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 Wednesday, March 28, 2007
Dovetails: My Journey
We’ve spent a week or two in the blog discussing dovetails. Not wanting to pass up an opportunity to share a story (and not knowing when this chance may surface again), here’s my tale on dovetailing.
When I began making furniture I hated dovetails. Yes it’s true. I didn’t understand how to cut them; I did, however, know that knowledgeable customers wanted to see them.
I bought a dovetail jig and decided that the jig would be my method. I used the jig when needed, all the time cursing the blessed joint. Because of the jig, or how I was using it, I wasted material. I made the drawer backs the same width as the drawer sides then after the routing was complete, I’d rip off the unnecessary width on the back to allow the solid-wood bottom to move.
Use a Forstner bit to remove a large portion of the waste material cutting some of the time needed to complete the pins in half-blind dovetails.
I also found that the jig, although the best on the market at the time, had a few shortcomings in my eyes. Primarily, it was difficult to make half-blind dovetails – too much setup time. So, being the “look outside the box” guy that I am, I came up with a plan. I would mill the material for my drawers at ½” thick, make the through dovetail at all corners, then glue an additional ¼” of material on the front to create a half-blind look for the drawer fronts. It worked for a while, until a customer noticed and asked about it. I felt woodworking weak.
However, the issue that drove me to hand cut dovetails (a customer pointing out my inabilities didn’t quite do it), came while building a tall chest of drawers. I had the case sides ready to dovetail and they were through dovetails so the jig was pulled into action.
To work on the case sides I had the jig attached to a wooden box (this elevated it to a pleasant working height during normal use). I set the box on top of two five-gallon buckets and the entire setup stacked on my workbench. All that to get a 65”-tall chest case side into the jig for dovetails. But wait, it gets better!
I had all the settings correct, my piece loaded into the jig and started cutting while standing three steps up on a stepladder. As I reached the third finger spacing on the jig, something moved. There’s no way that I’d be able to match the work when I reversed the jig to create the tails portion, so I stopped, pulled the work piece from the jig and removed the first ¾” of material to start again.
An angled platform jig, set to match the layout lines, used at the band saw allows you to leave the saw's table square to the blade. To change the angle, reverse the jig.
My customer didn’t know it, but his chest had just gotten shorter. Back to the jig and back on the ladder. Holding my breath, I moved past the third finger. All was good. Until, that is, further into the adventure when I found another finger was lying in wait for me. Again, the workpiece moved and I was done. I called it quits that very minute. No more jig use.
I pulled the panel from the jig, pulled the jig off the wooden box and down from the two buckets then carried the jig to my basement knowing that from this point on, I was going to hand cut any dovetails made in my shop. To this day, that jig sits in my basement, covered in dust, waiting for a reprieve. It’s not going to happen!
Jump forward three years. I’m hand cutting all the pins and tails. I’m also struggling each and every time drawers are scheduled in my day. I actually looked for projects without drawers. But, you know customers. They want what they want and I had one who wanted a high chest of drawers – a highboy. An 11 drawer highboy!
I’d put off the inevitable for as long as possible. The next day I was faced with dovetails. The chest was complete – as far as it could be without any drawers – and all the drawer parts were ready. No excuses; I had to dovetail.
Driving to the shop that next morning I had an epiphany. I’d been building furniture long enough that I shouldn’t have problems with dovetails. It was crazy not being comfortable with this classic joint. Right then I crossed the line; I resolved I would be “Master of the Dovetail” by day’s end.
Squirreled away in the shop with no interruptions, I buried my head in the task at hand. Cutting. Chopping. Chiseling. When the day was over I had dovetailed the entire set of drawers – they were the best dovetails I’d ever created. I came to a conclusion immediately; If you can see it, you can be it.
I know that sounds like mumbo jumbo, but it’s true. I’ve never looked back. You too can cut dovetails by hand. It’s a matter of following steps. You’ve seen the progress that can be accomplished within the pages of this blog. Do it and believe you can do it.
Removing the waste with a jigsaw, while not cutting the scribe line, allows you to set the chisel directly at the scribe line and pare to that line easily.
Now I spend time trying to figure ways to speed up the dovetail process. These pictures show methods that can make the act of dovetailing quicker without compromising the hand-cut look, but understand the basics first, then build from there. –Glen D. Huey
Read other entries by Glen D. Huey
Wednesday, March 28, 2007 1:56:00 PM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00) 
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Glen D. Huey’s No-fail Dovetailing, Part 2: The Tail Board
Editor's note: The following is the second part of a three-part series on cutting through dovetails with a combination of hand and power tools. The first part, which involves the pin board, can be found through this link. Below is the second part. The third part will discuss how Glen developed the process for his custom shop.
