Lost Art Press

On Locks

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As I finished up building my tool chest for “The Anarchist’s Tool Chest,” I struggled with the idea of installing a lock on the lid.

Most tool chests have locks. The lock – and the sheer weight of the chest – are an ingenious pre-Industrial Revolution security system.

But I don’t like locks. Never have.

Growing up in Arkansas, we rarely locked our houses or cars. Our neighborhood was definitely a mixed-income ZIP code, with everyone from janitors to doctors. Factory workers at Whirlpool. The owner of the local roller rink – Golden Wheels.

So why didn’t we bolt our doors? Well what if your neighbor needed a cup of sugar? Or there was a fire and someone needed to save your dog? What if you didn’t have a key? Plus, in our family of six there was almost always someone home.

In fact, I’d have to say that the biggest difference of opinion between me and my wife is our locking habits. She always locks everything. She does it so automatically that she regularly locks me out of the house when I go for a run or walk to the store.

Or perhaps she is trying to send me a message….

In any case, I didn’t want to put a lock on my chest, both for psychological and symbolic reasons. I’ve always tried to be as open as possible when it comes to sharing my tools and what I know about the craft. Putting a lock on the chest seemed to send the wrong message.

I skipped the lock, painted the chest and called it done. But the next morning when I came into the shop and looked at the completed project it looked wrong. So I installed the lock and the escutcheon and am now pleased with the way it looks – except for the too-shiny key.

Skip forward a few months and I’m giving a presentation on tool chest design to a woodworking club and bring up the topic of the lock. One of the attendees raises his hand and makes a wry observation: The lockset I’d selected uses a generic key. In other words, thousands (maybe millions) of woodworkers have a key that can open my chest so they can root around in it.

That fact gave me comfort.

— Christopher Schwarz

People Who Are No Longer Needed

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“The world is filled with people who are no longer needed – and who try to make slaves of all of us –
And they have their music and we have ours –
Theirs, the wasted songs of a superstitious nightmare –
And without their musical and ideological miscarriages to compare our song of freedom to,
We’d not have any opposite to compare music with – and like the drifting wind, hitting against no obstacle,
We’d never know its speed, its power….”

— Woody Guthrie, from the liner notes of “Mermaid Avenue” by Billy Bragg and Wilco.

Oilstones, Waterstones, Whatever

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Anyone who has heard me talk about sharpening knows that I don’t really give a rodent’s hinder what system you select. Just pick one and stick with it. Just please don’t sample all the systems — that will definitely slow your efforts to get a keen edge.

Despite my “I’m OK, you’re OK philosophy,” I have a few beefs with some sharpening systems. Sandpaper is crazy expensive in the long run. Water-cooled grinders are crazy slow in the long walk, short run or whatever. I can say this because I’ve had to learn and use all the systems on the market, including LapSharp, Jool Tool, WorkSharp, etc. etc.

When I worked at Popular Woodworking Magazine, I used Shapton waterstones almost exclusively. Why? Because they cut faster than any system I’ve used, and they don’t need to be soaked. They do have downsides. They are sloppy, like all waterstones. You need a dedicated place to sharpen or you have to be one of those woodworkers who is, um, let’s just say “fastidious.” And they are expensive. I can say this because I have burned through several stones from several manufacturers.

When I left Popular Woodworking Magazine, I moved all my woodworking equipment to my shop at home. This shop is a lot smaller. There is no easy access to water. The floor is oak instead of hateful concrete. I don’t have room for a dedicated sharpening station.

So I switched back to oilstones for sharpening.

When I first learned sharpening, I had an India combination stone and a nice black Arkansas that a friend picked up for me at a gun meet. And a strop. That was plenty of equipment to get a keen edge.

But as I became the person who had to sharpen lots and lots of tools for the shop and for all our tool testing, I needed a system that was faster. We had the space for a dedicated sharpening area, so I dove into waterstones.

Today I have had to go back to my roots. I need to be able to sharpen on my bench. I need to do it without slopping water all over my benchtop and work pieces. And the system needs to be fast, but seconds don’t count anymore.

So I switched back to natural oilstones. When I was on the hunt for some, I bought a couple nice vintage ones. But then I had a chat with Larry Williams at Old Street Tool (formerly Clark & Williams planemakers) in Eureka Springs, Ark. He had been down to visit two places that mined and sold natural oilstones. He was quite pleased with the stones he picked up, and he’s now working on an article about the stones.

The two places Larry visited are Best Sharpening Stones and Dan’s Whetstone Co. (Correction: Larry informs me they visited Dan’s, but not Best, which is in New Jersey. My mistake.) Both carry a full range of natural and beautiful novaculite stones in any size you could want. Natural oilstones cut plenty fast for the home woodworker and make a nice keen edge.

So should you follow suit and switch to oilstones?

No. Stick with the system you are exploring right now. But if you haven’t chosen a system, don’t let the sharpening snobs talk you out of trying oilstones. They are tremendous.

So that is why I recently switched to oilstones. I sold one of my set of Shaptons. I’ll probably hold onto the other for when I teach classes, or until the day comes when I have a dedicated sharpening area in my shop.

— Christopher Schwarz

How to Get to the Extras on ‘Inside The Anarchist’s Tool Chest’ DVD

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Customers are starting to receive our new DVD “Inside the Anarchist’s Tool Chest” and here are some answers to some common questions.

1. Will this DVD be available through other retailers? Yes. We are working on that right now. Lie-Nielsen has agreed to carry it and we are shipping them a box today.

2. Will the DVD work on a regular TV, computer or both? It will work on both.

3. How do I access the “extras” on the DVD?

If you have a Mac, it’s just a couple steps. Double-click the DVD’s icon on your desktop. Double-click the folder named “Inside the Anarchist’s Tool Chest.” The files are in there.

If you have a Windows machine, here are the steps:

1. Quit your media player and navigate to your computer’s “Start” menu.

2. Click “Computer.” (Sometimes it says “My Computer.”)

3. You should see the DVD icon. Right-click on the DVD’s icon and choose “Open in a New Window.”

4. The new Window will show you the computer files on the DVD. Double-click on the folder named “Inside the Anarchist’s Tool Chest.” The files are in there.

What are the data files on the DVD?

A SketchUp drawing of the chest that you can study or alter to suit your set of tools. And an 11-page document that outlines the core set of tools in the chest, all of their brand names and model numbers. Plus hotlinks to where you can order these tools.

I hope this answers help. If you experience additional problems, leave us a comment and we’ll give you a hand.

— Christopher Schwarz

Say Hello to Another Anarchist Woodworker

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“Anarchism” is such a dirty, loaded and misunderstood word that I truly hesitated to use it as the title of the book “The Anarchist’s Tool Chest.”

Several people have suggested that I chose the word as a marketing ploy. If I did, then I’m a marketing moron because the book’s title has hurt sales. My mailbox has been stuffed by people who will never buy the book simply because I used that word.

But it is the right word. And when I see the word used in context and used correctly, it gives me hope.

Woodworker Adam Godet in Washington, D.C., has started a blog at his site: godetfurniture.com. And the first post is his take on the topic of anarchy in the workshop. It’s a good read, and I’ve added his blog to by RSS feed – and crossed my fingers.

— Christopher Schwarz