Improve Your Eye for Design OmniSquare

Layout Tool

August 2017 ■ #233

Fore
Planes
An Almost-Forgotten
Hand Tool
DIAMOND
LIGHT DOORS:
Multiple Miter Angles;
One Shooting Board

SHAPELY
LEGS:
Go from
Drawing to
Done Danish
Paper Cord:
Mid-Century
Seat & Back

PLUS
PATTERN
ROUTING:
Greene & Greene
Pantry Shelf
 SUMMER SALE
April 10 − July 10
PURVEYORS OF FINE MACHINERY®, SINCE 1983! 2017

14" EXTREME-SERIES BANDSAW 17" HEAVY-DUTY BANDSAW

• Motor: 11⁄2 HP, 110V/ 220V, 30TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION
single-phase, 1725 RPM, • Motor: 2 HP, 110V/ 220V, single-phase,
15A/ 7.5A, prewired 110V TEFC, prewired 220V, 1725 RPM,
252923
• Table tilt: 45°R, 15°L 20A @ 110V, 10A @ 220V MADE IN
• Floor-to-table height: 44" • Table tilt: 45° R, 10° L AN ISO 9001
• Cutting capacity/throat: 131⁄2" 1
• Floor-to-table height: 37 ⁄2" FACTORY
• Max. cutting height: 6" • Cutting capacity/throat: 161⁄4"
• Blade size: 921⁄2" to 931⁄2" L • Blade length: 1311⁄2" (1⁄8" to 1" W)
(1⁄8" to 3⁄4" W) MADE IN AN ISO • Approx. shipping weight: 342 lbs.
• Approx. shipping 9001 FACTORY!
weight: 259 lbs.
$
109
$
109 G0513ANV . SALE $
87500 shipping

G0555X $ . SALE $
795 00 shipping
lower 48 states
lower 48 states

2 HP 17" BANDSAW 10" HYBRID TABLE SAW

W/ CAST IRON TRUNNION W/ RIVING KNIFE & IMPROVED FENCE
3092372
• Motor: 2 HP, 110V/220V, single-phase, TEFC, • Motor: 2 HP, 120V/ 240V, prewired 120V,
60 Hz, 1725 RPM, pre-wired to 220V; single-phase, 15A @ 120V, 7.5A @ 240V
20A at 110V, 10A at 220V • Table height: 353⁄8" • Arbor: 5⁄8"
• Cutting capacity/throat: 161⁄4" left of blade • Arbor speed: 3450 RPM
• Max. cutting height: 12" • Max. depth of cut:
• Blade size: 1311⁄2" L @ 90° 31⁄4", @ 45° 21⁄4"
• Blade width range: 1⁄8" – 1" W • Rip capacity: 30" R, 15" L
• 2 blade speeds: 1700 and 3500 FPM • Approx. shipping weight: 330 lbs.
• Footprint: 27" L x 173⁄4" W x 21⁄2" H
• Approx. shipping weight: 418 lbs. FREE 10" x 40T Carbide-Tipped Blade
$
109 $
109
G0513X2 $11 SALE $
1050 00 G0771Z SALE $
750 00
shipping

. lower 48 states
. shipping
lower 48 states

10" CABINET TABLE SAWS 12" COMPACT SLIDING TABLE SAW

• Motor: 3 HP, 220V, single-phase, 12.8A • Table height: 34" • Motor: 7.5 HP, 220V/ 440V*, prewired for
• Arbor: 5⁄8" • Arbor speed: 4300 RPM • Max. dado width: 13⁄16" 220V, 3-phase, 20A/ 10A
• Max. rip capacity: 291⁄2" (G0690), 50" (G0691) • Main blade size: 12" Main blade tilt: 0–45°
• Capacity @ 90º: 31⁄8”, @ 45º: 23⁄16” 232857 • Main blade speed: 4000 RPM
• Approx. shipping weight: • Depth of cut: @ 90° 31⁄2", at 45° 21⁄2"
530 lbs. (G0690), • Scoring blade size:
572 lbs. (G0691) 43⁄4" (120mm)
Includes a 3 HP • Scoring blade
Leeson® motor speed: 8000 RPM
W/ Riving Knife
• Footprint: 45" x 35"
G0690 1 . SALE 149500
$
• Approx. shipping weight: 996 lbs.
W/ Riving Knife & Extension Rails $ $
295
159 469500
G0691 172 . SALE 159500
$ shipping
lower 48 states
G0820 $ . SALE $ shipping
lower 48 states

18" X 47" HEAVY-DUTY WOOD LATHE PLANER MOULDER W/ STAND

• Motor: 2 HP, 220V, 3-phase with • Motor: 2 HP, 240V,
single-phase frequency drive single-phase, 10.8A,
• Power requirement: 220V, 3450 RPM
single-phase • Max planing width: 7"
• Swing over bed: 18" • Max planing height: 71⁄2"
• Distance between centers: 47" • CPM: 14,000
• Speed range: • 2 HSS knives
High: 330–3200 RPM, DIGITAL SPEED • Approx. shipping 177335
READOUT!
Low: 100–1200 RPM weight: 324 lbs.
• Approx. shipping weight: 550 lbs.
$
109
G0733 . SALE 159500
$ $
159shipping
lower 48 states
W1812 1 . SALE $
1650 00 shipping
lower 48 states

*To maintain machine warranty, 440V operation requires additional conversion time and a $250 fee. Please contact technical service for complete information before ordering.

TECHNICAL SERVICE:
17POP
570–546–9663
2 GREAT SHOWROOMS! FAX: 800–438–5901
18796R BELLINGHAM, WA • SPRINGFIELD, MO
• ALMOST A MILLION SQUARE FEET PACKED TO THE RAFTERS WITH MACHINERY & TOOLS FREE 2017
• 2 OVERSEAS QUALITY CONTROL OFFICES STAFFED WITH QUALIFIED GRIZZLY ENGINEERS CATALOG
• HUGE PARTS FACILITY WITH OVER 1 MILLION PARTS IN STOCK AT ALL TIMES OVER 750 PAGES OF HIGH
UALITY MACHINES & TOOLS
• TRAINED SERVICE TECHNICIANS AT BOTH LOCATIONS • MOST ORDERS SHIP THE SAME DA AT INCREDIBLE PRICES

13" BENCHTOP PLANER 15" HEAVY-DUTY PLANER

W/ BUILT-IN DUST COLLECTION • Motor: 3 HP, 240V, single-phase, 14A
• Motor: 2 HP, 110V, single-phase, 15A • Max. cutting width: 15"
• Max. cutting width: 13" • Max. cutting depth: 1⁄8"
• Max. cutting height: 53⁄4" • Max. stock thickness: 63⁄8",
• Max. cutting depth: 1⁄16" Min: 1⁄4"
• Feed rate: 26 FPM • Min. stock length: 63⁄8"
• Knife size: 131⁄8" x 23⁄32" x 1⁄16" • Feed rate: 16 and 30 FPM
• Cutterhead speed: 9000 RPM • Cutterhead dia.: 3"
• Number of cuts per inch: 87 • Number of knives: 3 HSS
• Approx. shipping weight: 80 lbs. • Knife size: 15" x 1" x 1⁄8"
Includes Dust Collection Bag • Cutterhead speed: 5000 RPM
$
• Approx. shipping weight: 382 lbs. $
89 159
G0832 ONLY $
35500 shipping
lower 48 states G0815 $11 . SALE 92500
$ shipping
lower 48 states

15" PLANERS COMBINATION JOINTER/PLANER

• Motor: 3 HP, 220V, single-phase, 15A W/ FIXED TABLES
• Max. cutting width: 15", Depth: 1⁄8" • Motor: 2 HP, 120V/ 240V, single-phase,
• Max. stock thickness: 8", Min: 3⁄16" 15A/ 7.5A
• Min. stock length: 8" 208624 • Jointer table size: 73⁄8" x 457⁄8"
• Feed rate: 16 & 30 FPM • Cutterhead knives: 3 HSS-single sided
• Cutterhead dia.: 3", Speed: 4800 RPM • Knife size: 61⁄4" x 9⁄16" x 1⁄8"
• Approx. shipping weight: • Cutterhead dia.: 27⁄16", Speed: 5400 RPM
675 lbs. (G0453), 672 lbs. (G0453Z) • Max. planing height: 6"
• Planer feed rate: 11, 22 FPM
3 KNIFE CUTTERHEAD
• Planer table size: 191⁄4" x 141⁄8"
G0453 ONLY 1250 0
$
• Approx. shipping weight: 418 lbs.
SPIRAL CUTTERHEAD $
169
1895 139500
$ G0453Z $
G0453Z ONLY shown G0809 . SALE shipping
lower 48 states

6" JOINTER 8" JOINTERS

WITH KNOCK-DOWN STAND • Motor: 3 HP, 240V, single-phase, TEFC, 9A
• Motor: 1 HP, 110V/220V, • Max. depth of cut: 1⁄8"
prewired to 110V, single-phase, 14A/ 7A • Max. rabbeting capacity: 1⁄2"
• Table size: 65⁄8" x 473⁄8" • Cutterhead dia.: 3", Speed: 4800
• Number of knives: 3 • Cutterhead knives: G0656
• Cutterhead speed: 5000 RPM BUILT-IN 4 HSS; 8" x 3⁄4" x 1⁄8" (G0656) shown
• Cutterhead dia.: 21⁄2" FREE PAIR OF MOBILE • CPM: 20,000 (G0656), 21,400 (G0656X)
• Max. depth of cut: 1⁄8" SAFETY PUSH BASE! • Approx. shipping weight: 522 lbs.
• Max. rabbeting depth: 1⁄2" BLOCKS 4 Knife Cutterhead
• CPM: 15,000
• Approx. shipping weight: 252 lbs.
G0656 ONLY 89500
$

Spiral Cutterhead
$
89 208624
G0813 . SALE $
52500 shipping
lower 48 states
G0656X ONLY 129500
$

11⁄ 2 HP SHAPER 2 HP SHAPER

• Heavy-duty motor: 11⁄2 HP, 120V/ 240V, • Motor: 2 HP, 120V/ 240V,
single-phase, prewired 120V, 12A/ 6A single-phase, prewired
• Floor-to-table height: 331⁄2" 240V,18A/ 9A
• Spindle travel: 3" • Table size: 24" x 21"
• 2 interchangeable spindles: • Spindle sizes: 1⁄2" and 3⁄4"
1
⁄2" and 3⁄4" • Spindle speeds:
177335
• Spindle openings: 11⁄4", 31⁄2", and 5" 7000 and 10,000 RPM
• Spindle speeds: G1035 shown • Max. cutter dia.: 5"
w/ G1706
7000 and 10,000 RPM optional wing • Approx. shipping weight:
• Max. cutter dia.: 5" 290 lbs. 177335

• Approx. shipping weight: 221 lbs.

$ $
89 109
G1035 . SALE $
57500 shipping
lower 48 states
W1674 . SALE $
96400 shipping
lower 48 states

OVER 15,000 PRODUCTS ONLINE!

CARD #57 or go to PWFREEINFO.COM

 Veritas® remains committed to designing and manufacturing
exquisite woodworking hand tools that do not compromise
on functionality. Every tool is designed with the discerning
woodworker in mind; it is built to the highest standards,
comfortable to handle, and made in Canada.
Find us on: For more information on Veritas® products, call or visit:
1-800-683-8170 leevalley.com

CARD #28 or go to PWFREEINFO.COM

CONTENTS AUGUST 2017

22 28 48

F E AT U R E S

22 The Almost- 28 Paper Cord 43 Shapely Legs

Forgotten Learn how to weave a traditional Danish Sinuous legs shaped from rift-sawn blanks
“planflet” pattern in paper cord as you make add contemporary appeal to tables, chests
Fore Plane the seat and back for a Hans Wegner-inspired and stands; here’s how to design you own.
This inexpensive workhorse of a bench plane
folding chair. BY RO B P O RC A RO
belongs in every shop – even those of hard-
BY C A LEB J A M E S
core machine users. It’s simple to set up and ONLINE u Classic Cabrioles
use, and handles with ease tasks that most ONLINE u Seat Patterns If period legs are more your style, learn how
home machinery cannot. Watch the author’s videos on how to weave a to make these furniture classics.
BY C H R I S TO P H ER S C H WA R Z paper cord seat for a trapezoidal dining chair. popularwoodworking.com/aug17
popularwoodworking.com/aug17
ONLINE u Wooden Plane
Primer
Discover how to expertly adjust and use a
38 Greene &
48 Diamond
wooden-bodied handplane. Divided Lights
popularwoodworking.com/aug17 Greene Making stunning diamond-paned divided-
Pantry Shelf light doors is all about working the angles.
This finger-jointed kitchen storage piece takes Here, you’ll learn geometry and mitering
its cloudlift and ebony accent design cues techniques that will make your work shine.
BY P H I L LOW E
from the work of Charles and Henry Greene,
and is an excellent exercise in pattern routing. ONLINE u Fitting Inset Doors
BY N O R M A N R EI D &
Learn how to get a perfect fit on inset doors of
JEFFR E Y FLEI S H ER
any kind – the key is to make good parts.
popularwoodworking.com/aug17
ONLINE u Design 1-2-3
Read Norman Reid’s step-by-step approach
to designing custom furniture.
popularwoodworking.com/aug17

38
COVER, FORE PLANE & CHAIR PHOTOS BY AL PARRISH; DIAMOND DIVIDED LIGHTS PHOTO BY PHIL LOWE; PANTRY SHELF PHOTO BY NORMAN REID popularwoodworking.com ■ 3
CONTENTS AUGUST 2017

12 14 58

REGUL AR S

6 A Thin 14 Walke Moore 58 Tool & Furniture

Slice of Zen Compass Records
OUT ON A LIMB
BY M EG A N FI T Z PAT R I C K
Guides ARTS & MYSTERIES
BY P E T ER F O LL A N S BEE
TOOL TEST

8 62
BY T H E ED I TO R S

Small Box Lid ONLINE u Tool Test Archives Colonial

Hinge We have many tool reviews available for free Apprenticeship
on our website.
Placement popularwoodworking.com/tools
FLEXNER ON FINISHING
BY B O B FLE X N ER
LETTERS

16 64
FRO M O UR R E A D ER S

See Like a Joint Survivors

12 Stabilize Designer
DESIGN MATTERS
END GRAIN
BY A DA M G O D E T
Your Strop BY G E O RG E R . WA LK ER
TRICKS OF THE TRADE
FRO M O UR R E A D ER S

ONLINE u More Tricks

Read some of our favorite tricks and see them
in action in our Tricks videos.
popularwoodworking.com/tricks

Number 233, August 2017. Popular Woodworking Magazine (ISSN 0884-8823,USPS

752-250) is published 7 times a year, February, April, June, August, October, November
and December, which may include an occasional special, combined or expanded issue
that may count as two issues, by F+W Media. Editorial and advertising offices are located
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16
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GST Reg. # R132594716 Produced and printed in the U.S.A.
■

STROP ILLUSTRATION BY MARTHA GARSTANG HILL; TOOL TEST PHOTO BY JAMES MCCONNELL;
4 ■ POPULAR WOODWORKING MAGAZINE August 2017 CHAIR PHOTO BY MARIE PELLETIER; CLOCK PHOTO BY LIE-NIELSEN TOOLWORKS
Assemble
Projects
THE EASY WAY

