine on […]
- Born to Fail at WoodworkingNo matter how long I work in this craft, there are days when I feel incapable of doing anything correctly. Such as today. Readers love to be reminded that even people who do this every day suffer regular failures. If you like to wallow in other people’s misery, this post is for you. (Also, it shows you how I deal with woodworking despair.) For the last month […]
- Half-moon Winding Sticks – to Make or BuyTwo years ago I wrote about some unusual homemade winding sticks I encountered in North Carolina (read the article here). Instead of using inlay to help broadcast a board’s twisted state to your eyes, these used a pair of half-moon cutouts. They worked brilliantly, perhaps better than any other set I’ve used before. This summer I made myself a quick pair whi […]
- Like Your Woodworking Teacher? Maybe You Shouldn’t
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Category Archives: Sharpen This
Sharpen This, Part 6: The Bevel & the Devil
“Der Narzissmus der kleinen Differenzen (The narcissism of small differences).” — Sigmund Freud, 1917 The topic of sharpening is plagued by Freud’s “narcissism of small differences,” and the best example of this is all the noise about the shape and … Continue reading
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Sharpen This, Part 5: The Myth of Super Sharpness
Read the other installments in the “Sharpen This” series via this link. Let’s pretend I want to break one of your fingers. The job would be easy if you held up your fingers in the air with them spread apart. … Continue reading
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Sharpen This, Part 4: Very Small Rocks
Read the other installments in the “Sharpen This” series via this link. I roll my eyes when people talk about the superiority of their chosen sharpening media, whether it’s waterstones, oilstones, diamonds or cinderblocks. To my ears, it’s like you’re … Continue reading
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Sharpen This, Part 3: What the &^%$ is Sharp?
Read the other installments in the “Sharpen This” series via this link. People say that “sharp” is like pornography – you know it when you see it. The problem with that statement is that you cannot see sharpness. When a … Continue reading
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Sharpen This, Part 2: Hear No Evil
Read the other installments in the “Sharpen This” series via this link. When you learn to sharpen, I think it’s essential to do something that is normally a bad idea: Close your mind. Let’s say you are 5 years old … Continue reading
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Sharpen This, Part 1
Read the other installments in the “Sharpen This” series via this link. After years of working with professional and amateur woodworkers all over the world I have concluded that people who are hostile to handwork tend to badmouth it for … Continue reading
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