Bench Sketch

I believe I have the dimensions sorted out for my new workbench. Thanks to Chris Schwarz' two workbench books and the dimensions he provides for his Roubo, working out the measurements was much easier than starting from scratch.

I've decided on poplar for the base of the bench. The top will be cherry. I realize that poplar might not hold up as well as the cherry, but if I need to tighten the through tenon and dovetail in the top over time, that's okay. Poplar is readily available in 16/4 and is priced to please.

This is going to be my main bench and my travel bench which means that on rare occasions it will need to be broken down.

Rather than make something lightweight for travel, I decided to make the main one more portable.  The top will be made up of two 12/4 slabs that are not glued together. Because of this, I added two short stretchers beneath the top--one at both ends.  The four short stretchers will be mortise and tenoned and glued into the legs. 

I'm not a fan of metal fasteners, so the long stretchers will be connected to the legs with wedged through tenons.

I figure I'll be able to remove the two top pieces and remove the long stretchers, but leave the two end assemblies in tact. I *think* I'll be able to carry them.

The front vise will be a leg vise, and I think I've settled on a shop made wagon vise for the end.

The overall dimensions are 19.75" deep x 58" long x 33.75" tall. 

Those may seem like weird dimensions for someone who's only 5' 5", but they are very similar to the cheapie bench I've been using for almost two decades, so I've become accustomed to them.  All my jigs and two shop stools work with this size, and I've never found that I needed a longer or shorter bench. I don't plan on building large pieces, but if I do, I can slide my cheapie bench up end-for-end with the new one.

I plan to add a sliding deadman and put a shallow, removable tool box between the bottom stretchers.

Now it's time to go lumber shopping again. We're off to Groffs Lumber tomorrow and hope that Hurricane Irene doesn't rain on my workbench parade.

Sorry to toot my own horn

I'm just really excited to have made the local paper. 

A Question for the Non-Woodworkers

A friend on Facebook—Dale J. Osowski, who owns a woodworking business— was asked to repair a bench. He quoted a price and time frame ($150, two weeks) but the owner of the bench found the price and length of time to repair it to be unreasonable.

The bench cost $150—new.

Now, I didn't need to see pictures of this bench to know that it was built shoddily, quickly, and with cheap materials. (But the images are at right.)


We live in a throw-away society. We buy cheap stuff, it breaks, and winds up in landfills. Lather, rinse, repeat.

My question to consumers who buy this stuff is this: what would encourage you to consider hiring a craftsperson who makes his own products rather than head to a discount furniture store?

Which, if any, of the following points appeal to you most about a handmade piece and would persuade you to part with more money than you're used to spending on furniture?

1. It's built to last for generations.
2. It's made with premium lumber, not veneer-covered, pulverized garbage.
3. It's made with sustainable material.
4. It's made locally.
5. It will not add to our landfills. (see #1)
6. It's built to your specifications and to fit your space and style.
7. The craftsman will repair it for free if it breaks.
8. Anything else?

I'm not asking for me. But we woodworkers would like to keep our tradition alive and help those who have woodworking businesses stay in business. What is the best way for us to educate the consumer about the benefits of buying from a craftsperson?

Thank you for your help!

Stylus or Nail File? Yes.

I'm giving a chip- and letter carving demonstration tomorrow so I've been preparing a number of boards with designs and letters.

To transfer the designs from paper to wood, I rub graphite pencil on the back of the paper and use a pen to trace the graphic.

This works okay, but often the pen's tip is too fat which results in a too thick pencil line on the workpiece.  That alters the look of the design and makes it more difficult to follow with a knife.

And sometimes the pen blots, which makes a mess.

Because I wanted to preserve the integrity of the graphics and letters in case I needed them in the future, I decided to use a stylus. I tried my plastic one, but the tip, like the pen, was too fat.

We woodworkers are pretty savvy at repurposing household items.  So I snapped the file off some nail clippers (does anyone actually use those files?) and with minimal effort turned it into a stylus that works splendidly.

I used soft wood for the handle and bore three tiny holes in the end grain. Then I excavated the mortise for the file with the file itself. Super easy. I tapped it in with a hammer, shaped the point with files, and got to work.

When carving, I frequently chip one of my fingernails with the sharp edge of a tool and, rather than stop what I'm doing to come into the house for an emory board, I grab a piece of sandpaper for an instant manicure.

With this stylus, I have a nail file at the ready. And the next time I chip a fingernail, it will finally be used for its original intended purpose.

The Best Part of Woodworking?

Some woodworkers might say it's the look on a recipient's face as they're given a piece they made. Others might claim it's a project's completion, a tight-fitting joint, or a pain- and swear word-free glue-up.

For me, the best part of woodworking is starting a new project.

It's the thing that occupies my thoughts when I'm supposed to be sleeping. Or paying attention in church. 

Making decisions on design, joinery, wood, order of construction.  It doesn't get any better than that.

I'm giving a presentation in April where I'll need a workbench and I'm not sure that one will be available. That's the catalyst I've been waiting for to motivate me to build a travel bench.  

I picked up some gorgeous 12/4 cherry at Hearne Hardwoods for the top. That might not sound too portable for a workbench, but I have an idea.  It's not fleshed out yet, but no worries. 

There are quite a few church services between now and April.

Parenting Tips for Marc and Nicole

You may have heard the news around the internet that Marc (The Wood Whisperer) and Nicole Spagnuolo are expecting a baby. Congratulations, you two!