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OUT ON A LIMB BY MEGAN FITZPATRICK, EDITOR
A Thin Slice of Zen
I
don’t remember the exact year, but
it was not too long after I’d joined
the Popular Woodworking staff
that I drove to Indianapolis for what
was my first Lie-Nielsen Hand Tool
Event. It was likely the spring of 2006
or 2007, and I’d but recently become
semi-proficient in my sawing skills. I
know I’d graduated to at least “margin-
ally acceptable,” because Christopher
Schwarz, who was editor at the time, al-
lowed me to use his Precious (a.k.a. his
Eccentric Toolworks
saw) – as long as I was
under his direct su-
pervision.
Andrew Lunn
(owner and maker of
Eccentric saws) was
at that show, too, and
we were using one of
his carcase saws in a
heated contest to see
who could slice the
thinnest and most
consistent piece from
the end of a stick of
hardwood. (I think it was maple,
though I’d not bet my cats on it.)
As I recall, Jameel Abraham, Deneb
Puchalski and Chris were in the run-
ning (I was more than slightly off the
leaders’ pace). But then a show visitor
stepped up, calmly picked up the tool
and proceeded to slice off a darn-near
translucent piece. It looked almost like
a shaving from a smooth plane – the
clear winner.
Chris asked him, “What kind of fur-
niture do you like to make” (or some-
thing along those lines), but the man
said he’d never made any furniture, or
even used a handplane or chisel. “I just
saw.” Cutting wood was his therapy –
his daily moments of Zen.
While most of us who like to make
sawdust probably aren’t quite that mar-
ried to the use of but a single tool, I’m
guessing “therapy” or “relaxation” fig-
6 ■ POPULAR WOODWORKING MAGAZINE August 2017
ures significantly in the reasons we do
it (if perhaps not quite as much if you’re
a professional woodworker).
I got started like so many others be-
cause I wanted custom furniture but
couldn’t afford to buy it. I was working
for a woodworking magazine, after all
– why not learn how to do it myself? So
I did (with the generous help of skilled
and patient teachers, combined with
a goodly dollop of stubbornness and
lots of practice).
While there was
(and still is) great
satisfaction in hav-
i n g m a d e p r et t y
much exactly what I
wanted in the perfect
size for its intended
spot in my house,
what I’ve discovered
is that the true plea-
sure in designing and
building furniture is
not the finished piece
so much as it is the
time spent in the
shop using tools to create.
I enjoy cutting crisp, tight joints,
and the susurrus of a freshly sharp-
ened plane against the wood. And for
me, there is no better therapy or way
to work out my daily frustrations than
whacking the end of a chisel with a
mallet (with the possible exception
of whaling on a plaster wall with a
sledgehammer…but the cleanup is
horrid). And the money that I save on
psychologist sessions I can spend on
more wood and tools.
I wonder now if that unparalleled
sawyer in Indianapolis has since picked
up a handplane and chisel to begin
building. But I also wonder if it mat-
ters. The satisfaction comes most in
the doing, not the having done. PWM
PHOTO BY THE AUTHOR
AUGUST 2017, VOL. 37, NO. 4
popularwoodworking.com
EDITORIAL OFFICES 513-531-2690
PUBLISHER ■ Allison Dolan
allison.dolan@fwmedia.com, x11484
GROUP EDITORIAL DIRECTOR & EDITOR ■
Megan Fitzpatrick
megan.fitzpatrick@fwmedia.com, x11348
SENIOR ART DIRECTOR ■Daniel T. Pessell
daniel.pessell@fwmedia.com, x11596
ONLINE CONTENT DIRECTOR ■ David Lyell
david.lyell@fwmedia.com, x11434
CONTRIBUTING EDITORS ■
Bob Flexner, Christopher Schwarz
PHOTOGRAPHER ■ Al Parrish
PROJECT ILLUSTRATOR ■ Donna R. Hill
LETTERS & TRICKS ILLUSTRATOR ■
Martha Garstang Hill, garstang-hill.com
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David Thiel
david.thiel@fwmedia.com, x11255
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CARD #20 or go to PWFREEINFO.COM
LETTERS FROM OUR READERS
Small Box Lid
Hinge Placement
I
’m building a small jewelry box
and am wondering if there are any
formulas for spacing the hinges
on the lid.
Ray Carina,
Sierra Vista, Arizona
Ray,
There are no modern rules of which I’m
aware regarding hinges on a small box
lid. Almost any reasonable arrange-
ment will work – it’s all visual (unlike
on a door, which has to resist gravity).
Hinge leaf aligned with stiles
Box lid
Hide Glue Crackle Finish
In “The Best Glue For Furniture,” by
Christopher Schwarz (February 2017,
issue #230), the “Liquid Hide Glue
Tricks” sidebar (page 25) mentions
using hide glue to achieve a crackle
finish. Do I apply paint right after the
glue, or should I wait for the glue to
dry a little?
Also, is there a particular brand to
8 ■ POPULAR WOODWORKING MAGAZINE August 2017
The historical rule is to take the
width of the box and divide it in half.
Let’s say it’s 20", in which case the
hinges should be spaced 10" apart.
This, however, can look awkward to
the modern eye. So the short answer
is to do what looks right.
But if the top is frame-and-panel
construction, I would likely choose to
align the outside end of the hinge in line
with the inside of the frame…unless it
looked weird.
Megan Fitzpatrick, editor
use, and will the glue and paint stay pli-
able enough to use on a roll-top desk?
Steve Kindle,
via email
Steve,
When going for a crackle finish, let the
hide glue dry before applying the topcoat
of paint. The paint will cover the dried
glue at first and crackle as it dries. There
is not in my experience one particular
brand that works better.
The finish is fine for a roll-top desk. The
wood doesn’t bend in a tambour construc-
tion; it’s the canvas backing behind that
does. So don’t paint (or finish) the backing.
Christopher Schwarz,
contributing editor
Frid-inspired Bench Mods
I’m going to make Bill Rainford’s Tage
Frid-inspired workbench this sum-
mer (February 2017 issue, #230) – it’s
best design I’ve ever seen for a modern
bench! But I’m having some trouble
sourcing less expensive alternatives
for some of the vises mentioned (Dieter
Schmid and Lie-Nielsen Toolworks).
Frid’s 1976 bench article (Fine Wood-
working, issue #4) says he got his bench
screws at Woodcraft in Woburn, Mass.,
which is my local store. It looks as if
the Woodcraft end vise might work
(#17D02). Lee Valley has the shoulder-
vise screw you mention, but they have a
tail vise screw, too (#70G09.01), which
you didn’t mention. Do you know if it
would work?
Also, unless something convinces
me otherwise, I’m going to do round
dog holes (with some more for hold-
fasts) instead of square.
I’m also thinking of this modifica-
tion: front legs flush with the front of
the bench, like on a Roubo-style bench
– or would that be sacrilegious?
Peter Jurgensen,
via email
Peter,
I’m glad to hear you enjoyed the article!
Yes, the Lee Valley shoulder and tail
vises would work fine for this bench. Just
make sure you have all the hardware in
hand and measure it before starting on
the bench; you might have to make some
minor size adjustments to the mortises or
filler blocks to accommodate a different
brand of vise than what I used.
Regarding bench dogs, I prefer square
ones because they are usually longer and
stronger than round ones, and so can be
extended higher. But perhaps I’m biased
because I was trained on a German bench
with square dog holes. And, had this bench
CONTINUED ON PAGE 10
ILLUSTRATIONS BY MARTHA GARSTANG HILL
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LETTERS
not been destined for use in this magazine
and in an upcoming book on Tage Frid
(Lost Art Press, tentatively scheduled for
late 2018), I would have added a row of
3 ⁄4" holdfast holes toward the rear of the
bench slab (and still might). I think round
holes might look a little odd on this sort of
bench, but they would certainly be ser-
viceable and easy to make.
I considered a flush-fitting leg, but
decided against it because the front/left
leg assembly is to the left of the shoulder
vise’s end and thus nothing clamped to the
bench would really be in front of that flush
leg. Plus, the left assembly has three legs,
so I thought it would look a little funny to
have one large one in the middle. For the
right leg assembly, I thought a flush front
leg might help, but instead I built Frid’s
simple deadman (see the online extras for
the project at popularwoodworking.com/
feb17). If you want to beef up the legs (and
more mass is always a good thing) my
advice is to beef them all up in a similar
manner so the bench looks consistent.
Bill Rainford, contributor
Epoxy Immersion Advice
I read “Faux Urushi” (by Don Wil-
liams, April 2017, issue #231) and am
completely inspired. But I have little
knowledge on using epoxy in a setting
beyond rot repair and as a mastic. Do
you have any advice or references on
how I could learn more? I am prepared
for complete immersion!
Ross Brodt,
via email
Ross,
Thanks for your kind words and interest.
I’m not sure I can provide much more guid-
ance than to get some and try it. I spent
a fair bit of time reading the technical
literature on the materials, both the com-
mercial literature (West Systems has tons
on its website) and scientific research (for
example, the “Handbook of Composites,”
edited by S. T. Peters (Chapman & Hall))
and enfolded that information into my
40-plus years of experience as a finisher.
Let me know how your explorations
continue, and stay tuned to my blog (at
donsbarn.com) where I will chronicle my
10 ■ POPULAR WOODWORKING MAGAZINE August 2017
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 8
own adventures in the topic during the
coming months and years.
Don Williams, contributor
Hammers & Socket Chisels
Regarding Christopher Schwarz’s
“Good Chisel Sense” (April 2017, is-
sue #231): It’s bad practice to strike the
socket of a socket chisel for use as a butt
chisel. Only a few hammer strikes or
mallet blows will leave at least a small
peen on the socket. It might be hard
to see and be barely able to be felt, but
it will prevent the socket from seating
correctly and will eventually – or im-
mediately – cause the handle to repeat-
edly loosen.
Once the handle doesn’t seat well it
is prone to breaking, or at least rebound
a bit in the strike, which, while not di-
sastrous, will reduce the effectiveness
and pleasure of using the tool.
It’s cheaper in the long run to go out
and buy an $8 butt chisel at the big box
store than be forced to repair your $75
socket chisel.
Scott Wynn,
San Francisco, California
Scott,
While striking a socket with a metal ham-
mer will damage the tool, I have never
experienced the deformation you describe
while using a wooden mallet. So I will
continue to use my socket chisels this way
and recommend others do the same. PWM
Christopher Schwarz,
contributing editor
ON INE EXTRAS
Letters & Comments
At popularwoodworking.com/letters you’ll
find reader questions and comments, as
well as our editors’ responses.
We want to hear from you.
Popular Woodworking Magazine welcomes
comments from readers. Published cor-
respondence may be edited for length or
style. All published letters become the prop-
erty of Popular Woodworking Magazine.
Send your questions and comments
via email to popwood@fwmedia.com, or
by mail to 8469 Blue Ash Road, Suite 100,
Cincinnati, OH 45236.
PHOTO BY THE AUTHOR
Highly Recommended
I urge Terrie Noll’s “The Joint Book”
(Chartwell Books) on any woodworker
who wants to go beyond joinery basics
(and to any new editor tasked with
learning the sometimes-confusing craft
nomenclature). This handy little reference
provides a brief explanation and how-to
for various forms of lap joints, mortise-
and-tenon joints, dovetails, mitered and
beveled joints and more.
— Megan Fitzpatrick
Customer Service
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Safety Note
Safety is your responsibility. Manufacturers place safety
devices on their equipment for a reason. In many photos
you see in Popular Woodworking Magazine, these have
been removed to provide clarity. In some cases we’ll use an
awkward body position so you can better see what’s being
demonstrated. Don’t copy us. Think about each procedure
you’re going to perform beforehand.
CARD #35 or go to PWFREEINFO.COM
TRICKS OF THE TRADE EDITED BY MEGAN FITZPATRICK
THE WINNER:
Stabilize Your Strop
W
hen stropping my plane
and chisel blades for that
final honing, I always
want to be sure that there is little to
no chance that a freshly sharpened
blade will slide off of the strop and
accidentally hit something on my
workbench. Additionally, I want to
make sure that the strop is level and
that it will not shift while I’m polish-
ing sharp blades.
I found a simple way to keep my
strops elevated and stable. After I
flatten the block of wood I’m going
to convert into a strop, I cut two rab-
Secure Socket Chisel Handles
Popular Woodworking has in the past
recommended hair spray to keep han-
dles of socket chisels in place – but
if there’s any hair spray in the house,
it’s been hidden from me. So I tried
spray shellac and it worked well. And
it’s something more likely to be close
at hand for many woodworkers.
John Griffin-Wiesner,
Golden Valley, Minnesota
12 ■ POPULAR WOODWORKING MAGAZINE August 2017
bets along the bottom of the block
on either edge. I’ve found 1 ⁄2" deep
by at least 3 ⁄4" wide is about the right
dimension.
This creates a large tongue that
can be inserted in a vise rather than
trying to squeeze the whole block
in the vise to keep the strop stable,
or positioning it between a tail vise
and dogs atop the bench. It keeps the
strop flat, stable and elevated above
the workbench, reducing a chance
strike on the bench or slipping free
from the hold.
C. Travis Reese,
Fredericksburg, Virginia
1⁄ 2"-deep x 3⁄4"-wide rabbet
Leather
Wood
Secure in vise
Spray shellac
on shaft before
inserting into
socket
3⁄8"-dia. x 12" stainless
steel handle
Starrett
93F tap
wrench
Lee Valley standard reamer
Tap Wrench Reamer
I am experimenting with staked fur-
niture; my first project is a sawbench.
ChristopherSchwarzsuggestsusing
a brace and Wood Owl bit for the hole,
and this worked very well. He suggests
that the Lee Valley standard reamer is
excellent for reaming the mortise, but
he suggests using an electric drill to
achieve a uniform tapered hole.
I tried this, and it did work. And
although I am not a hand-tool purist,
I wanted to see if using this reamer by
hand would yield better results.
Here’s my discovery: Use a tap
wrench, specifically Starrett 93F tap
wrench. This wrench holds the bit
perfectly and the long shaft gives you
a good reference line to compare to a
bevel gauge while sighting the angle.
I found this tool on eBay sans handle
(finding these without a handle is not
difficult because the handle comes off
the tool and is apparently lost on occa-
sion). The stock handle would be too
short anyway, so I outfitted it with a
3 ⁄8"-diameter x 12"-long stainless steel
handle (rod stock). It provides massive
amounts of torque with control that
you don’t get with the drill.
It enabled me to ream the mortise
perfectly.
Phil Gaudio,
West Simsbury, Connecticut
ILLUSTRATIONS BY MARTHA GARSTANG HILL
Plastic Feeler Gauges
When planing work flat or square I
need to check it with my straightedge
or square to find the high spots. I used
to look for light under the straightedge,
but I found that light can shine through
a very slender gap, especially if I hap-
pen to tip my straightedge, making a
flat-enough surface look hollow.
Then I discovered plastic shim
stock, color-coded sheets of plastic at
precise thicknesses that are available
at industrial supply companies such
as McMaster-Carr.
I cut the stock with scissors into
strips that I can easily use to check for
gaps under my square or straightedge.
Cold-weather Finish Storage
As a long-time woodworker in east-
ern Canada, I used to have problems
keeping my various cans of paint and
varnish from freezing in the winter
because I fire up my shop’s heat source
only when I am working on a project.
So I obtained a broken-down re-
frigerator and removed the motor and
electrical parts. Then, I installed an
3⁄4" x 11⁄ 2" x 18"
(or so) wood strip
Screw to studs
I find this is much faster and more reli-
able than looking for light under the
tool, and I can choose my tolerance by
picking the appropriately colored shim.
Unlike with metal feeler gauges it’s
Gap
electric cord through a hole in the back
and plugged in a 40-watt light bulb.
The bulb’s heat, contained by the
refrigerator’s insulation, keeps my
finishes usable year-round while us-
ing little electricity – plus the setup
provides plenty of space to store mul-
tiple cans.
Frank Kostelnik,
Fredericton, New Brunswick
Easy Clamp Rack
For years I’ve read articles on making
fancy storage racks for clamps – but
here’s the simplest (but effective) rack
possible for use with hand clamps.
1) Take a 11 ⁄2"-wide piece of wood
that is long enough to reach across two
of your wall studs.
2) Screw the wood into the
tuds using 3" screws.
3) Tighten your h and
clamps to the wood.
That’s it! The number of
tri s and number of clamps
t hey w i l l hold i s
limited only by the
amount of wall space
you have. PWM
Ira Penn,
Bellingham, Washington
easy to see which size I’ve grabbed, and
at the thinner sizes, the plastic is less
prone to damage than metal.
Adrian V. Mariano,
Vienna, Virginia
Straightedge
Colored plastic strips
ONLINE EXTRAS
For links to all online extras, go to:
■ popularwoodworking.com/aug17
TRICKS ONLINE: We post tricks from the past
and film videos of some Tricks of the Trade
in use in our shop. They’re available online,
free. Visit popularwoodworking.com/tricks
to read and watch.
Our products are available online at:
■ ShopWoodworking.com
Cash and prizes
for your tricks and tips!
Each issue we publish woodworking tips
from our readers. Next issue’s winner
receives a $250 gift certificate from Lee Val-
ley Tools, good for any item in the catalog
or on the website (leevalley.com). (The tools
pictured below are for illustration only and
are not part of the prize.)
Runners-up each receive a check for
$50 to $100. When submitting a trick,
include your mailing address and phone
number. All accepted entries become the
property of Popular Woodworking
Magazine. Send your trick by email to
popwoodtricks@fwmedia.com, or mail it to
Tricks of the Trade, Popular Woodworking
Magazine, 8469 Blue Ash Road, Suite 100,
Cincinnati, OH 45236.
popularwoodworking.com ■ 13
TOOL TEST BY THE STAFF
Walke Moore Tools Compass Guides
D
esigned as solid anchor points
for placing compasses and di-
viders on the edges and corners
of boards to mark curves, two of these
Compass Guides from Walke Moore
Tools allow you to make perfect circles
or arcs anywhere on projects without
fumbling to align a compass leg. (The
round center guide is handy for mark-
ing curves on a face, without leaving a
deep prick mark.)
The question is, do you need them?
Truthfully, you can get by without
them, but in some sense that’s like
Compass Guides
Walke Moore Tools ■
walkemooretools.com
Street price ■ from $33
■BLOG No compass guides? Here’s how to
get around it.
Prices correct at time of publication.
OmniSquare Multi-function Layout Tool
This clever and inexpensive milled alu-
minum square functions as a try square,
miter square, bevel square, T-square,
combination square and (in a pinch) a
compass (the compass function would
work better were there a groove on the
end of the blade in which to set a pencil,
which the maker mentions, but leaves
up to the customer to cut per his or
her preference). It folds to a 7" flat for
easy storage.
The tool works by rotating on a
spring between the two blades, and it
has small high-density nylon balls that
click into detents at 90°, 45° and 135°.
OmniSquare
Omni Tool Works ■ omnitoolworks.com
Street price ■ from $24.95
■VIDEO Watch a demonstration of how the
OmniSquare works.
Price correct at time of publication.
14 ■ POPULAR WOODWORKING MAGAZINE August 2017
saying you can get by without a ham-
mer if you have a heavy rock nearby.
They’re the right tool for the job and
they bring a functional precision to
common layout tasks far surpassing
the ad-hoc solutions most of us employ.
I found myself reaching for the edge
and corner guides as answers to the
problems I encounter most often in the
workshop. Rather than accepting the
inaccuracy of trying to get the point of
a compass as close to an edge or corner
as possible, with these two guides I can
get right up on the corner or edge with
accurate and repeatable results, laying
out everything from Gothic arches to They are not an essential tool, but
octagonal chair legs. they’re an elegant solution for marking
The machined alignment points with a compass from edges and corners
are easy to see and precise, and while (and on a surface without leaving a
the guides are lighter than I expected, deep pin mark), so they’re nice to have
they’re also backed with sandpaper at hand. The guides are available indi-
which does a good job of keeping them vidually for $33 or as a set of three for
in place while in use. $90. — James McConnell
That makes it easy to quickly change
settings between common angles when
the two curved ends are aligned. Click
it out of the detents, and it’s easy to slide
the shorter blade down the longer blade
to use as a T-bevel, and the balls click
into the slot to keep it at 90° (and into
indentations at the far end to allow it
to function easily as a bevel square at
non-standard angles).
Both sides of the long blade are
marked in 1 ⁄16" increments; the short
blade has inches on one side and angles
on the other to help set the tool as a Is it as accurate as, say, a Starrett
bevel gauge, or pull a reading off it after or Vesper? It is not – but it’s accurate
setting the tool to an angle. The etched enough for all but the most critical lay-
numbers are fi lled with white paint out tasks, and ideal for work on the road
and are easy to see, though with some or atop a ladder. And if the balls wear
slight variation in the paint coverage. . out after a while (though the maker has
So for $24.95, you get one tool that tested several prototypes through 2,500
replaces several, and that you don’t have rotations), it’s not a major investment to
to worry too much about munging up replace the tool (or simply replace the
during travel or on a jobsite. balls). PWM — Megan Fitzpatrick
COMPASS GUIDES PHOTO BY THE AUTHOR; LAYOUT TOOL PHOTO BY AL PARRISH
CARD #118 or go to PWFREEINFO.COM
DESIGN MATTERS BY GEORGE R. WALKER

See Like a Designer

Look for the ‘bones’ to observe how form defines design.

