The Block Plane Does More Than You Think
I remember standing on a site in the late eighties, watching a lad struggle with a power sander for twenty minutes just to smooth out a stubborn end grain. He was covered in dust, his ears were ringing, and the wood still felt hairy. I walked over, handed him my Stanley, and showed him how […]
Trimming a Tenon With a Shoulder Plane
I spent thirty years on-site watching young lads rush toward the router table the second a joint looked a bit wonky, thinking more power equals more precision. They’d spend twenty minutes fighting a machine only to end up with a crushed grain or a messy shoulder that needed more sanding. It’s a waste of time. […]
A Router Plane for Consistent Depth
I remember standing in a workshop back in the eighties, watching a young apprentice try to fix a wonky tenon with a loud, vibrating power router. He was fighting the machine, gouging the wood, and sweating through his shirt, all while the joint looked like it had been chewed by a dog. I walked over, […]
Two Tapes That Disagree by Two Millimetres
I remember standing on a job site back in the nineties, watching a lad struggle with a piece of expensive, "professional grade" tape that kept buckling every time he tried to reach across a frame. He’d spent a fortune on it, but the numbers were already rubbing off and the hook was wobbling like a […]
Setting Fence Posts in a Straight Line
Most people think that if they want to learn how to build a fence, they need to go out and spend a fortune on a heavy-duty power auger and a cordless impact driver. They think the noise and the speed are what make the job professional. I spent forty years on sites seeing the opposite; […]
Hearing Damage Is Cumulative
I remember standing on a site in the mid-eighties, the air thick with sawdust and the relentless, bone-shaking scream of a circular saw that hadn't seen a service in years. I watched a lad, barely out of his apprenticeship, working away without so much as a bit of foam in his ears, acting like he […]
A Gate That Still Shuts in Five Years
Most people think you need a shed full of noisy, vibrating power tools and a massive budget to learn how to build a gate. They’ll tell you that if you aren't using a heavy-duty mitre saw and a cordless drill, you’re just wasting your time. I spent forty years on site and ten years teaching […]
Bird Box Dimensions That Birds Accept
Most folks think you need a workshop full of expensive, vibrating power tools to figure out how to build a bird box, but they've got it backwards. I remember one afternoon teaching a lad at the college who was sweating over a circular saw, trying to cut thin cedar boards for a nesting box, only […]
Ppe You Will Actually Wear
I remember a lad I taught back at the college, bright enough, but he spent more time fussing over the brand name on his safety goggles than he did checking if they actually sat flush against his face. He’d bought the most expensive kit in the catalogue, thinking a high price tag meant he was […]
Working Alone With a Machine Running
I remember a Tuesday afternoon back in the nineties, working a solo renovation on a draughty old terrace in Leeds. The smell of damp sawdust was thick in the air, and the only sound was the rhythmic scritch-scritch of my plane. I’d slipped on a rogue shaving, my hand went flying toward a chisel, and […]