FALL 2008

EASY WOODWORKING PROJECTS

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$5.99
SIP.WW_001_News

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Woodworker's Journal SIP ■ Fall 2008 ■ Choosing Power Tools ■ 13 Weekend Projects ■ Tapering on a Jointer ■ Selecting Finishes
SIP.WW_002 6/19/08 12:15 PM Page 2

Making
WKH FXW
from every
angle.
You don’t have to
be big to make a
huge impression.

THE SYSTEM
MFT/3-Kapex CT 22 Crown Stops The Kapex is more versatile when used with a
MFT/3-Kapex table, CT 22 dust extractor, and
crown stop and extension table accessories.
When you utilize the Festool System, you
work faster, easier, and smarter.

For more information on our saws and the entire

line of Festool products, contact us at 888-337-8600
or visit us online at www.festoolusa.com.
It’s not a tool…it’s a Festool.
SIP.WW_003 6/19/08 12:15 PM Page 3

KAPEX KS 120 EB
Sliding Compound Miter Saw
The KS 120 was developed with one goal in mind: to be the best
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saw with variable speed, enabling the user to match the speed of
the blade with the requirements of the material for perfect cuts,
every time. Finally, a sliding compound miter saw that combines
a large cutting capacity with a compact lightweight design.

The innovative twin-column forward rail design gives this

saw greater precision in an extremely small footprint. And
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ments with dual allows you to work crown molding in
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Rapid miter setting MiterFast angle +LJKO\HI¿FLHQW

with cam-action transfer device dust extraction
lock system. eliminates complex designed to capture
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“The engineering is
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]HURGHÀHFWLRQ´ FastFix blade Easy and precise Ultra-lightweight
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SIP.WW_004 6/27/08 1:47 PM Page 4

Table of Weekend
Woodworking

Contents Fall 2008

8 Tools That Will Grow with You

18 Arguments for an Old Favorite

20 Easy-to-Build Storage Cabinets

26 Adjustable Roll-off Stand

28 Fluted-door Wall Cabinet

36 Mahogany Serving Tray

42 Walnut Nesting Tables

48 Barometric Bookends

50 Weekend Toy Box

58 A Hall Mirror for Beginners

4 table of contents
SIP.WW_005 6/25/08 11:43 AM Page 5

62 Veneered Checkerboard

70 Classic Canister Set

76 Arts & Crafts Style Side Table

84 Router Mortising Jig

86 Making Tapered Legs on a Jointer

88 Adjustable Shop Horse

90 Start to Finish: The Endurance Test

98 Workshop Tricks of the Trade

www.woodworkersjournal.com fall 2008 5

SIP.WW_006 6/27/08 1:46 PM Page 6

Introduction Fall 2008

woodworkersjournal.com

Chris Marshall Special Projects Editor

Larry N. Stoiaken Publisher

Rob Johnstone Editor in Chief
Joanna Werch Takes Senior Editor
Quality Projects Jeff Jacobson Senior Art Director
for a Quick Fix Joe Fahey Associate Art Director
Matthew Becker Content Coordinator

Ann Rockler Jackson Founder and CEO

I
f you’re like many of us, the shop occasionally
Mary Tzimokas Circulation Director
becomes quiet during the dog days of summer. Meg Clark Direct Mail Manager
Push sticks are traded for nine irons, and material Kelly Rosaaen Circulation Manager
Dana Severson Advertising Director
lists sometimes take a back seat to vacation maps. Alyssa Tauer Advertising Operations
We know how it is. But once the kids head back to
school and evenings take a chill, I’ll bet you’re itching
for a good project plan again. Fall is here after all ... it’s time to sharpen the Advertising Sales
chisels, blow off the dust and kick the table saw back into gear! J.F. Van Gilder Company
12740 Hillcrest Plaza Dr., Suite 295,
Well, we’ve got just the “fix” you need in this Woodworker’s Journal Special Dallas, Texas 75230
Interest Publication. We’ve gathered 13 quick weekend projects and some fine David Beckler david@jvgco.com
technique articles that will hone your woodworking skills and get you back in Terri Mathis terri@jvgco.com
Jim Van Gilder jim@jvgco.com
the groove, so to speak. But, let me assure you — quick does not mean cheesy. Phone: (972) 392-1892
These projects may only take two or three days to complete, but it will be Fax: (972) 392-1893
quality shop time. Have a look at the Fluted-Door Wall Cabinet (page 28), our
Arts & Crafts Style Side Table (page 76) or the Mahogany Serving Tray on page Subscription Inquiries
36 and you’ll see just what I mean. Top-shelf projects. (800) 765-4119 or
www.woodworkersjournal.com
Maybe you’re planning to buy a few new tools this fall. Before you pull out Write Woodworker’s Journal,
your credit card, be sure to read Chris Marshall’s feature story on “Power Tools P.O. Box 56583, Boulder, CO 80322-6583.
that Will Grow with You.” He’s been one of our top tool reviewers for years, E-mail: woodworkersjournal@neodata.com
Include mailing label for renewals
and his advice will help you find the right tools to keep your shop humming and address changes.
for many autumns to come. For gift subscriptions, please include
Summertime is sweet, and I hate to your name and address in addition to
your gift recipient’s name and address.
see it go, but I’ve definitely got the
woodworking bug again. Are you
Back Issues & Reprints
with me? Then dive into this Woodworker’s Journal or
special issue and start planning. Today’s Woodworker
With projects this good, it’s www.woodworkersjournal.com

going to be a busy weekend! Workshop Projects and Techniques is

published by Rockler Press Inc.,
4365 Willow Dr., Medina, MN 55340.
Single copy price, $5.99.
Reproduction without permission
prohibited.
Printed in the USA.
Special Projects Editor Chris Marshall
offers sensible tool-buying advice for
Web Site:
the long term on page 8. www.woodworkersjournal.com
©2008 Rockler Press Inc., Printed in USA.

6 introduction
SIP.WW_007 6/16/08 2:43 PM Page 7

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SIP.WW_008 6/23/08 2:35 PM Page 8

Power Tools that Will Grow with You

The real value of power tools is how well they
continue to meet your needs. Here’s some tool-
buying advice for both today and the long haul.

By chris marshall

C
hoosing a new power tool is a
joy when you have the chance,
but I wouldn’t call it easy. All of
us want good value in our purchases
— high quality for reasonable dollars
spent. That new table saw or planer
you’re eyeing better live up to its
hype, because it’s a big investment
you’ll continue to use for a long, long
time. Then there’s the matter of all the
options. The market abounds with
models at lots of pricepoints. Picking
the right one is enough to stymie a
woodworking editor, let alone a new-
bie buying that first drill or sander.
After years of reviewing tools for the
Journal, I still haven’t found the tool-
buying crystal ball that guarantees
you’ll find the perfect tools to fit your
needs. But, pouring over and using
hundreds of different tools has left me
with some general impressions that
may help ease your long-term buying
decisions when those times come.
First, a little preliminary advice that
probably won’t surprise you. The
“best” tool often isn’t the biggest or
most expensive. It’s the one that gives
you safe, accurate results, saves you
time or effort and is comfortable to
use. Pricing doesn’t necessarily corre-
late with these three factors. You can
do fine woodworking with moderately
priced tools if they’re made well. And,
thankfully, the big tool makers we’ve
come to know and trust are building
quality tools at many pricepoints —
not just at the top end.

8 power tools that will grow with you

SIP.WW_009 6/16/08 1:27 PM Page 9
Table Saws
In my book, there’s no debating that a
table saw is woodworking’s go-to
power tool. I use it on every project I
build for ripping and crosscutting
stock. It’s ideal for cutting rabbets,
dadoes, grooves and moldings with a
molding head. It’s a real workhorse
that deserves center stage in any shop.
But, here’s the clincher: unless
you’re planning to make a living wood-
working, you probably don’t need a
cabinet saw. It may be overkill. Truth
is, a premium contractor’s or hybrid
saw with a cast-iron table will do the
job in a serious hobbyist’s shop. Focus
on these features and you’ll be good to
go: your saw should have a rock-solid
rip fence that stays put when you lock
it down and is easy to square up. For
longevity and heavy cutting, you’ll
want a 11 ⁄ 2 to 2 hp induction-style
motor. It’ll have plenty of gusto for slic-
Add-ons and features that improve saw accuracy, safety
If your table saw’s miter gauge leaves
something to be desired, consider buying
a precision aftermarket miter gauge with
preset detents and micro-adjustability.
www.woodworkersjournal.com
A hybrid table saw can offer many of the
features of a cabinet saw at a more reasonable
price. It’s a good option for the serious
hobbyist’s shop.
ing thick stock or plowing dadoes. better design than a fixed splitter.
And, if you’ve got the floorspace, buy Those “hot dog” blade brakes you’ve
the longest extension table package read about really work to keep all ten
offered for your saw model. You’ll of your digits where they belong.
never regret 30 or more inches of side Expensive, yes, but worth the money
support when you need to rip sheet when compared to surgery, lost wages
goods or support long stock. Make and rehabilitation.
that side table work even harder by There aren’t too many table saw
converting it into a router table, or use accessories you’ll need for the long
it as a supplemental work station. term, but a high-quality combination
Some new saws have exceptional blade is a must. It will ensure crisp,
safety features. A true riving knife that accurate cuts with minimal tearout.
moves with the blade is your best Buy a stacked dado set too, to mill flat-
defense against kickbacks. It’s a much bottomed rabbets and dadoes. And
A true riving knife maintains the same position,
relative to the blade, at any cutting height. It’s
an excellent way to safeguard against kickback.
If you’re investing in a saw for the long term,
here’s a feature worth every penny.
SawStop’s blade brake system is proving itself
in both home and professional woodshops.
It senses skin contact with the blade and stops
it in a fraction of a second.
fall 2008 9
SIP.WW_010 6/23/08 12:26 PM Page 10

Combination kits are the “Dynamic

Duo” of routing these days. You get both
fixed and plunge bases with an
interchangeable motor pack: exceptional
value for all-around routing.

buy a 11 ⁄ 2 to 21 ⁄ 2 hp combo kit with a motor

finally, don’t underestimate the importance of dust collection on
a table saw. Saws with shrouds that surround the blade allow
a dust collector to grab the debris right at the source so it
doesn’t coat your nasal passages and worse, your lungs.
Routers & Router Tables
For edge profiling, mortising, template work and joinery,
routers are invaluable core shop tools. But, you don’t need
one of every size. Think hard about the work you do now and
plan to do years from now. If you have no real plans to make
wide custom molding or raise panels for cabinet doors, a huge
3 hp router may be more heft and cost than you need. Instead,
that fits in both a fixed and a plunge base.
These two-base kits are top-notch, in my
experience, and their aggregate cost is less
than what you’ll spend buying individual
machines. Mount the fixed-base in your router
table and use the other one for handheld work.
Here’s what to look for in a quality router:
variable-speed control with electronic feedback
that maintains bit speed under load. Make sure the
plunge base moves smoothly up and down with depth-
setting controls that are easy to comprehend. You’ll
appreciate subbases that accept standard 13 ⁄ 16"-diameter
rub collars, and a sturdy edge guide is always a plus.
A router table is vital to my woodworking. The ability
to feed wood past the bit instead of guiding the tool over
it is helpful for milling small or narrow parts. A router
table is the only safe way to raise panels with those
monstrous-sized bits. And, I like the added control
offered by a stout, easy-to-adjust router table fence when
milling rabbets, dadoes and mortises.
Do you need to buy a prefabricated router table?
Certainly not, although some excellent systems are out
there. If you’re on a tight budget, build your own custom
table from a good set of plans. Then, save up for a router
lift. A mechanical lift will give you above-the-table bit
changing ease, plus the ability to micro-adjust your bit
height. Make sure your lift can accommodate a 3 hp
router in the event you ever decide to step up to heavier
cutting operations down the road.

A router lift compliments your

router table by allowing above-the-
table bit changes and precise bit
Whether you build or buy a router table, it’s a must-have upgrade that height control. While it’s an
converts your handheld router into a respectable stationary tool. Here’s the expensive add-on, it’s a sure thing
ticket to advanced joinery, panel-raising and heavy profiling jobs. for convenience and flawless results.

10 power tools that will grow with you

SIP.WW_011 6/23/08 1:31 PM Page 11
Drill Press
A drill press probably won’t be one of
the first big tools you buy, but it’s sur-
prisingly versatile and worth keeping
in your long-range investment plans.
It’s designed to bore perfectly straight
stopped or through holes ... a nearly
impossible feat to do by hand.
Clamp a fence to your drill press
table, and it’s tailor-made for repetitive
drilling tasks. With a set of plug cut-
ters, you can fabricate grain-matched
plugs to hide screws. A set of sanding
drums converts it from drilling to
shaping and smoothing in a heartbeat.
Before I bought a dedicated mortis-
ing machine, my drill press chomped
mortises on a regular basis with a cou-
ple Forstner bits. Although I’ve never
timed the process, my fancy mortiser
doesn’t seem to do the job much faster
than my old drill-and-chop method.
Maximizing Your Drill Press Potential
A drill press does
more than just drill
holes. It also makes
a fine mortiser
(above) and can
switch over to
spindle sanding with
a set of sanding
drums (left).
www.woodworkersjournal.com
Both floor-standing and benchtop
drill presses can grow with you if you
select a machine with a generous
table, straightforward depth stops
and an adequately sized motor.
A drill press doesn’t need a beefy
motor, provided your bits are sharp.
What’s more important is that it has a
table large enough to support your
work properly. In my opinion, the big-
ger the table, the better. Check for flat
edges underneath the casting; you’ll
need these spots for installing clamps.
The chuck should be easy to tighten
and accept 1/2"-shank bits.
Most drill presses have pulley clus-
ters for changing speeds — and speed
control is more important than folks
realize. Big bits should be operated at
slower speeds than small bits. They’ll
eject chips more effectively, cut clean-
er rims and be safer to operate.
Generally, you’ll have to move a set of
drive belts between the different pul-
ley sizes to change speeds, but a few
new models have electronic variable
speed. It’s an awfully handy feature
and will keep your fingers free of that
messy drive belt grime.
When the time comes to buy a drill
press, you’ll probably wrestle with the
choice of benchtop versus floor-stand-
ing machines. Here’s what to keep in
mind: A full-size drill press will provide
a bigger motor, large table and more
clearance between the column and
chuck for wider workpieces. However,
if a drill press seems like an occasion-
al-use tool, save your money and buy a
benchtop machine. Most can be had
for the price of a top-end drill/driver,
which seems astonishing for a station-
Variable-speed control, available on some new
ary tool. Yet, you can still drill large
full-size and benchtop drill presses, takes the
fuss out of speed changing. There’s need to
holes, cut mortises and drum sand all
touch a belt when switching bit sizes anymore. with a little 1/3 or 1/2 hp machine.
fall 2008 11
SIP.WW_012 6/16/08 1:28 PM Page 12
Jointers and Planers
No one feels the brunt of wood distor-
tion more than a woodworker without
a jointer and planer. Even if your lum-
ber is flat as a pancake when you buy
it, there’s no guarantee it will stay that
way over time or especially when you
rip it to width. As long as wood grows
on trees, it’s gonna distort.
Without the benefit of these funda-
mental surfacing machines, you have
two recourses for salvaging unruly
lumber: flattening and truing with
hand planes or applying brute force to
bend things to your will. The former
takes skill and the latter, brawn.
Additionally, your options for stock
thickness, quality and sometimes even
species are limited to what’s pre-sur-
faced and ready for use. And, factory
surfacing makes lumber more expen-
sive than it needs to be.
Granted, a joiner and planer consti-
tute a big chunk of change, but keep
an open mind about the benefits. For
one, you’ll be able to purchase rough-
sawn stock more economically and
from a much wider variety of sources
12 power tools that
A jointer and planer give you more control over the
initial cost, species options and, of course, final
trueness and thickness of your stock. For serious
woodworking, you’re going to need them both.
when you can 8" machine. The extra table length
surface it your- sure makes long or thick lumber easi-
self. Second, er to manhandle, and I find that the
you’ll finally be wider cutterhead seems just right for
able to take con- average-width stock. Concerning cut-
trol over material terhead styles, I’ve used both conven-
thickness. If 1/2" tional-knife planers and carbide-insert
door panels or a cutterheads. I love the inserts: you’ll
7/8" desk top is never sweat over finicky knife setting,
what you need, and the inserts cut as smoothly as
crank your plan- knives but with less noise.
er there and go As for planers, I’m impressed with
to it. But most today’s 12" to 131 ⁄ 2" benchtop models.
i m p o r t a n t l y, Their power, accuracy and capacity
you’ll be able to make them excellent values for the
start each proj- money. Buy one with a cutterhead lock
ect with truly and two speeds. The faster speed is
flat, square and great for initial thicknessing, and the
uniform stock ... slower “finish” setting will help you
and that benefit tame figured or gnarly grain with less
translates directly into better accuracy. tearout. You won’t find a benchtop
Although it might be tempting to planer with an insert-style cutterhead
buy just one of these two tools, surfac- yet, but plenty of models feature dis-
ing is a two-machine operation. A join- posable, self-indexing knives. It makes
ter flattens faces and edges, while a knife changes quick and easy. Of
planer creates a parallel face and course there are larger industrial-qual-
reduces stock thickness. There’s no ity planers from which to choose, but
overlap in function ... you need both. for a home shop, stick with a benchtop
For a home shop, a 6" jointer will machine and buy a dust collector for it.
offer about 45" to 60" of table length. You’ll need it! Then, use that same col-
It’s adequate for smaller projects, but I lector to gobble up debris from the
suggest saving up and investing in an jointer, table saw and router table.
say good-bye to knife-setting hassles
When purchasing a
new jointer or planer,
one consideration
you’ll need to make is
ease of knife
adjustment. Today’s
auto-indexing insert
cutterheads offer
excellent performance
with no maintenance
headache.
will grow with you
SIP.WW_013 6/16/08 1:28 PM Page 13
Band Saws
No other shop tool can match a band
saw’s curve-cutting prowess. Whether
you’re sawing delicate inlays, curvy
arm leans or roughing logs into turn-
ing blanks, a band saw can handle the
job with equal grace. It’s a much safer
ripping tool than your table saw,
because, there’s no risk of kickback. A
band saw will even help you econo-
mize stock and open up new design
possibilities when you use it for resaw-
ing. You’ll fall in love the first time you
open a dazzling bookmatched panel.
Band saws are sized by the distance
from the throat of the frame to the
blade. It sets the maximum width of
through cut you can make. A second
and equally important capacity is how
high you can raise the blade guard
above the table. This determines the
thickest stock you can cut. So, choos-
ing the best band saw for your shop
will require reaching a compromise
between cost and cutting capacity.
Blade Tension, Tracking Improvements
Relieving tension on a band saw blade can
extend its life. The process is simple with a
quick-release, available on many new saws.
www.woodworkersjournal.com
Once you equip your shop with a band saw,
you’ll wonder how you ever got along without
one. The archetypal 14" band saw is a true
workhorse in home shops across the country.
Fourteen-inch band saws have dom-
inated the home shop market for
decades. They offer reasonable cut-
ting width, around 6" of resaw height
and decent power for the money. For
ordinary curve cutting and ripping,
they’re still a great choice today. You
can even stretch the resawing capacity
another 4 to 6 inches by adding a riser
kit to your saw. I would avoid saws
with less than 1 hp motors if you plan
to cut thick stock or do any resawing.
An underpowered motor turns resaw-
ing into a slow and laborious job.
For wide resawing or roughing out
large turning blanks, a larger 16" or
18" bandsaw may be the right long-
term investment for you — even at
twice the price of a 14" saw. These
saws are really entry-level industrial
tools. Their heavy-duty frames, wheels
and blade tensioning systems are
designed to accept wider 3/4" or 1"
resawing blades. You’ll benefit from a cast-iron table and improved blade
more powerful 2 or 3 hp motor, a big guides and guards. My 16" bandsaw
has never let me down, and I’m quite
certain it’s capable of more perform-
ance than I demand from it.
Regarding features, a few are worth
the extra cost. A quick-release blade
tensioner will save you the effort of
cranking your blade tension up and
down each time you use the saw (it’s a
good habit to adopt). Look closely at
the guides, too. Ball-bearing side and
rear thrust guides will generally last
longer than solid guides and help keep
your saw tracking straight and true. A
rip fence is handy, provided you can
adjust it laterally for blade drift. And,
an on-board work light really helps if
your shop lighting isn’t quite up to
snuff. But, all things being equal, put
your money into a saw with a large
cast-iron table, 11 ⁄ 2 to 3 hp motor and
good guides. These three components
Top-flight blade guides will keep your cuts
tracking straight and true. The best style: ball-
will ensure that your saw will keep
bearing side guides and a rear thrust bearing. pace with your growing skills.
fall 2008 13
SIP.WW_014 6/23/08 12:26 PM Page 14