I
t happens during almost every fur-
niture design workshop. At the start
of day two, a carload of students
shows up 20 minutes late.
One would think they’d be embar-
rassed, but instead they burst in all
giggly and excited. Then the story spills
out. They were on their way with plenty
of time until they noticed a courthouse,
library, cathedral or theater across the
street. With a few minutes to spare,
they piled out for a closer look. It was
then they realized they had new eyes.
Instead of seeing just an old building
with stone walls and wood doors, they
saw for the first time what the original
designer saw – the shapes and patterns
once hidden, now alive again for those
who can see.
I’ve yet to hand out detentions for
these latecomers. Truth be told, once
you begin to see like a designer, it’s hard
to resist the pull of a great building or
a masterful piece of furniture. So what
does it mean to see like a designer?
What do designers see that most mor-
tals don’t?

Order Out of Chaos

It’s not like a designer’s eye doesn’t see
the same things we do – details such
as joinery, wood grain and color. But
those are all separate items that, by
themselves, are each but a puzzle piece.
If anything, a designer’s eye sees details
with greater depth and understanding
because each is seen in the context of
the entire design. In a way details can
be roadblocks to actually seeing a de-
sign, like standing too close to a large
painting so that it’s impossible to take
in the whole masterpiece. So let’s step
back and look through a designer’s eye.
The first and most important thing is
to take in the form. A form is usually a
simple shape or a combination of simple
Good bones. Learn to see the form to understand a design’s hidden structure.
shapes that lies invisible just beneath
the surface. A form gives bones to the
design, whether through a bold and
simple geometric design or a complex
exterior hiding elusive shapes beneath.
It can be as simple as a circle or square,
or a combination of several shapes,
such as rectangles, ovals or triangles.
One way to find the form in a piece
of furniture is to gaze at it and squint
your eyelids almost shut. Squinting will
blur the details and allow you to see the
underlying form. Try this squinting
technique on something that’s over-the-
top in ornament or decoration. You’ll
see past all the surface noise to what
lies below and may be surprised to find
something unexpected.
Once you see the overall form, it
opens the door to unpacking a design.
You get a closer look at how it breaks
down into simple smaller shapes, such
as doors and drawers or even open
space.
But it’s important not to think of
what you are looking at as doors, draw-
CONTINUED ON PAGE 18

16 ■ POPULAR WOODWORKING MAGAZINE August 2017 “GOOD BONES” PHOTO BY LIE-NIELSEN TOOLWORKS; “FLEX THOSE MUSCLES” ILLUSTRATION BY THE AUTHOR
 CubbyDrawers
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DESIGN MATTERS
Squint. Close your eyes
nearly shut until the de-
tails blur to see the bold
shapes in this design.
ers or open spaces. Instead try to just
see squares, rectangles and circles –
simple shapes. And once you identify
the smaller shapes, step back and com-
pare them to both the overall form and
each other. Depending on how complex
the design is, you might also be able to
identify smaller sub-shapes. Ask ques-
tions about how these simple shapes
relate to the whole. Are they laid out
symmetrically? Are rectangles sized
differently to play off one another?
Lines & Good Bones
People often say that a piece of furniture
has nice lines. That might sound cliché,
but there really is something important
Flex those muscles. Our rectilinear form
gives us some structure to imagine curves in
a design.
18 ■ POPULAR WOODWORKING MAGAZINE August 2017
about a design’s lines. Lines reveal how
the actual boundaries of a design relate
to the inner form.
Returning to our analogy of bones,
lines are like skin and muscles that echo
the skeleton, or form, beneath. Our
design might be built around a rectan-
gular cuboid form, but the actual lines
of the piece could curve in relation to
that inner form. And knowing this can
go a long way toward understanding
and seeing curves. If you can compare
a curved line to a straight line on the
underlying form, your eye will have a
reference to gauge the curve’s sweep.
All of a sudden, a curve that was just
floating out in space gets a visual anchor
What’s inside. Tilted parts, such as this chair
back and legs, are easier to visualize when
viewed against an inner form.
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 16
to help us see it.
But it’s not just curves that relate to
a form. A design can have angular lines
springing from an internal form – a
chair design with lines that are nei-
ther true vertical nor horizontal, for
example. Yet a designer’s eye sees these
lines in relation to an inner form.
Our modern industrial approach
uses degrees to measure the amount
a line is angled. But if you think about
it, using degrees is just a mathematical
way to describe a sloped line. What
a designer’s eye seeks out is the way
lines or borders relate to the vertical
or horizontal planes in an underlying
form. Degrees are helpful when setting
up a machine for a cut, but they’re less
important than the ability to see how
angled lines relate to a form.
No Turning Back
There is a downside to flipping the
switch in your head that allows you
to see underlying forms in a design:
Once you begin to pick out forms, you
can’t un-see them. You’ll gain a greater
understanding of why certain designs
are appealing and why some are down-
right awful, and you’ll become more of
a curmudgeon about what you like and
don’t like. But I think that’s actually a
good thing. PWM
George is the co-author of two design books and
writer of the By Hand & Eye blog with Jim Tolpin.
ONLINE EXTRAS
For links to all these online extras, go to:
■ popularwoodworking.com/aug17
BLOG: Read more from George R. Walker on
his By Hand & Eye blog with Jim Tolpin.
IN OUR STORE: George R. Walker’s DVDs.
Our products are available online at:
■ ShopWoodworking.com
About This Column
Design Matters dives into
the basics of proportions,
forms, contrast and compo-
sition to give you the skill to tackle furniture
design challenges with confidence.
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The Almost-Forgotten
Fore Plane
B Y C H R I S TO P H E R S C H WA R Z

Learn to set up and wield one of the most useful

(and inexpensive) handplanes.

Two fore planes. Fore planes can take almost

any form – metal, wood or some combination.
What defines them is the length of the sole and
the shape of the iron’s cutting edge.
K
evin Drake, a furniture maker
who t r a i ned under Ja me s
Krenov, stood before his wonky-
topped workbench one day many years
ago and hesitated.
His urge was to start flattening the
benchtop by planing across the grain
instead of along it. But that urge defied
everything he had learned at the Col-
lege of the Redwoods and afterward.
“I thought I was going to go to hell if
I did that,” Drake told me many years
later. But he gave it a go, and has never
hesitated since then.
Flattening surfaces that are cupped,
bowed or twisted had traditionally been
the job of the fore plane, a tool that is
used mostly by working across the grain
of the wood. And sometime in the 20th
century, the fore plane fell out of favor
among woodworkers as the prices of
electric jointers and planers dropped
to the point where almost anyone
could afford machinery.
But I think the fore plane
is a tool that belongs in ev-
ery shop, even ones that
are fully mechanized,
because it allows you
to do things that no
typical machine
can do – such as
flattening a 20"-wide slab with ease. It
is the most common and inexpensive
bench plane – used examples can eas-
ily be found for $20. And the tool is a
workhorse – it can remove up to 1 ⁄16" of
wood in a pass without great effort. It
is the opposite of fussy. And it requires
no great skill to use it like a pro.
So what’s the trick? Setting it up cor-
rectly and using it correctly. During the
pre-Industrial age, fore planes were the
most-used plane in a woodworker’s kit.
But the knowledge of how to prepare
them and use them was almost lost for
the modern woodworker. This article
will tell you everything you need to
know to get started.
What is a Fore Plane?
A fore plane is one of the three broad
types of bench planes – smoothing
planes and jointer planes are the other
two types. Generally speaking, it is a
plane that is 14" to 18" long with an
iron that has a visibly curved cutting
edge and a wide-open mouth.
A fore plane can have a metal or
wooden body. It can have a mechanical
adjuster or be adjusted with hammer
taps. It can be beat-up or worm-eaten
and still work fine. It does not require
a sole that is dead flat.
In Stanley’s numbering system for
handplanes, a fore plane would be a
No. 5 or No. 6. Some of you might be
wondering: What’s the difference be-
tween a fore plane and a jack plane?
The answer is: The difference is who
was pushing the tool. Old sources say
that carpenters called the tool a jack.
Furniture makers preferred the term
fore plane, meaning that the tool was
used “before” the other planes.
How to Buy One
I love my wooden fore plane, but for
most woodworkers, I recommend a
metal one. Metal No. 5 or No. 6 bench
planes are easy to find and – no matter
what their age – have few significant
problems. Wooden planes can have
serious problems that require skill to
Open wide. The mouth of a fore plane should
allow huge shavings to pass. So set the frog
back or even open the mouth a bit if necessary.
LEAD PHOTO BY AL PARRISH; STEP PHOTOS BY THE AUTHOR
fix – if you do buy a wooden one, make
sure the wedge cinches down tight and
holds the iron during use.
One nice thing about fore planes is
you don’t have to fuss over them much.
If the sole is a bit ratty, so what? The
tool takes a coarse cut so sole flatness
isn’t much of a concern. The iron and
chipbreaker don’t have to be pristine.
As long as you can get a clean and sharp
edge on the iron, you’re good (in other
words, don’t buy an aftermarket iron
or chipbreaker for your tool).
The mouth isn’t an issue because
you don’t need a fine mouth. In fact,
you want the opposite. So a mis-filed
or gaping maw is OK.
I do recommend your fore plane
have wooden grips – not plastic. Us-
ing a fore plane is a vigorous operation,
so plastic seams will wreak havoc on
your hands, and sweaty plastic is just
unpleasant.
Last recommendation: Buy a used
plane, and not a premium tool. New fore
planes that are cheap are going to fight
you. And premium tools aren’t necessary
here (save your money for a premium
smoothing plane). My favorite fore plane
is an old Stanley No. 5 that I bought at an
antiques market for $12. It has a wooden
tote and knob, plus the original iron and
chipbreaker. And it has enough life left
in it for my kids and grandkids.
After you fi nd your tool, take the
whole thing apart, clean up the com-
ponents and oil any moving parts. The
next step will be grinding and honing
the iron.
Grind the Iron
The iron of a fore plane needs a curved
cutter to work well – the corners of a
straight cutter will dig into the work
and stop you cold. While you can ex-
periment with a variety of curvatures,
I prefer a radius somewhere between
8" and 10". These curvatures will work
with both bevel-up and bevel-down
bench planes, the only difference is
you won’t be able to take as aggressive
a cut with a bevel-up tool.
You are probably going to have to
grind the shape of your iron so it is
curved. If you don’t own a grinder, this
is an excellent excuse to buy one – I can-
popularwoodworking.com ■ 23
not imagine woodworking without one.
An inexpensive 6" fast-speed grinder
(3,450 rpm) is fine for woodworking.
A coarse #60- or #80-grit wheel will
do a fine job.
I like to make a wooden template
to mark the curve on the back of the
iron. Make the template the same width
as your iron. Then use a compass to
strike an arc across its width – I use
a 10" radius. Cut, rasp and sand the
template to the final curve. Then lay
out that curve on the back of your iron
using a fine-tipped permanent marker.
Aim to remove as little material from
the edge as possible when you mark your
curve. Grinding is, as they say, a grind.
The first step is to grind the curved
shape on the iron with the iron 90° to
the edge of the wheel. This will remove
material quickly and allow you to focus
on getting the curve’s shape just right.
This operation will create a flat on the
end of the iron. Then you’ll deal with
the bevel.
FOR P AN VS SCRUB P AN
Around the bend. A wooden template of the
desired curve is a handy thing to have next
time you need to grind the iron – or for grind-
ing your neighbor’s fore plane.
So set the grinder’s tool rest so the
blade is 90° to the wheel. Grind down
to your line. You’ll fi nd this process
goes quite rapidly with little pressure,
so take it easy. It’s unlikely, but if the
edge heats up so much that you cannot
touch it, cool the steel in a cup of water. The right curve. Grind to the line on the back
of your iron (top). When you are done, the flat
Once you grind to your line, reset
on the edge should look like this (above).
the machine’s tool rest so you will grind
a 25° bevel on the iron. Now dress the
wheel of the grinder so it is a wee bit curved. This curve gives you more con-
trol over where the wheel is cutting.
Now grind the bevel to the curved
shape. I start grinding in the middle

T he fore plane and scrub plane do the same job but are different animals.
While the fore plane is long and has a somewhat shallow curve to its
iron, the scrub plane is short (about 10") and its iron has a tighter radius.
of the iron with light pressure, then
feather to the right or left, adding pres-
sure as I rotate the iron. This helps es-
Most people choose one or the other. You don’t really need both. tablish the proper bevel because you
The longer sole of the fore plane makes it easier to get panels flat with will be grinding away more metal at
less skill. But it’s a bit bulky and heavy. A scrub plane requires more skill to the corners than the middle.
use – you can easily overshoot your mark because it is so aggressive. But it is After four or five strokes, pinch the
lightweight and takes up little space. bevel. If it’s too hot to touch, cool it in
If you are a carpenter, you might prefer the scrub plane because its short a cup of water.
sole allows you to go places a fore plane cannot – but that’s not really an After you get a curved bevel estab-
issue with furniture makers. lished you can work the entire bevel
Either way, both tools are used in the same way in a furniture shop. So in smooth strokes, like the windshield
take your pick. — CS wipers of your car. Pinch the bevel fre-
quently to check the temperature and
inspect the bevel.
The flat on the end of the iron should
diminish in size equally at both cor-
ners. If it doesn’t, work the corner that
needs help to even them out.
You want to get the flat as tiny and
consistent as possible without remov-
ing the flat. I shoot for a flat that is a
hair’s width, or about 1 ⁄128". Leaving
the flat intact prevents the edge from
overheating rapidly and softening the
A shorter sister. The scrub plane does the same job as the fore, but it requires more skill tool’s steel. Once you achieve this fine
to use. flat, turn off the grinder and head to
your sharpening stones.