With the pin board complete (click here for Part 1), it's time to transfer the shape of the pins onto the tail board. Lay your tail board face-side down on your bench. Line up your pin board at the end of the tail board, with the face side facing you (the narrow end of the pins should be at the front edge). Make sure the two pieces are flush at the front and sides.
Now trace the shape of the pins onto the tail board with a sharp pencil, then slide the pin board back and mark an “X” on the tail board directly in front of each pin (which is the waste area). Set the pin board aside. 
Use a band saw to carefully cut along your lines on the waste side up to your baseline, leaving the pencil lines. As when you hand cut the pins, do all one direction first, then go back and change your angle for the other sides to avoid dancing back and forth at the saw. Now trim off the half-pin waste at the edges of the board. Also, make a cut down the center of each waste area (this will keep the waste from getting stuck as you remove it with your chisel). If you don’t have a band saw, you can make these cuts with your handsaw, though you’ll likely have more fitting issues unless your saw skills are dead on.
Clamp the tail board to your workbench (it doesn’t matter which side is facing up. Again, place your chisel just a hair in front of your baseline, with the bevel side facing the end of the board, and angle the chisel a couple degrees to undercut the joint. Strike once to define the baseline, then chisel out the waste. Unlike on the pin board, you won’t be able to remove the waste directly from the end; you’ll have to approach it at an angle at a point about 1/8” from the baseline. And remember, the bevel of your chisel should face up with this cut to help lever up the waste. Continue these two cuts until you’re about halfway through the board, then flip it over and repeat the process on the other face. The cut you made down the center of the waste will help eject. Clean out any remaining bits of waste on both workpieces with your chisel or an X-Acto knife.
Now you’re ready to test fit the two pieces. Place the tail board face-side down on the bench, and hold the pin board with the face side facing you. Walk the two pieces together until they’re about halfway joined. If you have any fitting problems, take them apart and trim away the bits that are sticking. And you’ll likely have fitting problems…even after some practice. It’s better to undercut then go back and refine where necessary than to overcut and cause gaps (as you can see I did on the second tail in the lead photo – oops). Once you have the pieces halfway joined by hand, a few strikes with a rubber mallet should seat the two workpieces together.
Inspect your work carefully, and identify any problems. You can work on those next time. Heck – after three weeks of almost daily practice, I’m still struggling with hitting the baseline perfectly on both sides when hand sawing, and I still overcut my tails from time to time. But as Editor Chris Schwarz keeps telling me, “It’s good enough for 18th-century casework” (because 18th-century woodworkers covered the visible dovetail faces with trim). Despite the wee gap, the dovetails will hold. Nonetheless, I’m going to keep working on those baselines.
– Megan Fitzpatrick with Glen D. Huey
Read other entries by Glen D. Huey | Read other entries by Megan Fitzpatrick
Wednesday, March 28, 2007 9:30:13 AM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Tuesday, March 27, 2007
Sweepstakes Winner
Last fall, we announced our $15,000 "All-Star Workshop Giveaway" sponsored by Franklin Adhesives, Porter-Cable, Delta Machinery and Lee Valley Tools. That's our publisher, Steve Shanesy, in the picture below, along with some of the prizes. We received thousands of entries and shortly after the Feb. 28 deadline, the winner was selected by random drawing.  Steve picked up the phone and placed a call to Mike Titsworth of Michigan. Mike's wife took the call and thought Steve was trying to sell her a subscription. She was a bit skeptical to say the least, but eventually Mike got on the phone and received the good news. "I didn't really remember what I had entered," said Mike, "all I did was click the mouse." The good news took a while to sink in, but when the truckload of tools from Delta and Porter-Cable arrived it became real.  Mike retired last July from a career as a machine repairman in the automotive industry. He's been setting up a shop in his garage, and had recently purchased a contractor's saw. Mike's son is also a woodworker, and had talked his dad into putting the new saw at his place, where he is working on building kitchen cabinets. When Mike got the news of his prize, which includes a new Delta Unisaw, he called his son to let him know he wasn't in any hurry to get the contractor's saw back. When the son saw all the new tools in his dad's garage he was speechless. "He just looks and shakes his head," Mike said.  We've had the Lee Valley Tools portion of the prize in our shop for several months; we brought it in before the contest was announced to photograph the prizes. Because we're only a few hours away from Michigan, we asked Mike if he would like to come and pick it up, rather than have us ship it by truck. He called his brother who lives nearby and is also a woodworker, and said "Road Trip!"  Late last week Mike and his brother arrived at our offices and shop here in Cincinnati. In the picture above, Steve and Mike take a break from loading some of the winnings. I may not have gone to journalism school, but I have learned to pick up the camera and act busy when there's a truck to be loaded. Back home in Michigan, Mike is busy unpacking and setting up his new tools. "I really appreciate all the tools, most of all the hand tools, and I'm looking forward to building my skills with them," Mike said. "But first I think I'm going to have to build a new shop building. It all fits where I am now, but I'm limited to working on stuff about two feet long." Our congratulations to Mike, and to all of the monthly winners along the way. If you didn't win, try your luck in our latest sweepstakes. — Bob Lang