For surgical crosscutting,

Miter Saws
Miter saws have migrated nicely from
contractors’ truck beds into our shops,
and their dead-on cutting accuracy is
going to keep them there. Sure, you
can make perfectly serviceable cross-
cuts with your table saw and miter
gauge, but I find myself checking and
rechecking that accuracy constantly.
Not a concern with a quality miter saw.
Its oversized angle scale and preset
detents are designed to be spot-on
with every cut. Swing it to the angle
buy a 12" compound
miter saw and outfit it
with a premium blade.
you need, lock the knob and plunge
the blade through. Once you’ve got
your saw tuned up, you can trust it for
making accurate miters and bevel cuts
on your finest work. It’s also my first
stop for cutting rough stock to size.
Over the years, I’ve used both 10"
and 12" compound miter saws and
their sliding cousins. What does a
woodworker really need? My advice is
to buy a 12" dual-bevel miter saw with
nice bright scales and controls that are
easy to manipulate. A 12-inch blade
will cut through a 4/4, 8"-wide board
in a single pass, and I seldom use
stock much wider than that. Make
sure the saw can be connected to your
shop vac; those little dust bags fill
quickly and still leave a mess around
the saw. I’ve tried saws with laser
guides, but their accuracy has never
really wowed me. I’ve always lined my
blade up manually, and it hits the mark
without any high-tech light show.
Be sure to splurge for a premium
crosscutting blade with 60 or more
teeth. It may cost you upwards to
$100, but the payback is immediate
and lasting. I’ve had the same blade in
my miter saw for 12 years and it still
produces clean cuts without a single
trip to the sharpener.
Sanders
Sanding is inevitable before finishing,
but I also use abrasives for fairing
curves, chamfering pegs and taking a
hint off of the ends of parts that don’t
quite match. I turn to three different
sanders: a 5" random-orbit, a 12"

Sander trio smoothes and shapes in short order

Sanding doesn’t have to be an all-day affair if you outfit your shop with the right machines. Your
workhorse for finishing prep will probably be a random-orbit with hook-and-loop pads (left). The
author recommends a benchtop spindle sander (middle) for cleaning up inside curves. A disc sander
(right) is perfect for touching up miter angles, rounding over corners and evening up same-length
parts when the need arises.

14 power tools that will grow with you

SIP.WW_015 6/23/08 12:27 PM Page 15
benchtop disk sander and a small
oscillating spindle sander.
You’re probably already using the
first of these three. Random-orbits
really do a great job of general
smoothing, provided you don’t skip
grits or press down hard. If you’re in
the market for a new R.O., buy one
that accepts hook-and-loop paper and
connects to a vacuum.
When I purchased my disk and spin-
dle sanders, neither cost more than
$100. Low cost made them easier to
justify, since neither seemed essential.
As it turns out, I’m surprised how
often I use them. The oscillating
motion of a spindle sander will take
stock off much more quickly than a
drum sander in a drill press, and it
cleans away a regular scratch pattern.
It’s a wonder tool for working inside
www.woodworkersjournal.com
Need a new drill/driver? Consider
lithium-ion models: lighter weight,
smaller and just as powerful as
comparable-voltage Ni-Cad drills.
curves. My disk sander does a nice job
of smoothing outside curves, knock-
ing the edges off of dowel pegs, touch-
ing up tapers and miters or refining
small parts that are unsafe for sawing.
I wouldn’t be without it. The next time
your spouse wants a good gift idea for
you, ask for one of these two machines
... or both! You’ll be glad you did.
Fastening Tools
We all use cordless drills these days,
but here’s a hint when you retire your
current gun: buy smaller and think
lithium ion. It wasn’t too many years
ago that battery voltages were going
up faster than today’s gas prices. But, I
have yet to see the need for more than
14.4 volts for general woodworking.
Drilling pilot or pocket holes and driv-
ing screws doesn’t require iron-man
torque. I think lifting more drill than
that just builds your biceps.
I’ve been using one of the newer
When shopping for
nail guns, buy an 18-
gauge brad nailer (left)
that accepts nail sizes
up to 2", if possible. A
23-gauge micro-pinner
(below) is perfect for
quick, almost invisible
tacking or installing
tiny moldings.
10.8-volt lithium ion drivers for a year
or so now, and all in all, it’s a powerful
little tyke. The batter y delivers a
steady charge right up to the point of
petering out. The tool holds its charge
for months of non-use and weighs a
fraction of my former driver. I rarely
need more power, and I sure don’t
miss the bulk.
Nail guns are mighty handy in the
shop, too. If your budget is pinched,
buy an 18-gauge nailer that accepts the
widest range of nail sizes possible.
That way use can use it for tacking
everything from drawer bottoms to
face frames. Then someday, splurge
on a pin nailer. You’d be surprised how
much holding power can be had from
a stick-pin-thickness nail. Once
installed, the nail holes almost disap-
pear, and they really don’t need putty.
“Slow but Sure” Shop
Don’t let today’s economic downturns
get you down. You can do a LOT of
woodworking with a few good tools, so
grow your collection slowly. Take the
time to explore each tool’s potential. If
you stick with reputable manufactur-
ers and buy with an eye to the future,
your tool investments will do you
proud for years to come.
fall 2008 15
SIP.WW_016 6/18/08 12:39 PM Page 16

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SIP.WW_018 6/13/08 4:19 PM Page 18
Arguments for an Old Favorite
D o w e l s m a y n o t b e t r e n d y j o i n e r y, b u t t h e i r v e r s a t i l i t y
and strength still make them practical. Here’s how to
build these old standbys.
By Linda Haus
T
hese days there almost seems to
be a prejudice toward the biscuit
joiner or pocket screw jig as the
fastest and easiest ways to assemble
casework. While both of those two
options are handy, I’d still like to make
the case that dowel joinery is not only
fast and easy, but also eminently prac-
tical for the home workshop. With
greater sheer strength than biscuits
and an ability to join quite narrow
pieces of wood, the old standby is my
choice more often than not. You don’t
18 Arguments for an old
have to buy an expensive power tool to
install dowels, but you will need a
drilling jig to make sure your pilot
holes are straight.
Installing dowels isn’t rocket sci-
ence, but there are a few tried-and-
true tips that will ensure good success
(see facing page). As with any other
woodworking operation, take your
time and work accurately. Once you
master the dowel joint, you may use it
more often than you think.
favorite
SIP.WW_019 6/23/08 2:40 PM Page 19

Six Tips for

Successful Doweling

1 Splintered
edges
It’s best to use glue-
dowels. To ensure that Countersunk
glue is moved into the edges
dowel hole, these Spiral
4
dowels have chamfered Dowel
ends and grooves or Grooved A splintered edge on a
spirals compressed into Dowel dowel hole can hold the
their sides. joint open. Prevent this
problem by adding a small
countersink to each boring.

2
To prevent twisting, always
try to fit two dowels per
joint. This makes for a 5
stronger joint as well.
A properly sized dowel hole
will leave sufficient stock
around the boring.

Use the right size dowel for

your stock to prevent cracking
or weakening the workpiece.

3 6
Squeeze-out
Drill pilot holes A doweling rule of
slightly deeper thumb: leave a space
than needed so approximately 11⁄2 times
excess glue has Compressed glue the diameter of the
a place to pool dowel from the edge
at the bottom. or end of your stock.
Glue dowels will This is also the
also allow some optimum spacing
glue to migrate between dowels. 11⁄2 times
up and out. the diameter

www.woodworkersjournal.com Fall 2008 19

SIP.WW_020 6/13/08 4:18 PM Page 20

Easy-to-Build Storage Cabinets

These adaptable and modular cabinets can
stow whatever you happen to hoard.
By Linda Haus

Handling large
sheet goods on a table
saw is a lot safer if you
enlist a helper. Otherwise,
cut the parts a little
oversize with a circular
saw and use the table
saw’s built-in accuracy to
clean up the cuts.
M
y woodworking mentor, Rick White,
preaches the old maxim “A place for
ever ything and ever ything in its
place.” And while I agree with him in principle,
in practice I’ve always had a bit of a problem
with this old saw. Like most folks, whether it
was the garage, family room, basement or
even the woodshop, I just never seem to have
enough space for storage.
A few weeks ago, I decided to do something
about the dearth of storage space in my life. I
teamed up with art director Jeff Jacobson from
Woodworker’s Journal, and we came up with a dead-
easy cabinet design that’s remarkably flexible.
I started with a modular system for building
basic melamine cabinets that can be adapted to
suit just about any storage need. The melamine
panels come finished on both sides with a plastic
laminate (see tint box, below), so they’re stable,
sturdy and easy to clean. Depending on what the
cabinets are to be used for, you can build draw-
ers or shelves to fit and cover the opening with
doors as required. Use a bit of imagination and
you’ll have storage even Rick will envy.

Why Melamine?
Melamine is a slightly less durable version of the standard plastic used in countertop
laminates. It is made by impregnating paper with resins, hence there is a wide variety of colors
and patterns available. The paper is thermally fused to a core (called a substrate), such as
industrial grade particleboard or medium-density fiberboard (MDF).
What makes melamine board such a great choice for utility cabinets is that the panels come with
plastic finished faces on both sides. Aside from the obvious aesthetic benefits, this also makes for a
very stable product. Melamine panels come in a variety of sizes and substrates. You can order panels from
1/4" to 13⁄8" thick, in widths of 49" and 61". They also come in lengths from 73" to 145".
Of course, your local lumberyard will probably only stock the standard 49" x 97" panels in 3/4" thickness,
which is exactly what you’ll need for this project. A cabinet shop can order other dimensions and colors,
if you decide to get creative.

20 easy-to-build storage cabinets

SIP.WW_021 6/13/08 4:18 PM Page 21

NOTE: When you begin cutting

your melamine material, be sure
to trim off any damaged factory
edges so you get nice clean
edges on your cabinet parts.

NOTE: Melamine (thermally fused plastic

impregnated paper) panels, freshly machined, have
very sharp edges. Take care not to cut yourself when
handling them. Curiously, the edges are also a bit
fragile. Always protect any exposed panel edge with
either matching hot-melt tape or hardwood trim.

www.woodworkersjournal.com Fall 2008 21

SIP.WW_022 6/18/08 1:01 PM Page 22

Building the Basic Box

The basic unit in this modular system is a small cabinet that
can be outfitted as needed. For me, the key was to keep it
simple as well as versatile.
First, measure your available space and determine how
many units you need to build. The cabinet that is described
here (about 221⁄2" wide) is a perfect compromise: it’s narrow
enough so that shelves won’t sag, yet wide enough to offer
plenty of storage.
Start construction by cutting the sides (pieces 1) to size.
The factory edge may not be perfectly straight, square or
clean: it’s a good idea to trim about a blade width off of it, so
you’re sure to start with a crisp edge.
Handling large sheet goods on the table saw is easy if you
have help. When I’m alone, I like to set a sheet on a pair of
saw horses and use my circular saw to cut parts slightly
Available at these fine dealers: Highland Hardware • Lee Valley Tools • Rockler oversize. Then I can safely trim them to finished dimensions
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on the table saw.
800-663-8932 Use a jigsaw to remove the toe kick cutout from each side
Leigh Router Joinery Jigs
(see the Elevation Drawings, page 24), then clamp a
straightedge in place and use a straight bit in your router to
plow the dado in each side for the cabinet’s bottom panel
Since 1972 (piece 2). Note that some melamine sheet stock is not exactly

One option with this modular system is to attach doors to the utility
cabinets, using European-style hinges. They require no face frame and are
installed in 35mm pockets that can be bored on the drill press.

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22 easy-to-build storage cabinets
SIP.WW_023 6/18/08 1:07 PM Page 23

Storage by design ... yours!

Begin by combining two or more of these base
cabinets. Next, fill them with a variety of
adjustable shelves, drawers and roll-out shelves.
For example, the author chose to build a roll-out
shelf and place adjustable shelves above it.
European-style hinges and overlay doors are
perfect for this application. The flexibility of this
cabinet design allows you to utilize the huge
variety of drawer slides and European-style hinges
and unique hardware options now available.

3/4" thick. You can get around this by making two cuts with
a smaller diameter bit (and moving your guide to adjust
between cuts), or purchase a special router bit designed to
cut undersized dadoes and grooves for sheet goods.
Stay with the router and your clamped-on straightedge to
mill a rabbet (check the Elevation Drawings for details)
down the inside back edge of each side (to accept the back),
then return to the table saw to cut the bottom and the

4-in-1
spacer (pieces 2 and 3) to size. The spacer is a handy
little piece designed to keep the tops of the cabinet sides
parallel. It also provides a solid edge for doors or drawers to
close against.
Fasten the sides to the bottom with glue in the dadoes and
Multi-Tool
screws. As this is a utility cabinet, I used three standard Level t Plumb
black phosphate-coated screws driven through each dado Square t Ruler
into countersunk pilot holes. However, there are screws
available with plastic caps that dress up the heads, in case All in One Handy Precision Unit
your cabinet ends up in a more “finished” area than
The ideal, portable, all-in-one
the workshop. tool for:
Clamp the spacer in place while the glue dries, to help Do-it-yourselfers Carpenters
keep everything square. While you’re waiting, you can cut Contractors Handicrafters
the two rails (pieces 4), the hardwood toe kick (piece 5),
Only $
1995
and the cabinet back (piece 6) to size. The back can be
made from standard 1/4" white paneling: it doesn’t have to
be melamine. plus shipping & handling
Screw the rails in place next. Drive the screws down
from the top through countersunk holes into both ORDER AT: www.LevelBest2.com
the top edges of the cabinet sides and the top face of
the spacer.

www.woodworkersjournal.com Fall 2008 23

SIP.WW_024 6/13/08 4:18 PM Page 24

Side
(Inside View)
material list
TxWxL
1 Sides (2) 3/4" x 231 ⁄ 4" x 341 ⁄ 2" (Top View) Rail Spacer location
2 Bottom (1) 3/4" x 23" x 211 ⁄ 2"
3 Spacer (1) 3/4" x 3" x 21"
To ensure evenly
4 Rails (2) 3/4" x 3" x 221 ⁄ 2" spaced and properly
5 Toe Kick (1) 3/4" x 3" x 221 ⁄ 2" registered holes for the
6 Cabinet Back (1) 1/4" x 22" x 321 ⁄ 4" shelf support pins, the
The back rabbet author used a boring
7 Countertop (1) 3/4" x 24" x * is 1/4" wide by jig, readily available via
8 Countertop Build-up (1) 3/4" x 5/8" x * 1/2" deep. mail order catalogs.
9 Hardwood Edging (1) 1/2" x 11 ⁄ 2" x *
10 Melamine Hot-melt Tape (1) 1/32", Trim to fit (End View)

* Length is determined by number of storage cabinets desired.

1

The groove for 3"

the bottom is
1/4" deep. 3"

4
10
6
3
1

Exploded View
1

(Section View) 7

9
Counter
Details 8

(Bottom View)
9

8
Attach the countertop to
the cabinets with screws
7
2 driven up through the 8
spacers and rails (pieces 9
3 and 4). Be sure to hold
them short of the
5 counter’s finished top.

24 easy-to-build storage cabinets

SIP.WW_025 6/13/08 4:18 PM Page 25

Attach the toe kick and the cabinet back, using glue and
finishing nails to secure them. A few more countersunk
screws driven down through the cabinet bottom into the top
of the toe kick will add stability and strength.

Making the Countertop

The countertop (piece 7) is essentially just a sheet of
melamine cut to size. The actual size of your countertop will
depend on how many base cabinets you choose to build and
join together. Traditionally, countertops sport a 11 ⁄ 2" thick
front edge: this can be achieved by screwing a thin cleat
called a build-up (piece 8) to the front and side edges of the
counter (see the Detail at left). Be sure the faces are flush
before screwing the build-up in place from below. Add a
piece of hardwood (piece 9) to protect and accent the edge.
Miter the corners as shown in the photo, above right. You The author added 1/2" thick hardwood trim to accent her
can use glue and finish nails to secure the hardwood in countertop, mitering it on a laser-guided saw for extremely
place. I used a trim router to flush-up the hardwood after accurate joints. Apply the trim with glue and finish nails.
the glue had cured. Cover the rest of the exposed edges
throughout the cabinet with hot-melt melamine tape
(piece 10). I used an old clothes iron for this job and it
worked great.

