Opening Up Someone Else's Work
I remember sitting in my workshop last Tuesday, staring at a mahogany vanity someone had dropped off. It was a mess of modern, flimsy joinery and cheap, plastic-coated veneers that felt more like cardboard than wood. People today seem to think that once a piece of furniture loses its luster or a joint goes loose, […]
When a Repair Is the Wrong Answer
I remember sitting at my workbench back in '84, staring at a bevel edge chisel with a chipped blade that looked more like a jagged rock than a cutting tool. My apprentice kept insisting we just toss it and buy a new one from the local supplier—the same lot that was making a killing selling […]
The First Five Hand Tools to Buy
I spent forty years on-site and another ten in the classroom, and if there is one thing that gets my blood up, it’s the way modern shops try to sell you a solution in a plastic case. You walk into a big-box store and they want you to believe that you need a dozen different […]
Being a Good Neighbour With a Planer
I remember sitting in my garden back when I was still teaching at the college, watching a lad next door try to "fix" his noise problem by building a massive, expensive plywood enclosure around his router. It looked like a coffin, and it did nothing but make the whole thing vibrate like a tuning fork, […]
Putting an Edge Back on an Axe
I remember standing in a damp woodlot back in '84, watching a lad try to fell a decent piece of ash with a blunt, heavy axe. He was sweating, cursing, and swinging like a madman, but the wood just bruised instead of splitting. He thought he needed a bigger, more expensive tool, but the truth […]
Assessing Woodworm Before Treating It
I remember sitting in my workshop last Tuesday, staring at a Victorian chair that looked more like Swiss cheese than furniture. Most people will tell you that you need to blast it with chemical sprays or hide the mess under a thick layer of plastic filler, but that’s just a way to mask a problem […]
Rebuilding a Knocked Corner
I remember standing over a piece of seasoned oak in my workshop back in the nineties, staring at a corner that had been absolutely smashed by a heavy mallet. The young apprentice beside me immediately reached for a tub of pre-mixed wood filler and a sander, convinced that a bit of "plastic" would hide the […]
Sharpening a Twist Bit by Hand
I remember standing on a job site back in the nineties, watching a young lad struggle with a cordless driver, swearing at a hole that refused to go any deeper. He was pushing with his whole weight, smoke practically rising from the timber, convinced he just needed a more powerful motor. I walked over, took […]
Tidying a Damaged Plywood Edge
Most people think that once a plywood edge starts to fray or chip, the whole sheet is scrap or needs a thick, ugly strip of solid timber to hide the shame. I spent years watching apprentices reach for the wood filler and a sander the second they made a mistake, thinking they could just sand […]
Sharpening a Blade Too Small to Hold
I remember standing in a workshop back in the late eighties, watching a young apprentice try to shape a curved stair rail with a router. He was fighting the machine, swearing at the grain, and leaving nothing but scorched marks and a mess of sawdust. I stepped in, handed him a well-tuned spokeshave, and showed […]