In response to this exciting news, Shannon Rogers (The Renaissance Woodworker) and Matt Vanderlist (Matt's Basement Workshop) recorded a special edition of Wood Talk Online Radio. They enlisted the help of the woodworking community in providing useful parenting tips for Marc and Nicole.

I was very happy to impart my words of wisdom to the young couple:



Listen to the full episode and other woodworkers' advice here. And if you have more tips for the soon-to-be parents, I'm sure they'd love to hear from you.

I Refuse To Call These Mistakes

We all have to start somewhere. Nineteen years ago, and armed with less than a gram of woodworking knowledge, I would buy vintage tools that caught my eye at flea markets and auctions. I didn't know how to sharpen, much less use them.

Looking back, sometimes I lucked out as a newbie and would score a nice socket chisel or adjustable tenon cutter. Other times, I'd end up with something that looks good in a photo on a blog, but are as useful as a laser light on a marking gauge.

Good thing we're so tidy, otherwise
the garage would be a disaster.

I also bought a LOT of lumber. Here in the middle of Pennsylvania, we're surrounded by farmland. And farmers always have stacks of lumber in their barns. So, early on in my woodworking life, I attended many farm auctions. Rarely were other attendees interested in lumber; people were there to buy farm machinery. So, after awhile I wound up with so much wood we could no longer park our cars in the garage.

Back then, I'd buy whatever wood I could get that was cheap, not knowing if I'd like to work with walnut, maple, oak, cherry, poplar, beech, or apple (all the species in my stash).

Dyami lifted five boards to my one.

Nineteen years later, I know that I almost exclusively prefer cherry. Walnut's a distant second. Other than that, all the other species in my garage have sat for nearly two decades collecting dust and heaping mounds of mouse poop.

I mentioned on twitter that I'd love to get rid of it and my friend, Dyami (The Penultimate Woodshop), came to the rescue.  He drove down from Long Island with a flatbed truck and hauled a bunch of it away.

Using a short handsaw to cut
stickers apart.

My point is, there is no way to know as beginner woodworkers what types of projects and wood we'll be interested in years later.  So, we're bound to buy things we'll never use (the unopened Leigh Dovetail jig box comes to mind).

You could read every woodworking book on the market before you ever buy a tool or cut a board, but you still won't know your preferences until you start building. Chances are your tastes will change the more years you have under your belt.  Since I've become more interested in working with hand tools, the dust on my router table and hollow chisel mortiser is as thick as a Dickens' novel.

But, this is all part of the journey. They are not mistakes.

Not only that, sometimes you get to make someone's day by giving them a bunch of boards that would otherwise have gone unused. And they can make your day by helping to clear out your garage. It's a win-win.

Except for the mice. Who now need to find another place to call home.

By the way, I'm not advocating setting up a complete workshop before you've even cut a board. Pick a few projects you like and get the tools you need to build them.

The Anarchist's Tool Chest: Book Review

I'm glad Chris Schwarz is playing on our team.

If he had decided long ago to take up needlepoint rather than woodworking, we'd be missing out on his sense of humor, creative writing, commitment to the woodworking community, and enormous amount of hand tool knowledge.

Chris's latest book is The Anarchist's Tool Chest.  Why "anarchist"?  He provides several explanations, one of which is "a desire to work for yourself and to run in social and economic circles made up of other individual artisans." It's the notion that we can buck the norm and make something that's built to last, using the best joinery and made with the best tools. It's an idea that thumbs its nose at the flimsy, veneer-covered, chipboard garbage that surrounds us as consumers.

The book is divided into three sections. In the first part, we get a glimpse into Chris's initiation into woodworking starting at age 11 when he helped his Dad build the family's farmhouse.  We read about the path that led him to Popular Woodworking Magazine, his insatiable desire to learn all he could about the craft, and his revelations along the way.

Then Chris gives us his tool list—a list that's been pared down to the essentials for a hand tool woodworker. This is the result of 30 years' experience with using and testing more tools than most of us will ever get our hands on.  He encourages us to learn from his mistakes and discoveries, so this book is a great place to start if you are just getting into hand tools.

It's also a great place for those of us who use hand tools on a regular basis.  I'm glad I didn't skip a single page in his book, because I learned a lot more than I ever realized I didn't know.

I love a strong opinion, but only if it's backed up with thoughtful reasoning and facts. Chris provides this with aplomb. He has a rationale for every single tool that made his cut list, how they work, and what to look for when buying new or vintage.

The book also contains Chris's philosophy about the craft and about life. Time is more important than money. Doing the things we love, the best we can, with the best tools and materials we can acquire, is everything. And while you might not agree with his ideas and suggestions, they will give you pause.

The last section of the book is devoted to building a tool chest, the design of which is based on his years of study.  Many times we try to outfox the old timers, which is foolish. They knew what they were doing.  So, Chris relies on the things he's discovered about the vintage, user-friendly, bomb-proof chests and lays them out for us, so we can get it right the first time.

His 475-page book is jam-packed with straight-to-the-point information and peppered with Chris's signature quips, but it also shows what a great storyteller he is.  His easy and conversational style makes this a fast and enjoyable read.  The Anarchist's Tool Chest is a hard book to put down. It's engaging and very well-written and -researched.

As I was reading, I was picturing what a 23rd-century woodworker would think of it. Because this book will be around that long. And then some.