Customizing Your Cabinet

The best aspect of these modular cabinets is that you can
customize the interiors by adding adjustable open shelves,
doors, roll-out shelves or drawers to accommodate whatever
you need to store.
Doors and adjustable shelves are perhaps the easiest
options to build. Simply cut them to size, apply edging
(either hardwood or melamine) and install them. Standard
European-style hinges work well for the doors: they’re
designed for cabinets without face frames, and most models
come with detailed installation instructions. Shelves can be
installed with adjustable brass pins that fit into rows of holes
drilled in the sides of the cabinet. Templates for drilling
these holes are widely available.
Both drawers and roll-out shelves will require drawer
slides that are screwed into the cabinet sides. Since these
are utility cabinets, the drawer bodies can be as
basic as two sides butt-jointed and screwed to the front and Join the cabinets to each other by clamping them
back, with a bottom either set in a groove or screwed in together and using a drill/driver to drive screws into
place. The key is to keep things simple: after all, you don’t countersunk pilot holes every 8" or so down the front and
want to have to find even more storage space for a whole back edges. It’s important that the bank of cabinets be dead
bunch of fresh jigs, now do you? level and aligned as you screw it together.

www.woodworkersjournal.com Fall 2008 25

SIP.WW_026 6/13/08 4:15 PM Page 26
Adjustable Roll-off Stand
a rock-steady roll-off stand will make
machining operations safer and easier.
By Bill Hylton
W
ith this trusty roll-off stand
you can halve a sheet of ply-
wood on your table saw or, if
you are ripping, keep the two long
halves of a board from tipping off your
outfeed table. In addition, because this
one is vertically adjustable, you can
26 ADJUSTABLE Roll-Off
use the stand with a jointer, drill press,
band saw and router table, whatever
their differing heights may be.
I’ve been using a telescoping stand
like this one for a decade or more. The
roller balls are a superior design when
compared to a cylindrical roller. The
latter has to be aligned square to the
line of travel of a workpiece that’s in
motion, or it’ll tend to steer the piece
off course.
This stand is a hollow column that
houses a solid post. The post slides up
and down, and it’s locked at any height
with a twist knob on a bolt. Four feet
give it a solid stance without excessive
weight or an oversized footprint.
Make the post and column assembly
first (pieces 1, 2 and 3). You have a bit
of leeway to alter the girth of the post,
but you want it to fit well in the
column. I recommend you mill the
post but leave it as thick and wide
as possible. Make a column to accom-
modate it. Then, plane the post as
necessary to allow it to slide smoothly
inside the column.
As shown in the Elevation
Drawings, the column is built up
using dado-and-rabbet joints. I
cut the joints on the router table,
using a slot cutter for the dado
(technically, it’s a groove, since it
parallels the grain’s direction)
and a straight bit for the rabbet.
After the column is glued up,
rout the slot (see photo, top right)
for the adjustment bolt on the
stand
your
router table. Also rout a recess for the
tie plate (piece 4) at the top of the
column. Then plane the post as
necessary to achieve a smooth, bind-
free action.
Drill the adjustment bolt hole in the
post using the column as a locator. To
do this, slide the post inside the
column, line up the drill bit at the
bottom of the slot in the column, and
bore into the post. Slide the post out of
the column to complete the hole. Do
this with the post clamped to the drill
press table. Then, without moving the
post, switch to a Forstner bit and make
the counterbore for the carriage-
bolt’s head.
To make the stopped
adjustment slot,
measure from the bit
and clamp a stop to the
end of the fence. Cut
the slot in two or three
passes. Use the slot to
locate the adjustment
bolt hole in post (inset).
SIP.WW_027 6/13/08 4:14 PM Page 27

Column
(Section View)
material list 13
9
TxWxL
1 Narrow Column Sides (2) 3/4" x 2 1 ⁄ 2" x 22 1 ⁄ 2"
2 Wide Column Sides (2) 3/4" x 31 ⁄ 2" x 22 1 ⁄ 2"
3 Post (1) 2" x 2" x 24"
8
4 Tie Plate (1) 3/8" x 11 ⁄ 4" x 31 ⁄ 2"
5 Base Members (2) 1" x 31 ⁄ 2" x 18"
6 Foot Blocks (4) 3/4" x 31 ⁄ 2" x 2 3 ⁄ 4"
Mounting Block Exploded
7 Mounting Block (1) 1" x 2" x 2"
Subassembly View
8 Mounting Bar (1) 3/4" x 3" x 12"
(End View)
9 Roller Base (1) 3/4" x 4" x 12" 3
10 Adjustment Bolt (1) 3/8" x 31 ⁄ 2" 4
11 Fender Washer (1) 3/8" I.D.
12 Ergo-style Wingnut (1) 3/8"-16
13 Ball-bearing Rollers (6) 1" Dia.

Make the base next. Rip the base
elements (pieces 5 and 6) to match the
width of the column. Cut the cross-
laps in the base members. I routed
these joints with a job-specific jig
guiding a bit with shank-mounted
bearing. Cut and glue the feet to the
ends of the base elements. Round over
the edges if you like, then glue up the
X-shaped subassembly.
To join the column to the base, I
used a mounting block (piece 7) and a
pair of biscuits. Rip and crosscut a 1"
thick scrap to fit tightly inside the col-
umn. Face-glue it to the base (orient-
ing its grain parallel to the piece you
are gluing it to). Cut two biscuit slots
in the base, using the block as a
reference surface and making the
slots parallel the grain. Cut matching
slots in the end of the column, using
the post as a reference surface. Glue
the column and base together.
The base for the roller balls is joined
to its mounting bar (pieces 8 and 9)
with a sliding dovetail joint. I routed
both halves of the joint on the router
table. The bar is joined to the post with
a bridle joint. I cut the slot in the post
using my shop-made table saw
tenoning jig. The tapers on the bar
were sawed on the band saw, then
smoothed with a hand plane. The
sliding dovetail is glued; the bridle
joint is fastened with screws.
11
10
12
2 1
7
5
The bridle-joint slot in the post can easily
be sawed with a tenoning jig on the table
5
saw. Cut the margins of the slot first,
then remove the waste from the middle. 6
After fitting the adjustment bolt Roll-off
(piece 10) through the post and Stand
driving the head into its counter- (Side View)
bore, slide the post into the
column. Fit a fender washer and
an easy-on-the-fingers plastic Roll-off
wingnut (pieces 11 and 12) on Stand
the bolt. Install the tie plate (Front View)
with four screws but no glue, so it
can be removed easily should the
post assembly need ser vicing.
Attach the rollers (pieces 13) to
their base with screws, and you are
ready to roll ... literally.

www.woodworkersjournal.com Fall 2008 27

SIP.WW_028 6/13/08 4:11 PM Page 28

Fluted-door Wall Cabinet

A striking piece of wood inspired the
design of this bowfront storage cabinet.

By Mike Stevesand

I
’d just spent the better part of three months designing and building
an elaborate computer cabinet for our home office. The work was
large-scale, precise, had many subassemblies and required lots of
planning, drawing and measuring. When it was done, rather than take
a break from woodworking, what I wanted was another way of work-
ing: a project that would be freeform and improvisational, preferably
with minimal reliance on paper, pencil and measuring tape.
About that time I came across an incredible plank of flatsawn lace-
wood. It had a dramatic elongated horizontal ray figure that I thought
would nicely balance the strong vertical lines of a curved, fluted door
I had in the back of my mind. My project was starting to take shape —
it was time to figure a few things out.
The basic technique was clear enough: I would cut a plank into strips,
cove each one, and bevel the edges so when they were edge-glued
back together they would form a curve (this process is called “cooper-
ing,” named for the barrelmakers who invented it).
The challenges were one: getting a tight joint between each strip
without the strips slipping against each other and, two: smoothing the
coves (rough from the saw blade) while keeping the arrises (the
“spines”) between them sharp and clear, which is half of the visual
rhythm flutes establish. I knew that the door had to be perfect before
making the rest of the cabinet, because the sizes and proportions of
the other pieces would be determined by the door. With the width of
the door absolutely fixed by the high points of the outer arrises, there
would be no adjusting once it was made.

A Cove Conundrum or Two

The first order of business was to figure out how to cut the
coves. I knew the trick of clamping an angled fence across
the table saw and running a board over the blade, rais-
ing the blade slightly with each pass so that the
skewed angle of presentation forms a
radius. I had made a few pieces of
crown molding that way, but this was
a bit different. The door I had in mind
needed narrow pieces coved out to

28 fluted-door wall cabinet

SIP.WW_029 6/16/08 2:09 PM Page 29
Slot the
adjustment strip
and use carriage
bolts and wing nuts to
attach the loose leg.
almost their full width, leaving edges
just wide enough to support the strips
on their trip over the blade and to
bevel later to establish the curve. But
the edges had to be narrow enough so
they could be worked to sharpness
once the door was glued up. It might
have been safer to use wider strips
yielding wide edges and narrow them
down with the bevel cuts, but I didn’t
want to waste any of this precious
wood, and I wanted to preserve as
much continuity of figure as possible.
In addition, the coves had to be deep
enough to create the shadow lines,
which are the other half of the fluted
rhythm, but shallow enough to leave
enough thickness for the biscuits I’d
use to join the strips and for the
screws for the hinges I planned to use
to hang the door.
The solution I hit upon was a jig with
two long pieces forming a “chute” to
guide the strips over the blade without
exposing my fingers to it. Because I
wasn’t yet sure how wide the strips
should be to get the effect I was after,
I made the width adjustable. And
because the strips were to be at least
18" long, and therefore had to travel at
least 36" from front to back, I built up
the ends so the strips could pass
underneath them. And I made the
“legs” from 1/2" stock so the 3/4"
strips would project above the jig,
allowing me to push from the side
www.woodworkersjournal.com
Adjustable Cove-cutting Jig
Jig legs:
1/2" x 11 ⁄ 4" x 36"
rather than the top and keep the push
stick above the blade so it was not in
danger of contacting it at the end of
the cut.
Now I had the means, but there
were other questions. How wide
should the coves be? How deep? How
many? And how was I to get the
arrises sharp after glue-up? (See the
tint box, page 31, for that solution.)
There are tables that give angles and
equivalent radii for cove cutting. My
solution was to cut 20 or so strips of
scrap pine into various widths and
begin experimenting. I clamped the
jig to the table front and back at an
arbitrary angle and began cutting.
The first thing I learned was that the
larger the angle of the jig relative
to the blade, the wider (and larger
radius) the cove is in relation to its
depth. Some trial and error here
yielded the conclusion that 13⁄4"-wide
strips would be right for this door. I
adjusted the jig to that width, raised
the blade to a little less than half the
thickness of the strips and clamped
the jig to the table so the blade
emerged from the throat plate about
1/16" from the inside edges of the jig
front and back, reasoning that this
would result in a cove of the proper
depth with 1/16" edges. I then low-
ered the blade to just above the table
for the first cuts. Another sacrificial
strip showed that I was pretty close,
Build up the legs so
a 3/4" piece of stock will
pass easily under the strip.
After many test cuts on pine, the author used
his shop-made jig to form the coves in the
lacewood staves. The adjustable jig
accommodated both widths of door staves.
but the radius of the cove was a little
too large. I fiddled with the angle
until my sanding block (with coarse
paper attached) bore against the
edges of the cove with about 1/16"
clearance to the bottom.
Ripping and Coving Door Strips
Now I was ready to cove the real thing.
But first, I marked the jig angle right
on the saw table and took the setup
apart to cut my lacewood into 13 ⁄ 4"
strips. (It would have been easier to
have the strips ready, but I didn’t know
they should be that width until I had
experimented.) Some further experi-
mentation with my pine scrap strips
had shown me that a 5˚ bevel on the
edges resulted in a nice, mild curve.
Luckily, I remembered that the out-
side strips (i.e., the edges of the door),
once glued up, would need to be
Fall 2008 29
SIP.WW_030 6/13/08 4:11 PM Page 30
trimmed after the door was assem-
bled. This necessitated extra width on
the ends, so I cut two lacewood strips
to 2" and four to 13⁄4". I arranged and
rearranged the strips into a pleasing
pattern (always with the wider strips
to the outsides) and marked them in
sequence with the cabinetmaker’s
pyramid on the backs.
Returning the jig setup to the angle
marked on the saw table, I ran one
more pine strip through it for a final
check with the sanding block. It came
out right, so I lowered the blade, ran
all four 13⁄4" lacewood strips through,
raised the blade a bit, and repeated the
process until the cove was the right
depth and the edges were about 1/16"
wide. I then readjusted the outer leg of
the jig so the “chute” was 2" wide
A slightly oversized
tubular sanding block
creates sharp arrises.
30 fluted-door wall
After plowing the coves
on each door stave, the
author formed a 5˚
angle on both long
edges (with the
exception of the outside The author scalloped the front edge of the sides
staves). To align the on his router table (above), using a vertical
staves during glue-up, panel-raising bit (inset).
biscuit joints were put
to good use.
(keeping the inner leg fixed relative to
the blade), again lowered the blade
and ran the 2" strips through it, taking
care to run them in the same orienta-
tion with each successive raising of
the blade, until the coves matched the
other pieces and one edge was the
same 1/16" wide as the narrower
strips, but the other edge was about
1/4" wide.
Beveling and Joining a Coopered Door
I took the setup apart, tilted the blade
to 5˚ and set the fence to cut one edge
of each 13⁄4" strip, eyeballing the line of
cut so it just skimmed the outer point
of the edge of the cove. This is a
chance to narrow the edges if they’ve
come out a bit fat. I then reset the
fence to cut the opposite edges, and
Biscuits are used to
align the staves.
cabinet
reset yet again to cut the bevel on the
thin-edged side of the 2" wide strips,
leaving the wide edge alone. These
wouldn’t be cut until the door was
almost finished. Experimenting with
the finished strips, and keeping in
mind the final composition would be
11⁄2" wider with the side pieces, I
decided I liked the door best with five
flutes, rather than the six I had cut.
The biscuit joiner made easy work of
joining the strips into a curve. I simply
struck four lines across the backs of
the strips, set the joiner’s fence to the
5˚ angle, registered it to the back
faces, and cut the slots on all the strips
(except for the wide-edged sides of the
2" strips, which would be the outer
edges of the door). I glued up the
outer and next inner strips in pairs and
The outside staves are
wider, and their outside
edges are trimmed after
the door is glued up.
SIP.WW_031 6/23/08 2:42 PM Page 31
clamped them with handscrews. When they were dry, I
glued the middle strip onto one of the outer pairs and
clamped again. Finally, I glued the two-strip and three-strip
halves together along the last joint, drawing the halves
together with pipe clamps set on a plywood panel to just
beyond flush and clamping down with handscrews at the
ends between the door and the underside of the plywood to
bring the joint tight.
The sanding block worked just as I hoped it would, sharp-
ening the arrises nicely and smoothing out the blade marks
in the coves with 60-grit paper and polishing with finer grits
through 220. Lacewood has a coarse texture that doesn’t
really require anything beyond that. I then trimmed the
edges of the finished door. It was important to have the
extra width there for this operation, so the blade could skim
the high point of the outer arrises while cutting a clean edge
all the way to the bottom.
A 1/8" strip of hardwood,
flexed on his workbench,
provided a perfect offset for the
top and bottom and made it easy
to transfer the curved shape.
www.woodworkersjournal.com
Raising a
Sharp Point
The
challenge
was how to get the
coves’ arrises sharp after
glue-up. I knew I would need a
cylindrical sanding block because the
coves coming off the saw would be rough and
need lots of smoothing. What I figured out was
that if I had a sanding block with a radius just
slightly larger than the coves’, it would bear
against the edges first, before bottoming out in
the coves. If I could cut the coves to the proper
radius and keep the edges narrow enough, the
sanding process would essentially abrade from the
top down, sharpening the arrises before smoothing
the coves.
That was the theory, anyway. A friend gave me a
stout cardboard mailing tube with removable
plastic flush cap ends that I thought might work.
The walls were almost 3/16" thick, and I found
that I could cut it down to a suitable length and
attach sandpaper with thumbtacks. The end caps
kept it quite stiff. A perfect and simple solution
to a challenging sanding problem.
The radius of a mailing tube was a key to the author’s success in
creating his dramatic door with knife-edge arrises.
Fall 2008 31
SIP.WW_032 6/13/08 4:12 PM Page 32

Building a Carcass for a Door
The rest of the cabinet was straightfor-
ward. While the height of the sides
and the width of the top and bottom
pieces are determined by the door, a
few points deserve mentioning. I want-
ed the edges of the side pieces to also
have shallow angled coves to complete
the visual rhythm of the door. I discov-
ered that a vertical cove panel-raising
bit cut the perfect gentle cove with the
sides run across it horizontally in the
router table. To leave nothing to
chance, I mortised the extruded butt
hinges into the cabinet and door and
hung the door before determining the
final width of the cabinet. I clamped
two plywood spacers between the
sides and adjusted the width of the
spacers until the door fit perfectly,
with a minimal gap. I then used
the spacers to register the biscuit
joiner to cut the slots in the top and
bottom pieces.
I was lucky enough to find a piece of
walnut for the top with a natural curve
to the grain that closely followed the
curve of the door. I marked the curve
on the front of the top and bottom
pieces by springing a 1/8" strip of
wood between the end vise and a dog
in my bench until it matched the curve
of the door. I set the cabinet upside
down on the top piece, slid the top
piece under the bent strip, butted the
door against the strip and traced the
curve onto the top piece. This simulta-
neously faired the curve described by
the high points of the arrises and
spaced it 1/8" away from them for a
nice overhang. I discovered that the
angle of the coves on the side pieces of
the cabinet tightened the radius at the
ends of the top and bottom curves,
which was a happy accident because I
think this kind of curve has a tension
that a simple segment of a circle lacks.
I used the top as a template to mark
the bottom. The grain at the front
edge of the top and bottom pieces is
arranged to suggest a mild oval shape.
The back is walnut veneer plywood let
into grooves in the sides and top and
bottom. I recessed it 1/2" to leave a lit-
tle room to mount the cabinet half of a
1/2"-thick French cleat. With the
other half mounted on the wall, this
cabinet is simple to install. I finished
the project with oil and wax.

Top and Bottom French Cleats Shelf and Door Stop

(Inside View) (End Views) (Top View)
This arc is struck after the
door is made. NOTE: The
11 cove is only
found on the 4
forward edge 1
/4" R.
3
of the shelf; /4"
45° omit it for the
door stop.
11/4"
1 1
11
/4"
1
/2"
1
/2"
3
7 /8"

1
/4"

Side 2 Door Pull 1

/2" 9
/16"
(End and
Side Views) Rather than break
up the wooden
NOTE: door’s appearance
The author
2 with a metal pull,
mortised the the author carved
4" 13/4"
hinges into 1
/4"
an organically
the door shaped version
1
first, then /2" instead.
marked their 5
/8"
corresponding
placement on
the cabinet. 11/2"

32 fluted-door wall cabinet

SIP.WW_033 6/13/08 4:12 PM Page 33

Door Staves Exploded

View

6 5
5° 5° 5° 11
NOTE: 2 3
There are right and left pieces 6.

Fluted Door Wall Cabinet

(Front View) (Side View)
3
8 /4" 71/4"
5

211/2" 4

10

material list
TxWxL
1 Top and Bottom* (2) 3/4" x 71 ⁄ 4" x 8 3 ⁄ 4"
2 Sides (2) 3/4" x 61 ⁄ 4" x 20"
3 Back (1) 1/4" x 73⁄ 8" x 201⁄ 2"
4 Shelf and Door Stop* (2) 3/4" x 53⁄ 8" x 67⁄ 8" 4
5 Inner Door Staves (3) 3/4" x 13 ⁄ 4" x 20"
6 Outer Door Staves (2) 3/4" x 2" x 20"
7 Handle (1) 9/16" x 1/2" x 13 ⁄ 4"
8 Hinges (2) 11 ⁄ 2" Extruded brass
9 Magnetic Door Catch (1) Round, 5 ⁄ 16" Dia.
1
10 Shelf Pins (4) Brass 9
11 French Cleats (2) 1/2" x 11 ⁄ 4" x 67⁄ 8"
*Trim front edge to accommodate arc.

www.woodworkersjournal.com Fall 2008 33

SIP.WW_034 6/18/08 1:22 PM Page 34

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34 Weekend Woodworking
SIP.WW_035 6/18/08 1:26 PM Page 35

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www.woodworkersjournal.com fall 2008 35

SIP.WW_036 6/13/08 2:56 PM Page 36

Mahogany Serving Tray

Our author turns to the distant past
for a little design inspiration.