Read other entries by Robert W. Lang
Tuesday, March 27, 2007 2:01:15 PM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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14 Months and 4,284 Miles Later
I know I'm not the only woodworker who has trouble completing projects. I'm pretty sure I'm not the worst, but I suspect I may be in the top 10. It's not easy to get enough shop time in, and when I'm there I overestimate what I'm capable of, and underestimate how long any task will take. I don't blame myself for this. I have years of training and professional experience that I need to overcome to get beyond my bad habits. Early on in my career, I entered an apprenticeship at a large architectural millwork shop. The interview ended with, "We'll make a cabinetmaker out of you." I showed up the next morning with my safety shoes on, full of expectations about learning the fine points of joinery. What I had failed to consider was the nature of the work that came through this shop – most jobs were huge in scope, everything wood or wood-like in large office buildings and hospitals. Six weeks after I started I completed assembling my 1,300th radiator cover, was congatulated on doing a fine job, and given a new assignment. Another six weeks went by as another apprentice and I assembled more than 8,000 square feet of lattice panels for a ceiling in the lobby of an office building. After five weeks my partner had had enough. Without speaking he looked up from the panel we had just finished, aimed his pneumatic staple gun at the ceiling and shot out the flourescent lights before walking out the door. I stayed on, moving from one Herculean task to the next. One of our common jobs was making handrails for the corridors of hospitals. We would make this stuff literally a mile at a time. I had a friend at the time who was a graduate student in psychology. Once when we were talking about my job, my friend said, "You know, that sounds a lot like the sensory-deprivation experiments we do." After I was laid off and out of work, I realized there was security in endless lines of carts stacked with lumber waiting to become handrail. When they disappeared, so did my paycheck. I decided to start my own shop, marketing my work at art & craft shows around the country. I had a few pieces of furniture in my booth, but most of my sales were smaller items – lamps, hand mirrors, clocks, candlesticks and jewelry boxes. I never knew going into a show what would sell, so I needed to maintain an inventory of products. My shop time was also limited. I would leave home on Thursday for a show, return home Sunday night, then work almost non-stop until it was time to leave for the next show.  I decided it would be a good idea to keep my inventory as partially finished pieces. I would cut parts for 20 or 30 of something, and finish 10 to take on the road. If they sold, I could finish the remainder. If they didn't, I would start up a batch of something else. This way of thinking became ingrained, and if I'm starting on something that doesn't use much material I tend to make enough parts to make a bunch. When I first started carving, I practiced by making little carvings like the one above. When I accumulated a dozen or so, I realized they could be the tops of jewelry boxes. So I cut parts for 10 boxes, completed one as a Christmas present for my wife, and got distracted by something else. Over the years I'd pull one out and complete it for a graduation or wedding present. That was 12 years ago, and I'm down to parts for two boxes. If you're looking for a hand mirror, I have a couple left that are nearly ready to go, and there might be some candlesticks that only need a little sanding down in the basement. But before I get to that, I want to replace the handle on this hammer. That's only been on the list for a year and a half and it's right here so when I have the time I'll get on it.  I might be able to someday change my ways, but every so often there turns out to be a good reason to keep this junk around. Fourteen months ago, I began a little project to take with me for a demonstration at the WoodWorks show in Ontario, Calif. I had seen a nice desktop bookrack in an auction catalog that was a great example of through-tenon joinery. The parts were small, and a couple templates were the hard part. So I cut parts to make four bookracks, brought one to near completion, and left the rest at various stages to show the progression. One of the extras came a little closer to being done at the show, but the parts came back and kicked around the shop in a box until last winter.  One day I decided to finish one of the things. I completed it in an afternoon, gave it a couple coats of shellac then let it sit in our office. (I also have trouble taking things home, but that's another issue.) As we were planning our August issue, my boss said, "That would make a great project; do you still have all the parts?" Of course I did, and I've spent the last couple days putting two more together and taking photos. I had to remake one of the templates to show how that is done, and I'm determined to get these finished and home. Of course, that will have to be put off until after I write the article, edit other articles for August, and post items like this on the blog. But I'll get to it – if I don't get distracted. This project doesn't hold the record for me for elapsed time from start to finish, but the round trip to California earns it the prize for distance. – Bob Lang
