Accesories



Side-by-side comparison of Milwaukee and Ryobi adapters
More than once I’ve found myself in a situation where I needed to drill a hole or insert a screw in a hard-to-reach location but lacked the technology to easily accomplish the task in a satisfactory manner. Typically, these are situations where there is insufficient room to position the drill directly over the hole so I usually resort to […]

Milwaukee and Ryobi Angled Drill Adapters



Side view of install vise 7
Can you imagine not having a vise on your workbench? Me neither. Yet, somehow I scraped by for many years before finally installing one and now I can’t imagine not having it. I bought a Jorgensen model 41012 vise from a fellow woodworker who bought it some years ago but never got around to installing it. It […]

Installing a Front-Mounted Workbench Vise


Woodshop storage cabinet 4
For a number of years, I stored screws, bolts, and nails in a corner of my shop using a bunch of plastic bins mounted on horizontal plastic rails. This worked well enough in that the hardware was always close at hand but I got tired of all the dust that eventually coated everything. Not only […]

Woodshop Storage Cabinet



Step 2: cut half piece of sandpaper in half
The 1-2 method Here’s a simple jig for cutting 9″ x 11″ sheets of sandpaper into fourths for use with a 1/4 sheet palm sander. It makes quick work out of a potentially tedious task thanks to two spacer blocks: one for cutting the sandpaper in half and another for cutting the halves in half […]

Sandpaper Cutting Jig


Homemade leg leveler
What to do when you need to level a woodshop table but don’t have any levelers handy? You make them from scratch. That was the situation I found myself in when I built a new outfeed table for my table saw. Because my shop floor was not quite level (are they ever?), I needed a […]

DIY Woodshop Leg Levelers




Poplar step stool with anti-tip bars
This step stool was built to replace an older model that was starting to show its age. It’s made from yellow poplar and features retractable anti-tip bars that slide out when needed and slide back in for more compact storage. The basic design of the stool came from a plan that is available as a […]

Step Stool




Retainer ring came loose on this flipper bit 1
Quick change flip drill driver bits are handy little gadgets that combine a drill/countersink and screw driver into one compact unit. They can save lots of time because there’s no hunting around for separate bits or drivers. Another convenience is that only a single drill is needed. I think they’re here to stay. The way […]

Quick Change Flip Drill Driver Bits



Assortment of squares
Before one can cut, one must layout. That should be every woodworker’s mantra. And to that end, here is a list of recommended layout tools that should be sufficient to tackle most any woodworking layout task. Tape measure In my humble opinion, the tape measure ranks right up there with the wheel and fire as […]

Woodworking Layout Tools




4-way equal pressure clamp
Like most woodworkers, I have accumulated quite an assortment of woodworking clamps over the years. As someone once said, you can never have too many clamps. Of course, I love, er… I mean like some of my clamps more than others… The clamps I use most often are trigger-action mini bar clamps. They’re lightweight, adjust […]

Clamps I Have Known (and Loved ??)


Sanding with bench cookies
Looking to “fill out” an order of woodworking supplies, I decided to buy a four pack of bench cookies.  I was somewhat skeptical of these relative newcomers to the woodworking scene, but for 12 bucks,  how could I go wrong? I figured I could always use them as drink coasters if they didn’t perform well […]

Bench Cookies – Not Too Crumby



Woodshop air filtration unit 4
Dust is not our friend. It coats our tools, work surfaces, and worst of all, our lungs. Centralized dust collection systems do a good job of removing wood chips, chunks, shavings, and larger dust particles but you need something more to remove the fine airborne dust particles. That’s where an air filtration device comes in. […]

Roll Around Woodshop Air Filtration System


Choosing the right saw blade for a cutting task can mean the difference between misery and glory. If you’ve ever tried to rip a piece of 4/4 oak with a saw blade that’s not designed for ripping, or tried making a cross-cut on a piece of plywood with a rip blade you know what I’m […]

Choosing a Saw Blade