By LiLi Jackson

W
hile today’s woodworkers
have plenty of 19th and 20th
century motifs to look to for
design inspiration, for this project I
turned to the distant past. Curule chairs
were popular during the medieval peri-
od, but they actually can be traced even
further back than that, to the dynasties
of ancient Egypt. They’re familiar
enough, with their knuckle-jointed “X”
shaped bases, but the design element
doesn’t seem to find a lot of application in
today’s furniture. I wasn’t particularly
interested in making a curule chair, but I
did want to incorporate the “X” shape
into a serving table I was making for my
mother. With design in hand, I headed to
contributing editor Rick White’s shop,
where Brad Becker, his trusty assistant,
was waiting to help me through the
construction stage.
Brad and I settled on mahogany for
this project. It’s a great species for a
beginner, essentially knot-free and easy
to mill and finish.

Getting Started
I built my tray first and then moved on
to the base. An overriding concern of
mine was that the legs must be true
and at perfect right angles to the base
and floor. A slight skew in or out would
resulting in a spindly, awkward look. If
I constructed the tray first, I reasoned,
This tray table’s simple and elegant lines are a study
I could always adjust the base rails to
in positive and negative space. The “X” shaped leg
push the legs out or pull them in.
joinery’s history is traceable to the ancient Egyptians.
The first thing to do is cut the tray’s
stiles and end rails (pieces 1 and 2) to
width but a bit long. These pieces get

36 mahogany serving Tray

SIP.WW_037 6/13/08 2:56 PM Page 37
a rabbet along their top edges, so use
a straight bit in your router table or a
dado blade in your table saw to form
them, as shown in the Elevation
Drawings on page 39. Once the rab-
bets are milled, miter the parts to
length and lay out for the matching
notches on the inside of each stile that
will accept the two support rails
(pieces 3). I cut them by hand...setting
up to make these cuts with a router
seemed a waste of time, and I was
looking for a little action with hand
tools anyway. Now grab your biscuit
joiner and cut slots to help beef up the
miter joints. This table may be han-
dling a good amount of
weight, so I wanted to
www.woodworkersjournal.com
After the tray stiles and rails are cut to width and rabbeted, they
can be mitered to length.
ensure that the joinery would be as
strong as possible. Dry-fit the frame to
make sure that you’ve got clean
miters. At this point, you can go ahead
and shape the support rails (see the
Elevation Drawings) and form the
tenons at their ends. When they’re
ready, dry-assemble your tray again,
for a final look. The tops of the support
rails should be perfectly flush with the
bottoms of the rabbets on the end rails
and stiles. When everything matches
up, go ahead and glue up these pieces
and set them aside.
Shaping Handles and Rim
While the glue is drying, cut and
shape the handles and form the miters
on their ends, as well as on the ends of
the back rim (pieces 4 and 5). These
pieces all get a soft roundover and
plenty of time under the sandpaper, as
they are the showiest part of the proj-
ect and will be reflected by the mir-
rored top. When they’re ready to
install, drill pilot holes from the bot-
tom of the frame, three for each han-
dle and five for the rim. Again, you
don’t want to short this piece on
Biscuits are great
way to strengthen
and align miter
joints. They fit
just under the
tray’s rabbet.
strength — you might be carr ying
some pretty precious cargo on it!
Form the miters at the corners of the
rim and handles and glue them up.
Once the glue dries, you can screw the
assembly in place on top of the frame
— just be sure to keep the rim flush
with the back and the handles 1/2"
shy of each end.
Before moving on to assembling the
base, I recommend creating a card-
board template for your mirrored top.
I used full 1/4" mirror for mine, and
it’s not cheap (and it doesn’t sand or
plane well, either!). Take the template
to your glass shop and let them create
the top from it rather than from a set of
measurements.
Achieving the X Factor
The legs (pieces 6) are created using a
template. No method ensures unifor-
mity better, and as I mentioned earlier,
perfectly even and matching legs are a
real key to the success of this project.
I spent a good deal of time refining
my template, lightly sanding it until it
was true and smooth all around. Then,
as you can see in the sequence of
photos (page 40), it’s a simple matter
Fall 2008 37
SIP.WW_038 6/13/08 2:56 PM Page 38

Each square equals one inch.

Start by locating the centers on the

ends of your turning blank. Then
machine your square stock into an
octagonal profile by cutting off the Note: This is
a pattern for the
corners on your table saw. Mount this template. Cut
blank between centers and use a your stock a little
gouge to rough out a cylindrical long so you can
sand (instead of
shape. I used a skew to bring the blank rout) the ends
down to about 1" in diameter. Now find to length.
the center (from end to end) and from
The turned tenons on both ends of the
there lay out your tenon shoulders and
stretcher need to be long enough to engage
both legs, on each side of the table, as you
relieve them down to 5/8" in diameter.
assemble the project. (Note: It’s critical that the length from
shoulder to shoulder match exactly
the length of the shorter stile (piece 9)
of transferring the shape to your above it, otherwise you’ll end up with a
stock, cutting the stock slightly over- pigeon-toed table.) The stretcher tenons
sized on the band saw and then apply- will end up being 114⁄ " long, but when
ing your template. I used one small you’re turning, you’ll want to allow a little
Stretcher
screw at the middle (which I knew extra for paring off. Gradually create an Tenon
would later be hidden by the stretcher arc that starts with the 1" diameter in the Location
tenon) and turned to double-sided center of the piece and gracefully
tape for the ends. One word of caution: reduces to 3/4" at each shoulder. Sand
once you start the final pass with your the stretcher all the way through 320 grit Note: The legs
flush-cutting bit, stay away from the (not the tenons!) while it’s still on must mirror each
ends. End grain will fracture if you try the lathe, and then trim the tenons other to ensure
that you get one
to cut across it in this manner. Brad to length. pair of outside
and I agreed that the best and one pair
approach is to leave a little stock of inside legs.
at each end and use a disk sander
(while the template is still material list
attached) to bring the stock flush TxWxL
to the template at each end. Sand 1 Tray Stiles (2) 3/4" x 21 ⁄ 4" x 32"
your legs and lay them aside for 2 Tray End Rails (2) 3/4" x 21 ⁄ 4" x 16"
now; you’ll want all your base 3 Tray Support Rails (2) 3/4" x 11 ⁄ 4" x 13"
pieces ready to go before you 4 Tray Handles (2) 3/4" x 23 ⁄ 8" x 155 ⁄ 8"
assemble any of them.
5 Back Rim (1) 3/4" x 1" x 31"
6 Legs* (4) 3/4" x 6" x 35"
Turning the Stretcher
I toyed around with using square 7 Stretcher (1) 1" x 1" x 301 ⁄ 2"
stock for the stretcher (piece 7), 8 Long Base Stile (1) 3/4" x 13 ⁄ 4" x 291 ⁄ 2"
but this idea never made it off the 9 Short Base Stile (1) 3/4" x 13 ⁄ 4" x 28"
drawing board. Clearly, this tray 10 Base Rails (2) 3/4" x 13 ⁄ 4" x 101 ⁄ 2"
calls for a round base stretcher — 11 Mirror (1) 1/4" x 13" x 19"
and anyway, this was a great 12 Nylon Glides (4) 5/8" Diameter
chance to get an hour or two in on *These dimensions represent the size of the leg blank.
the lathe, one of my favorite tools!

38 mahogany serving Tray

SIP.WW_039 6/13/08 2:56 PM Page 39

Base
8 9 Subassembly
(Top View)
10 1
43/4" 4" 3
/4"
3
53/4" /4"

Tray Stile
5 (Top View)

Tray Support
Mortise 11
Detail 4

3
1 2
1

Support Rail and Tray Stile

(Side View)
3
3
/4" 1
/4"
/4"
1 1
/4"
8 1 3
/4"
3
/4" 11/4"
Exploded View 9 Slight chamfer
10

Tray Handle
Location
(Front View)

1
/2" 4
7
5

6 5
/8"

11/4"
3
/4"

Stretcher
(Side View)

6
Each square equals one inch.
14"

11/4" Dia.
4 12
7
CL
1"

www.woodworkersjournal.com Fall 2008 39

SIP.WW_040 6/13/08 2:56 PM Page 40

Creating the Tray Support

Since there are only four mortises to chop, lay
them out and cut them by hand. The support
rail’s top edge must align perfectly with the
rabbet on the tray stiles and rails.
The next step is to mill the stock for
the tray support (pieces 8, 9 and 10).
You’ll notice that the stiles are different
lengths, due to the offset created by
the relative position of the legs. Cut
these pieces to size, use the Elevation
Drawings to locate your dowel holes, Use the scaled drawing (page 38) to create a
and glue this subassembly together, fair and true template of the tray leg. The next
making sure to stay square as you do. step (in preparation for template routing) is to
transfer the shape to the hardwood leg blank.
Bringing it Together
The first assembly step is to bring the
sets of legs together. You’ll be drilling
right through two inner legs, but on
the other two you’ll limit your depth to
1/2". Remember, these legs mirror
each other, so be sure to lay every-
thing out before you start drilling.
Next, locate and drill the dowel holes
(I used a doweling jig and dowel-
centers to make this task a bit easier)
at the tops of the legs and pilot holes
for the glides at their bottoms. With
the machining done, you can dry- Take the leg blank to your band saw and cut
assemble the legs, the stretcher and the within 1/16" of the line you marked onto the
base subassembly. Check to ensure that blank. Don’t cut into the line; you need to leave
some material for the router bit to remove. This
all is square and proceed to your
will ensure uniform legs.
final glue-up.

Finishing Up
Test-fit the mirror (piece 11) and tap
the glides (piece 12) in place. After sand-
ing everything down to 320 grit, I applied
a custom stain I concocted by mixing
(half and half) Zar’s® Rosewood Stain
with Carbon Black Woodburst®.
Next, I applied a coat of sanding
sealer and two coats of lacquer, with a
light 320 sanding between each coat.
Use double-sided
The final step is to drop (carefully!) tape and one
the mirror into place. screw at the
Brad was right: mahogany is a joy to tenon mortise
work with, and it’s a fitting detail to a location to attach
project my mother will enjoy for years the template to a
to come. roughed-out leg.
A flush-trimming bit shapes the legs. Note:
Don’t attempt to rout across the end grain on
the legs. Use a disk sander to do the final
shaping on the ends of the legs.

40 mahogany serving Tray

SIP.WW_041 6/23/08 12:22 PM Page 41

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SIP.WW_042 6/13/08 2:54 PM Page 42
Walnut Nesting Tables
Our author forged the path of these
walnut tables from stump to final finish.
By Stan Cloney
M
ost of the time when I begin a new project, I find
myself at a lumberyard of some sort. Not this time.
A friend of mine was cutting down a large black
walnut tree in northern California and asked me if I had any
use for it. Like most of the woodworkers I’ve talked with, I
have wondered about working on a project from “stump-to-
finish,” so I accepted my buddy’s offer and had his tree
milled into lumber. Working with rough-cut walnut has its
challenges and rewards, and it sure went a long way toward
justifying the expense of my surface planer!
Starting with the Legs
My son wanted a set of nesting tables, and I thought this
home-made lumber would be a perfect fit for the project. I
began by making the legs (pieces 1). I ripped and cut them
to size and decided to add a bit of detail by tapering the two
inside faces of each leg. As the lengths of the tables’ legs
A friend of the author offered him the chance to make good use of this
102-year-old black walnut tree. The opportunity proved to be more than
he could resist. The nesting tables featured here are, presumably, the first
of many black walnut projects in this woodworker’s future.
42 walnut nesting tables
vary, I made an adjustable tapering jig that worked well with
the three different table heights (see the sidebar on page
45). With all of the legs properly tapered, I notched the
inside corner of each leg with a hand-held Japanese back
saw, to accept the corner braces (pieces 2) later. With that
step completed, I grabbed my belt sander and cleaned up
the last traces of leftover saw marks.
Gang-cutting the Aprons
One of the great things about creating your own lumber is
that you don’t need to be constrained to the standard dimen-
sions of lumberyard stock. I chose to make my aprons and
even my tabletops 5/8" thick. It just seemed to be the right
proportion. After surfacing the lumber, I ripped enough
stock to make the 12 aprons (pieces 3 and 4). To give the
tables a bit of style, I drew up a classic profile sized to work
for all three tables. I had to determine the proper shape
through trial and error, but you can use the scaled Front
Apron Cutout Drawing on page 44 and transfer the shape to
your stock. With the shape drawn, I stacked and centered
the three front rails and taped them together. Then I spray-
mounted a paper pattern onto the top rail and formed the
shape carefully by gang-cutting the parts on the band saw.
To hold the aprons’ corners perfectly during glue-up, I
made a slick little notch joint. I cut these on the table saw
using my miter gauge and a 1/4" dado blade, as shown in
the top right photo on page 46. This two-step process was
easy to do and provided some additional mechanical
strength to the corner joint as well. Now you are ready to
move on to making the tabletops.
Making the Tabletops
Creating the tabletops (pieces 5) really gave my portable
planer all the work it could handle. As I live in sunny
California, I was able to do this extensive (and noisy) task
outdoors, thus keeping the huge volume of walnut shavings
SIP.WW_043 6/13/08 2:54 PM Page 43

www.woodworkersjournal.com fall 2008 43

SIP.WW_044 6/13/08 2:54 PM Page 44

Front Apron Cutout

Corner (Scale Drawing)
Assembly
(Top View) (Note: The cutout
is the same on all
45/8" three front aprons.)
5
/16"

3 Each square = 1"

#6 1
C
L
x 1 /4" Table
Exploded View
#6 x 3/4" 4

2 4
4
3
5
/8"

1
/4"
3 1
/4"

Corner Joint
(Top View)
1
1

Apron Screw
Holes for Top
(Side View)
Leg Chamfer
Detail
7
/8" 4
1
/2"
1
/2"

material list
To allow for wood
movement, Large Table
counterbore 3/8" holes TxWxL
from each edge, then 1 Legs (4) 11 ⁄ 2" x 11 ⁄ 2" x 281 ⁄ 4"
use a 3/16" bit to
connect the 2 Corner Braces (4) 5/8" x 15⁄ 8" x 45⁄ 8"
counterbores. 3 Long Aprons (2) 5/8" x 17⁄ 8" x 30"
4 Short Aprons (2) 5/8" x 17⁄ 8" x 15 7⁄ 8"
5 Tabletop (1) 5/8" x 17 3⁄ 4" x 31"

44 walnut nesting tables

SIP.WW_045 6/13/08 2:55 PM Page 45

One Jig: Three Different Tapers

3
/4"
Once I had the wood in the shop and my Pivot 4" 4" 4"
design completed, I reached for my tapering screw
jig, but quickly realized that I needed one jig
that would cut three different tapers. The
Angle
three sets of legs would be identical at the top
adjustment
and bottom but would require a steeper angle
screw
as the tables got successively shorter. 241/4" 21" 18"
To achieve this goal, I developed a simple
taper jig with a pivot point at the bottom of
the fence and an adjustment screw
To make
farther down its length. Start the
corresponding
tapers 4" down from the top of each leg
tapers on legs
and finish the cuts with 3/4" of material
of differing
remaining. I used 1/2" plywood for the sled
lengths, try this
and hardwood for the fence. Drill countersunk
simple tapering
screw holes through the fence. Slightly angle 3
/4"
jig with an
the end of the fence closest to the stop, and
adjustable
you’ll be ready to taper the legs. 3
/4"
fence.

3
/4"

out of my shop. I sure hope walnut
mulch is good for plant bedding,
because it is all around my yard now!
Once the tabletop lumber was planed
to its proper thickness, I jointed and
ripped it to usable widths. I crosscut
pieces for the three different tops to
length (with a little extra for trim after
the tops were glued up), taking time to
match grain and figure as best I could.
When I laminate solid-wood panels, I
like to alternate the orientation of the
annual growth rings as a hedge against
warping. I know folks will argue about
whether this is effective or not, but it
works for me. Along those lines, yellow
glue is my choice for this sort of work.
It is easy to work with, forgiving during
clamp-up and durable over time. I
scrape the squeeze-out from the joints
right away, but I like to let the glued-up
panels sit for a couple of days before I
sand them smooth, to avoid joint sink. I
also prefer to sand through a few grits
before I trim the panels to their final
size, which helps me avoid an other-
wise hidden flaw in the wood.
After I trimmed the tabletops to their
final dimensions, I bullnosed all four
edges of each top on my router table.
It gave me an old-fashioned detail that
matched the natural walnut finish I had
envisioned. I found the tabletops needed
some hand sanding where the bullnose
shape blended into the top. With that
completed, I set them aside and prepared

Medium Table Small Table

TxWxL TxWxL
1 Legs (4) 11 ⁄ 2" x 11 ⁄ 2" x 25" 1 Legs (4) 11 ⁄ 2" x 11 ⁄ 2" x 22"
2 Corner Braces (4) 5/8" x 15⁄ 8" x 45⁄ 8" 2 Corner Braces (4) 5/8"x 15⁄ 8" x 45⁄ 8"
3 Long Aprons (2) 5/8" x 17⁄ 8" x 24" 3 Long Aprons (2) 5/8"x 17⁄ 8" x 18"
4 Short Aprons (2) 5/8" x 17⁄ 8" x 14" 4 Short Aprons (2) 5/8"x 17⁄ 8" x 121⁄ 2"
5 Tabletop (1) 5/8" x 151⁄ 2" x 25" 5 Tabletop (1) 5/8"x 141⁄ 4" x 19"

www.woodworkersjournal.com fall 2008 45

SIP.WW_046 6/13/08 2:55 PM Page 46

Cutting the profile found on these nesting tables is best done with the The simple, two-step notched corner joint used in these tables was
apron pieces stacked and taped together. Even though these three aprons formed on the table saw with a 1/4" dado blade. The joint adds a little
are different lengths, the profile (which is centered on each front apron) extra glue area to each corner, increasing joint strength.
is the same size.

Leg alignment jig

to assemble the trio of tables.
But first, the last fabrication step was
to make the corner braces that help
keep everything aligned. I drilled all
the screw holes and mitered their
ends in preparation for final assembly.
Assembling the Tables
To keep the The first major assembly task involved
slender table gluing the aprons together. Again, yel-
legs properly low glue and pipe clamps worked fine;
aligned during
just be sure the aprons are dead
the glue-up
square as they cure. Once the glue
stage, the
author created
dried, I took the apron subassemblies
this quick and over to my drill press and bored three
easy-to-make jig. stepped holes into each short apron,
To make your own, start with a plywood as shown in the Exploded View on page
frame the exact dimension of the apron 44. Since these aprons run across the
frame. Add a cleat with a couple of screws tops’ grain, these holes need to be
left proud to each corner, as shown above. designed to allow for movement (see
After you place the legs into the openings Apron Screw Holes for Top Drawing,
formed by the apron and corner braces (but page 44). This simple approach allows
before you drive in the screws), place the jig
the screws to move as the tops expand
over the bottom of the legs, as shown
and contract with seasonal changes.
below. Then, using a large rubber band with
a figure eight twist, secure the leg into the
Now, it was time to attach the legs to
corner of the jig. the apron. First I glued and screwed
the corner braces into the corners.
Don’t allow this step to move your
Don’t drive the aprons out of square. As I looked at
corner brace the long, slender, tapered table legs, I
screws into the
became concerned that I might have
legs until you’ve
trouble aligning them properly during
positioned the
alignment jig
assembly. I solved this problem with a
over the bottom jig that held the legs firmly while they
of the legs. were being attached to the aprons
(see the sidebar at left). Once the legs
were securely positioned, I screwed
them in place through the corner braces.
Keep in mind, I also attached the
corresponding tabletop while the legs
were still in the jig. I simply placed the
whole kit and caboodle on the under-
side of a tabletop and drove the screws
home. When you attach your aprons to
the tabletops, make certain that the
screws that go in the elongated screw
holes are centered within their open-
ings. That’s it for assembly; a bit of
final sanding and it’s on to finishing.
A Fitting Finish
Natural walnut has a wonderful look
that you just can’t get with any other
wood. Still, I like to help it along by
using a mixture of linseed oil thinned
with turpentine to get the figure to
pop. I let that coat cure for about a
week and then (after a quick rub-down
with 0000 steel wool), I applied three
coats of water-based polyurethane,
with a light sanding before the last
coat. I sealed both faces of the table-
tops to avoid any chance of warping
down the line.
After all was said and done, I have to
say that my “stump-to- finish” experi-
ence was completely satisfying. I’d
recommend it to anyone who has a
hankering to “do it all.”