Read other entries by Robert W. Lang
Tuesday, March 27, 2007 10:40:46 AM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Friday, March 23, 2007
Glen D. Huey’s No-Fail Dovetailing – Part 1
 First, grab a long piece of wood, and chop it in half (5" wide is a good place to start and at least 6" long after cutting – you’ll need plenty of clamping real estate). Pine is a good choice to start with, because it has a high “mash factor,” which means it’s a little more forgiving on fit than say, oak. Choose a face side on each piece and mark it with an “F.” If you have a marking gauge, set the measurement by using the end of your tail board (as shown below), and scribe the baseline for your dovetails on both faces of the pin board. And if you don’t have a marking gauge, measure the width and scribe your baseline with a knife against a straightedge.  Now, take your pin board and clamp it in your vise with the outside face away from you. Following Glen’s method, you mark and cut the pins first, which makes it easy to mark the tails later on (we'll cover that in Part 2). Place your dovetail marking gauge (Glen swears by a 12° gauge, but other angles are available) on the face about a 1/4" in from the left edge, and mark the edge of your first half-pin as shown below. Then, place your dovetail marking gauge about 1/4" from the right edge and mark the half-pin on that side.  Now, you have to decide how wide each tail and pin will be. If you’re working with a 5"-wide board Glen suggests three tail areas (two would be too easy!). Divide the wide edge of the tail area (the space between the lines) into three sections. Make a mark at the center of each section that will become the center of a pin. Don’t worry about being too precise with the placement though – after all, if they’re perfectly spaced, people might not believe you cut the dovetails by hand! Mark the pins with the dovetail gauge by moving 1/8" each direction from the marks.  Now transfer the lines down the face of the board to your scribe line using a combination square, as shown at right. You don’t have to mark the lines on the other face of the board, but you may find it helpful, at least until you get a little sawing practice in. Clearly mark the waste areas with a solid X, so you can tell at a glance what material you’re about to clean out. Place your saw just outside the front inside corner of the left pin (which is its right edge), using your thumb as a guide. Always leave your line…but nothing more (it gets easier with practice).  You want the saw at a steep angle – the goal is to hit the back edge and the scribe line at the same time. Once you’ve hit the baseline in the front, angle the saw up and keep sawing, until the saw is parallel to the floor and you’ve hit the baseline on both sides. Go slowly and check your progress on the opposite side of the board (that’s where the additional lines come in handy). Stop when you reach the baseline.  Move on to the right side of the next pin, then the next and so on, until you’ve cut the right side of all your pins. Now go back and do the left sides. And always remember to “leave your line.” Why do all one side first? That way, your saw stays at the same angle for several cuts in a row, so you’re not having to constantly adjust the angle back and forth. It’s more efficient, and it helps build muscle memory. Once you have all your pins cut, chop out the waste. Clamp the piece with the wider side of the waste area (the tail sockets) face up (you may want to put a scrap pieces between your workpiece and your bench). Place your chisel just a hair in front of your baseline, with the bevel side facing the end of the board, and angle the chisel a couple degrees to undercut the joint (make a slight concavity in the center of the waste areas), which will ensure there is no waste material remaining to interfere with the fit of the dovetail. Because of the slight angle, your first mallet strike will drive the chisel into your baseline, and define the back edge of the tail area. Now, you’re ready to pop your first bit of waste. Place your chisel, bevel side up, at the upper edge of the end-grain area you’ve just chopped, and tap sharply with your mallet. The chisel should bite into the wood and lever up the waste. Now go back to chiseling the face of the board, again angling it just a few degrees, and give it a few sharp whacks with your mallet. Then chisel out the waste. Continue until you’re about halfway through the board, then flip it over and repeat the process on the other face. Work carefully on this face; the area is narrow so it’s easy to knock off a corner of the pins when removing waste and that shows in your dovetails. Now your pin board is finished. We’ll move onto the tail board in the next installment. – Megan Fitzpatrick & Glen D. Huey
Read other entries by Glen D. Huey | Read other entries by Megan Fitzpatrick
Friday, March 23, 2007 11:47:18 AM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Wednesday, March 21, 2007
Evolution of a Woodworker – Part 3
After posting the first two parts of “Evolution” I received a few letters and calls asking why I moved from woodworking, my passion, into teaching then to a full-time position with Popular Woodworking magazine. The answer is: economics and education. It is also the subject of the last of the series. (Click on these links if you'd like to read Part 1 or Part 2)
 We were accepted into a local show and set about building furniture, and a show booth, over the next six months. Our first show date arrived and was, in my eyes, a success. We sold a number of pieces. The company was off and running.