24 ■ POPULAR WOODWORKING MAGAZINE August 2017

Center to edge. Start grinding the bevel with
light pressure at the center of the curve. As
you rotate the tool left or right add pressure so
that you remove more material at the corners.
Hone the Iron
I prefer to hone the iron in a side-clamp-
ing honing guide. If you buy a cheap
one, just make sure its wheel is narrow
– wide wheels won’t rock on the stones.
I set the iron in the honing guide to
create a 35° secondary bevel, which is a
robust edge and is suitable for this sort of
work. Start on your coarse honing stone,
such as a #1,000-grit waterstone. Rock
the iron left and right as you move up
and down the stone. You’ll quickly find a
rhythm. Work until you have eliminated
the flat and cut a new edge – you’ll know
by the burr on the backside of the iron.
Then move up in grits – I use #5,000
and #8,000 – to whatever polish you
prefer. Then polish the back of the iron.
I use David Charlesworth’s ruler trick
because it is especially handy at polish-
ing out any rusty pits on the backside
of my vintage iron.
Don’t worry (much) if the iron doesn’t
have a perfect curve, or your sharpening
needs help. Do your best, but know that
the fore plane is a forgiving tool.
Set Up
Reassemble the plane. If your tool has
a chipbreaker, set it slightly behind the
curve on the iron. Then turn the tool
over and sight down the sole. Increase
Wave bye-bye to straight edges. After estab-
lishing the bevel with short strokes, you can
then work the entire bevel in a single stroke.
The wrist motion is like waving goodbye.
the cut of the blade and it will appear
as a sliver of a moon against the sole.
Adjust it laterally until the curve is in
the middle of the sole. To begin, set the
iron so the amount of curve you can see
comprises about one-third of the width
of the sole. You can easily increase or
decrease the cut.
Use a Fore Plane
It’s time to learn some new woodwork-
ing words related to this tool. All three
come from Joseph Moxon, who wrote
the first English-language book on
woodworking in the 17th century,
“Mechanick Exercises.”
The first new word is “dawks”; those
are the curved furrows left in the wood
by the fore plane.
The second word is “traverse,” which
means you use the tool across the grain
of a board or panel instead of along the
grain. Traversing allows you to take a
much bigger bite with much less ef-
fort. It leaves a woolly surface behind,
but that can be cleaned up with other
tools or left as-is for unseen surfaces
in your furniture. (Personally, I quite
like the woolly texture and the ridges
of the dawks.)
The third word is “spelching,” which
is when you traverse a board and splin-
Tiny flat. This is when I switch from the
grinder to stones. The flat is there, but it is
barely visible.
Rock ‘n’ roll. Use finger
pressure to make the
iron rock back and
forth on the stone as
you roll the honing
guide up and down the
stone. It’s easier than it
sounds. Honing a back
bevel on the flat side is
handy for fore planes.
ter the far edge. Some people call this
“blowing out the backside,” but that
sounds to me like a trip to Tijuana. So
I prefer the traditional word.
Every traversing operation begins
by beveling off the far corner to prevent
spelching. I create this bevel using the
fore plane, holding it at a 45° angle and
running along the corner to chamfer it
off. Then I begin traversing.
Your first time out, I encourage you
to just give this a go on some scrap ma-
terial and see how big a bite you can
take. Don’t worry about flatness. Just get
used to the feel of the cut and find your
limits – you might be surprised how
much wood you can remove in a pass.
Stop spelching. A heavy bevel on the far edge
will prevent spelching when you traverse a
board. The bevel can be ripped away after
you flatten the board.
popularwoodworking.com ■ 25
The Finer Points of Flattening
OK, so after you sow your wild oats on
a piece of scrap and know what you can
do, let’s talk about how to control the
surface below the plane, to make it flat.
The trick is to remember these two
suggestions:
1) Focus your efforts on the high
spots as much as possible.
2) It’s usually best to work two high
spots down to a low spot.
So let’s say you are working the bark
face of a board that is cupped. There
are two high spots on the board’s edges
with a low spot between. If you tra-
verse the board you’ll work the two
high spots down to the low spot. When
your plane’s iron touches the low spot,
you have brought the edges down to be
in same plane as the low spot. Is the
board flat? Maybe. But you first need
to check for twist.
One of the great gifts of the natural
world is that boards twist in predictable
Conquer the cup. With cupped boards,
traverse the high edges to bring them down to
the valley between.
With a twist. When
your board is in wind,
plane diagonally across
the two high spots to
bring them down to the
low spots. If you are
removing twist from a
big tabletop, you might
have to plane locally at
the two high corners
first.
26 ■ POPULAR WOODWORKING MAGAZINE August 2017
“My autobiography is pretty freely
dictated, but my idea is to jack-
plane it a little before I die, some
day or other; I mean the rude con-
struction & rotten grammar.”
—Mark Twain (1835-1910),
in a letter to Henry Ward Beecher
ways – like a corkscrew. Diagonally, two
corners are high and two corners are low.
If you want to remove twist, you
should work across the two high cor-
ners – bringing them down to the low
corners. So you plane the board diago-
nally across the high corners.
As always, you should check your
work with winding sticks, which will
point out any twist in a board as you
work.
But what about the heart face of a
board that is bowed? There’s a single
hump in the middle of the board. If you
traverse this hill you will not flatten it.
Your tool will merely follow the hill up
to the top and down again.
Here you should focus your efforts
entirely on the summit of the hill. Bring
the hilltop down to the level of the long
edges (or even below the long edges).
You can do this one of two ways:
1) In wide panels, traverse the hill-
top alone until it has been defeated.
2) In narrow boards, plane with the
grain of the board to take the middle
out, reducing it until it is at the same
level as the long edges or even below
them. If you go below the long edges,
you can then flatten the board by – you
guessed it – traversing the board.
The above strokes are the fundamen-
tal rules for fore planes. Anytime you
wonder how to approach an operation,
think of the high spots. Can you find
two high spots on which to register the
sole of the plane? If not, work the single
high spot until it is gone.
Other Fore Plane Operations
The fore plane is the most economical
way to remove lots of wood in a local-
ized area. Take the example of tapering
legs for a chair or table. If you mark the
taper on the part, you can use the fore
plane to hog off material until you are
close to your knife or pencil lines. Then
finish the job with a jointer, smooth or
block plane (depending on the scale of
the work).
Let’s say you need to chamfer the
edges of a table – either to make a flat
and modern chamfer or a traditional
thumbnail profile with a moulding plane
or router bit. The fore plane can quickly
remove the bulk of the material, saving
you time and effort with the tricky-to-
sharpen moulding plane or router.
Need to fit a moulding to a case that
is bowed or crooked? Use a fore plane
to relieve the moulding on its inner face
(or plane the surfaces of the carcase if
needed). A fore plane lets you remove
material precisely where it needs to be
removed, even if it’s a 2" x 2" area. It’s
difficult to train machines to do this.
Do you have a board that is too wide
for your jointer but fits in your planer?
Plane the bark side flat with your fore
plane – taking the high edges down to
the middle and removing any twist.
Take out the middle. This board is bowed
in the center. Take the middle out by either
planing with the grain down the middle of the
board (useful with narrow boards) or traverse
the hill alone (useful with large tops).
 Differing strokes. To
taper legs, take a short
stroke near the end Remove bulk. A fore plane can quickly re-
of the leg, then take a move material that is interfering with a tight fit
slightly longer stroke. between your moulding and carcase.
Keep lengthening your
strokes until you are
planing the entire leg.
Repeat until you reach
your layout line.

Then put the board through your plan-
er. This is much easier than building
some sort of sled for your router.
Need to flatten a workbench top or
a dining table top? Again. find the high
spots with a straightedge and winding
sticks. Work them down to the low
spots. Then finish the job with what-
ever tool you prefer, be it a smoothing
plane or belt sander. After you do this
a couple times, you will laugh when
you see videos of convoluted router
sleds at work.
I could go on and on, but you’ll fig-
ure it out. So let’s talk about a couple
advanced tips.
Reducing Tearing
When you traverse a board, the surface
is going to look pretty crappy, like a
woolly worm after a bender. But there is
a way to improve the look of the planed
surface without reducing the effective-
ness of the fore plane.
When you put your board on the
I know this seems an odd thing to
wrap your head around. So let me put
it a different way: Plane straight across
the width of the board, but rotate the The infinite jointer. With a fore plane, you
plane 30° to 35° in the direction that can flatten any size board within your reach.
Get the bark face flat, then run it through the
the grain flows in the board. This feat
planer.
of legerdemain will greatly reduce any
tear-out you experience and make easy
work for your other planes (or your
belt sander).
And here’s a second tip straight out
of the 17th century: After you plane a
surface with the fore plane, reduce the
tool’s depth of cut and plane the board Stroke
direction
again to remove the high ridges of the
dawks. This flattens the wood a bit more
and makes the work even easier for the
tools that follow.
So what do you have to lose? Buying Skewed but straight. To reduce tearing, skew
the tool in the direction the grain is running
a fore plane costs less than a half-decent
but push the tool straight across the board.
router bit. And even if you decide it’s
not for you (a rare occurrence) you can
sell the plane for the price you paid. ON INE EXTRAS
The payoff for mastering this ridicu- For links to all online extras, go to:
lously simple tool is that you can tackle ■ popularwoodworking.com/aug17

workbench, note which way the grain boards of any width, no matter what BLOG: A primer on adjusting handplanes.

runs in that board. Let’s say it runs
from right to left – toward the left side
of your workbench. Place the plane on
the board and rotate it about 30° to 35°
to the left – the toe of the tool should
veer to the left end of the bench. Now
traverse the board – straight across –
with the plane rotated.
the capacity of your machines. And
I promise you won’t go to hell in the
process. Instead, you’ll join a long line
of woodworkers who considered the
fore plane their bread and butter. PWM
Christopher is the editor at Lost Art Press, and will be
buried with his metal fore plane, a Stanley No. 5.
BLOG: Uses for scrub planes.
IN OUR STORE: “Super-tune a Handplane,” a
video by Christopher Schwarz.
TO BUY: “Handplane Essentials: Revised Edi-
tion,” by Christopher Schwarz.
Our products are available online at:
■ ShopWoodworking.com

popularwoodworking.com ■ 27
Paper
Simple Danish ‘planflet’
weaving produces
eyecatching results.

D
anish paper cord is three-ply,

Cord
twisted paper, a strong mate-
rial that Hans Wegner used on
his now-classic CH25 lounge chair – a
piece that inspired my chair. In the last
issue (June 2017, #232), I showed you
how to make the frame and hardware;
here, I go step by step through weaving
the “planflet” (flat-weave) pattern for
the seat and back – it’s a simple pattern,
B Y CA L E B JA M E S
and easy for even a weaving novice.
Before I begin, here’s an overview.
Weaving is done in two directions. The
first is the “warp,” which in this case
consists of double strands of cord that
stretch from the front to the back rails.
These are spaced apart along each rail
by four or five wraps of cord around
each respective rail. The second is the
“weave,” which fills in the pattern. It
consists of double strands of cord that
travel from side to side while alternat-
ing over and under the “warp.”
I should mention that weaving is
like the proverbial cat: there’s more
than one way to skin it. I can think
of at least four ways I’ve gone about
achieving this same pattern over the
years, but this is the simplest. (It is not,
however, the most efficient – so after
you’ve gained some experience, try
other approaches!)

LEAD & STEP PHOTOS BY THE AUTHOR; INSET PHOTO BY AL PARRISH

Get Warped
Let’s start with the seat. To allow free
access all around the frame for weaving,
I cantilever it over the workbench edge
while securing the legs to the benchtop
with a light-duty ratchet strap. Because
the legs are curved, it’s helpful to place
a block of wood underneath to orient
the frame at a nice working level. I use a
packing blanket as a pad between them.
Just as in the frame build, patterns
guide the way for weaving. Danish
paper cord is an oddball in the mea-
surement world. It is thicker than 1 ⁄8"
but not quite 9 ⁄64". It doesn’t have an
exact metric equivalent, either. Because
a typical woven rail would have well
more than 100 widths of cord, even
1 ⁄100" per cord variation in the layout
can put you considerably off.
That said, I’ve included patterns (see
pages 30 and 34) that will help you get
the warp layout right on for this build.
To make a nice durable template, print
them out, adhere them to posterboard
with spray adhesive, apply clear packing
tape over the patterns and cut them out.
The warp cords that extend from the
front rail to the back rail are hooked
around L-shaped nails located on the
inside of the rail (see the Supplies on
page 36).
Place the Front Seat Rail Warp Pat-
tern (next page) against the inside of the
rail and, with an awl, prick the center
of each nail location. Now drill a 1 ⁄16"
pilot hole for each nail. Drive the nails
in partway, leaving about 3 ⁄8" out on
the back rail and 1 ⁄4" out on the front
rail. These can be driven in farther as
needed once the seat is woven.
You’ll need a 10-pound spool of cord
to complete this project (see Supplies).
Spool off about 60' to work with. I mea-
sure this by taking the cord in one hand
and stretching my arms apart while
holding the other end. For me, this
length is approximately 6' (equal to
my height), so I do that 10 times. It’s
a simple way of approximating cord
length. This cord amount is helpful
especially when doing the weaving
portion, so that your knots will land in
the right location without much waste
– but more on that later.
The fi rst step of the warp pattern
Drill & drive. Drive an L-shaped cord nail part way into 1⁄16" pilot holes at each location. Note
that the nails on the far ends of the rail are hooked downward; the rest point upward.
Cord management. A
large spool of cord is bet-
ter managed on a holder
such as this. I find it’s less
likely to tangle if I work
the loose end of the
spool from the
center rather
than from the
outside.
is to wrap the cord around each rail.
There’s no cord going from one rail to
the other at this point; that comes in
the next step. To get the proper spacing,
use the warp pattern; the shaded areas
are where the cord is to land. Place the
pattern on the rail and with a pencil
Secure & protect. For
ease of weaving, canti-
lever the seat frame off
the edge of your bench
with a block under-
neath; Secure it with a
light-duty ratchet strap.
Prick. Mark the centers
of each cord nail
location from the warp
layout pattern on the
inside of the rail.
Tack
Tack it. Place a #6 tack in the corner and
hook the cord around it. Now wrap back over
the loose end to hold it securely.
Stay on track. Mark
out the shaded areas
along the rail to stay on
track, or just eyeball
it and check with the
pattern as you go. Push
the cord into place if
needed.
mark off where these shaded areas start
and stop to use as a guide.
In the front corner where you begin,
place a small tack to hook your cord
around for securing it to the frame.
See the “Tack it” photo above. Then
wrap the cord over about 1" to 11 ⁄2" of
popularwoodworking.com ■ 29
Five, five, four. Wrap around the rail five
times twice, then four times each until you
reach the other end, where you’ll again wrap
five times twice. Leave a double cord’s width
in between each.
the loose end to hold the cord in place.
Wrap the cord around the rail five
times (pull it taut, but don’t strain it)
and space over approximately two
cords’ width; the cord nail should land
right between the space you leave (al-
lowing room for two cords’ width to
land there later). Notice in the photos
above that the cord angles over to the
next space just under the nail. Wrap
around the rail five more times. Repeat,
but wrapping only four times each as
you move across from here – until you
reach the last two wraps. There, you’ll
again wrap five times.
Continue the cord under and up
to the back rail as shown at top right.
Wrap five times through the slot, then
space over two cord’s widths. The next
wrap will again be a total of five, how-
ever, only three of those passes go
through the slot; the remaining two
Center 107⁄8"
327⁄ 32"
FRONT SEAT RAIL WARP PATTERN
(213⁄4" – 158 cords) pattern begins with 5/2/5/2 repeat 4/2/4/2 end 2/5/2/5
Cord nail
location
Weaving bar location
(213⁄4" – 158 cords) pattern begins with 5/2/5/2 repeat 4/2/4/2 end 2/5/2/5
30 ■ POPULAR WOODWORKING MAGAZINE August 2017
End game. On the last pass, the cord extends
to the back rail to continue the same pattern
there.
Add length. Along the way, you’ll need to
add more cord. Tie a knot on the inside of a
rail to keep it hidden.
wrap around the entire rail. Continue
on with the same pattern to match the
front rail (four passes from here until
you reach the other end).
Once you’ve reached the opposite
side you are ready to begin the second
phase of the warp. Place a cord nail
near the inside corner of the slot as
213⁄ 4"
CL
Shown at quarter-size
BACK SEAT RAIL WARP PATTERN
Shown at quarter-size
Back-rail slot. Continue the cord under and
up to the back rail. Wrap through the weaving
slot as shown: five times around, space, then
three times through the slot and twice around
the entire rail.
Another nail. Add a cord nail near the corner
so that it can “jump over” to the adjacent nail
and go back through the slot. This begins the
second phase of the warp pattern.
shown above. Loop the cord under the
nail and over to the adjacent nail, then
bring the cord up and back through
the slot. Bring it over the top of the rail
and toward the front rail. This begins
the second phase of the warp pattern.
With the cord coming over the top of
the rail, align it so that it falls into the
327⁄32"
weaving bar
13⁄ 16"
Shaded area
is cord
11⁄ 4"
113⁄ 16"
gaps from phase 1. At the correspond-
ing gap on the front rail, bring it over
and wrap under to the inside. Loop Rear
rail slot
the cord over the nail and bring it back
under and to the front. Continue over
the top of the rail, falling in the remain-
ing gap and continue to the back rail.
Likewise, align the cord in the same
remaining space on the back rail and
bring the cord through the slot. Loop
the cord back over the nail directly
below the gap as before, then bring it
over to the adjacent nail to the left but
go over the top of this nail and down.
Now repeat. Bring the cord back
around the rear rail in the gap, over the
top of the rail and to the front. Wrap
around the front rail, hook on the nail
and return to the rear rail. Land the
cord in the remaining gap while wrap- Back to front. Bring the cord from
ping around the rail, hook onto the nail the rear rail slot to the front rail. Stay left. Do not cross over any cords when wrapping
and carry it over to the adjacent nail to Land in the open space between the underside of the rail. Stay to the left and return on
the left. And keep repeating until you the wrap sections. Stay on the the right side of the gap to bring the cord to the front rail.
left side of the gap and make the Notice that the cord is to the side of the “angled” cord
reach the other side.
return on the right side. that’s under the nail.
You might notice that the cord now
returns via the route it came, over and
over. Therefore, you can just pull a loop
of cord from the rear rail to the front
rail’s nail instead of carrying the entire
bundle of cord through the process. In
fact, when you add more cord just work
directly from the spool if you prefer.
Either way works just fine.
When you reach the opposite slot,
catch the nail just below it and go up
and in through the slot rather than Loop around. Loop the cord over the nail and
return back the way you came. Make sure
you are not crossing over any cords on the Back through. Drop the cord into the remain-
underside of the rail so that it stays looking ing space on the back rail and bring it back
neat and clean. through the slot.