46 walnut nesting tables

SIP.WW_047 6/24/08 2:51 PM Page 47
SIP.WW_048 6/13/08 2:52 PM Page 48
Barometric Bookends
These handsome bookends will inform you
when to stop reading and start fishing.
By Rick White
W
hen I’m not in the shop, my
hobby is fishing. So, the
weather plays a major role in
determining where you’ll find me. As
you might guess, bookends that help
me decide when it’s time to go fishing
were just about the perfect choice for
my weekend project.
There are only eight parts to each
bookend, and their dimensions are
given in the Material List, next page.
Select some straight, close-grained,
knot-free stock (I chose clear walnut),
then you can start building. Make sure
to buy your weather instruments
before you begin so you’ll know how
large to size the holes they fit into.
Small, inexpensive weather gauges
48 Barometric Bookends
are pretty easy to find on the internet.
The core of these bookends is the
right-angled subassembly comprised of
two identical blocks (pieces 1). After
cutting all four to size, use your table
saw and miter gauge to nibble away
the rabbet on two of the pieces. Refer
to the Elevation Drawings at right for
the dimensions.
Dry-fit the blocks to make sure they
form a perfect right angle, then use
the Drawings to lay out the arc at the
end of each block. Bandsaw the arc,
then sand out the saw marks for a
perfect curve, stacking the pieces to
keep them symmetrical.
The two bookend bases (pieces 2)
are made in much the same way as the
slightly smaller blocks. Lay out the
pattern, then bandsaw and sand them
to shape. Instead of rabbets, the only
milling required here is to drill out
a few stopped holes in each
base. These are for the lead
shot (piece 3) that will pro-
vide the necessary ballast for
the completed bookends.
Follow the instruc-
tions in the tint box, right, to cut, glue
and trim the two quarter circles of
walnut wedges (pieces 4). When the
glue dries, use the Elevation Drawings
to lay out the opening for the instru-
ments. Form them with a hole saw
mounted in your drill press, and you’re
ready to start assembly.
Dr y-fit the rabbeted blocks and
wedge subassemblies together, then
drill and counterbore for the screws
(pieces 5). Apply glue and drive the
screws home. Take a quick trip to the
bait shop (always a good idea) to get
enough split-shot to fill the base holes.
Screw and glue the bases to the
bottom blocks, and cover the exposed
screws with hardwood plugs (pieces
6), glued in place and trimmed flush.
After sanding, apply three coats of
clear, satin finish, install your instru-
ments (pieces 7), and cut a rubber,
non-slip pad (piece 8) for the bottom of
each bookend.
SIP.WW_049 6/13/08 2:52 PM Page 49

material list
TxWxL 1
1 Right-angle Blocks (4) 3/4" x 21⁄8" x 53⁄4"
2 Bases (2) 3/4" x 2 5⁄8" x 61⁄4"
3 Ballast Lead split shot
4 Wedges (24) 3/4" x 3/4" x 41⁄2"
5 Screws (12) #8 x 11⁄4" 6
6 Plugs (4) 3/8" Dia.
7 Weather Instruments (2) 23⁄8", Brass finish 7
5
8 Bottom Pad (1) Rubber, cut to fit
4

Bookend Elevation You can choose to forecast

(Front View) the weather with a thermometer 1
and barometer as pieces 7 in
your bookends, or substitute one
for a small clock instead.

4 23/8" Dia. 3
1
8 2

Base
(Top View) 2 Right Angle Block
23/16" 5
(Top View)
2" 1 /16" R.
41/2" 11/16" R.
1
1

3
/8"
3
2 /4"
Round over Round over

Making a wedged quarter circle

The only difficult process in this project is creating the quarter
circles for the barometer and thermometer. While you could
simply cut them to shape from a single board, there are two good
reasons for taking a little more time and building them up with
wedges. The first is that it just looks better. The second is more
practical: after all, this is a project to use up scraps — the smaller
the better.
To cut the wedges to shape, band-saw the simple jig shown at
Make your wedge-cutting jig 23⁄8" center left from a length of scrap stock (I used 1/2"-thick mate-
41/2" rial so I could get a good grip on the 3/4"-thick workpieces). Set
wide and cut the notch exactly
3
/4" 3/4" deep and 41⁄2" long. your table saw fence 23⁄8" from the blade, and trim 24 wedges
from the edges of wider scrap boards. Be sure the blade has
90° come to a full stop before reaching for small parts.
Gluing up the cut wedges isn’t as simple as it looks. You must
keep all the points lined up while you apply clamping pressure
The clamping jig is against the sides. Another simple jig (shown at bottom left) helps
cut a little over 90° so you accomplish this. Band-saw the clamping jig from 3/4" scrap,
95° the band clamps can then apply glue to the wedges and set their points in the jig’s
draw the wedges inside corner, as shown. Apply pressure with a band clamp.
together. Trim the After the glue dries, sand the faces of each wedge
1/4 circle to final size
4" assembly before trimming to size. Band-saw the outside radius
on the table saw.
(see Elevations above for dimensions), then trim the straight
edges to 90˚ on your table saw.

www.woodworkersjournal.com Fall 2008 49

SIP.WW_050 6/13/08 2:46 PM Page 50

Weekend Toy Box

Both stylish and practical, here’s a

toy box you can display in any room.

By Mike McGlynn

50 Weekend Toy box

SIP.WW_051 6/13/08 2:46 PM Page 51
T
oys are a lot more than mere play-
things. They represent everything
from a child’s dreams for the
future to a parent’s paradise lost. But
even with such wonderful esoteric val-
ues, the reality is that most of the time
they’re just a huge mess all over the
house. That’s particularly true nowa-
days, when a kid seems to own every
toy that’s ever appeared on TV.
The rules are a little different these
days, too. Kids are often allowed to set
up fun shops in the middle of the living
room. On the other hand, you may
have memories of your old toy box
relegated to a bedroom because it
didn’t “go” with mom’s decor.
So, here is a toy box for today. It’s
designed to look great in the living
room or basement, featuring basic
construction with elegant results.
Purchase or have the cushion made,
and you have a toy box that will
easily convert to a blanket chest or
perhaps an extra seat for the
big game.
Whether you’re an old hand at
woodworking or a raw recruit, this
project is manageable with just the
barest array of tools. All you’ll need
are a table saw, router and a few
basic hand tools. A circular saw
might come in handy, but it isn’t
absolutely essential.
Keep two things in mind when
choosing the wood for your toy box.
First, look for a hardwood species
your lumberyard stocks in both 3/4"-
thick solid stock and 3/4" veneered
plywood. We found both in cherry for
the box shown here. Second, think
about how your choice will match your
room decor.
www.woodworkersjournal.com
as easy as 1-2-3…4
Cutting Major Components to Size
Dimensions for the top, sides, front
and back (pieces 1, 2 and 3) are given
in the Material List on page 53. All five Step 1: Cut the plywood panels to size,
parts can be cut from a single sheet of machine four rabbets and test the fit.
veneered plywood, as shown in the
Plywood Cutting Guide, page 52. When
laying out these cuts, pay special atten-
tion to grain direction, so the lines run
horizontally around the box. The bot-
tom (piece 4) can be squeezed out of
your nice plywood, but since it won’t
be seen, you’re better off cutting it from
any halfway respectable-looking sheet
stock you have laying around. Step 2: Add the edge banding, fluted
Most hardwood veneered sheets molding and plinth blocks.
come with an A (or A2) and a B side.
The A side is a better-quality veneer,
and it should be facing out on the fin-
ished project. Make sure the blade
always enters the good side and exits
the B side, to avoid splintering. So, if
you’re using a circular saw to cut a full
sheet to size, the A side should be fac-
ing down. On the table saw, the orient
it so the A side faces up instead. Either
way, use a sharp, fine-toothed blade.
Step 3: Attach the lid and add the hardware:
Milling Rabbets for the Bottom
two child-safe lid supports and a simple
The bottom is secured to the sides, piano hinge hold it securely.
front and back by setting it in match-
ing rabbets. These can be cut on the
table saw using a dado blade or with a
router using a 1/2" straight bit. For
the table saw method, just set the
fence and blade according to the
dimensions shown in the Rabbet Detail
Drawing on page 53, and make the
cuts. If you choose to go with a router
(either portable with a clamped-on
guide, or table mounted), make each Step 4: Add the finish of your choice, a few
rabbet in two passes to lessen the strips of Velcro® and a nice cushion.
strain on the router bit.
Fall 2008 51
SIP.WW_052 6/23/08 12:28 PM Page 52

Plywood Cutting Guide

(Note: You don’t have to cut the bottom
piece from your expensive plywood.)

Top Bottom Side

1 4 2

Make this cut first

Front Back Side

3 3 2

Form a simple rabbet at the bottom of the
sides, front and back for the bottom piece.
There’s no need to stop the cuts, since molding
will cover the corners.
Rout the flutes in your molding stock before
cutting it to length to ensure uniformity.
Disguising the Plywood Edges
Although veneered plywood is an
excellent building material, and it does
a wonderful job of replicating wide
boards, it has one minor drawback:
The edges of a cut sheet reveal the
alternating layers or plys within the
board. There are a couple of ways to
deal with this. One is to apply an iron-
on veneer tape, but with the usage this
toy box may see over the next several
decades, strips of hardwood edge
banding (piece 5) would be a much
more durable edging.
Rip enough 1/4"-thick stock to cover
both the top edges of the carcass and
the outer edges of the lid. This stock
should be the exact width of the
plywood thickness. Trim it to length
(create mitered corners on the lid
pieces), and apply it with glue and
clamps. If you’re short of clamps, you
can use 11⁄4" hardened trim nails, pre-
drilling the trim every six inches so it
won’t split (chuck one of the nails in
your drill and use it instead of a drill
bit). Set the nail heads after the glue
dries, then fill and sand them.
If the trim is minutely wider than the
plywood, make sure the outsides
(appearance sides) are absolutely
flush. You can belt-sand the inside
faces with 220-grit after the glue dries
or use a trim router and flush-trim bit
to even things up.
Assembling the Box
The box carcass is held together with
glue and screws driven through sim-
ple butt joints. Refer to the Exploded
View on the next page to orient the
parts properly. With the bottom in
place, butt the joints together and hold
them temporarily with clamps (or an
extra pair of hands if they’re available).
As you work, make sure the carcass is
square and plumb. Measure diagonal-
ly across the top in both directions:
when these measurements are identi-
cal, your assembly is square. Adjust
clamping pressure to tweak the box
for squareness.
Drill pilot holes for the screws
(pieces 6), using a bit about half the
thickness of the screws in the second
piece and the full thickness of the
screws through the first piece. This
will ensure the screws pull the joints
tight as they are driven home. Be sure
to countersink for the heads so they’ll
lie flush with the wood. Apply glue to
both joint surfaces, set the bottom in

52 Weekend Toy box

SIP.WW_053 6/23/08 12:30 PM Page 53

2 Rabbet
Detail
3 (Section 1
View)

3
/4" 4

3
/8"
5

Toy Box
Exploded View
11

12
Back Corner 10 3
Detail
(Top View)
3
5
10
5

8
2 2
9

3
Fluted
Moldings 45° miters cut on front
(Top View) fluted moldings only

1
7 8 7
/4"

11/8" 1
/4" 11/8"

7
material list
TxWxL
1 Top (1) 3/4" x 21" x 40"
2 Sides (2) 3/4" x 183⁄4" x 181⁄2"
3 Front, Back (2) 3/4" x 183⁄4" x 371⁄2"
4 Bottom (1) 3/4" x 191⁄4" x 363⁄4"
5 Edge Banding (1) 3/4" x 1/4" x 238" Front Corner
6 Screws (32) #6 x 11⁄2 Detail (Top View)
7 Front Fluted Moldings (4) 1/2" x 31⁄2" x 13"
8 Rear Fluted Moldings (2) 1/2" x 31⁄2" x 13" 6 6
2 4
9 Front Plinth Blocks (8) 3/4" x 33⁄4" x 3"
10 Rear Plinth Blocks (4) 3/4" x 31⁄2" x 3" 9
3
11 Lid Hinge (1) 36" Piano hinge
12 Lid Supports (2) Rear-mount
9

www.woodworkersjournal.com Fall 2008 53

SIP.WW_054 6/13/08 2:46 PM Page 54
Keep those little fingers safe with a quality toy
box lid support, like the one shown here. It will
prevent the lid from falling closed and creating
a pinch hazard.
its rabbet, and drive the screws home.
Keep a damp cloth handy to wipe off
any excess glue. If you miss some glue
spots, wait until they become rubbery,
then clean them up with a sharp chisel,
using the blade as a scraper.
Adding Fluted Corners
A simple molding application takes
this project from a mundane cube to
an elegant toy box. We used a fluted
molding, created by milling a pair of
large grooves (called flutes) in one
face of 1/2"-thick pieces of stock
(pieces 7 and 8). The best way to do
this is with a table-mounted router
(see bottom photos, page 52), using a
1/4"-radius core box bit to form 1/2"
flutes. Refer to the Detail Drawing on
page 53 for the dimensions, and make
the cuts in two passes.
After the grooving is complete, use
your table saw to create a 45° chamfer
on one edge of each piece of
the front molding. The rear moldings
need not be chamfered. Now use the
same saw angle to chamfer one edge
54 Weekend Toy box
of each of the front plinth blocks Installing the Hardware
(pieces 9). Again, since the back is After the finish is dry, attach the lid
flush, it’s not necessary to chamfer the with a continuous piano hinge (piece
rear plinth blocks (pieces 10). Glue 11), drilling pilot holes for the screws.
and clamp the blocks in place, refer- Piano hinges are durable, strong and
ring to the Exploded View Drawing for will provide years of service for a rea-
orientation. Now trim the lengths of sonable price. You can rout a mortise
molding to fit snugly between the for this in the bottom of the lid if you
blocks and glue and clamp them in like, but it isn’t necessary. To save
place. Clean up any glue squeeze-out, little fingers from getting pinched (a
and set the project aside to dry. real hazard with large doors or lids),
install a pair of child-safe lid supports
Applying a Finish (pieces 12), which regulate the speed
The most important step in any finish at which the lid closes. Installation
is the preparation that goes into it. Fill instructions are included with this
all the nail holes and any minute gaps hardware.
that appear in the mitered joints, then Now all that’s left is to convince a
let the filler dry thoroughly. Sand the houseful of boisterous kids that those
entire project with 120-, then 180-, and scattered toys belong in their brand-
finally 220-grit paper. Chisel out any new, fluted, cherr y toy box when
minor accumulations of glue in the not in use. You’re on your own for
corners and you’re ready to apply a fin- that job!
ish. Many furniture
builders like to wipe
on a matching gel
stain (in our case,
medium cherr y),
to even out any tonal
differences between the
plywood veneers and the solid
hardwoods. This is also a
great way to achieve
instant aging —
that magnificent
patina cherr y
develops over the
years due to expo-
sure to light and air.
Since this toy
box will receive
heavy usage
through the gen-
erations, we sug-
gest applying
three or four coats of
clear finish over the stain,
sanding all but the final coat with
400-grit wet/dry sandpaper to remove
any dust nibs.
SIP.WW_055 6/19/08 2:13 PM Page 55

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SIP.WW_058 6/13/08 2:44 PM Page 58

A Hall Mirror for Beginners

A few sticks of wood, a plate mirror and a
handful of other odds and ends transforms
bare wall into beautiful accent.

By Simon Watts

T
his mirror differs from the usual
style because the glass is mount-
ed on the front of the frame
instead of being set in a groove or
rabbet in back. This means you don’t
have to miter the corners of the frame
at 45˚— often a sore trial for the
novice woodworker.
Instead, the glass is held in place by
small, L-shaped wooden retainers
fastened to the stiles with brass
screws. As a result, this is a great proj-
ect for beginners … it looks good and
can be completed in a weekend with
simple hand tools.

Choosing the Shape and Size

The first step in this project is to
decide where your mirror is going to
end up. Measure your
space and then determine
the overall size of the
frame. (If you’d prefer not
to make a custom size,
follow the Material List
dimensions on the facing
page to build the mirror
shown here.) A square

The author used lap-

jointed corners secured
with copper nails and set
off by decorative copper
diamonds — materials he
had on hand.

58 a hall mirror for beginners

SIP.WW_059 6/13/08 2:44 PM Page 59

material list
TxWxL
1 Rails (2) 3/4" x 21⁄2" x 14"
2 Stiles (2) 3/4" x 11⁄2" x 19 3⁄8"
3 Mirror (1) 1/4" Cut to fit
4 Retainers (4) 1/2" x 3/8" x 7/8"
5 Back (1) 1/8" x 131⁄2" x 18"
6 Strap Hangers (2) Steel
7 Decorative Accents (4) Optional

frame is one possibility, but if you go for a rectangular frame,

we suggest making the width about two thirds of the length.
We also strongly suggest using 1/4" plate glass, not the thinner Mirror
variety, because it’s dead flat and thus a more faithful reflector. Exploded View
Have the glass cut to size and all four edges
polished smooth. To prevent moisture from 1
being absorbed and marring the reflective
surface, be sure to carefully seal all four edges with
clear nail polish or lacquer. 7
The frame shown here is made of 3/4" reclaimed
mahogany. Darker woods like mahogany or walnut seem to
define the glass better than lighter woods.
Cut the four lap joints on the stiles and rails (pieces 1 and
2) as shown in the Technical Drawings (see page 60), making
a 1/4" offset to match the thickness of the glass (piece 3). If
you’re a new woodworker without a full shop, you can
cut these joints by hand, but if you have access to a shop,
these lap joints are easy to cut on a table saw. 3

Fastening the Corners 2

Fasten the four corners with rivets — copper nails
peened over saucer-shaped copper washers — and 6
cut the decorative diamonds out of copper sheet
metal: these are nautical supplies our author had 5
handy. You could come up with a different metal motif,
reinforce the lap joints with wood pegs or simply glue the
lap joints and countersink a small screw from the back.
Shape the gentle curve of the rails after you’ve joined the
frame. Next, form the retainers (pieces 4) out of the same
wood as the frame. It’s not strictly necessary to put a back
(piece 5) on this frame, but it makes for a more finished job
and protects the back of the reflecting surface from being 4
accidentally scratched. If you do this, use 1/8" plywood held
in place with countersunk 1/2"-long, #6 brass flathead screws
so they won’t mar the wall.