Wonder why we decided on exhibiting at shows? The answer is simple. That’s what we knew was available. I might be closed-minded, but to this day, it’s still the way that I think works best – given a limited budget. I’d heard of woodworkers having sales in the six figures at shows, during the early days when folks were moving into the “country” look with “hand-built” furniture, and I wanted to get our share.
We juried into a number of shows – eventually exhibiting at 14 events throughout the year. I spent more time on the road than building furniture in the shop. But, we were selling items and building a customer base. Problem was, I wasn’t making money.
I stopped by an established furniture-making shop in Pennsylvania on my way home from an East Coast show (the shows that were most successful for us because of the style of furniture that we built) and talked to the first woodworker inside the door. He showed me around the shop, all the while talking about the business. Then, one little tidbit of information escaped his lips. He stated that after so many years in business, the shop was just now able to bring their prices up to where they should be. Raise prices? It’s unheard of in building a business – unless it’s a necessity. Guess what? It was a necessity.
Not only did we raise prices but I also did the next hardest thing in business – cut our expenses. Shows were a high-cost item so we started eliminating the weekends that didn’t produce, but we also noticed that the attendance at the shows was dropping each time we exhibited.
Shortly into my new venture I met the editors of Popular Woodworking at a show. Upon meeting with them a second time at our shop, they asked if I would be interested in submitting an article or two. “Gladly,” I shot back. A second stream of revenue was exactly what I needed. The articles led to a chance to write my first book (never turn down an opportunity – say "yes" then figure out how to make it happen). Suddenly, I saw the business evolving again.
 As the next book came out and the magazine articles continued, the Cincinnati Woodworking Club invited me to speak on case construction. You know I accepted! Best of all, I enjoyed it. Sharing information (teaching) was a rush. I never figured that all the mistakes I made while building furniture could help those who were interested in woodworking from making similar mistakes.
I began to search for teaching opportunities and luckily found a few. Good thing, because show sales continued dropping and my time in the shop building for customers was starting to be swallowed by the time spent building for the articles and preparing for presentations and teaching. The last show at which we exhibited we had five pieces of furniture, three from my third book (those not sold prior to signing the book agreement) and two taken from our house. The short inventory list didn’t much matter; there weren’t enough customers at the show willing to buy.
