On Woodworking

The online woodworking community (the Community) has recently been buzzing with discussion about Paul Sellers statements regarding woodworking machine manufacturers and the use of woodworking machines. Some (such as myself) have called him out for the snobbery of his statements. Others have defended him, saying he needs an opportunity to explain his statements. The discussion has been heated, but mostly civil (the Community is a nice group). Enough has been said by all sides.

My point with this post is not to rehash the argument, but to simply state my take on Woodworking. I think woodworking an open craft. Woodworking is open to anyone, any tooling, any method and any wood. The point is to build something (anything), build it the best you can, by the means you prefer, enjoy building it and be proud of it when youre done.

Any tool will do.

That is woodworking for me. Its not that I dont care for methods & skill, I just feel theyre personal things and not a means of measuring the woodworker.

Thankfully, many others, such as the Modern Woodworkers Association, share my take. I feel that to view woodworking as anything less would would only diminish the craft and the Community.

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Two Woodworking In Americas! !

Popular Woodworking Magazine has announced that there will be two WIA12 events. One in Pasadena, CA from October 12-14 and one in Covington, KY from November 2-4.

The WIA11 Blue Shirt Contingent.

By having two (2) events, I fear they have diluted the magic that is WIA. As Ive said before, the people are what make WIA so special, and now most people will have to choose which one to attend.
To that end, we at the Modern Woodworkers Association (or maybe just this one MWA admin) were wondering:

1. Will your decision as to which WIA12 to attend be influenced by where everyone else is going?
2. Which WIA12 venue will you attend?

Wed appreciate it if youd click on to the survey on the Modern Woodworkers Association site. Youll have the ability to view the results after you vote, and as event gets closer, well let everyone know the results so that those of you who are going to let your decision be influenced by your peers will know where to go.

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Is ......
likely that the thin chip is stopped between the two irons with
resulting plane mouth clogging. It is therefore necessary to carefully flatten the surface portion  of the chipbreaker that 
adheres to the blade and ensure a perfect fit between the parties. The problem is that sometimes (if not frequently) the chipbreaker is not regular and after the iron screw has been tight the
blade may show non contact areas, despite having flattened with
care.  Being soft iron, we can try to straighten the chipbreaker in the vice but this is a little difficult job. Another method is to create a burr on the chipbreaker edge, by which we can close any (small) residual gap. The procedure
plans to keep the chipbreaker with an angle respect to a flat surface on which we attack a sheet of 150 grit abrasive paper. Move repeatedly backwards until the metal burr forms. So
use a small screwdriver (electrician models have
the right thin measure) and pass it along the contact line between the two iron until they adhere perfectly.
The process takes few minutes!

   

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Benchtop Benches provide woodworkers with small, portable benches that have almost as much clamping versatility as a full sized bench while still fitting in a suitcase.

I first noticed the Sjoberg Smart Vise due to its prominent placement in the Rockler catalogue I recently received. The Smart Vise caught my eye because it solves an issue Ive had before and I know many woodworkers have had: How to clamp and work pieces without a proper, formal bench?

This image of the Sjoberg Smart Vise is from Rocklers site.

The Smart Vise is a 14.5” x 14.5” benchtop with a wood jawed vise along one side. There are dog holes in the vise and bench. It even comes with four (4) small bench dogs.

What makes the Smart Vise so interesting is the lip which runs around the sides. By clamping the lip onto any work surface, you mount the Smart Vise and get a small, extremely portable bench to work on.

This notion of a small, clamp-on bench has recently been popularized by Chris Schwarz and his “Milkman’s Workbench”. The Milkman’s Workbench is a small (about 30” x 7”) wooden bench. As is true of the Sjoberg Smart Vise, the Milkman’s Workbench is meant to be portable and simply clamped to a table for use. The original Chris saw accomplished this with fancy wooden clamps built into the bench. In the version Chris built, he used much simpler angle iron and F-style clamps.

Mark Hochsteins Milkmans Workbench. (image from gunpowederwoodworks.com)

Though not designed to be quite as portable as the Smart Vise or Milkman’s Workbench, Jeff Miller’s Benchtop Bench is also in this class of bench - in that it can be put on about any table and used as a bench.

Jeff Millers Benchtop Bench from finewoodworking.com

The difference is that unlike the Smart Vise or Milkman’s Workbench - which are essentially portable benches designed to be transported and used when a standard formal bench isn’t available - Miller’s Benchtop Bench is designed to be used on, and in conjunction with, a formal bench. It’s made to raise the workpiece to a more comfortable height for certain operations, similar to a Moxon Vise. Though the stub legs which give it the added height also make it a bit bulkier than the others, I think it would still work as a portable bench too.