Finishing Up
Topcoat the project with your favorite clear finish. Finally,
having come this far, be sure to use quality strap hangers
(pieces 6), available at hardware stores, to properly support
the weight of the mirror. Now you have it ... a quick project
that shows off your best — woodworking — side!

www.woodworkersjournal.com fall 2008 59

SIP.WW_060 6/23/08 12:33 PM Page 60

Technical Drawings
Retainer Full Size
(Top View)

3
/8"
5 (Top View)
2 7
/8"
1 (End View)

4
(Side View) (Front View)
waste 11/2"

1 (Side View)
21/16"
1
1
4 /2"
1
/4" 1
/4"
3
/16"
2

4 4 Frame Assembly
3 Section View

5 2 2

5
3
151/4"
2
1

4 1
3
1
20 /4"

21/4"

1
/4"

21/16" 13/4"
1 1 21/2"

3
/4"
waste
1
/4"
14"

60 a hall mirror for beginners

SIP.WW_061 6/25/08 11:32 AM Page 61

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SIP.WW_062 6/13/08 2:42 PM Page 62
Veneered Checkerboard
Production methods and contrasting
veneers will help you make one-of-a-kind
checkerboards in no time flat.
By Rick White
W
hatever time of the year it is
when you read this, it’s
never really too early to get
a jump on holiday gift projects. This
checkerboard design was the brain-
child of contributing editor Rick White
one year, as he tried to honor a com-
mitment to start early — even in the
middle of walleye season. By using a
few production methods and changing
the veneer species, Rick built
veneered checkerboards that were
identical to produce and yet looked
different. The design also offered an
efficiency that got him back into the
boat as quickly as possible.
Introducing … Veneer!
If you have never worked with veneer
before, this project is a perfect intro-
duction. It calls for small pieces (which
are easier to work with) and makes
allowances for rookie mistakes. For
example, if you don’t get all the edges
of the squares lined up per-
fectly, don’t worry: this plan
calls for a routed V-groove
For a project like
this checkerboard,
a backer veneer isn’t
necessary. The V-grooves on
the top relieve the stress.
62 veneered checkerboard
that will eliminate your mistakes.
There are several reasons for choos-
ing veneer. It’s a responsible environ-
mental decision, because a clear hard-
wood log yields 30 square feet of veneer
to every board foot of solid lumber. And
it allows you to use the Apple Ply® core
called for in this project, which is far
Take your time more dimensionally stable than any
selecting veneers. Be sure species of solid lumber. But perhaps the
you’ve got strong best reason is that it’s just a whole lot of
contrasts and enough of fun and a truly rewarding experience.
each species to complete Picking the Right Species
your boards. There are four material choices to
make in this project. For the substrate
(piece 1), choose birch multi-ply board
with 15 plies (or layers). This product
is widely sold as Baltic or Finnish
birch, or by the brand name Apple
Ply®. As a substrate, it is incredibly
stable, void-free and presents a solid
edge that can be milled with a decora-
tive profile, then finished.
Your most critical decision will be
choosing the veneer species for the
squares (pieces 2 and 3). You need to
pick two species that will provide a fairly
dramatic contrast when finished. The
lighter species should also be available
as 3/4" stock, to make the molding
(piece 4) that frames the board. Some
good combinations are ebony and ash,
cherry and soft maple and Rick’s favorite:
walnut burl and bird’s eye maple. Make
sure both veneers are the same thick-
ness (usually either 1/32" or 1/40").
SIP.WW_063 6/13/08 2:42 PM Page 63

www.woodworkersjournal.com fall 2008 63

SIP.WW_064 6/13/08 2:42 PM Page 64

1
4

material list
TxWxL
1 Substrate 3/4" x 16" x 16" 3
/8"
2 Light Squares (32) 1/40" x 2" x 2" 30°
3
3 Dark Squares (32) 1/40" x 2" x 2" 1
/8"
/4"
3
4 Molding (1) 1" x 2 ⁄ 8" x 80"
1 /8" 3
/8"

5 Biscuits, #0 (4) 13 ⁄ 4" x 5/8" Checkerboard Molding/substrate Detail

Exploded View (Section View)

Making a Sandwich
Begin building the checkerboard by
cutting the substrate to size (see the
Material List, above), then turn your
attention to the 64 squares of veneer.
You can cut enough squares for up to
three boards at the same time using
the following method.
Select veneer that is at least 41⁄4"
wide. On the jointer, dress one edge of
each of two pieces of scrap plywood,
then sandwich alternating sheets of
veneer (first walnut, then maple and
so on) between the pieces of plywood.
Make sure one edge of each piece of
veneer extends past the jointed edges
of the plywood, as shown in Figure 1.
If you have more than eight pieces of
veneer, make a second sandwich.
Drill each sandwich for three sets of
countersunk screws. The pilot holes
should be the full diameter of the
screws in the top layer of plywood and
in the veneers (to prevent splitting the
delicate veneer) but only half the thick-
ness of the screws in the lower piece of
plywood, to provide some grab. Drive
the screws, then use a flush-trim bit
to simultaneously create a straight
edge along all the sheets of veneer in
each sandwich.
Leaving the veneer in the sandwich-
es, set your table saw fence exactly
21⁄16" from the blade. Rip the sandwich-
es into strips (see Figure 2), with the
previously squared edges against the
fence. If your veneer was a little over
4" wide, this process will yield two
strips. If the veneer was wider, obvi-
ously you’ll get more.
After ripping, pass both edges of each
sandwich across the jointer, taking 1/32"
on each pass. The screws will hold the
sandwich together, and the result will be
sandwiches exactly 2" wide.
Creating Veneer Squares
Here’s the beauty of this production
method: you can leave the veneers in
their protective sandwiches all the way
through the process until they are
actually cut into perfect 2" squares.
The next step is to attach a wide auxil-
iary fence to your table saw’s miter
gauge, then place a stop on the fence
exactly 2" past the far side of the blade
(see Figure 3).

64 veneered checkerboard
SIP.WW_065 6/13/08 2:43 PM Page 65
Install a fine crosscut blade with at
least 60 teeth in the table saw. The
sandwich and the auxiliar y fence
combine to provide zero-clearance
support for the crosscuts, but a fine
blade ensures there’s no tearout. Trim
the first end off a sandwich (including
one set of the screws), then carefully
proceed along the sandwich, making
another cut every 2".
Taping the Squares Together
Once your all veneer squares are cut
to size, lay them out on a tabletop and
orient them so all the grain patterns
run in the same direction. In the first
row, you should have a white square
on each player’s right. Turn the best
side up on each square, then start
taping them together with veneer tape
as shown in Figure 4. This is a special
soft paper tape with holes in it to
reduce the amount of coverage, and
thus the amount of sanding required
to remove it. Make sure the lines are
straight, but a small gap won’t hurt if it
keeps things aligned.
A Shop-built Veneer Press
To apply pressure to the center of the
checkerboard as you glue it to the sub-
strate, you’ll need to build a veneer
www.woodworkersjournal.com
Batten with veneer
added to build up
its center
Caul (plywood)
Waxed paper
Taped-up veneer
squares 1
Substrate
(Apple Ply®) Sandwich several layers of veneer between two
jointed pieces of scrap plywood, then use an
Caul (plywood)
edge-trimming bit to establish a straight edge.
press (see the illustration, above). 2
Inside of two sheets of scrap
plywood (called cauls), you’ll place the With the straight edge against your table saw
substrate, then the veneer, and on top fence, rip the plywood, and thus the veneers,
of that a layer of wax paper. into strips. Then joint both edges of each strip
The press applies pressure in the down to a 2" width.
center first, and then to the outside
edges. This is done by means of a
series of battens — sticks that are
thicker in the middle than at the ends.
The easiest way to make them is to
simply glue two layers of 7"-long
veneer to the center of each piece of
stock to build up the thickness.
Apply standard yellow glue with 3
a roller, spreading an even light coat
on the substrate only (see Figure 5, With a fine blade installed in the table saw,
next page). Carefully lay the taped-up crosscut the jointed strips into 2" squares,
veneer in place, briefly allow it to tack, using a long auxiliary fence and a stop block.
then assemble the press and apply
clamps to the battens.
Milling the V-grooves
After you remove the assembly from
the press (give it a day to cure), sand
it lightly to remove any residual glue,
but don’t sand through the veneer.
Install a 45° V-groove bit in your
4
router table and expose 1/16" of it
above the tabletop. Make a pass on Use special, quick-sanding veneer tape to
some scrap, adjusting the height if nec- assemble the squares of veneer into
essary. Plow the two center grooves in a grid. Apply the tape to the best side.
fall 2008 65
SIP.WW_066 6/13/08 2:43 PM Page 66

checkered history
Early in the last
century, Sir
Gardner Wilkinson
discovered a
portrayal of King
Rameses playing checkers
(or draughts) in the ancient
5
temple of Thebes, circa 4000 BC.
This verified that the game had Apply glue to the substrate only before stacking
preceded chess. Checkers was the assembly in your veneer press. Roll it out
introduced to Europe from Egypt for even coverage.

around 1500 AD. the board (see Figure 6), then move the
fence 2" to make the next series of cuts.
Plow four grooves this time, rotating
the board 90° after each cut. Repeat the
process to complete the decorative
“V”s. Use the same bit to chamfer the
outside top edges of the board, then
leave it in the router.
6
Completing the Molding
After you have ripped the molding to Use the same 45° V-groove bit
to plow the groove in the top
size, plow a groove into its top face
of the frame (inset) as you did
using the same V-groove bit you did
for the checkerboard grid.
for the checkerboard’s top (see the
inset photo for Figure 6). The illustra-
tions on the next page provide the
exact location. Once that’s completed,
switch to a straight bit to mill the
rabbet on the top of the molding (see
Figure 7) and a matching rabbet on
the bottom edges of the substrate.
You can also use a dado blade to
cut the substrate rabbet, as shown 7
in Figure 7.
A dado blade in the table saw
Complete the molding by tilt-
cuts rabbets in the substrate
ing your table saw blade to 30° and
and the frame (inset).
chamfering the top outside edge
(see Figure 8). Reset the blade to
90°, then sand the molding and
miter it to length, dry-fitting
it to the substrate as you do.

Glue-up and Finishing

If this were a picture you
were framing, a coat of glue on
8
the miters and a few clamps are
all that would be needed to
Once you've completed the V-groove and
assemble the frame. However, a
rabbet on your molding, switch to a fine rip
checkerboard gets a lot more use than blade for the chamfer cut. Be sure to feed the
narrow workpiece with a push stick.

66 veneered checkerboard
SIP.WW_067 6/23/08 12:34 PM Page 67

3 2
Dark Light
Squares Squares
4
Molding

Technical
Veneered Checkerboard Drawings
(Full size)

1
Substrate
4

a picture frame, so reinforce the
miters with #0 biscuits. Cut the slots,
apply the glue and clamp the frame
together. Make sure it’s both flat and
square as you apply pressure with a
band clamp (insert the board while
clamping, but remove it before the
glue sets).
After the glue has cured, apply a coat
of glue to the rabbet in the frame and
install the checkerboard. Secure it
with spring clamps, using pads to
protect the veneer. Clean up any glue
squeeze-out with a damp rag.
Finishing Up
Sand the entire project with 220-grit
paper, going easy on the veneer if
you’re using a power sander. Then
apply three coats of clear satin
polyurethane finish: it’s durable
enough to stand up to heavy use. Sand
lightly between these coats with
320-grit paper to remove any dust nibs.
Now, round up a set of checkers and
wrap this gift up for a special child in
your life. Checkers is a game he or she
could play for a lifetime on your
custom veneered gameboard.

www.woodworkersjournal.com fall 2008 67

SIP.WW_068 6/19/08 11:28 AM Page 68

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68 Weekend Woodworking
SIP.WW_069 6/19/08 11:41 AM Page 69

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SIP.WW_070 6/13/08 2:38 PM Page 70

Classic Canister Set

Try your hand at segmented woodworking
while reviving a useful kitchen standard.

By Brad Becker

I
n the new culinary world order, flour, Getting the Bevel Right Before
sugar and salt are “so twentieth cen- Moving On
tury,” but coffee and tea are definitely When you’re making a segmented
“in.” And so a familiar kitchen staple — project like this, setup is all-important.
the canister set — is destined for a If you set your bevels at 221⁄4° instead
comeback, only it’s holding trendy of 221⁄2°, for instance, you’ll get a quick
new ingredients for a new millennium. lesson in the power of multiplication. A
This project has been designed for 1/4° times eight equals ... well, it equals
customization. You can make one or a very leaky canister. So get some scrap
six canisters, and you can make each wood out and set your fence and blade.
as tall or short as your kitchen setup (Use the Material List and the
requires. You just can’t make them Elevation Drawings on page 72 for all
fatter (at least not without major your construction details.) When
modifications to these plans). My pro- you’re sure you’ve got your setup
duction approach, as you can see in
the photo at left, is to create one long
Absolute accuracy is never in doubt if you make
glued-up octagon cylinder and then
your canisters from one glued-up octagon. The
author uses an accurate flip-stop miter jig to
cut each canister to length.
crosscut his canisters to length. All the other
parts are uniform.

70 classic canister set

SIP.WW_071 6/13/08 2:39 PM Page 71

Forming The Cylinder

Packing tape, says the author, finds plenty of applications in his shop —
usually in the type of “pre-clamping” application shown here. Remember,
when you’re doing a multiple-step glue-up like this, choose a glue that
affords you as long an open time as possible.

The first step is to carefully lay all your mitered
pieces on top of the packing tape with their ends
squared up. Make sure the miters butt from one
end to the other, and then quickly spread your
glue in all the miters.
As soon as you’ve applied the glue, pick up
the two ends of the packing tape and start
rolling. The miters will come together easily,
and the tape will temporarily “clamp” your
cylinder together.
Bring on the muscle with a few web clamps,
one at each end and one in the middle. Tighten
the clamps securely, and then use a damp rag
to wipe off as much excess glue from the inside
of the cylinder as possible.

right, cut eight test pieces to width and
wrap them up with tape. Even a 1/32°
alignment error will multiply up to
a poor fit. So believe me, it’s worth
fussing over on this project!
Once you’ve tested your setup, go
ahead and choose your stock.
Remember, you’re making a number
of canisters from the same glue-up, so
make sure you have nice uniformity in
grain and color.
I picked a 1/2"-thick board and
jointed one edge dead straight before
moving to the table saw. Decide the
heights of your three canisters, throw in
a few inches of waste for good measure,
and crosscut your board to length. I
drew some diagonal lines on each side
with different colored chalk to keep
things lined up and then proceeded to
cut my sides (pieces 1).
Keep milling until you have enough
sides to create a complete octagon. I
recommend that you cut a few extra
pieces, just for good measure. Now
you’re ready to create the “master
cylinder.” Get out the glue, some pack-
ing tape and a set of web clamps.
Building the Master Cylinder
The next step is going to be a real
breeze, and that’s because you’ve used
up lots of cheap scrap wood testing
your bevel setup before you cut into
your expensive hardwood. For that
reason, ever ything is going to fit
together perfectly and you’re going to
end up with a perfect “master cylin-
der.” In my opinion, the origin of the
famous woodworker’s anthem “meas-
ure twice, cut once,” can be traced to
segmented projects, and you’ll see
why that’s true at this point.

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SIP.WW_072 6/13/08 2:39 PM Page 72

Full-size Top Assembly Full-size Side Elevation Full-size

(Side View) (End View) Side and Rib
3
Assembly
/16" (Top View)
6
22.5°
45° 1
5
3
21/8"
/16" The ribs, in
1
/8" addition to being
decorative, will hide
3
4 any small gaps that 1
/16"
occur in the canister’s
eight miter joints.
15
/16"
1

1
2
Exploded View .5°
2 1

6
5

4
Side and Rib
Assembly
(Side View)

15
/16"

1
/4"
1
/8" 1

3
2
Full-size Bottom Assembly
(Side View)

material list
TxWxL
1 Sides* (8) 1/2" x 2 1 ⁄ 8" x 25"
2 Ribs* (8) 1/8" x 3/8" x 25"
3 Bottoms (3) 3/4" x 6" x 6"
4 Tops (3) 1/2" x 6" x 6"
5 Top Accents (3) 1/2" x 43⁄ 4" x 43⁄ 4"
6 Handles (3) 1/2" x 1/2" x 2 1 ⁄ 8"
7 Base Buttons (12) 1/2" x 1/8" Silicone
*The sides and ribs for these canisters were cut to 5 1 ⁄ 2", 7" and
81 ⁄ 2" to create total heights of 7 1 ⁄ 4", 8 3⁄ 4" and 10 1 ⁄ 4" (including the 3
bottoms and lids).
7

72 classic canister set

SIP.WW_073 6/13/08 2:39 PM Page 73
The simple jig shown at right will
ensure that all your rib cuts will be
perfectly located on the miter joints of
each cylinder. As with many of the steps in
this project, the author recommends testing your
setup with the “drop” from the cylinder glue-up.
As you can see in the tint box photo
series on page 71, the first step is to
lay out a few strips of packing tape on
your work surface. Secure each end of
this tape to the bench to ensure that
things don’t bunch up or move on you
as you lay your pieces down, each
touching the one next to it. Your chalk
lines will help you with the sequenc-
ing. Just be sure to have a good look at
the outside of each piece as you work
through your layout process. If you
spot a ding or a piece has warped or
twisted, now is the time to grab one of
those extras that you cut.
Once all the pieces are lined up, (and
your web clamps are close at hand),
use a foam brush to apply glue to the
matching bevels (including the first
and last ones). Because these canis-
ters are going to end up in the kitchen,
I recommend using a waterproof glue
with adequate open time. I went with
Titebond® III. It’s waterproof, gives
you plenty of open time (eight min-
utes) and cleans up easily with water.
Move quickly to apply the glue and
then, using the tape, slowly roll up
www.woodworkersjournal.com
Select clear 1/8" maple for the ribs and joint one edge before firing up
the table saw. With thin stock like this, a push stick is especially
important. Also, be sure your stock is completely free of defects.
your master cylinder. Secure every-
thing with the web clamps, and you’re
ready to move on to the next step.
Once the glue dries on your master
cylinder, crosscut it to your various
canister lengths. The top photo on
page 70 shows me doing just that. Use
your miter fence and a good stop and
move slowly ... this is no time to mess
up all the work you’ve done already. I
found that Lyptus, the wood I chose
for my canisters, mills pretty nicely,
but I still sanded both ends smooth
(using a block to prevent rounding),
through 120 grit. I used maple ribs
that ran the length of the eight miter
joints. They not only create a design
element that visually connects the
maple top and bottom pieces, but also
provide a bit of “fudge factor.” If your
miter joint has a small gap, no one will
ever see it. You’ve got to like that.
To help accurately locate the rib
veins, your next step is to make your-
self a sled like the one shown above,
left. Use a square scrap of plywood to
create the base. Then attach two
beveled pieces and two cross ties. The
bevels (221⁄2°) can be formed on the
table saw. After cutting them to size, I
placed the two pieces right up against
each other on the base, screwed them
in position and then screwed the two
cross ties to them. Set your fence so
the blade is directly in line with the
point where the bevels meet and raise
your blade high enough to cut
through the base and the joined edges
of the bevels, but be sure and stay
below the cross ties: they’ll be the only
thing holding the jig together after the
first cut is made. Adjust your blade
height using a leftover segment of the
master cylinder in the jig; you want the
1/8" blade to penetrate the canister
miters to a depth of exactly 3/16".
With all that in mind, go ahead and cut
all the rib veins.
Creating the Ribs
After jointing one edge smooth, rip
your ribs (pieces 2) to width on the
table saw, as shown in the top right
photo. Be sure to use a push stick with
this 1/8"-thick stock and make sure
there are no knots or cracks in sight.
fall 2008 73
SIP.WW_074 6/13/08 2:39 PM Page 74

Test the fit in the scrap you used to set your blade depth:
you want a nice, tight fit: half in, half out. Once your ribs fit
the miters, rip enough material for all three canisters and,
after a light sanding, crosscut them to their three lengths. I
put my packing tape to work during the glue-up phase; it
brings just enough pressure to hold the ribs steady and
tight while the glue dries. When all the ribs are in place and
the glue is dry, remove the tape and sand through 180 grit,
softening the edges and making sure that the tops and
bottoms are perfectly flush.