When the opportunity to join the magazine staff presented itself, I anxiously threw my application into the mix. I rode the twists and turns in life from furniture maker to writing and teaching, and found education to be a powerful elixir. Life would be good if I could get one woodworker over the hump with a problem, inspire them to build something great, or simply spend a weekend talking woodworking. –Glen Huey
Read other entries by Glen D. Huey
Wednesday, March 21, 2007 7:10:56 AM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Tuesday, March 20, 2007
Woodworking Tourist – Lessons From 4 Sisters
One of the highlights of my recent trip to California was a visit to Four Sisters Woodworking. Just as you won’t find a Mrs. Smith at Mrs. Smith’s pies there aren’t any sisters to be found on the premises. Like the aforementioned baker, there is a good story about self-sufficient women that doesn’t have a lot to do with the current operation. I’m a sucker for a good story, and I always enjoy meeting other woodworkers.  The common love of wood, and of the process of making things from it forms a bond that makes people you’ve just met seem like old friends. This was especially true about Harry Van Ornum and Les Cizek, the two woodworkers who formed a woodworking partnership in 1994 after training under James Krenov at the College of the Redwoods.  Their shop was originally located in downtown Fort Bragg, Calif., and ground was broken for the current shop just outside of town in 1999. The 3,000-square-foot building was completed, and Les and Harry moved in during the summer of 2001. The shop seems much larger due to high ceilings and abundance of natural light from the many windows and skylights. Located on five acres of redwood forest, the building nestles into its surroundings as if it grew there. “Having a great shop won’t make you a better woodworker,” said Harry, “but it will put you in a much better mood, and when you’re in a better mood, great things can happen.”  Details like windows, natural light, a comfortable floor and the arrangement of tools and benches can make a big difference. These guys really did some thinking before they began, and the result is as close to a perfect shop as I have ever seen. While the building is nice and solid, it isn’t lavish by any means. The construction is simple, and most of the windows and doors are recycled cast-offs from remodeling projects in the area. It’s a great space because it combines simple elements in a cohesive, pleasing way. Harry and Les are both accomplished and talented woodworkers, and they are also students and masters of the creative process.  Their shop is impressive to say the least, but the most impressive thing to me is the way that it all fits together all makes sense. As I walked through the machine room, it was obvious that raw materials had a place to land, and the machines to process it were waiting in line.  On the other side of the building, the slightly smaller bench room was also carefully arranged. Workbenches were where they ought to be, with tools at the ready. It isn’t just a pretty shop to look at; it’s an efficient, working shop where time isn’t wasted looking for things that aren’t in the right place, or taking steps backward instead of forward. You can get a better look at the shop by taking the tour on the Four Sister’s web site. Harry and Les also offer individual classes and woodworking vacations. You won’t find a better facility, and you won’t find any better teachers.  I came away with a desire to take a closer look at our shop, and to look for ways to make it a more pleasant, sensible and workable space. We plan on making some changes in the coming year, and while we can’t put in any skylights (the occupants of the offices on the second and third floors of our building may have some objections) we will be doing some things that follow the example set by Harry and Les. Maybe we can find an artificial redwood tree to set outside one of the windows. – Bob Lang
Read other entries by Robert W. Lang
Tuesday, March 20, 2007 7:14:20 AM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Monday, March 19, 2007
A Greene & Greene Table Challenge
 Interested in a woodworking challenge? Think that participating or just watching the event from your shop would be a hoot? LumberJocks, a group of 500+ woodworkers from around the world, announces the Thorsen Side Table Challenge #1.
What do they have in mind? Begin with the Thorsen House table from the cover of Popular Woodworking February 2007 as inspiration, then each participating member finds a new way, new idea or simply adds their personality to the design to make it their own.
The Thorsen table – from the Thorsen House in Berkley, Calif. – is one piece out of a huge collection of great furniture design from architects Charles and Henry Greene. Though often associated with the Arts & Crafts movement, Greene & Greene furniture designs reflect an Asian influence.
 How does Popular Woodworking fit into the mix? Why are we announcing this challenge on our blog? Aside from the fact that LumberJocks is using the cover piece from the magazine, we, Popular Woodworking, are offering a free one-year subscription (hopefully it’s an extension!) to any participant of the challenge. You’ll need to become a member of LumberJocks (sign up – it’s free) to be a participant.
Also, we, the Popular Woodworking editors, have agreed to be judge, jury and – with any luck – not executioner of the challenge. We’ll pick the winner, as well as a few honorable mention picks, that will be announced in the blog. Plus, we'll print pictures of the winners in the pages of Popular Woodworking magazine (if the picture quality is printworthy).
One additional interesting twist of furniture and design history – Charles and Henry Greene were born in Cincinnati, Ohio, the home of Popular Woodworking.
–Glen Huey
Monday, March 19, 2007 10:24:12 AM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Friday, March 16, 2007
A Sticky Situation
I mentioned in a previous entry ("The End of L-Brackets") that I’m working autonomously on an upcoming I Can Do That project, a canted wall box. And it was going so well…I selected some straight, flat ½" poplar from our local home center. Two 6" x 4'-long pieces – just enough for the project, so as not to waste any money.
After a little head scratching and a few trial runs, I figured out how to draw the three arcs I needed for the top profile (my high school geometry teacher would be so proud…and so shocked). I cut the back to length, marked out the shapes, then carefully cut just outside the lines – the less cleanup I have to do with a rasp and sandpaper, the better. (Sadly, there’s no spindle sander in the I Can Do That toolbox.)
