Mobilizing a Dust Collector Part One

 Shop Report

Here's something I'm working on at the moment. No fine joinery, nothing very pretty, I'm just making a big old dust collector mobile. I expect to be done sometime in the next few days. 

And now here's some background and a few

Some pictures of planes. First a Record #07, late production with plastic handles and screw-type cap (as opposed to a "lever cap")

Next, a Miller's Falls #10 (equivalent to Stanley #4-1/2). Note the articulated lever cap, which seems to focus the pressure on the front edge of the iron more effectively than a plain cap:

Camera SOLD

(This camera sold at auction on ebay)

My first DSLR, used on this blog and to make videos for Highland Woodworking since 2016. Excellent shape. My new camera is a Canon T7i, I'll be excited to start sharing images made with it here.

If I Should Die, Think Only This of Me: "How Much Can We Get for His Table Saw?"

A better title for this entry might be "The Woodworking Aspects of Estate Planning." 

I have been aware of Chanel Reynolds for a few years now. I get a monthly email from her that says, in essence, "Prepare To Die!" And someday I'll do that. Maybe this is the year I finally make my will!

One thing I have done as an initial, feeble, wobbly movement in Chanel's direction, is to start

Build a Workbench in a Weekend

This past weekend was my second “Build a Workbench in a Weekend” class at Highland Woodworking. Five students and I put in two very full, very busy days of work and produced 6

Build a Workbench in a Weekend

Recently two students and I spent a weekend doing proof-of-concept for a class to be titled the same as this blog post. In my garage shop, we built 3 copies of the "Knockdown Nicholson Bench" featured by Chris Schwarz in several of his blog posts (both at the Lost Art Press and Popular Woodworking websites), and also in the December 2015 issue of Popular Woodworking.

It succeeded beyond my expectations. The resulting bench is a real pleasure to work at, and not too terrible on the eyes (I still prefer my master's Ulmia for looks . . . I wonder if he still has it.)

Here are photos.

 

 

Sharpening with Sandpaper

I have said elsewhere that sharpening on sandpaper is the cheapest way to start sharpening, and the most expensive way to continue. That's because you can scrounge up what you need to make a razor-sharp edge on a chisel or plane iron for well under $20. But then the sandpaper wears out pretty quickly, and it retails for around a dollar a sheet. Even if you find it for 50 cents a sheet in bulk, compare that to a $30 water stone that lasts for a couple of decades, and you'll see what I'm saying.

So why bother? Like I said, it's the cheapest way to get going, and you can spend just a little bit to get sharp tools for your first few projects, and then invest in more permanent equipment later on. The cheap honing guide I recommend for beginners will work on water stones or diamond plates as well. And even though I own a set of great water stones, I still use sandpaper when I'm out on an installation and don't want the mess, or the risk of theft or breakage, that go along with using water stones outside my own shop. And wet or dry sandpaper is good for flattening water stones. So when you get additional sharpening gear later on, you don't have to fret about wasting money on sandpaper sharpening.