Forming the Octagonal Tops, Bases and Accents

With your three cylinders ready to go, it’s time to move on
to the bottoms and tops (pieces 3 and 4) and top accents
(pieces 5). These pieces start out as squares and are cut into
octagons on the miter saw. It’s a simple process — just set
your miter saw to 45° and either use tape as a marker or
clamp a stop to your fence. Measure from the corner of the
square piece in, as shown in the illustration below. Once
again, I strongly recommend testing your setup with scrap.
Work your way around each of the three tops and then do
the same thing with the three accent pieces. Then, move
over to the table saw and, using a 3/4" dado blade, form the
rabbets on the bottom of the lid and the top of the base piece
(see the Elevation Drawings). Keep rotating the pieces
while you nibble away the waste. Sand the saw marks from
the rabbets.
13/4"
Line up some tape on your miter saw’s
fence as a “stop” when you’re ready
to create the top, base and accent
pieces. Use the illustration at right to
lay out your cuts. Again, you can’t
go wrong using scrap to make 19/16"
6 poly outside. I stuck silicone button feet to the bottoms keep
a couple of test cuts. 4 the wood dry on a busy, sometimes-wet countertop.
5
The handles are also formed on the miter saw,
once again using tape on the fence to create
a stop. After each cut, flip the stock over to 6
form opposing miters.
The final step with these pieces is to form the chamfers
along their top edges. I did this machining on my router table,
using a chamfering bit. Work your way around each piece
again and take a sanding pass to smooth everything out.
Making the Handles and Gluing Everything Together
The final pieces to mill are the handles (pieces 6), which are
also machined on the miter saw. Mill your stock to overall
size and start with the blade set at 45°. Cut off one end, flip
your piece over and slide it forward to your tape “stop” on
the fence. The second cut creates the first handle. Keep cut-
ting and flipping until you have all three handles. Sand these
through the grits, softening their edges as you go.
Now you’re ready to bring everything together. I glued
the bases to the cylinders first (using epoxy) and then glued
the handles to the top accents, pointing the handles in the
direction of the grain. Once that subassembly dried, I glued
it to the lid, keeping everything centered and making sure
the grain on both pieces ran in the same direction. Test your
fit and do any necessary final sanding at this time. Glue the
silicon bumpers (pieces 7) to the bottoms of each canister
and use a tack cloth to get ready for finishing.
Finishing Up
Any wood finish will be non-toxic once it cures. I used salad-
bowl finish inside my canisters and three coats of wipe-on

74 classic canister set

SIP.WW_075 6/19/08 12:05 PM Page 75

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SIP.WW_076 6/13/08 2:35 PM Page 76
Arts & Crafts Style Side Table
O p e n a n d s t u r d y, s i m p l e a n d s t y l i s h , t h i s
side table blends nicely into any decor.
By Mike McGlynn
I
don’t know about the rest of you, but
finding a Christmas present for my
parents gets harder and harder
every year. There are only so many
times you can get away with giving
them a new photo or subscription to
Southern Living. So a couple years
ago, I decided I would try something
that I should have thought of a long
time ago — I would build them a piece
of furniture. Actually, I did think of it a
long time ago — I gave them the cof-
fee table I made in high school shop as
a Christmas present.
This time around, I designed a small
Arts & Crafts style side table that they
could use next to a chair in their living
room. I decided to make the table out
of the traditional quartered white oak
with a medium-dark stain. This piece
Selecting dramatic-looking wood is one of
76 arts & crafts style
is an understated design that makes
itself at home in many different decors.
Because it uses a relatively small
amount of wood (completely made
from three 9-foot boards), it was
a pleasure to select the stock for this
table. I started my selection process
by pulling out a number of straight
boards that were of complementary
color. I first selected the wood for the
top, deciding on a board with a nice
flake pattern that could be cut in three
pieces and glued together to compose
a pleasing surface. For the ends and
the shelf, I chose a couple of boards
with a straight grained appearance but
a more subtle flake pattern than the
top. As I chose these boards I envi-
sioned how the panels were going to
be glued up and how much width
I was going to need for each one. It’s a
sorr y day when, after milling the
boards in preparation for glue-up, the
panel ends up 1/2" too small after
jointing the edges.
As is my usual process, I let these
boards adjust for a few days to the
relative humidity of my shop before
milling them to help prevent unpleas-
ant surprises later on.
the keys to success in an elegantly simple
design like this side table. Quartersawn
white oak with its uniform grain and
dramatic “flake patterns” is an
Arts & Crafts mainstay.
side table
Begin Milling the Lumber
My first milling step was to cut the
boards into pieces that were an inch or
two oversized in length, making sure I
had the best orientation before I
rough-cut them. Next, I face-jointed
each of the boards to create one
perfectly flat face. I then ran all of the
pieces through the planer and took
them down to their proper thicknesses.
At this point, I compared the widths of
my pieces to the widths of my finished
panels. To achieve a balanced-looking
panel, it is often necessary to adjust
the board so that the grain pattern is
centered. I don’t just joint one edge
and cut it to width. I cut and joint my
pieces so that my glued-up panels are
1/4" wider than finished. This allows
me to clamp them up without using
any kind of pads.
Marking Out the Joints
When I was finished milling the
boards, I selected pieces for the top,
sides and the shelf (pieces 1 through
3), laid them out and marked them for
biscuit joints. I made sure while plac-
ing the biscuit joints that the biscuits
would not be exposed when the panels
were cut to length or when the cutouts
on the ends were revealed. I then cut
all the biscuit joints.
Because I was planning on using a
water-based stain, I was already think-
ing about my glue choice. It makes a
difference. If a panel is glued up with
regular white or yellow glue and then
stained with a water-based stain,
the glue line often picks up the stain
and sticks out like a sore thumb.
SIP.WW_077 6/13/08 2:35 PM Page 77

www.woodworkersjournal.com fall 2008 77

SIP.WW_078 6/13/08 2:35 PM Page 78

14" 20"
Arts & Crafts Side Table
(Front View)

21/2"

Arts & Crafts Side Table

(End View)
24"

1"
1
16 /2"

41/2"

14"

Exploded
View

1 2

material list
TxWxL
1 Top (1) 3/4" x 14" x 20"
5 2 Ends (2) 3/4" x 14" x 231 ⁄ 4"
3 Shelf (1) 3/4" x 12" x 20"
4 Rails (2) 3/4" x 13 ⁄ 4" x 161 ⁄ 2"
5 Wedges (4) 3/4" x 1" x 23 ⁄ 4"
6 Corbels (4) 1/2" x 1" x 3"

78 arts & crafts style side table

SIP.WW_079 6/13/08 2:36 PM Page 79
Believe me, I speak from hard-earned,
and expensive, experience. To this
end, I always use Titebond® II when I
know I’ll be using a water-based stain.
I glued up the four panels using
three bar clamps on each, while mak-
ing sure that they were as flat as possi-
ble — even the best biscuit joints have
a bit of slop that can usually be flatted
out with some judicious mallet taps —
before I cranked the clamps down. I
always make it a point to scrape off all
of the squeeze-out when it is at a nice
rubber y stage. This prevents the
inevitable tearout that happens if
the glue is left to harden and then
scraped off.
The following day, I took the panels
out of the clamps and prepared to cut
them to size. But first, I used a sharp
scraper to carefully remove any bit of
glue that was left, and feathered out
any small irregularities. I have found
that this is the perfect time to give pan-
els their initial sanding: the panels are
still oversize so I don’t have to worry
about accidentally rounding over any
edges. I always raise the grain with a
wipe-down of distilled water before I
sand as it makes the sanding go much
faster. Let it dry, then sand to 120 grit.
Once I had sanded all of the panels,
I cut them to size. When cutting panels
to size, it is important to cut the ends
first and then the sides. This helps pre-
vent chipout on the corners. I cut the
end panels to length and then width.
While they were still in a rectangular
shape, I laid out the top and bottom
cutouts, the side tapers and the
through mortises. Using the shelf as a
guide, I very carefully marked the
through mortises on both sides of the
www.woodworkersjournal.com
panels. It is VERY important that
these layout lines are in exact align-
ment with each other, or the mortise
will end up slanted one way or the
other. After doing this entire layout I
cut the side tapers on the band saw
and finished them up with a sharp
plane. I cut the top and bottom cutouts
on the band saw and finished them off
with a curved sanding block.
The shelf took a bit of thinking and
layout to get right. After cutting the
shelf to length and width, I laid out the
wedge mortises and the notches to
make the through tenons. I used my
table saw to cut most of the notches
and finished them off with a hand saw
and chisel. The top and rails (pieces 4)
are the easy pieces to size, as they are
simple rectilinear parts.
Two last sets of parts needed to be
built before the part set would be
complete: the wedges and the corbels
(pieces 5 and 6). I made a cardboard
template for both parts and laid them
out on the wood I had selected earlier.
These pieces are so small that I found
it easiest to cut them out on the band
saw and then hand plane and sand
them to size. I left the wedges a little
bit thick so that I would be able to size
them as I did the assembly.
Chopping the Mortises
Cutting the six through mortises was
the most time-consuming part of this
project. Through mortise and tenons
are an exercise in subtle touch — if
the mortise is over-tight, the tenon will
drive very hard and chip out the out-
side face; if the mortise is too large,
there will be a loose fit that will sub-
stantially weaken the overall structure
Pocket-hole joinery (right)
secures the rails and is
hidden by the top. Since
no mortises or machined
means align the rails,
extra care must be taken that all the parts are
in their proper relationships before the screws
are driven home.
of the piece. My process is the same
for all through mortises: I chisel from
both sides and take great care to
establish the outer borders of the
mortise. I usually undercut the mor-
tise slightly so that I have a tight fit on
both faces. I find that it is very impor-
tant to not make my first cut right on
the layout line. Instead, I first chisel
away some waste about 1/16" inside
the line, then cut on the line. This
prevents the taper of the chisel from
forcing the chisel outside the line or
crumpling the edge of the mortise.
When I’m approaching the final size, I
constantly check the fit with the shelf
and the wedges. I look for a fit that
takes a light tap with a rubber mallet
to drive home. I am very careful to not
chip the outside face of the parts as I
drive the parts together. To facilitate
this I put a subtle break on the outside
fall 2008 79
SIP.WW_080 6/23/08 2:38 PM Page 80

Fitting the wedges into their mortises is
essentially a trial-and-error process. While
the wedges are functional, they also add
a lot of aesthetic value.
corners — not anything more than
220-grit paper. As can be seen in the
Drawings, the mortises for the wedges
are undercut 1/16" so that there is a
tight fit no matter how much the
wood swells.
I used pocket holes to attach the
rails to the ends,
but tenons or
biscuit joints
could also
be used.
After putting
two pocket holes per
end, I drilled the
two holes to attach the
tabletop through the rails (see
the Drawings).
At this point, I dry-assembled the
table and fitted the wedges. It is
almost inevitable that there will be
some tiny differences in the wedge
mortises. I fit the wedges so that,
when driven home, their tops line up
with each other (and look the same on
both ends of the table). I did most of
this fitting with a very sharp hand
plane clamped upside down in the vise,
taking fine shavings off until the fit was
just right. When I was satisfied with the
fit of everything, I took the table apart
and prepared for staining.
If I had to pick one thing that I dis-
like the most in woodworking, it would
be staining an already assembled
piece of furniture. There is practically
no way to get an even coat of stain on
an assembled piece unless you apply a
sprayed toner coat, and even that
doesn’t look so great. I much prefer to
stain all of the parts separately and
then assemble them into the final
product. This requires careful han-
dling, and sometimes it just can’t be
done — but I take this approach when-
ever possible.
My first staining step was to take a
damp sponge and raise the grain on all
pieces. When the parts had dried,
I sanded them all to 220 grit. I paid
special attention to putting a slight
break on all edges that needed it.
I used General Finishes’ EF wood
stain in the Early American color on
this table. Prior to staining, I pounded
three small finishing nails for each
piece into the top of my bench in a tri-
angular pattern. This provided me
with a place to set each piece to dry
after I had stained it (so that I could
stain both sides at the same time). I
very carefully stained each piece sepa-
rately and wiped it down with a lint-
free cloth before moving on to the
next piece. This stain is really great,
but you do not want to let it dry before
it is wiped down or you will end up

The author chops the wedge mortises from both sides of the shelf. It is a
meticulous and time-consuming process that pays dividends in spades.
Each mortise is slightly undercut to help tighten the joint.

80 arts & crafts style side table

SIP.WW_081 6/25/08 11:50 AM Page 81
with a streaky appearance. (And
water-based stains dry fast!) So, just
do one piece at a time, unless you are
going for an “antique” look.
Assembling the Table
To start the assembly of this table I
first put on a pair of rubber gloves.
One of the drawbacks of water-based
stains is that any water will dissolve
them; thus, sweat on your hands or
drops from your brow can damage
your stain job. I then secured the shelf
to the ends by putting a small amount
of glue on the “cut back” ends of the
shelf and clamping the whole thing
together. This glue is just a little extra
insurance, but I made sure that it was-
n’t enough to result in squeeze-out.
(Water-based stain won’t interfere
with glue the way that an oil-based
stain will.) With this assembly
clamped up, I clamped the rails in
place and attached them with pocket
screws. I then attached the corbels
with some glue and spring clamps.
One of the great things about water-
Using a plane inverted in a bench vise (photo at right), the author
carefully fits the wedges in their mortises. During final assembly
(above), the wedges are coaxed home with a few gentle taps
from a rubber mallet.
www.woodworkersjournal.com
Just a few pieces of
wood, properly
assembled, create
a lovely piece
of furniture
based stain is that you can glue direct-
ly on it with Titebond and experience
no loss of strength.
I finished this table with three coats
of sprayed catalyzed lacquer, although
polyurethane or some type of varnish
would work about as well. It is my pref-
erence to use a finish that has a medi-
um-rubbed or satin look to it. I don’t
think that a glossy finish looks appropri-
ate on Arts & Crafts style furniture.
The final assembly of this table was
pretty simple. I first laid the top upside
down on a furniture blanket, centered
the base on it, and marked the
attachment holes through the
holes in the rails. After pre-
drilling the attachment
holes, I attached the top
with four 11⁄2" screws. The
last step was to tap the wedges home.
Even though I had fitted the wedges
before, I found that I needed to do a
tiny bit more shaving on the back of a
couple of them so they would line up
exactly.
This table is a great project for some-
body who is fond of the Arts & Crafts
style. It requires a small amount of
wood, and it incorporates some of the
hallmarks of Arts & Crafts styling. In
addition, it is not such a huge project
that a person will become over-
whelmed by it —three or four nights
in the shop should take care of it.
I stopped at my parents’ right after
Christmas to give them their present,
and my mother had me immediately
carry the side table they had used for
the last 25 years to the basement.
Guess I finally hit on a gift that
won’t stop “giving” when the
subscription runs out!
fall 2008 81
SIP.WW_082 6/19/08 12:52 PM Page 82

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82 Weekend Woodworking
SIP.WW_083 6/19/08 12:16 PM Page 83

I never knew
woodworking could
be this easy.
Thanks to Pocket-Screw Joinery and a tool called the
Kreg Jig®, just about anyone can build quality woodworking
projects in less time – and with less effort – than ever
before. Kreg Jigs® simplify woodworking, and help
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SIP.WW_084 6/16/08 4:20 PM Page 84

Router Mortising Jig

This fail-proof jig will center a mortise
o n a n y s i z e d e d g e e a s i l y a n d a c c u r a t e l y.

By rick white

T
here isn’t much to this jig, but it’s
been one of my favorites for
years. It’s a mortising guide that
automatically centers itself on the
edge of just about any board. With it,
you’ll cut perfect mortises every time,
right down the center of your work-
piece. All you need is a plunge router
and a straight bit with a diameter that
matches the width of your intended
Drill extra bearing guide holes closer together
mortise. Clamp a piece of plywood to
for mortising narrower stock. This allows you
one side of your stock, and you can
to get closer to the ends of a board.
even form an off-center mortise.
The jig is just a simple, 3/8" thick
Plexiglas™ router base, with ten holes
Symmetrically placed drilled in it. Two of these holes are
bearing holes increase 1/4" plastic
your mortising options.
occupied by 5/16" bolts that hold
5/16" I.D. bearings in place with the
help of a washer and aircraft nuts. The
Router bit hole. bearings straddle the workpiece and
in turn, center the bit on it. They can
be moved to any set of mated holes, to
Drill countersunk accommodate various board thick-
holes to match
your router base. nesses. Three holes are used to mount
the base to the router, and the last hole
is for the bit.
To change the width of a mortise,
just change the bit to one of a different
diameter. You can even leave this
base on the router permanently as a
replacement for the original base if
you wish. In that case, just remove the
bearings when you’re performing
other tasks. For such a simple jig,
it’s amazing how often I find myself
reaching for it.

84 router mortising Jig

SIP.WW_085 6/16/08 2:57 PM Page 85

WELCOME TO
THE NEW STONE AGE.

Introducing HARDCORE Solid Granite table

and fence systems on select Steel City machines.

Tables and fences made of solid granite. It makes perfect sense if you think about it. Granite is harder
than stainless steel. It absorbs vibration better. It will never rust, spring, twist or warp. It resists scratches
and stains. And it provides a seamless, continuous work surface. So we kept asking ourselves, “why
wouldn’t we use solid granite tabletops?” But a better question might be, “why hasn’t anyone else?”
With other new features including a cabinet saw with a riving knife guard system and jointers with
the largest, flattest fences available, you could say we’ve entered a new era of tool making.
Visit steelcitytoolworks.com to find your nearest distributor.

BY WOODWORKERS. FOR WOODWORKERS.