Among these benchtop Benches, I think the biggest deciding factor is “Do you want to build or buy?” If you want to build, you’ll then need to figure out if you want the unique clamping ability of the Milkman’s Workbench or the height and bench surface of Miller’s Benchtop Bench. If you want to buy, then you just need to figure out where to get the Sjoberg Smart Vise (Woodcraft and Amazon seem to be the cheapest).

All three (3) of these benchtop benches provide working bench functionality for anyone without a formal bench or who needs to woodwork on the road. Though I won’t be putting one (1) on my to-do list ahead of the formal bench I still need to build, I think there versatility means one (1) of them will be in my future.If the Milkman’s Workbench has caught your eye, be sure to check out Mark Hochstein’s blog posts about building one himself.

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The Return Of woodchat

Once upon a time, woodworkers gathered on Twitter to chat about woodworking. It was usually driven by a topic, with lots of great participation and sharing of ideas. It was really good. But then it stopped, and we miss it. For some, their path to becoming a better woodworker took a detour. Its time to get things back on track.

Woodchats Future

After a lot of conversations in the last three weeks with Dale Osowski (Timberworks Studio), Dyami Plotke (Penultimate Workshop), Matt Gradwohl (UpperCut Woodworks), Vic Hubbard (Tumblewood Creations), and Tom Iovino (Toms Workbench), we will berestarting #woodchat this Wednesday November 2nd at 6pm pacific time, thats 8 central and 9 eastern. Weve got permission from the former woodchat crew and have been working behind the scenes to ensure to define how wed like this to work best for everyone.

Lets make #woodchat like a dinner conversation among woodworking friends.

Our First Four Woodchat Principles

1. Easy for People to Get Involved

There are lots of woodworkers already on twitter, and its easy to sign up, so continuing to use the #woodchat hashtag makes things very easy. No special download, no separate account. So well start on twitter but may incorporate other technology as things progress. Right now, Tweetchat is the easiest choice to participate.

2. Approachable for All Skill Levels

If youre a beginner woodworker, you will be welcomed in and find people ready to help and encourage you. If youre a skilled woodworker, youll also find encouragement and help, and be asked to share your experience and knowledge by welcoming and being helpful to new woodworkers.

3. Focused on Actual Woodworking

In the past #woodchat drifted off topic at times. Well focus on woodworking: inspiration, design, stock prep, joinery, finishing, tool selection, shop safety, or shop layout, for the beginner, part time hobbiest or full time woodworking business. No preference towards power tools or hand tools.

4. A Team to Make it Successful

To make sure that chats happen on Wednesdays without one person carrying the workload, were going to work together to ensure success. We all have busy schedules with our day jobs and families, but with five (or more) people committed to making this successful Im sure well establish a regular rhythm.

Woodchat is Yours

Ultimately though, woodchat is ultimately driven by those who participate, so we need to know what topics youd like to discuss, what technology you might suggest that we incorporate, what days and times work best. Let us know on Twitter or leave a comment below. See you all Wednesday night.

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MWA Podcast 30 Mike Pekovich

This orginally posted at modernwoodworkersassociation.com over the weekend. If you missed it, please be sure to check it out. Mike was one of my favorite interviews.

MWA Podcast Episode #30 - Michael Pekovich

MWA Podcast Episode 30 - Michael Pekovich (60:03)

Download the MP3

Date: May 30, 2013

By: Chris Adkins, Dyami Plotke, Tom Iovino

Description: Join us for this episode as we speak with guest Michael Pekovich of Fine Woodworking magazine. For show note and more on the MWA visit: http://modernwoodworkersassociation.com

Show Notes:

What’s in the shop?

• Chris
• chisel cabinet
• humidor
• Dyami
• Priming the Tree House
• Mike
• Using props from photo shoots as a reason to build cabinets

Newsletter to come

Main topic

• Tonight’s guest, the 2010 Tenon Shootout Champion
• Mike Pekovich, Fine Woodworking’s Art Director
• Mike’s classes at Fine Woodworking Live
• MIke’s Hobbit Cupboard
• Mike’s Turn Your Garage Into A Real Workshop article

More on Mike’s shop

• Fine Woodworking Best Workshops
• Penultimatewoodshop.com Series on Mike’s Shop

If you’re missing us already, you can subscribe to the show on itunes. Just search for the Modern Woodworkers Association. Once you’re subscribed, you’ll be sure never to miss an exciting episode. While you’re in iTunes, please leave us a 5 star rating. It helps our rank so others can more easily find us.

If you want to find out more about the Modern Woodworkers Association, be sure to visit modernwoodworkersassociation.com, follow the MWA on twitter @MWA_National, like the MWA on Facebook or circle Modern Woodworkers Association on Google+. While you’re there, join the MWA Google+ community for project sharing, discussion and loads of woodworking banter.

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The Ice Chest Cooler box video has been posted to YouTube!