Move left. Loop the cord back over the nail

directly below the gap as before, then bring Next nail. After returning from the front rail, Add more cord. When you have to add more
it over to the adjacent nail to the left. Go over bring the cord over the same nail as before cord, tie the knot so it lands between the
the top of this nail and down. and over to the adjacent nail. Repeat. nails.

popularwoodworking.com ■ 31
 WEAVING KNOTS

J ust two knots will serve for the “planflet” pattern used for this chair: a
square knot for tying a single length of cord; and a double-cord knot that
biases the loose ends of the knot to one side while leaving the opposite side
relatively smooth. Take advantage of this when orienting your knots, espe-
cially while weaving the backrest.

At the end. When you reach the slot, catch
the nail just below it and go up and in through
the slot and over, rather than down to the
underside of the rail.
Single-cord knot
1. Form a loop on one loose
end. Bring the other loose end
in through this loop, around and
under the two strands and back
through the loop.
2. You now have two loops that
are interlocked with each other.
3. Draw these loops apart forming
a tight knot. Trim the excess off the
loose ends.

Tied & nailed. Secure the loose end of the
cord with a knot that’s trapped under a cord
nail.
down to the underside of the rail.
Complete the route to the front rail as
before, but when returning come back
through the slot and hook the cord on
the nail directly below the slot.
In order to secure the end of the
cord, place a cord nail in the corner
along the same line as the other nails.
Just get it started a little ways in. Now
extend the cord over to this nail and
note its distance.
Tie a knot in the cord at this point.
Hook the nail through two of the cord
plies and drive the nail in farther to
tension the cord securely.
Warped. The
two phases of the
warp are now
complete – on to
the weaving.
Double-cord knot
1. Pull the two loose ends through
the center of the loop. Bring one
end around and under the two
cords of the looped portion to
meet the other loose end.
2. With both loose ends tie a
single knot in the cord.
3. Draw these two double stands
of cord apart until they bind
together. —CJ
Get Your Weave On
To complete the seat, you’ll weave a
double strand of cord from left to right.
This double strand will wrap around
the weaving bars on either side of the
seat as you go from side to side.
Measure off about 12 arm lengths of
cord (or 72'). Bring both ends together
and double it over so that there is a loop
at one end. Take the loop and bring it
over one of the weaving bars. Draw
the two loose ends through this loop
so that it is now tied around the bar.
Bring the looped cord up and around
the side of the frame and over to the top
of the seat. Begin by going under the
first set of warp strands then alternate
over and under as you weave your way
to the other side. Go down around the
side of the frame and wrap around the
weaving bar. Now bring it back around
the side of the frame and to the top of
the seat. This time, go over the fi rst
set of warp strands then alternate over
and under them until you reach the
opposite side.

32 ■ POPULAR WOODWORKING MAGAZINE August 2017


Doubled up & ready. Tie a doubled length of
cord to the weaving bar to secure one end for
weaving.
Tight space. An L-shaped or hooked pick tool
(available in a “Pick and Probe” set for $6 at
the home center) helps when working the last
few rows where fingers don’t easily reach.
Repeat this process until you reach
the back of the seat. Weave through the
slot near the back of the seat with the
same pattern, then finish by tying off
on a cord nail under the seat (similar
to how you finished the warp).
Tight Wire
To finish off the seat, connect the two
weaving bars with a wire (see Supplies).
This wire keeps even tension on the
cord across the seat, and allows it to
have a bit of “spring.” Use a clamp to
pull the bars slightly toward one an-
other while attaching the wire. (If you
don’t have a suitable clamp for this,
then put the wire on before weaving.)
Now for the (Back) Rest
The backrest is woven on both the front
and back. This makes the chair look
“finished” from all directions. You’ll
notice a change to the pattern on the
backside that creates a vertical “strip”
on one side. It brings a bit of interest
to the pattern, but it also has a practi-
cal purpose, as you’ll soon find out. In
Not too tight. Do not pull the cord tight;
rather let it alternate up and down through
the warp stands like a wave. Pulling it too tight
will make it difficult to pack the weave close
together on subsequent rows.
Around & through. After working up to the
weaving slot at the back of the seat you’ll
wrap around the bar and come back through
the slot to start that section of the weave.
Danish furniture, function is part of
the form and there is no exception here.
You won’t need a row of cord nails
for this part – so to begin, lay out the
warp spacing on the upper and lower
rails with the pattern on page 34. Start
by wrapping the lower rail on the left
side (when viewed from the back) op-
posite the slot. Place a U-shaped nail
(a 1 ⁄2" electrician’s “cable staple” works
perfectly) in this corner and hook the
cord through it. (Go ahead and loosely
A clean weave. Pack the weave in to the
adjacent row as you pull the cord though.
This gives a consistency in appearance to the
weave.
Knot a problem. To add more doubled cord,
tie it when weaving around the bar so that
the knot is hidden under the seat. Finish off
the weave by making a knot in the cord and
securing it with a cord nail under the seat.
Get wired. Place a clamp across the weaving
bars to provide light tension, then connect
them with a piece of wire. Once the clamp is
released it will pull the wire tight and keep the
seat weave tight as well.
popularwoodworking.com ■ 33
 193⁄ 8"
Weaving slot through top & bottom backrest rail 11⁄ 2"
31⁄ 8"
911⁄ 16" 5⁄ 16"

CL
BACKREST RAIL WARP WEAVING PATTERN
(193⁄8" – 142 cords) pattern begins with 5/2/5/2 repeat 4/2/4/2 end 2/5/2/5
Shown at quarter-size

insert a staple in the top right corner as
well – you’ll need it later.) Wrap over
the loose end to hold it in place.
Wrap the backrest rails as you did
the seat, and shift or angle over the
cord on the top side of the rail, which
is the interior side. As with the seat,
“A chair is to have no backside. It
should be beautiful from all sides
and angles.”
—Hans Wegner (1914-2007),
Danish funiture designer
the fi rst two sections get five wraps.
The remainder center sections get four
wraps each until you reach the opposite
side, then another two passes with five
wraps. Once you reach the weaving
slot at the opposite side, wrap only the
front portion of the slot. See photo at
bottom, left.
When you reach the opposite side,
place a cord nail on the inside of the
frame. Hook the cord around this nail
and carry it up then over the top rail
to start the warp wrap.
Because there are no cord nails on
the backrest, you’ll combine both the
wrapping of the upper rail with the
strands of cord that will need to extend
from the top to bottom rails. Start wrap-
ping the top rail with five wraps. On the
fifth wrap, extend the cord all the way
down to the bottom rail and land in the
gap you left between the cord sections,
then go back around the front and to
the top. Make sure you are not crossing
over any cord on the bottom rail.
Do one more wrap like this to com-
pletely fi ll the gap. Once you return
to the top rail, wrap five more times

Cable staples

Warp layout. Lay out the warp spacing for
the wraps on the backrest lower and upper
rails. Note that only one side of the slot will be
wrapped in the initial pass on the lower rail.
It’s electric. An electrician’s “cable staple”
works perfectly for a dual purpose. It holds
the initial start of the warp wrap and the last
of the cord when you finish off the weave. A
nail set can help you place it in this tight spot.
Staple & wrap. The loose end of the cord
is hooked though the cable staple then is
wrapped over it to secure it in place. Notice
that the wrap angles or shifts over on the top
of the rail, which will be obscured once the
back is completely woven.

Slot it. The slot is wrapped only on the front

side (shown here from the backside). The Stop & confirm. Check every so often that your spac- Hooked. Place a cord nail on the
large gap on the backside of the slot will be ing is on track by comparing it to your pattern. (The inside of the frame to hook around
filled later as you wrap the upper rail. work here is shown from the front side.) before bringing the cord to the top rail.

34 ■ POPULAR WOODWORKING MAGAZINE August 2017


Back warp. The warp pattern on the top rail
combines both the wrapping of the rail and
the long double strands that travel from the
top to bottom rails.
Through & down. Bring the cord down through the top of the slot, pull it tight and continue
down to the bottom rail’s slot.
Through & down again. Now you’re back
at the beginning. Go through the top of the
slot again and repeat this pattern three more
times.
just around the top rail, then two more
times down to the bottom rail, again
filling in the gap in the bottom rail’s
cord. You know this drill by now: The
remaining sections get four wraps until
you reach the opposite side, then it’s
two passes of five.
The trickiest part of this pattern is
the weaving slot. But all that’s happen-
Lower backrest rail. This is how the lower rail
should look before you begin weaving any
cord through the top rail slot.
Over the top. After passing through the slot
four times, continue with the cord wrapping
around the top of the rail and down.
ing here is that instead of just having a
section of four wraps dividing the long
double-warp stands on the backside,
those four wraps travel from the top to
the bottom rail. Thus, it will look like
eight strands of cord in a row going
from the top to bottom.
While that’s happening on the back-
side, the front side of the slot will con-
Now slot. After the second long wraps from
the top to the bottom rails, go in through the
top of the slot. Bring the cord to the front of
the rail and back up. Shown here is the same
step from the back (top) and front (bottom).
And again. Go through the slot, bring the
cord to the back of the rail and continue back
up to the top rail again.
From the front. Here’s the view now from the
front at the top (left) and bottom (right). Wrap
two times from the top to the bottom rails,
falling into the gap on the bottom rail as you
did before. At this point, restart the regular
“wrap four times” pattern.
popularwoodworking.com ■ 35
tinue the regular pattern of just four
wraps divided by two double-strand
sections on either side as usual. It
sounds more confusing than it is; just
take it one step at a time and study the
photos closely.
Complete the warp pattern to the
opposite side. Place a cord nail on the
inside of the frame. Loop your cord
around it and return to the opposite end
of the rail to start the weaving portion.
Spiral Weave
The backrest is woven with a doubled-
over length of cord, just like the seat.
However, the backrest is woven in one
direction. The cord weaves from right
to left as it spirals around the backrest
frame from top to bottom. It starts at
the top back right inside corner, and
runstothelowerleftbackinsidecorner.
Weave from right to left as you did
the seat, except continue around the
Double it. Loop the cord through the staple
and tie a knot in the loose end so that it stops.
This is the beginning section of doubled-over
cord for weaving.
Pattern variation. Go over two, under four and over two. Wedge your
hand or a strip of wood underneath to force the cord to undulate over
and under neatly. This will help the next row pack in tightly.
36 ■ POPULAR WOODWORKING MAGAZINE August 2017
Loop to weave. Once your reach the end,
loop around a cord nail and take the cord
back to the opposite end of the rail to start
weaving. (Here you’re looking at the top left
from the back.)
side and to the front. Continue the over/
under pattern onto the front and back
aroundtheoppositeside.Whenthecord
continues onto the back again, stagger
it down to start under the previous row.
Stagger it. The cord will have to stagger down
a bit as you wrap it around to go under the
previous row. There will likely be a small gap
above the cord on the side rail. Push it up
tight and after a few more times around, it will
stay in place.
Reverse. Now do the opposite of the previous row, before returning to
the normal pattern.
SUPP IES
Cane & Basket
caneandbasket.com or 323-939-9644
1 ■ Unlaced Danish Seat Cord
#S-DSCSPL, $95/10-lb spool
1 ■ Danish nails
#TL-DN, $8.95/100
McMaster-Carr
mcmaster.com or 330-995-5500
1 ■ “Bend-and-Stay” 316L .064" wire
#92705K17, $18.01/1⁄4-lb coil
Prices correct at time of publication.
As you weave down the backrest,
you’ll notice that the wide vertical band
of cord wants to bunch together. To
prevent this, there’s a small pattern
change: On the 16th row down (and the
32nd and 48th rows), rather than sim-
ply going over all eight vertical cords,
weave over two, under four, and over
two. On the next row, do the reverse:
Mystery solved. When you need to tie on
more cord, plan the knot to land behind
the wide vertical band of cord – and now
you know why that wide band is part of the
pattern.

Same change, different row. This pattern variation occurs two more times, at rows 32 and 48.
under two, over four, and under two.
The next row picks back up the regular
pattern, going over all eight cords.
The last row is the back of the seat,
and ends on the bottom left corner,
where you placed the cable staple earlier.
Thread the two loose ends of the cord
In your eye. Thread the eye of the staple that
was installed at the beginning of the warp
phase, and pull the cord ends through the
opposite side.
through this staple and pull through
the front to tension it. Slide a row of the
cord apart and use a nail set to drive in
the staple to secure the cord. Cut off
any excess cord on the opposite side
and tuck the loose ends back inside.
All that’s left to do now is assemble
Tied off & secure. Pull the cord ends tight
and drive the staple in with a nail set slipped
between the cord.
BACKREST WEAVING PATTERN
Shown at quarter-size
the seat and backrest frames, fi nd a
sunny spot with a good book, and
you’re done. Congratulations and en-
joy! PWM
Caleb is a toolmaker and furniture maker in
Greenville, S.C.
ON IN XTRAS
For links to all online extras, go to:
■ popularwoodworking.com/aug17
WEBSITE: See more of the author’s furniture –
and his wooden handplanes and other tools
– on his website: calebjamesmaker.com.
PATTERNS: Download full-size patterns for the
panflet seat and back weaving.
IN OUR STORE: Check out Mike Mascelli’s basic
and intermediate upholstery videos.
TO BUY: If you missed the last issue (June
2017) with the author’s chair frame build,
you can download it now.
Our products are available online at:
■ ShopWoodworking.com
popularwoodworking.com ■ 37
Greene & Greene
Pantry Shelf
BY NORMAN REID
& JEFFREY FLEISHER

Cloudlifts and ebony

accents add spice
to utilitarian storage.

T
his project began, as many do,
with a need. Norm’s overflowing
pantry shelves needed relief. So
we set out to build a shelf that could
hang on his kitchen wall to store cans
and boxes for ready access. While we
might have built a plain case with
shelves, where’s the fun in that? We
decided to make a Greene & Greene-
inspired shelf – not only to dress up
Norm’s kitchen, but for the design and
construction challenges it posed.
Charles and Henry Greene are well-
known for their Asian-influenced Arts
& Crafts designs. Both the homes and
the furniture they designed for them
incorporate a wide variety of details.
Among the better-known and most
frequently imitated are cloudlifts, pil-
lowed finger joints, reveals and the use
of ebony for decorative accents. So here
we’ve incorporated all of these.

Design Brief
The needs and available space dictated
five shelves of varying heights to ac-
commodate different-sized cans and
boxes. For simplicity and harmony, we
chose to use whole numbers and simple
ratios for the shelf’s design. Thus, the
major mass of the case is 24" x 36", a
2:3 ratio. The shelves themselves have
varying depths, narrowing gradually as
they progress from 53 ⁄4" at the bottom
to 41 ⁄4" at the top, and are attached with
tapered sliding dovetail joints.