SIP.WW_086 6/13/08 2:32 PM Page 86
Making Tapered Legs on a Jointer
Turn your jointer into a tapering dynamo.
all it takes is a wedge of scrap.
By Linda Haus
T
he first time I saw someone
setting up to taper legs on
a jointer, I was amazed. I felt like
I was watching a car race: I didn’t
really want to see them lose a finger
(crash a car), but the apparent danger
absolutely held my attention. When
the task was done, it became clear
that, not only was the technique safe,
but it also lets you do things you just
can’t do when forming legs on a band
saw or table saw tapering jig.
The key to the technique is a wooden
wedge clamped to the outfeed table of
the jointer. The wedge becomes a
ramp for the leg to climb as the cutter-
head shapes the face of the stock. The
leading edge of the leg forms the
geometry of the cut as it climbs the
wedge and the forward edge of the
infeed table: the leg stock gets dragged
through the cutter in a gentle arc and
provides the unique style of a jointer-
tapered leg.
Securely clamp
a wedge to the
outfeed table
of the jointer.
The distance the wedge
is held back from the
edge of the outfeed
table will determine
how much of the leg
is not tapered.
86 making Tapered Legs
Four Tapering Variables
The taper of the leg is affected by four
variables. First, the incline of the
wedge: the steeper the incline, the
more acute the taper. Second, how
close to the front edge of the outfeed
table the wedge is clamped: the
spacing sets the flat (or apron) area.
Third and Fourth, the length of the leg
and depth of cut set by the infeed
table: as you increase the leg length in
relationship to the wedge, the taper
becomes more gentle. As you increase
the depth of cut, the taper becomes
more acute or pronounced.
A shop-made plywood push stick is a
must from my point of view. It gives
you superior control and completely
protects your pushing hand as you
move the stock across the cutter (no
crashes!). Your lead hand is always
held past the cutter, as shown in the
photos and illustrations. The whole
A push stick
like this is best
because it
provides great
You’ll need to lower
control and
this side of your
superior safety.
jointer bed to 1/8"
or more, depending
on the amount of
taper you’re after.
If you think jointers only flatten
wood, this simple technique for
tapering stock on a jointer will
surprise and amaze you. Our
author takes you through the
basics of this easy and fun task.
on a Jointer
operation is also done with the guard
in place, for additional safety.
(Jointers, like all power tools, are
inherently dangerous. Use common
sense and protective gear.)
After the wedge is made and
clamped in place, the cutting process
is simple. Place the “top end” of the
prepared stock (cut to length and
surfaced exactly square) onto the
outfeed table and bump it gently
against the end of the wedge and tight
to the jointer fence. Hold it in place
with your left hand (with gentle
downward pressure) as you grab the
push stick and hook it onto the other
end of the leg. Rotate the infeed end of
the leg toward the table, and when you
make contact, move it slowly forward.
(The front end of the leg will lift and
start riding the incline.) Because
you’ve lowered the infeed table by
1/8" or more, you won’t really start
cutting until you’re near the end of
the leg on the first cuts. If you are
tapering more than one face of the
leg, spin the leg and repeat the cut.
A piece of
2 X 4 is the
perfect choice for a wedge. Be
sure to leave the leading edge of
the wedge about 1/16" thick.
SIP.WW_087 6/13/08 2:32 PM Page 87

Position stock at leading edge of

wedge and lower it slowly. There
should be downward pressure on
(For symmetrical tapers, you need to duplicate the same front of stock while it rests on
number of cuts per face.) Repeat the process until you’re the outfeed table.
pleased with the taper. If you are leaving a little foot on the
bottom of the leg, you’ll need to incorporate a stop block on
the wedge after the first or second pass on each face
of the leg.
You can make a variety of leg shapes and styles using
this basic setup. One real benefit to tapering your legs on
the jointer is, if your knives are sharp, sanding is held
Step 1: Maintaining
to a minimum.
pressure on the end of the
Easily tapered legs and virtually no sanding... stock on the outfeed
simply amazing! table holds the
workpiece just above
the rotating
Variations On a Tapered Theme jointer
knives,
providing safe
You can create several variations of the typical four-sided tapered leg
and effective control.
on your jointer. For instance, you can make them with or without a
foot. You can taper two adjacent faces (with or without a foot). You
can start the taper high or low ... you get the idea. Here are four
possible legs made from stock of the same length and thickness.

Stop block (optional) clamped

Foot
toward back of wedge
This leg is tapered This leg is tapered
on all four sides on four sides but
and has no foot. ends with a foot.
It requires several You create the foot
passes and a by clamping a stop
depth of cut block in place after
setting of about you’ve made
3/16". the first few passes
across the jointer.

Step 2: Using your push stick, first lower

your stock down to the level of the
This is a two- It is possible to mix infeed table and then push it
sided taper and match as you up the ramp. You can clamp a
without a foot. design your legs. Here stop block to
It’s very basic, is a two-sided taper the back of
but appropriate with a foot. The back your ramp to
in many corner was chamfered create a foot
situations. to present a more on your leg.
delicate shape.

www.woodworkersjournal.com Fall 2008 87

SIP.WW_088 6/13/08 2:30 PM Page 88
Adjustable Shop Horse
Adjustable height makes a workshop steady
eddy even more practical.
By Bill Hylton
E
veryone needs trestles or saw-
horses, and I’m certainly no
exception. Each pair of my shop
horses is slightly different, though all
have the same basic design and
construction. The first pair I made are
about knee-high and 30" wide. The
second pair, my ponies, are shin-high
and only 24" wide. The third pair —
the ones I’ll be describing here — are
adjustable in height, ranging from 24"
up to nearly 35".
My adjustable horses have nesting
posts, joined with sliding dovetails.
The outer elements are mortised into
the trestle feet. The inner elements
are attached to a beam and are joined
88 adjustable shop horse
to a wide stretcher with crossdowels
and connector bolts. The outer
elements are similarly joined to a
narrow stretcher.
Begin construction with the feet.
Each foot is made by glue-laminating
two plies (pieces 1 and 2). You cut a
half-lap across each piece, and when
they are glued up, the laps form a
through mortise.
Shaping the Feet
To produce the shape, I routed an
instep on each foot blank, then band-
sawed the rough contour and template
routed to final shape. Only after this
work was done did I glue up the feet.
Template-rout
the contour of
the foot plies.
The author’s
template has
locking clamps to
immobilize the
workpiece.
The instep is a simple cut on the
router table, but it does take several
passes to complete each part. Use a 1"-
diameter straight bit. Raise it about
7/8", and set the fence so about half
the bit is exposed. Clamp stops to the
fence to give you starting and ending
points for the cut. To limit the amount
of material removed on each pass, use
a series of removable shims until you
are routing right up against the fence.
To contour the foot blanks, make a
template to which you can clamp the
workpieces with toggle clamps. The
template need have only the right-
hand portion of the overall contour: so
when you rout, you are moving from
ankle to toe, and the cutting edges are
“laying down the grain.” That’s a
clean, problem-free cut. To complete
the shape, flip the workpiece over and
rout the second half of the blank, again
moving from ankle to toe.
Making the Telescoping Uprights
The uprights (pieces 3 and 4) are
made up of two pieces, joined with a
Using an edge guide to position the shallow
dado in the beam ensures that all four cuts will
be the same distance from the ends. The clamp
secures a stop block.
SIP.WW_089 6/13/08 2:31 PM Page 89

8
Beam
(Front View)

21/8" 8
22" 3
31/4"
/4"

5" Upper
7 Stretcher
7
3 (Front View)

21/4"
Bottom
9 6 Stretcher
3 (Front View)
14∞
12 Outer 14∞
21/8" Inner Upright
11 4 Upright 3"
(Top and Front Views)
(Top and 3 21/8"
/8"
Front Views)
13 3
4 /4" Upright Insert
3 (Top, Front and
Upright 111/16" End Views)
Detail 14∞
4 1
21/8"
2

6
75/8" 5 23/4"
9 23/4"
1
21/2" /4"
10
5 Exploded View

Foot
Template C
L

2
1
The half laps are 2 1 ⁄ 2" wide and 3/8" deep.
Each square = 1"

sliding dovetail. See the Elevation Drawings for the details. The
strips that are to be the inner (or narrow) uprights are crosscut material list
roughly 6" overlong. Bevel their edges on your router table. The
matching groove is plowed end to end in the outer (or wide) TxWxL
1 Thin Foot Plies (4) 3/4" x 31 ⁄ 4" x 18"
uprights. Then 53⁄4" lengths — the upright inserts (pieces 5) — are
2 Thick Foot Plies (4) 1" x 31 ⁄ 4" x 18"
crosscut from the narrow uprights and glued into the grooves.
Form the adjustment grooves and the barefaced tenons on the 3 Inner Uprights (4) 3/4" x 21 ⁄ 8" x 16 7 ⁄ 8"
outer uprights. Go ahead and machine the stretchers and the 4 Outer Uprights (4) 3/4" x 3" x 201 ⁄ 2"
beams at this time. The final task is to cut the slot for the beam in 5 Upright Inserts (4) 3/4" x 21 ⁄ 8" x 5 3 ⁄ 4"
the tops of the uprights. 6 Bottom Stretchers (2) 3/4" x 3" x 22"
Assemble the feet and uprights without glue, then lay out the 7 Upper Stretchers (2) 3/4" x 6" x 22"
connector bolt holes in the uprights and stretchers. Dismantle 8 Beams (2) 7/8" x 3" x 311 ⁄ 2"
these assemblies to drill the holes. Then glue up the feet and 9 Cross-dowels (16) 3/8"-Dia. x 5/8", 1/4"-20
uprights. Bolt the stretchers to the appropriate uprights, and slide 10Connector Bolts (16) 1/4"-20 x 2 3 ⁄ 4"
the inner assembly into the foot-and-wide-upright assemblies. Use 11 Carriage Bolts (4) 3/8" x 2"
the appropriate hardware (pieces 9 through 13) to assemble each 12Fender Washers (4) 3/8" I.D.
horse. All that remains is to rout shallow dadoes in the beam and to
13 Ergo-style Wingnuts (4) 3/8"-16
set it into the slots in the uprights. Tally ho!

www.woodworkersjournal.com Fall 2008 89

SIP.WW_090 6/13/08 2:27 PM Page 90

Start to Finish: The Endurance Test

Solve your finishing conundrums with
three questions and an expert’s scorecard.

By Michael Dresdner

P
icking the “right” finish for your
most recent woodworking tri-
umph seems like a daunting
process, what with all the confusing
array of choices on the paint store
shelves. However, with a logical
approach and a “scorecard” to help, it
is a fairly easy process.
Durability
The three primary questions you need
to answer before you begin your
finishing are: durability (what must
the finish endure), appearance (what
should it to look like) and application
(how do you want to apply the finish ...
rag, brush, spray gun, pad, etc.).
Perhaps most important of the
three, “What must the finish endure?”
is the question I ask first. Not all
pieces will get the same treatment. An
art turning, for example, will be han-
dled gently and rarely over its lifetime
and can get by with nothing more than
a coat of oil or wax. By contrast,
a kitchen table or countertop may be
asked to endure hot coffee pots,
scratches from cutlery and china, food
stains and even chemicals and strong
cleansers. Patio furniture finishes will
have to tolerate wide swings in
humidity and temperature, while
floors and baseboards will want a
tough finish that takes and “hides”
dents. Some kitchen objects, like
wooden spoons and cutting boards,
may do best with no finish at all.
You’ll know best how gently or
roughly the furniture in your house

“What must the finish endure?” is a smart question to ask every time you choose a finish. Some
projects will be expected to withstand hot coffee pots, scratches from keys, food stains and even
chemicals and strong cleansers. Make sure they’re adequately armed to face these finishing challenges.

90 start to finish: the endurance test

SIP.WW_091 6/13/08 2:27 PM Page 91
will be handled. I use the following
guidelines as reminders of what is
typical for various pieces of furniture
and what the finish might have
to endure.
Bathroom and dressing room:
humidity swings, nail polish remover
and alcohol (in perfumes).
Fireplace mantles:
high heat and humidity variations.
Kitchen cabinets, tables or counters:
heat, scratches, food stains, chemical
cleaners and abrasive cleansers.
Floors: serious abrasion, dents and
heavy wear.
Living room/bedroom furniture:
moderate to light abrasion.
Patio furniture:
wide humidity and temperature
changes, water and sun (UV damage).
Bookcases, picture frames, boxes
and ornamental wood:
light wear (most any finish will be
appropriate here).
Another major consideration when it
comes to durability is how thickly the
finish is applied. A very thin finish, no
matter what its nature, will not protect
as well as a thicker version of the same
finish. There are limits, of course.
Most finishes will crack or “check” if
they are applied too heavily. A good
rule of thumb is to keep finishes below
8 mils to prevent checking, and above
3 mils for good durability. A mil is
.001" (one thousandth of an inch).
By way of comparison, a typical sheet
of copier paper is just under 4 mils.
One sprayed coat typically adds about
one mil when dry, a wipe-on coat less
www.woodworkersjournal.com
Approach every finishing
job by answering these
three questions:
1. Durability: what
indignities must the
finish endure?
2. Appearance: what do
you want your project
to look like?
3. Application: how do
you want to apply the
finish ... spray gun,
rag, brush, pad, etc.?
than half of that, and a brushed coat
about 2 mils. If you sand between
coats or rub after ward, that will
reduce the thickness. A wash coat on
the raw wood counts as zero mils.
Appearance
Of course, stains will change the color
of wood, but clear finishes also alter
how wood looks. Most waterborne lac-
quers and polyurethanes are com-
pletely clear to slightly blue-gray. They
will add almost no color to white
woods like maple, holly, or spruce.
Shellac and lacquer are slightly amber,
and will add a bit of warmth and color
to the wood. Oil, Danish oil, and oil-
based varnishes and polyurethanes
tend to add the greatest amount of
amber color, especially with several
coats applied.
There is a more subtle effect that
shows up in certain woods. With fig-
ured woods, like curly or bird’s-eye
maple, you can actually use the finish
to intensify the figure, or “pop the
grain,” even without adding any stain.
The best grain popper I’ve found is
boiled linseed oil, but shellac, lacquer
and most oil-based varnishes work
almost as well. If you apply one
or two coats of oil to a piece of figured
wood, it will add depth and make the
figure seem to jump out at you. This
characteristic is called “chatoyance,”
from the French “like a cat’s eye.” If
you’ve ever seen the semi-precious
stone called “Tiger-Eye,” you’ll notice
that as you change your viewing angle,
the light and dark bands of color
change places. You can get a similar
effect by adding linseed oil to certain
woods, such as figured maple and
ribbon mahogany.
Application
The truth is that most finishes can be
applied in most any manner. Shellac,
for example, can be wiped on with a
rag, brushed, or sprayed. The same is
true of Danish oil, varnish, and most
water-bornes. But some finishes lend
themselves more to one applicator
or another, and some are even
specifically formulated for a particular
application method.
Michael Dresdner
is a nationally
known finishing
expert and author
of The New
Finishing Book,
published by
Taunton Press.
Fall 2008 91
SIP.WW_092 6/23/08 12:35 PM Page 92
Most finishes can be applied in a variety of ways. Shellac, shown here, responds well to spraying,
brushing or padding. It offers reasonable durability and imparts an amber tone to wood — a good
all-around choice for this country-style pine accent piece.
Waxes and jelled finishes are specifi-
cally designed for wipe-on/wipe-off
application, and they are too thick to
spray or brush. Though most any var-
nish or polyurethane can be wiped on
instead of brushed, some are particu-
larly designed for easy wiping and thin
application and will say so on the can.
Certain lacquers and conversion
varnishes are designed for spraying
and will dry too fast to be spread with
a brush or rag.
In many cases, you can decide how
to apply the finish after you choose the
one you want to use. But be aware that
some coatings work best with a
particular applicator, and let that guide
your choice. Also, remember that
wiping a finish on and off will leave
you with a thinner protective layer per
coat than either spraying or brushing.
Making the Right Choice
Once you choose the characteristics
you need for the piece you are
finishing, you simply have to match
92 start to finish:
them up with the finish that fits. That
is easier said than done. To do that,
you need to know the characteristics
of the finishes themselves — which
ones have good heat, stain or scratch
resistance, which can go on by rag,
which are typically thin or can be
applied thicker, which offer good
chatoyance, and so on. To make that a
bit easier, I’ve included a “scorecard”
(see tint box) that rates the common
finishes by their characteristics.
One More Caveat
There is one other consideration you
might want to take into account when
approaching a finishing job: repairabil-
ity. I did not add it as a major question
because in most cases we are not
concerned with how easy a finish will
be to repair. For those cases where it
matters, I have added it as an item to
the “scorecard.”
Good luck with your finishing
endeavors!
the endurance test
Finisher’s
Scorecard:
Common finishes
and their
characteristics
Wax: thin; apply by rag; easy to repair;
poor chatoyance; sheds water but takes
water marks; poor solvent, scratch and
heat resistance; fair stain resistance.
Oil and Danish oil: thin; apply by rag;
easy to repair; good chatoyance; good
water, heat, and solvent resistance; poor
scratch resistance; fair stain resistance.
Shellac: apply thin or thick by rag, brush
or spray; easy to repair; good chatoyance;
poor heat and alkali resistance; good
water and scratch resistance; fair solvent
resistance; good stain and acid resistance.
Lacquer: apply thin or thick by brush or
spray; easy to repair; good chatoyance;
poor to fair heat resistance; good water,
scratch, stain and solvent resistance.
Oil varnish: apply thin or thick by rag,
brush or spray; not easy to repair; good
chatoyance; good water, heat, solvent,
scratch and stain resistance (if thick).
Polyurethane (oil base): apply thin or
thick by rag, brush or spray; not easy to
repair; good chatoyance; good water and
stain resistance; excellent solvent, heat,
and scratch resistance.
Waterborne acrylic-polyurethane: apply
thin or thick by pad, brush or spray;
moderately easy to repair; poor
chatoyance; good water, stain, solvent,
heat, and scratch resistance.
Two part coatings: (catalyzed lacquer,
conversion varnish, automotive
polyurethane) apply thick by spray; very
difficult to repair; excellent water, stain,
solvent, heat and scratch resistance;
chatoyance varies.
SIP.WW_093 6/19/08 2:03 PM Page 93

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96 Weekend woodworking
SIP.WW_097 6/25/08 11:27 AM Page 97

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SIP.WW_098 6/24/08 4:57 PM Page 98

Workshop Fellow Journal readers share their

tried-and-true shop tricks. Give these
Tricks Of a t ry i n y o u r s h o p .

The Trade Improved Sanding Block

Instant Edging Clamps
Edging clamps are quite
useful, but if you seldom need them
you may not want to make the investment
in these special clamps. Here’s a thrifty
alternative: when you have a job that requires
edge clamping, improvise with small C-
clamps and wooden wedges as shown above. Install
the clamps first, then tap the wedges in from
opposite directions to press the edging securely
against the plywood.
How can anything as basic as
a sanding block be improved? Easily: saw
a 3/8" slot in one face, about 3/4" from
the side. Insert one edge of the sandpaper
into the slot and wrap it around the block.
This way, your grip on the block will now
keep the paper secure. Have several
sanding blocks on hand, some with
square edges, others rounded to various
radii. You may even want to pre-cut your
sandpaper so it’s ready for your favorite
sanding block when you need it.
Wedges and a
C-clamp create
quick and easy
edge clamps.

Quick-change Rip Fence Inserts Use this insert when

The reader who submitted this trick shares a making rabbets with
a dado blade.
woodworking shop with other military
personnel and too often finds
the metal rip fence
scarred by close
encounters with the moving
saw blade. Instead of attaching
a sacrificial fence, which
would then invalidate
the measuring
scale along the
front rail, he came
up with this solution.
Create a custom
permanent fence facing with
removable inserts, as shown in
the sketch at right. Store a spare
insert on the opposite side of the fence.
You could fashion it with a cutout that
matches the diameter of your dado blade. It’s
useful when cutting rabbets.

98 workshop tricks of the trade

SIP.WW_099 6/18/08 1:40 PM Page 99

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Woodworkers_Journal_808_c649w.indd 1 6/5/2008 9:26:14 AM

SIP.WW_100 6/24/08 10:27 AM Page 100

They hate

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