Today, I finished cutting the tail boards and started on the pins. This is easily the most frustrating part. Getting it to fit tight seems impossible to my current skill level. I get it to fit but the examples the instructor, Gary, does are impossibly tight. Also, he and his assistant have good eyes and [...]
Posts Tagged ‘Skills’
Quick update: Dovetail Chest – Day 1
I just got back to the hotel. It’s after 5:30p and it’s over 100 degrees outside. The class is in an old, non-AC’d, warehouse. Did I mention it’s over 100 degrees outside? The class was great. Gary, owner/teacher of the Northwest Woodworking Studio, first started out with the notion that before you jump in and [...]
DVD Reviews
As I get more into using hand tools, I continue to train myself in all means necessary. I am attending a class on building a mini-hope chest entirely by hand. I practice a few techniques on scraps or small projects. Lastly, I occasionally rent or buy a DVD to watch and learn from. Recently, I [...]
New Project – Hanging Tool Cabinet
As I mentioned in several earlier post, I needed to build a tool cabinet to hold my hand tools for easy access. Some secondary purposes including making some hand cut dovetails and use up some of the left over plywood that I had (yes, the tool cabinet would be better if it were solid wood [...]
Woodworking Class – Building a chest
As I said in my previous post regarding the Review of a Sharpening Class, I really learned a lot out of just one day. The class was at the Northwest Woodworking Studio in Portland, Oregon. In about a week, I am taking a 6-day course on Building a chest by hand and also a 1-day [...]
Shop Changes – Part 1
As I stated in an early post, I have gotten rid of my Table Saw. I not going full neander (courtesy of Old Woodies: Neander is a euphemism for old style woodworkers, Normite describes the modern power tool enthusiast.) as I expect to intermingle power tools among hand tools. For instance, I expect to use [...]
Grits – Where to start?
I’m still progressing on getting my hand planes tuned up. I’ve finished all my chisels (though I’d like to get a few mortise chisels at some point and will need to get those sharpened). I’m doing one plane at a time but I’ve discovered something that I guess I was taking for granted. In my [...]
Block Plane vs Rabbit Block Plane
I’m sure that everyone (but perhaps my wife) who reads this blog has a block plane. This is the one plane that almost all woodworkers have even if they aren’t into hand tools and instead prefer the feel of power. The reason is that it’s versatile in it’s use. You can use it to fine [...]
Update – Sharpening Station
After using the Sharpening Station for a bit, I’m still working on technique (see previous post on Sharpening Technique) but I’ve also done some changes to hopefully optimize the techniques as I improve and perfect them. Here is an outline of my process as it stands: Flatten back of stone using sand paper on granite [...]
Sharpening Technique – A learning experience
So I’m using my various forms (see previous post on Sharpening Station) of sharpening and I’m still thinking about how to refine it. First, we have to flatten the backs of blades. With any luck, this is a very very infrequent task. I am finding that you must be very thorough about determining that you [...]
Sharpening Station
So, as I mentioned previously, I needed a permanent sharpening station. Given my shop size (about 16′ x 12′), I didn’t really have the room inside the shop so I created one in the garage. As you can see, it’s a hanging bench which still allows my cars to fit in the garage when I’m [...]
Sharpening Goals
Well, after taking the sharpening class (see previous post), I have decided that the truest pearl of wisdom that I received from the instructor, Jeff Zens was: When we build or create something as woodworkers, we plan and hope that the results will last forever. Unfortunately, when we sharpen a tool (plane iron, chisel), we [...]
Review – Sharpening Class
I just got back from Northwest Woodworking Studio attending a one-day Sharpening Class taught by Jeff Zens. Jeff covered flattening the back of a blade, hollow grinding the front of the blade, honing the bevel and finished with a quick overview of scraper sharpening. The first part was a mini lecture on what makes a [...]
Sharpening Class Tomorrow
Finally, I get to go to a class on woodworking tomorrow (it didn’t get cancelled like the other classes did). The class is on Sharpening. At this point, all my sharpening skills are psuedo self taught. I’ve read books, watched videos, and listened to podcasts on this subject. This has given me some skills but [...]