38 ■ POPULAR WOODWORKING MAGAZINE August 2017 PHOTOS BY THE AUTHORS; ILLUSTRATIONS BY DAN PESSELL FROM THE AUTHORS’ MODEL

Tapered sliding dovetails. We used an adjustable jig adapted from Simon James’s book “Working
Wood 3” to cut the tapered sliding dovetails for the shelves.
Big fingers. Divide your side pieces into five
equal widths, then cut the finger joints by
hand with a backsaw and chisel.
The cloudlifts on the sides of the
case mirror the narrowing shelf widths,
and the shelves are each inset from the
front to create 1 ⁄4" reveals.
In front of each shelf is a retaining
rod to prevent the goods from falling
onto the floor. Each retaining rod incor-
porates a cloudlift, as well as an ebony
inlay. The top and bottom rails, each 3"
in height as a proportional punctuation
to the overall case dimensions, also
employ cloudlifts and ebony accents
and cap a shiplapped back.
Pattern rout. Set up a
1⁄2"-diameter pattern bit
in your router table to rout
the cloudlift pattern on
each side. Note that for
the right side, the pattern is
affixed to the outside of the
workpiece; for the left side,
it’s affixed to the inside.
Make sure the pattern rides
the guide bushing.
We’ve used 4/4 quartersawn sapele
– a poor maker’s mahogany, but a rea-
sonable approximation to the wood
the Greene brothers favored.
Construction
Rough-cut the boards to length, then
joint and plane them before cutting
the shelves to final size and trimming
the ends square on a shooting board.
The shelves are housed in hand-
cut 1 ⁄4"-deep tapered sliding dovetails
that stop 5 ⁄8" from the front; cut these
dovetail slots while the sides are still
square. The top of each joint is square,
with an 1 ⁄8" shoulder; the bottoms are
tapered, starting with an 1 ⁄8" shoulder
at the back of the shelf that rises to 3 ⁄16"
at the front. (You could also use straight
sliding dovetails or stopped dados.)
The finger joints that connect the
bottom shelf to the sides are five evenly
spaced fi ngers: three on the vertical
sides, two on the intersecting bottom
board. The actual width of the fingers
is not critical; they just need to divide
the side into five equal parts. So, we
Rod routing. Stops at either end and the back hold the long, narrow
retaining strips on the pattern jig as you rout the cloudlift shape on
each.
placed a ruler on the board with its end
on one edge, then selected a number
divisible by five – in this case, 10 – along
the opposite edge. Then we marked at
two, four, six and eight.
Cut the fingers with a backsaw and
chisel, then pillow the ends with a rasp
and file. Keep track of the number of
strokes so you can use the same on each,
resulting in uniform shapes.
Now you’ll need some 3 ⁄4" plywood
patterns for routing the cloudlifts in the
sides, retaining rods and rails. See the
gridded drawings on page 41. Enlarge
them 600 percent on a large-format
copier, then affix them with spray ad-
hesive to your plywood and cut each
one to shape at the band saw. Fair the
curves with the tools of your choice.
The key is to produce perfect patterns
on which the router bit’s guide bush-
ing can ride.
The cloudlift profi le on the sides
steps in 1 ⁄ 2" at each shelf, mirroring
the progressive inset of the shelves
themselves; the curve apex on each is
1" above the top of each shelf.
Affi x the side pattern to one side
piece with double-sided tape, then cut
about 1 ⁄8" proud of the pattern at the
band saw (the more waste you can re-
move with the saw, the less work the
router will have to do). Then rout the
sides to shape and follow by rounding
over the front edges with a 1 ⁄4" roun-
dover bit (though you might wish to
wait on that step until you have the
backboards glued up – that will cut
down on the router table setups).
The rods are mortised into the sides
– a typical Greene & Greene feature.
popularwoodworking.com ■ 39
 3⁄ 4"
241⁄ 2" 6"

3⁄ 4"

31⁄ 2"

221⁄ 2" 7⁄
1⁄
2" 16"

35⁄ 8"
7⁄
16"
23"

1⁄ 4"
4 1⁄ 8"

36" 421⁄ 2"

4 5⁄ 8"

Dovetail
sockets

51⁄ 8"

3⁄ 4"

3"
SIDE
SECTION
ELEVATION PROFILE VIEW

Mill and cut the stock for the retain-
ing rods, then set up a dado stack in
the table saw to cut 1 ⁄16" shoulders on
each end to form 1 ⁄4" x 1 ⁄4" x 1 ⁄4" tenons.
Lay out a 1 ⁄ 8"-deep x 1 ⁄ 8"-wide x
4"-long groove in the center of each
Easy mortises. Smack the top of the square
hole punch (available from Lee Valley) with a
hammer for an easy mortise. Remove the but-
ton of waste (carefully) using a small chisel.
retaining rod, then rout it out to accept
the ebony inlays. We did this on the
router table using a 1 ⁄8" upcut spiral
bit, with stop blocks to control the start
and stop points.
Now lay out the 1 ⁄4" x 1 ⁄4" mortises
for these on the shelf sides, inset 7⁄16"
from the front edge and 7⁄16" above each
shelf location (see the Side Section View
above, right). Cut them to a depth of
just more than 1 ⁄4". We used a Lee Val-
ley square hole punch, which greatly
eased cutting the mortises and aided
in accuracy.
Mirror those retaining rod mortises
on the outside of each shelf; these will
house pillowed ebony plugs, which,
‘Hand sand.’ This Logan hand-cranked
because of their location, appear to be picture frame sander is ideal for controlled
an integral part of the assembly. sanding to pillow the plug ends – but you can
Cut ebony rods to 1 ⁄4" x 1 ⁄4", with the use an electric sander.

40 ■ POPULAR WOODWORKING MAGAZINE August 2017

lengths slightly longer than each inlay
mortise, then pillow the ends on a disc
sander and remove any sharp edges by
hand with #180-grit sandpaper. Move
up in grits to #600 and, for a truly glow-
ing finish, buff each end with Tripoli
rouge followed by carnauba wax.
Now cut off each end at 3 ⁄16" and re-
peat (you’ll need 16 plugs total) using a
jig that holds them safely in position on
the band saw and that offers accuracy
and repeatability (see photo below). TOP RAIL, RETAINING ROD & BOTTOM RAIL PATTERNS
One square = 1⁄ 2"; one-sixth scale
Cut the top and bottom rails to size,
then pattern rout them to final shape.
Each rail incorporates ebony inlays them to just over the length needed to
and plugs. Lay out the slots and plug fit the slots. Use a block plane to sneak
locations for the ebony inlays in the up on the fit to the slots, then round the
top and bottom rails according to the top faces on a belt sander. Sand the show
illustrations, then rout the slots with surfaces with #180-grit sandpaper to
a 1 ⁄4" carbide upcut bit in a handheld knock down sharp edges, and, as with
router against of fence. Cut the plug the plugs, sand up to #600 grit followed
mortises with the punch. by Tripoli rouge and carnauba wax.
Now rip three lengths of ebony The back of the case is a shiplapped
slightly larger than 1 ⁄4" square, then cut panel, cut at the table saw with a dado

Plug jig. This simple plywood jig

rides smoothly in the band saw’s Plane to fit. Rough cut the ebony strips to slightly
miter slot to create perfect 3 ⁄16"-long larger than their slots, then sneak up on the perfect fit
plugs every time. with a block plane.

Greene & Greene Pantry Shelf

NO. ITEM DIMENSIONS (INCHES) MATERIAL COMMENTS
T W L

❏ 2 Sides 3⁄ 4 6 36 Sapele
❏ 1 Bottom 3⁄4 53⁄4 241⁄2 Sapele
❏ 1 Shelf 1 3⁄4 53⁄4 23 Sapele
❏ 1 Shelf 2 3⁄4 51⁄4 23 Sapele
❏ 1 Shelf 3 3⁄4 43⁄4 23 Sapele
❏ 1 Shelf 4 3⁄4 41⁄4 23 Sapele
❏ 1 Retaining rods 3 ⁄8 5 ⁄8 23 Sapele 1⁄4" tenon both ends

❏ 1 Top rail 3⁄4 31⁄2 241⁄2 Sapele

❏ 1 Bottom rail 3⁄4 3 241⁄2 Sapele
❏ 2 Backboards 3⁄4 61⁄2 36 Sapele
❏ 1 Backboard 3⁄4 65⁄8 36 Sapele SIDE PATTERN
❏ 1 Backboard 3⁄4 71⁄8 36 Sapele One square = 1⁄ 2"
one-sixth scale

popularwoodworking.com ■ 41
Buff to glow. Sand to #600 grit, then buff with
Tripoli rouge and wax for a pleasing glow.
stack, that overlaps the sides by 1 ⁄4" and
is rounded on the edges. The backboard
widths noted in the cutlist result in
51 ⁄ 8" of each of the boards showing
inside the case, with a 1 ⁄2" overlap for
each shiplap.
Assembly Time
The top and bottom rails are attached to
the backboards with loose tenons (we
used Dominos) – two per backboard.
Because you’re attaching end grain in
the backboards to edge grain in the
crest and bottom rail, glue only the
outer boards, which bear the weight of
the shelf. The inner boards get a slightly
oversized slot to allow them to expand
and contract with seasonal changes,
and these Dominos get glued at only
one end. Insert 1 ⁄32" spacers between
the boards during glue-up.
Once the back is glued up, round
over all its edges at the router table us-
ing a 1 ⁄4" roundover bit; follow up with
hand sanding.
Now insert the shelves from the
back on one side, using glue only in
the front 2" or so of each joint to force
any expansion and contraction toward
the back of the unit. Insert the retain-
ing rods, then carefully fit the second
side, gently flexing the retaining rods
into their mortises.
Glue the finger-jointed bottom to the
sides, then reinforce the assembly with
screws driven in from the underside.
Clamp the back into position, then
drill 3 ⁄32" pilot holes in alternating 7°
angles to accept 6d cut nails through
the back and into the sides. The angles
add holding power.
We used Titebond III for the case
glue-up and clamped it horizontally
at each shelf location, plus two clamps
42 ■ POPULAR WOODWORKING MAGAZINE August 2017
Clamped up. After cutting loose tenon slots in the ends of the backboards and rails, put glue only
on the tenons of the outer backboards. Insert 1⁄32" spacers between the backboards to allow for
expansion and contraction.
“Whatever the [Greene’s} design
required was built, machine or no
machine. The integrity, beauty,
and utility of the finished piece of
furniture were what mattered.”
—Darrell Peart & Edward Bosley
in American Period Furniture 2014
vertically to pull the finger joints tight.
The final step in assembly is to glue
the ebony inlay and plugs into position.
Finish & Mounting
We decided on a durable finish because
the shuffling of cans and jars on and off
the shelf will generate a lot of wear. So,
we used a coat of General Finishes Seal-
A-Cell followed by three coats of Arm-
R-Seal, with one day in between each
coat, and scuff sanding with #320 grit.
The waxed oily ebony won’t accept
this finish, so after the finish dries on
Nail it. The back is simply nailed in place with
6d cut nails.
the sapele, carefully wipe the ebony
with naphtha to remove the stickiness,
then wax it to restore the shine.
Weuseda“HangmanCabinetHang-
er” (available from Amazon) to mount
the shelf to the wall; it’s fastened to the
back with 1 ⁄2" screws and to the wall
with hollow-wall anchor screws. The
Hangman is basically an aluminum
French cleat with a thin profile; that
allows the shelf to rest flat against the
wall, rather than jutting out a bit as
with a traditional French cleat.
Now that the shelf is in position, it
holds cans of soup and other victuals
at the ready and is a fine decorative
addition. Though it’s probably overkill
in a utilitarian sense, it makes for an
interesting and challenging project that
will enhance the look of the kitchen for
a long time to come. PWM
Norman is author of “Choosing and Using
Handplanes”; Jeffrey has more than two decades’
experience as a woodworker. They are co-owners
of Shenandoah Tool Works and both teach classes
at local Woodcraft stores.
ON IN XTRAS
For links to all online extras, go to:
■ popularwoodworking.com/aug17
WEBSITE: See more from the authors at
shenandoahtoolworks.com.
HARDWARE: Hangman “Professional French
Cleat Hanger.”
BLOGS: Read more about tapered sliding
dovetails and Norm Reid’s design approach.
IN OUR STORE: “Working Wood 3,” by Simon
James.
Our products are available online at:
■ ShopWoodworking.com
Shapely
Legs
B Y R O B P O R CA R O
You needn’t rely on ready-made
patterns to design good-looking gams.
L
egs with engaging, flowing three-
dimensional curves can add
immeasurably to the aesthetic
success of such pieces as tables, stands
and chests. In this article, using the
legs for a small floating-top table as an
example, I’ll show a practical method
for producing such legs, and how to
PHOTOS BY THE AUTHOR
develop your own designs.
You don’t need the talents of Picasso
for this work, but neither is it a paint-
by-numbers approach of copying a pre-
designed curve laid out on a grid. You
will use both your mechanical wood-
working skills and your artistic intu-
ition. It is systematic, creative and fun.
Your Wood Has to Be Good
Taking the time for thoughtful wood
selection is especially important to pro-
duce elegant curved legs for furniture.
You want blanks that are straight and
milled square in cross section. The best
appearance of the finished leg comes
from a blank with approximately 45°
rift grain. In other words, the annular
rings in the end grain should be orient-
ed diagonally across the square cross
section of the blank. This produces
consistent figure on all four long-grain
surfaces.
You can try to choose stock wherein
the grain mimics the eventual shape of
the leg, but this is difficult to achieve
consistently for four legs with three-di-
mensional concave and convex curves.
Rather, straight-grained wood nicely
exhibits the designed curves to produce
a compelling overall look.
A thick board with entirely rift-sawn
figure is a fortunate find, but a more
readily available wide flat-sawn board
popularwoodworking.com ■ 43
will usually contain plenty of rift grain
toward the edges. Sometimes, a very
thick board exhibiting only flat-sawn
figure can yield the desired figure by
ripping it with angled cuts.
Remember, too, that you needn’t
necessarily accept the rough-sawn edge
of the board. You might want to rip a
new edge that follows the grain better
than did the original edge.
There are two basic possibilities for
orienting a squared rift-sawn blank. A
pleasing finished leg results when the
leg’s annular rings run from the inner
Nifty rifty. Nearly all of the width of the two
8/4 boards here will yield good leg blanks.
The 12/4 flatsawn board on top can be ripped
into rift sections, as shown by the layout lines.
“A slight curve can be a marvelous
message. It doesn’t have to be a
pretzel.”
—James Krenov (1920-2009),
woodworker & teacher
corner to the outer corner. When the
rings run at 90° to this orientation, the
finished appearance is less attractive,
at least to my eye.
When breaking down a thick board
with initial crosscuts, rips and planing,
I take the precaution of checking for
a moisture content difference across
its thickness. If readings with a pin
moisture meter near the surface and
at the core differ significantly, avoid
surprise distortions by letting the wood
equilibrate further before milling it to
the final dimensions.
The two inner faces of the blank
are the reference faces. Mark them
prominently. Before any shaping is
done, cut the mortise on these faces.
To keep everything oriented, I draw a
big dot on the top and bottom end grain
at the inner (reference) corner of each
leg. Once I have my four legs, I draw a
cabinetmaker’s triangle over the end
grain of the four legs grouped together
as they will be oriented in the table.
Go out of your way to find excellent
wood and dissect the boards carefully.
This is a major factor in separating your
work from run-of-the-mill work.
Drawing to Template
After I’ve selected and milled the
blanks, I work from a scale drawing
and transfer several key dimensions
to produce a full-size template. I’ll use
that template to transfer the leg outline
onto the wood blanks. (Below, where
it will make more sense, I explain how
to arrive at the scale drawing itself.)
On the drawing, extend the inner
straight edge of the leg, correspond-
ing to where the mortises will be, to
the full length of the leg. Using this
line as a reference, measure the lines
of the leg at several key points: where
straight sections begin and end; the
peaks and troughs of curves; where a
curve reverses (concave/convex); any
particularly steep sections of curves;
and where the aprons will meet the leg.
Note the distance from the bottom of
the leg of each of the key measurements.
To make the template, take a narrow
piece of 1 ⁄4"-thick MDF with a straight
edge, and cut it to the actual length of

Choose wisely. This

wide flat-sawn board
contains at least four
good leg blanks, shown
by the layout lines.
Most of the central
flat-sawn portion is not
suitable.

End-grain choices.
These three leg blanks,
from left to right, pro-
duced the correspond-
ing legs shown at right.
The dot on each blank
indicates the inside cor-
ner. I think the blank on
the far right exhibits the
most pleasing grain.

And the results are . . . The leg on the right

looks best; I wouldn’t use the other two.