Then, I moved on to my second piece of stock for the canted sides. I cut them to length with a miter saw, then marked out the shape I wanted on one piece (again, by trial and error). I very carefully cut it out, then used the first piece as the pattern for the second side, and cut it out, too.
 I cut my shelves and bottom from the offcut.
Now what I should have done at this point is carefully line up the straightedges on the back and bottom of the two sides, and snug them up in a vise for final shaping. After all, there’s a very nice twin screw on the end of my bench; it certainly has enough holding power to keep the pieces properly aligned as I rasp, file and sand the edges to the finished shape. (I’m supposed to use the Workmate for the ICDT projects, but at the moment it’s buried behind a pile of boxes…heavy boxes. But for the record, the Workmate, too, has plenty of holding power to keep the pieces aligned.)
But, one of the tricks we've taught in past ICDT projects is to use carpet tape to keep like pieces aligned for final shaping. It’s a great way to ensure nothing slips before or as you’re clamping up the work – but it’s not strictly necessary. Nonetheless, I decided to tape the pieces.
I sauntered over to what we call the “glue cabinet.” That’s where we keep all our adhesive and adhesive-related products – glue, epoxy, painter’s tape, Goo Gone, carpet tape and Speed Tape. You probably know where this is going, don’t you?
So I grabbed what I thought was carpet tape, snipped off three lengths, and applied them to the inside surface of one of my sides. I peeled off the paper, and oh-so-carefully aligned the second side before pressing them together. Perfect! I nonchalantly chucked ‘em in the twin screw, and went to town with the rasp and sandpaper.
Fabulous – two sides that match up perfectly. Am I good or what?! And I didn’t need a bit of help!
Then, I went to take the sides apart so I could do my final assembly. They wouldn’t budge. Geez. How hard can it be to get two taped pieces of wood apart?! I tried everything I could think of – cursing, a wedge, a deadblow mallet and more cursing. All to no avail. Finally, I had to suck it up and admit defeat. Chris found this highly amusing, but kindly agreed to lend a hand (so much for autonomy).
First, he tried to pull the pieces apart with his hands. Nope (and thank goodness – I’d have never lived it down had he succeeded). Then a lever. No dice. Then a deadblow mallet. Not happening.
Then he asked to see the tape.
 Now, I was heretofore unfamiliar with the wonder that is Speed Tape. It looks a heck of a lot like carpet tape…a 1” roll with adhesive on both sides, protected on one side by white waxy paper that gets peeled off to reveal the second strip of adhesive. It’s not carpet tape. It’s a really sticky, high adhesion peel-and-stick adhesive strip used to permanently attach veneers and laminates to substrates. Let me tell you, the stuff works.
Anyway, to make a long story end, we tried to resaw the pieces on the band saw. Call it blade drift, user error, or whatever, that failed. So, I’m headed back to the home center for another piece of poplar. And the next time I get all snarky about something (which rarely happens, of course), I know what story is coming..."Say, do you guys remember that "tape" incident?"
— Megan Fitzpatrick
Friday, March 16, 2007 12:45:41 PM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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Barristers – Simplify and Correct
 The Barrister Bookcase article (April 2007, #161) is a homerun with more than a few readers. There’s going to be more bookcases than barristers when all is said and done. Well, maybe not!
Why do I think that? The phone calls. One of the best things about joining the staff at Popular Woodworking magazine is the chance to talk woodworking all day. Getting calls from you adds to that enjoyment. And, I’ve received more than a few calls concerning the bookcases.
Unfortunately, that’s in part because I omitted some information that makes this project a bit easier. My computer is like the projector in the cutting room of a movie studio – some of the important pieces of the show get left out by mistake.
I’m referring to the location of the holes for the brass pins, and to the width measurement for the backboard on the taller units – your two most requested pieces of information. The former relieves the stress of mathematics when figuring those locations, while the latter ends confusion and brings a clear picture into the mind’s eye.
So here you are: The width of the backboard is 16-7/8” not 5/16” (Didn’t miss that by much did I?) and the link below pulls up a drawing provided by Senior Editor Robert W. Lang that demystifies the pin placement.
BarristerHoles.pdf (59.04 KB)
Hope this helps. Build Something Great!
– Glen D. Huey
Friday, March 16, 2007 9:07:45 AM (Eastern Standard Time, UTC-05:00)
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