44 ■ POPULAR WOODWORKING MAGAZINE August 2017


Find your keys. Measure the distance of the
leg outline from the reference line at several
key points. The distance from the bottom of
the leg of each measurement is noted on the
left.
the leg. Using the straight edge as the
reference, transfer the key measure-
ments obtained from the drawing. Use
a straightedge to connect points for any
straight sections of the leg. Then I use a
marvelous tool – the Acu-Arc flexible
curve – to connect the other points to
produce the curves.
It is usually easiest to draw in sec-
tions. Bend the Acu-Arc and smooth the
curve with your fingers. Then hold the
It’s only fair. The Acu-
Arc, made of interlock-
ing, flexible plastic
splines, bends into fair
curves – no lumps!
Keyed up. In the picture at left, I’ve trans-
ferred the key measurements to a piece of
MDF. At right is the completed template (the
red lines are reminders of the straight sections
on my leg design).
formed curve firmly with your spread
fingers behind where the other hand
will draw the line. You might need to
use tape as a third hand on distal por-
tions of the Acu-Arc.
Create the template by first sawing
close to the layout lines. Next, hand-
plane any straight sections, working to
the layout line. Then smooth the curves
with rasps, and finish with sandpaper
held against moderately firm, curved
blocks. Keep the edges of the template
square because it will be used on both
faces.
For the final template fairing, you
should work to the layout lines but ul-
timately must trust your eye. The key
reference measurements were your
initial guide, then the layout lines took
over – but finish up by judging what
simply looks right. A remarkably sen-
sitive way to detect undesired bumps
and hollows in a curve is to sight down
its length.
Template to Wood to Saw
Align the reference edge of the template
to the inner (reference) corner of the
wood blank and trace the leg outline
onto one reference face. Do the same for
the adjacent reference face. Note that
the reference faces are mortised before
sawing out the leg shape (you should
cut the joinery when the workpiece
is square).
Now saw out the leg at a band saw
or, for hand-tool enthusiasts, with a
frame saw. The 1 ⁄ 2" 3 tpi hook-tooth
blade that I usually keep on my band
saw manages the gradual curves well.
Saw as close as you reliably can to the
layout lines. Note that the lines them-
selves, as drawn from the template, are
actually in waste wood, but preserve
the full width of them for later steps.
Use good task lighting and make sure
each of your eyes has an unobstructed
line of sight to the cutting action so you
are seeing binocularly. Balance and
stabilize your body; do not overreach.
If it looks good... Sight along the curve to
look for lumps and hollows.
popularwoodworking.com ■ 45
Make your mark.
Using the template,
mark the leg outline
onto the adjacent
reference faces of the
mortised wood blank.
Together again. After
sawing the first outline,
reconstitute the blank
using double-sided
tape.
Concentrate on feeding the line to the
blade but always be aware of keeping
your hands well clear of the blade.
After you’ve sawn the outline on one
face, reattach the waste pieces in their
original alignment with small pieces
of double-sided tape placed within the
“keeper” wood. This re-establishes the
layout lines on the second face to be
sawn, and re-establishes support on
the opposite face.
After the second round of sawing,
remove all the waste pieces, and – a
happy moment in woodworking – the
leg emerges! Save some of the larger
offcuts. With their sawn faces sanded
smooth, they may later serve as sup-
ports for clamping the leg to the work-
bench and as clamp pads for gluing up.
Refine Curves & Surfaces
It’s important to appreciate that shap-
ing and smoothing are two distinct
processes. Shaping the curves should
be completed before smoothing the
surfaces, just as a panel is planed flat
before it is finish planed smooth.
Start by working to the layout lines.
46 ■ POPULAR WOODWORKING MAGAZINE August 2017
Shape the curves using tools that tend
to bridge small hollows and mow down
bumps. Convex curves are easy to work
with flat rasps, float files or a block
plane, but concave curves require more
specialized tools.
My favorite tools for gradual con-
cave curves are hand-cut curved iron-
ing rasps, in medium and fine grains
(available from Auriou and Liogier).
You can also use the convex side of a
half-round rasp held at a skew, but I
suggest you then proceed to the ironing
rasps, which will promote truer curves.
Spokeshaves, a compass plane and
fi xed curved-sole planes are also ef-
Get in shape first.
There are many ways
to refine curves. My
favorites, ironing rasps,
are shown in the left
corner. To the right of
those are two rasps,
a spokeshave, a curved-
sole plane and a
compass plane. In front
at right is a Surform
shaver.
Focus. For accurate cuts, stabilize your body
and mind as you saw (and make sure you
have proper task lighting).
fective, though can be troublesome on
highly figured wood. The inexpensive
Surform shaver is suitable for coarse
work if your saw cuts are far off.
For smoothing, the card scraper is
my primary tool. I also make dedicated
curved sanding blocks from wood, add
cork facing and apply PSA sandpaper.
Straight portions of the leg can be
trued with regular fl at-soled planes,
and smoothed by planing, scraping
and sanding.
When shaping the curves, once you
have worked into the layout lines, for-
get about them and finish by working
intuitively. Sighting along a curve is
effective, though it is harder to judge
a curve this way in a thick leg than in
a thin template. It is also inconvenient
to do this frequently because you must
Then smooth. After the curves are shaped, I
use scrapers extensively, as well as sandpa-
per attached to shop-made curved sanding
blocks.
either bend awkwardly or release the
leg from the workbench and hold it
to your eye. Therefore, feel the curve
developing under the tool (especially
a rasp) and learn to feel a true curve
with your fingers.
Try this: Place your middle three
fingers on the flat surface of your work-
bench, and gently slide them back and
forth over a few inches while keeping
your index and ring fingers moderately
firm letting the middle finger be pas-
sive. Feel the flatness. Now immedi-
ately transfer your hand to a curve in
the leg and similarly feel your fingers
riding like a sleigh over the hills. With a
bit of practice, you will soon trust your
hand and be able to work at a good pace.
I hardly ever use an oscillating spin-
dle sander or other powered sander for
workingthelegs.Thehandworkismore
pleasant, controlled and progresses
quickly enough.
Designing
So, how do you arrive at that scale draw-
ing from which you started building?
As with designing any piece, gather
impressions from anywhere – pieces
Project to come. I’ll use
these four curly maple
legs, developed as
described in this article,
for a floating-top table.
Trust your feelings. Your fingers know when the curve is right.
you see in books, online in an image
search, galleries and so forth. Sketch
your ideas. Two-dimensional sketches
are good enough. Then, take a chance
with something that seems like what
you want and start by making at least
one mock-up.
Draw lines directly on a wood blank
– I like poplar for this – based on the
sketch. Saw out the legs, then use a
rough rasp to make alterations. Junk
the piece and try again if necessary.
This should be easygoing, playful work.
When you have a mock-up that
looks good, take measurements at sev-
eral key points, similar to as described
earlier when making a template from a
scale drawing. Use the measurements
to make a scale drawing of a leg. Make
small final alterations if needed.
Ironically, you have to make legs –
mock-up legs – to develop the drawing
that will define the actual finished leg.
I feel strongly that to design well, one
must assess a real, three-dimensional
leg: Sense its bulk, observe the curves
from different angles and appreciate its
visual impact. Paper or CAD drawings
do not substitute for a mock-up.
If you are dithering over finalizing
the design, remember that what looks
right to you is right; you will know
when you have arrived. When I am
designing a piece, once I have a good
leg design, the remainder of the piece
seems to fall into place. PWM
Rob has more than 35 years of woodworking experi-
ence, and his work has been featured in premier
juried artisan shows, fine galleries and numerous
national and regional publications.
ON INE EXTRAS
For links to all online extras, go to:
■ popularwoodworking.com/aug17
WEBSITE: Visit Rob Porcaro’s website at
rpwoodwork.com to see his work and read
his blog.
LEG PATTERN: If you like the legs shown here,
download a free PDF of the scale drawing.
IN OUR STORE: “How to Create Your Own
Furniture Designs” – video instruction from
Aaron Fedarko.
TO BUY: If period legs are more your style,
check out the video download “Cabriole
Legs Simplified,” by Charles Bender.
Our products are available online at:
■ ShopWoodworking.com
popularwoodworking.com ■ 47
 Diamond
Divided Lights
BY PHIL LOWE

These doors are all

about the angles –
learn to bisect them
using geometry
and it’s a snap.

W
hen I walk into the Ameri-
can decorative arts Gal-
lery at the Peabody Essex
Museum in Salem, Mass., I am always
drawn to a great Federal piece that was
built by Cotton Bennett in my home-
town of Beverly, Mass. My research
turned up Bennett’s close connections
with New England turner Thomas
True and carver Samuel McIntire, who
helped contribute to the tour de force
that is this 1809 “Lady’s Secretary.”
There are a number of stunning de-
tails, such as the end-matched swirl
mahogany on the lower drawer and the
crotch mahogany on the fall front. The
crotch satinwood panel, which sup-
ports the McIntire gilded eagle at the
center top, is balanced with the same
material spanning the lower apron of
the carcase front. The cornice is ac-
cented with cross-banded rosewood
and mahogany, and supports two gilded
flame finials with laurel leaf carving.
I’m also astounded by the small multi-
colored banding that surrounds the fall
front and accents the satinwood panel.
Maple & mahogany. Astragal But what really gives this piece pres-
mouldings in the same species as
the door frame sit atop thin hard- ence is the door construction – diamond-
wood bars underneath to form a paned lights made of maple bars and
solid structure. small mahogany astragal mouldings.

PHOTOS BY THE AUTHOR

 So I worked out how to make dia-
mond divided light doors of any size;
I share the pictorial process with you.
Before you dive in, study the drawing
below and picture 12 on page 52 – those
show the four angles that get bisected to
find the complementary miter angles.
Underlying Structure
Key is to start with a fl at and square
mortise-and-tenon frame. Make a full-
size drawing of the door; work from
corner to corner and from centerlines on
the rails and stiles to lay out the angles
for the bars that hold up the mouldings.

#1

#2

Diagonals. Install 1⁄8"-thick maple bars

#4 #3 2 (the same width as the thickness of the
frame members) from corner to corner. Strike

1 Drawing. Make a full-size drawing to

determine miter angles for the bars that
form the underlying structure – set one bevel
square to each discrete angle, then bisect
those angles (see “Bisecting Angles,” page 53).
a centerline using a long straightedge placed
where the rails and stiles meet to form the
inside corners. Scribe lines half the thickness
of the bars (1⁄16") parallel to and on either side
of this centerline.
3 Snug fit. Make relief cuts at the scribe
lines with a backsaw, then pare with a
thin, sharp chisel so the bars fit snugly. These
are the X-shaped overall diagonals.

4 Lap layout. To lay

out the lap joint
where these bars cross
at the center, elevate
the frame and insert
one bar halfway in from
the back and the other
halfway in from the
front. Stiffen the thin
bars with battens held
in place with a couple
of large binder clips –
that helps to keep them
straight as you scribe
the thickness and angle
of each bar onto its
opposite member.

5 Scribe then cut. Extend the scribe lines from the edge
to the face of each bar, then saw and pare them to
lap together.

popularwoodworking.com ■ 49
6 Large diamond. For installation of the four remaining bars, scribe a centerline on each rail and
stile; the bars will be aligned with these, crossing the corner-to-corner bars to form a large dia-
mond in the frame. Use angle #4 for the rails and angle #2 for the stiles (see page 52) to determine
the layout for the bar notches, then cut the notches in the rails and stiles with a saw and chisel.

7 Miter the bars. Deter-

mine the lengths of the
bars that form the large
diamond by placing the
bars across the frame and
marking directly from the
work. For accurate angles
on the ends of bars, trim
them with a sharp plane at
a miter board to bisected
angles #1 and #3 (see “Bi-
secting Angles,” page 53).
The left image shows the
notch shape and mitered
bars for the rails (top and bottom); at right is
the notch shape and mitered bars for the stiles
(sides).

8 Lap-joint the large

diamond. After fitting the
bars to their notches, mark
the lap joints directly from the
work, and cut them as you did
with the diagonal bars. This
takes care of the initial fitting
of the underlying structure to
which you’ll attach the astragal
mouldings. Remove the bars
and set them aside.

50 ■ POPULAR WOODWORKING MAGAZINE August 2017

Astragal Mouldings
For the mouldings, cut up a piece of
material about 3" longer than the diago-
nal bars and mill it to 3 ⁄8" thick. Allow
about 1 ⁄2" in width for 12 to 14 pieces
(that is, about 6" to 7" wide). This gives
you a few extras.
Straighten and square the edges,
then choose a router bit, moulding
plane or scratch stock that will cut a
3 ⁄16" bead. Cut a bead on the two long
edges, with the profile centered on the
thickness of the 3 ⁄8" stock.
Set your table saw fence to 7⁄32", and
rip the edges you just beaded. Repeat
9 Rabbet the frame. Rout a shallow rab-
bet on the rails and stiles. Once you’ve
squared the corners, glue the bars in place.
this process until you have enough
moulding pieces, plus a few extra.
Now set up your router table with
a 1 ⁄8" straight bit and cut a 1 ⁄16"-deep
groove centered down the back of all
but four moulding pieces. This groove
fits over the maple bars to help keep the
moulding in place and provide support.
The ungrooved pieces are installed in
a rabbet around the perimeter.
Rabbet the inside perimeter of the
frame (then square the corners) to ac-
cept the exterior moulding. The depth
10 Cornered. Miter
the ungrooved
astragal moulding strips
(at 45°) to fit around
the inside edge of the
door frame – but to
make them fit flat, you’ll
need to first notch (with
a chisel) the ends of the
diagonal and diamond
bars back to the width
of the mouldings.
of the rabbet should match the depth of
the groove you’ve plowed into the back
of the mouldings (in this case 1 ⁄ 16")
and the width should be two-thirds
the width of the moulding (in this case
1 ⁄4)". This rabbet helps you to align the
perimeter moulding, and sets it at the
proper height to match with the mould-
ings that you’ll sleeve over the top of
the bars. With the rabbet done, glue
the maple bars into position.
Now follow the steps below to fit
the mouldings.
11 Layout locations. The
birds’ mouths in the
perimeter moulding strips (into
which fit the mitered internal
mouldings) are located by plac-
ing a short length of moulding
atop the bars leading into that
corner. Slide the sample piece
to the edge of the door frame,
then register a knife to that
piece to scribe a line that indi-
cates the cut. Set a bevel square
to the line, and use that to mark
the angle on the back of the
perimeter moulding piece.
popularwoodworking.com ■ 51
 13 Angle board. The numbered drawings on the angle board match
the bevel gauges as numbered at left (and on the miter shooting
board on page 54). The centerlines are the four bisected angles needed
for this door.

Rail moulding:
Bisected angle
#4 Stile
moulding:
Bisected
angle #2

Frame corners: Bisected

angles #2 & #3

12 Bisect the angles. In this door, there are four discrete angles
that must be determined to fit the interior moulding pieces. Set
a bevel gauge to each, then transfer those to your angle board to bisect
them; that determines the angle of the bird’s mouths that get cut into
the perimeter moulding, and the miter angles for the ends of the 16
internal moulding pieces.
14 Make the cuts. Now lay out and cut the bird’s mouths into the in-
side edges where all of the bars are mitered into the door frame,
using a handsaw and chisels.

15 Miter the mouldings. There are 16 internal moulding pieces to

cut and miter to the correct length and angles. Mark the lengths
from the support bars and add an inch or two for the miters. Each piece
gets four miters (two on each end). The moulding can rest on its back
for half the miter cuts on each, but on the other half, it must be flipped
over so the profile is facing the miter board.
16 Miter trough. One trick that’s helped me to cut miters when the
workpiece is resting on its show side is a strip of material that is
the same width as the moulding, that has a 3 ⁄16" groove down its center.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 54

52 ■ POPULAR WOODWORKING MAGAZINE August 2017

BISECTING ANG ES

T his series of steps will help you

determine any miter angle (in
this instance the angles for the bird’s
mouths and astragal mouldings) and
step up your geometry game. You
could try to figure out how many
degrees the angle is then divide it in
half, but quite often this will result
in an odd number – such as 34.675
degrees – to which is it difficult to
set a bevel square. —PL 1 Set a bevel square to the first angle you
need to bisect.
2 Find a piece of plywood that is straight
and square. Along one edge, scribe a
baseline.

3 Using your set bevel square as the

reference, knife a line that intersects
the baseline.
4 Grab a pair of dividers and position the
point at the intersection of the baseline
and angle line. 5 Extend the leg of the dividers to a con-
venient distance and scribe an arc.

7 Extend the leg of the divider a distance

that is more than half of the distance of 8 Place the point of the dividers (same
setting) where the arc intersects the

6 Where the arc intersects the angle

line, place the point of the divider.
the arc between the baseline and angle, then
scribe an arc.
base, then scribe an arc intersecting the
previous arc.

9 Position a straightedge so it cuts through the previous intersect-

ing arcs as well as the point of intersection of the baseline and
angle line, then scribe a knifeline. 10 Set your bevel gauge to that line; this will give you two exact
complementary angles.

popularwoodworking.com ■ 53
MAK A MIT R SHOOTING BOARD

One board, four

miters. One miter
board (this one is
made out an old bench
hook) includes all the
shooting angles for this
diamond-light door.

M ake one board with the four fences you need to plane the four angles on
the ends of the interior astragal mouldings (two on each end).
Use your sliding bevel square
and a pencil to transfer the four
bisected angles from the angle
board to a bench hook. Align a
hardwood block to each line, with
the corners hanging slightly over
the edge, then glue and nail the
blocks in place. Run the edge of the
board through your table saw to cut
the angles on the fence ends.
Align the moulding pieces to
Tools. Planes that I find especially nice for mi-
the correct fence, with the end at tering are the Lie-Nielsen No. 51 shoot plane
the edge of the board. Shoot the and No. 9 miter plane. Both lie perfectly flat
ends with a plane that has an iron while shooting a miter.
ground and honed straight and
square, and that projects parallel to
Matching numbers. The numbers marked
the bottom of the plane. This plane on the paper correspond to the fence angles
setup ensures the miter has only on the miter board (and to the angles for the
one angle when it is cut. — PL mouldings and bird’s mouths).

Final Steps the moulding atop it, offer plenty of ON IN XTRAS

After all of the moulding miters are cut,
put some glue on the backside of the
perimeter moulding pieces and glue
them in place. Then glue each internal
divider to its matching maple bar.
The support structure plus the
long-grain to long grain gluelines of
“Something has got to hold it
together. I’m saying my prayers to
Elmer, the Greek god of glue.”
—Tom Robbins (1932-),
from “Still Life With Woodpecker”
support for glazing.
This all sounds a lot more confusing
than it is. While there are many steps
and the miters must be dead-on for a
crisp look, understanding the geometry
will help you get it right, no matter the
size of your door. Just remember: the
key to succeed is to start with a frame
that is square and flat! PWM
Phil spent 10 years at the North Bennet Street School
(five as department head for the fine woodworking
program) before opening the Furniture Institute of
Massachusetts (in Beverly, Mass.) in 1998.
For links to all online extras, go to:
■ popularwoodworking.com/aug17
WEBSITE: Take a class with Phil Lowe at the
Furniture Institute of Massachusetts:
furnituremakingclasses.com.
ARTICLE: Make a mortise-and-tenon door.
ARTICLE: Make a simple non traditional)
divided-light door using a trick from David
T. Smith.
IN OUR STORE: “Building Period Furniture from
Photos,” by Mike Siemsen.
Our products are available online at:
■ ShopWoodworking.com

54 ■ POPULAR WOODWORKING MAGAZINE August 2017

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56 ■ POPULAR WOODWORKING MAGAZINE August 2017

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popularwoodworking.com ■ 57
ARTS & MYSTERIES BY PETER FOLLANSBEE

Tool & Furniture Records

Nicholas Disbrowe, Samuel Sewall and chairs as corpse transportation.

A
s I study 17th-century oak fur-
niture, I come up with many
dead ends. The surviving ob-
jects tell one part of the story, another
view into this world is found in the
written records of this period. The holy
grail of 17th-century joinery would be
an account book, diary or some other
record of a joiner’s day and his insights
into his trade. Thus far, no such record
exists for early New England. What
views we do get into these men’s lives
and work come in short, disconnected
bits found in various court records,
personal diaries and other written re-
cords from the period. These snippets
come back to me while I’m at the bench.
I’ve been working on a carved chest
with drawers, based on pieces made in
the Connecticut River Valley between
Joined chest. I’m almost done with this oak joined chest with walnut accents (and lots of carv-
about 1670-1700. Working on this chest
ing); it’s based on 17th-century Connecticut work.
got me to thinking about Nicholas Dis-
browe (1613-1683), a joiner in Hartford,
Conn. He is most famous in Ameri- signed on the inside of a drawer front liam Disbrowe, joiner (1554-1610). In
can furniture studies for something on a chest in the Bayou Bend Collection 1628-29, the elder Nicholas was paid
he didn’t do: an inscription signed on a at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. by the Saffron Walden churchwardens
chest with drawers related to the one I’m When the inscription was first pub- for “mending of the pulpit & a seat”
working on now. “Mary Allens Chistt lished by Luke Vincent Lockwood in and for “mending of seats & for nails.”
Cutte & Joyned by Nich Disbrowe” is the 1920s, it was accepted as “real” but The younger Disbrowe emigrated
has since been established as a forgery. to New England, arriving in Hartford,
In the end, it doesn’t matter to me. Conn., by 1635 after serving an ap-
It’s a nice chest, probably with nothing prenticeship in old England. In early
to do with Nicholas Disbrowe. There Hartford records, he is recorded as hav-
are some interesting period records per- ing built a shop 16' square.
taining to Disbrowe’s career, though. Two things stand out about Dis-
browe. His probate inventory, taken
Nicholas Disbrowe’s Record to settle his estate, itemizes his tools.
He was born in Saffron Walden, Essex, From a research standpoint, this is al-
England, in 1613, the son of a joiner, ways helpful, it gives some insight into
Forged. The inscription also Nicholas, and grandson of Wil- his workshop’s capabilities:
(right), on the inside of this ■ plane stocks and Irons, seven chis-
17th-century sells passer (piercer) betts and gimblets
joined chest £2-11-6
(above), was
■ a parsell of small tools & two payer
exposed as a
forgery in the (pair) of compases & five handsawes
20th century. £1-5-6
CONTINUED ON PAGE 61
CHEST & INSCRIPTION PHOTOS FROM “COLONIAL FURNITURE IN AMERICA,” BY LUKE VINCENT LOCKWOOD (SCRIBNER), 1926;
58 ■ POPULAR WOODWORKING MAGAZINE August 2017 OPENING PHOTO BY THE AUTHOR; CHAIR PHOTO BY MARIE PELLETIER
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ARTS & MYSTERIES
■ two fros, a payer of plyers, two
reaspes (rasps) a file, and a sett 10s 6d
■ two passer stocks, two hammars,
and fower (four) axes 18s
■ two bettells and fower wedges a
bill and five augers £1-4s 6d
■ two payer of joynts & a payer of
hooks and hinges
■ joyners timber and five hundred
of bord.
The other bit has nothing to do with
joinery, but just shows that life can
be hard. Cotton Mather recorded (in
“Magnalia Christi Americana” (1702))
that in the last year of his life, Nicholas
Disbrowe was “very strangely molested
by stones, by pieces of earth, by cobs
of Indian corn, and other such things,
from an invisible hand.” An earlier
charge of witchcraft against Disbrowe
was dismissed.
Judge Samuel Sewall’s Diary
Other period records tell us something
about using furniture, sometimes in
ways we don’t expect. Judge Samuel
Sewall of Massachusetts kept a diary,
which was published in the 19th and
20th centuries. In 1676, he noted that
“Mrs Brown was buried, who died on
Thursday night before, about 10 o’clock.
Note. I help’d carry her part of the way
to the Grave. Put in a wooden Chest.”
It’s quite clear from Sewall’s writ-
ings that he knows details well, thus he
Wainscot chair. Here, I’m working on a chair
– a perfectly suitable “great Chair” in which
the newly deceased Gemaliel Wait could be
carried.
Challenge undertaken. Pret Woodburn (left), Paula Marcoux (alive and healthy, but playing
dead) and I (right) tried using a “three-footed chair” to transport a body. It works.
knows the difference between a chest
and a coffin. This diary entry made it
into my files because it’s a surprising
use of a chest – to me, anyway. It might
not have surprised anyone at the burial.
In 1682, another unfortunate wom-
an is noted. “Mrs Brattle goes out be-
ing ill; Most of the Compy goe away,
thinking it a qualm or some Fit; But she
grows worse, speaks not a word, and
so dyes away in her chair, I holding her
feet (for she had slipt down) At length
out of the Kitching we carry the chair
and Her in it….”
I guess, not having any personal ex-
perience moving the freshly dead, that
a chair is a good vessel for this work,
because Sewall notes it again in 1685:
“Our Neighbor Gemaliel Wait eat-
ing his Breakfast…found him Self not
well and went into Pell’s his Tenant’s
house, and here dyed extream sud-
denly about Noon, and then was car-
ried home in a Chair, and means used
to fetch him again, but in vain ...Was
about 87 years old, and yet strong and
hearty: had lately several new Teeth.
People in the Street much Startled at
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 58
this good Man’s sudden Death. Govr
Hinkley sent for me to Mr Rawson’s just
as they were sending a great Chair to
carry him home.”
I have some chairs underway too.
Something to think about. PWM
Peter has been involved in traditional craft since
1980. Read more from him on 17th-century joined
work and carving at pfollansbee.wordpress.com.
ONLINE EXTRAS
For links to all online extras, go to:
■ popularwoodworking.com/aug17
BLOG: Read Peter Follansbee’s blog.
ARTICLE: “The Best Oak Money Can’t Buy.”
About this Column
“Arts & Mysteries”
refers to the contract
between an apprentice
and master – the 18th-century master was
contractually obligated to teach appren-
tices trade secrets of a given craft (and the
apprentice was expected to preserve those
“mysteries”).
Our products are available online at:
■ ShopWoodworking.com
popularwoodworking.com ■ 61
FLEXNER ON FINISHING BY BOB FLEXNER

Colonial Apprenticeship
A brief history of a not-so-romantic woodworking education system.

E
ver since the renewal of interest
in woodworking in the 1970s,
especially among amateurs and
small-shop professionals, there has
been talk of reestablishing an appren-
ticeship program similar to what ex-
isted hundreds of years ago. But what
was that apprenticeship system like?
To describe it I’m going to go a little
off my usual topic of finishing, because
shops before the American Revolu-
tion were small, and finishing was too
simple and too small a part of the job to
have spawned a specialized “finisher”
craft. Those who did the finishing were
the woodworkers themselves ,who were
usually divided into specialized cat-
egories: cabinetmakers, chairmakers,
joiners, clockmakers, turners, etc.
And these woodworkers were a part
Trade label. This W.
of the larger artisan/mechanic category
Buttre trade card, circa
(artisans were often referred to as “me- 1813, shows chairmak-
chanics” at the time), which included ing apprentices at work.
all skilled craftsmen, from tailors and Courtesy, The Winterthur
shoemakers to silversmiths. So any Library: Joseph Downs
Collection of Manuscripts
discussion of finisher apprenticeship is
and Printed Ephemera.
really a discussion of craft apprentice-
ship in general.
Boys (they were almost always boys) There was a hierarchy among the
The English Guilds were just 12 to 14 years old when they crafts, determined partly by the craft’s
Beginning in the Middle Ages in Eu- were apprenticed to a master craftsman. earning power and partly by what it
rope, each craft organized itself into So an apprenticeship was also meant cost to set up as a master. For example,
its own guild composed of masters and to instill a proper moral development having completed an apprenticeship as
journeymen to protect the interests of overseen by the socially approved mas- a tailor, all a person needed to start a
the members. By controlling the num- ter and was a means of control over business was needle and thread, and
ber of apprentices admitted and the potential socially disruptive teenagers. a tape measure.
education standards – for example, Not every boy became an appren- In contrast, a cabinetmaker required
the requirement to produce a “master- tice, of course. Farmers’ sons usually a large array of tools, so it was rare that
piece” at the end of the training – guilds became farmers. Sons of the wealthy a graduating apprentice could afford to
were closed labor markets that were leisure class were usually educated to set up a shop. Almost always, he had
able to keep wages and standards high. join that class. Many boys grew up to to work many years as a journeyman
Apprenticeships served a much larger join the growing merchant class. And to save up the funds.
purpose, however, than just job training many boys from poor families grew The term “journeyman” derives
where the special skills (“art”) and spe- up to do manual labor, join the mili- from the need of the graduated appren-
cial knowledge (“mystery”) were passed tary, become servants or even become tice to journey to wherever he could get
down from one generation to the next. beggars. the best wages.

62 ■ POPULAR WOODWORKING MAGAZINE August 2017

Colonial America
Colonial America was made up of Eng-
lish colonies, of course, so the laws and
traditions of England applied here as
well. But though the apprenticeship
path to learning a craft and developing
proper moral standards flourished,
especially in the Northern colonies,
guilds never took hold.
The reasons were a shortage of skilled
labor, free land to the west, vast distanc-
es and a poorly developed legal system.
Whereas in England it was rare for an
apprentice to run away from a master be-
fore he had learned the craft (he would
never find employment elsewhere), it
was not uncommon in America.
You may recall the story of Benjamin
Franklin running away to Philadel-
phia from his printer apprenticeship in
Boston long before he had completed
his training. Once in Philadelphia, he
represented himself as a journeyman
printer and had no trouble finding work.
In America, you were then (and you
still are today) who you say you are – so
long as you can pull it off.
The price that was paid for this free-
dom was a lower quality of craftsman-
ship overall than existed in England.
We have numerous examples of very
high quality furniture pieces that have
survived from the Colonial period,
so you may not have thought of the
colonists’ skills as below par. But the
skills of many were, and their furniture
hasn’t survived.
While you’re contemplating this,
keep in mind that many of the crafts-
men working in America had been
trained in England or elsewhere. It’s
still that way. For example, in a craft
I know a lot about, a highly dispro-
portionate share of the most skilled
furniture restorers in the U.S. today
were trained somewhere else.
Also, the crafts were more highly
developed in the Northern colonies
than in the South. In Southern colonies,
a good deal of the labor, skilled or not,
was performed by indentured servants
or slaves. The apprenticeship system
wasn’t nearly as well developed.
TURNER; FROM PG. 219, “THE PANORAMA OF PROFESSIONS AND TRADES, OR, EVERY MAN’S BOOK”, BY EDWARD HAZEN, 1837; CALL #T47 .H3; IMAGE #49274.
CABINET MAKER; FROM PG. 221, “THE PANORAMA OF PROFESSIONS AND TRADES, OR, EVERY MAN’S BOOK”, BY EDWARD HAZEN, 1837; CALL #T47 .H3; IMAGE #93460D
Building trades. These illustrations show apprentices at work in a turning shop and cabinet-
maker’s shop. From “The Panorama of Professions and Trades; or Every Man’s Book” by Edward
Hazen (1837). The book – available free online – is a fascinating romanticized read on educating
children for future professions.
The Life of an Apprentice
Apprenticeship in America could be
very hard, partly because the master
himself might be poor and partly be-
cause masters often took advantage of
apprentices, making them do menial
chores for years without teaching them
anything about the craft.
In the colonies, there was always the
possibility that the apprentice might
run away, so masters often held back
training until the later years to try to
keep this from happening.
Moreover, apprentices were often
poorly fed and beaten. Remember that
they were only children.
Apprenticeshipusually began witha
short trial period, from weeks to half a
year, for the master and the father of the
boy to decide if they wanted to continue
the relationship. Then a contract was
signed by the master and the father,
which usually specified that the master
would feed, clothe and house the boy
and teach him the craft. The master
might also be required to provide a
general education.
In England the father would usu-
ally have to pay a fee to the master. In
America this was most often the case
only with the higher-status crafts.
At the end of the contract period,
which could be for as long as seven
years, the master would provide the
“graduated” apprentice with a suit of
clothes and send him on his way.
Sometimes, the master would agree
to pay journeyman’s wages to the ap-
prentice in his final years.
But the opposite was also common.
It was cheaper to keep an apprentice
than to hire a journeyman, so masters
often had apprentices doing journey-
man’s tasks for as long as they could get
away with it. Their success with this
usually had something to do with the
state of the economy at the time: Did the
apprentice have other opportunities?
Apprenticeship Today
When we think of apprenticeship in
the 20th and 21st centuries, we don’t
mean for it to be as all-encompassing
as it was in the 17th and 18th centuries.
We usually mean for it to be a trade off:
working for free, or at least for very little
pay, for a fairly short time, in return for
instruction in the craft.
This is very different from what ap-
prenticeship used to mean. PWM
Bob is author of “Flexner on Finishing,” “Wood Fin-
ishing 101” and “Understanding Wood Finishing.”
ON IN XTRAS
For links to all online extras, go to:
■ popularwoodworking.com/aug17
BOOK: Read “The Panorama of Professions
and Trades.”
IN OUR STORE: “Flexner on Finishing” – 12
years of columns illustrated with beautiful
full-color images and updated, and “Wood
Finishing 101.”
Our products are available online at:
■ ShopWoodworking.com
popularwoodworking.com ■ 63
END GRAIN BY ADAM GODET

Joint Survivors
Accidental musing on craftsmanship and building things to last.

O
n a cold rainy day in Decem-
ber 2014, I was returning home
from running errands in my
Washington, D.C., neighborhood.
Diane Rehm was discussing Russia on
NPR. I was thinking about the leftover
pizza I was going to eat for lunch before
heading into the shop.
Then, at an intersection two blocks
from my house, I found myself stopped,
pointed 90° in the wrong direction,
static coming from the radio, the hat
I’d been wearing on the floor of the car,
and airbags deployed.
I’d been in an accident. One of us –
we both thought the other guy – had
run a red light. It was never determined
who made the error; both cars were
totaled but all humans were, more or
less, OK.
The night before the wreck, my wife,
Jen, and I had been at a holiday craft
show. It was a fun night that ended late.
When we got home, rather than unpack
the car, I left a large pine box (not that did it break? What broke? The wood that could stand up to more reasonable
kind) filled with cutting boards in the or the joint?” I got dressed and went force than any bookshelf should ever
trunk, along with various other sun- back out through the rain to the shop face. And while I was told woodworking
dries and detritus. While I stood beside where the box was sitting. with the fogginess of a concussion was
my wrinkled Honda Civic waiting for The joy I felt when seeing that the a bad idea – advice I heeded – I found
the tow trucks and police to arrive, wood had broken and not the joint was myself standing in my shop with my
the rain and temperature both falling, the consolation I needed. tools, feeling a gentle calmness and
I regretted this moment of laziness. Both cars were going about 30-35 clarity in the wake of calamity. PWM
Fortunately, a friend down the street miles per hour; the box is about 36"
was able to come to the scene with Jen long x 12" wide, and was filled with Adam lives, works and works wood in Washington,
to empty the car before it was towed. wooden cutting boards. There was a D.C. Check out his woodworking website at
godetfurniture.com.
Hours later, after the adrenaline had lot of force on that box, and I would
passed and the headache and fogginess expect something to give – especially
of a mild concussion had settled in, Jen consideringthattheboxwasmadefrom ON INE EXTRAS
mentioned that the box holding the 3 ⁄4" pine boards. But my joints didn’t
For links to all online extras, go to:
cutting boards had broken. break. The wood near the joints did, ■ popularwoodworking.com/aug17
Thus chastened, I began thinking yes – but the dovetails held. TWITTER: Follow us on Twitter @pweditors.
about my new country-western song: In a moment when not a lot of things IN OUR STORE: Want to learn to cut strong
“My car is gone, my holiday plans felt good or certain – my health, my dovetails? Check out our Dovetails eMag.
are hosed, my head hurts, I can’t see driving capabilities, my holiday vaca- Our products are available online at:
straight, and my dovetails broke….” tion, my car, etc. – I had craftsmanship. ■ ShopWoodworking.com
Then I paused and thought, “Where I knew I could still cut tight dovetails

64 ■ POPULAR WOODWORKING MAGAZINE August 2017 PHOTO BY THE AUTHOR

CARD #56 or go to PWFREEINFO.COM