Home Archives for Conference Cincinnati
October 25, 2010 By

Woodworking in America video: Dovetailing drawers – tails or pins first?

Frank Klausz and Roy Underhill show how each cuts dovetails; each starts with a different part of the joint. This has been a perennial issue with these two amazing craftsmen. Klausz always starts pins first (with one exception, the hidden mitered dovetail), while Underhill always starts tails first.

I have watched both in every Woodworking in America conference – and every time I am amazed not only at their skill at making this joint, but also their teaching ability. They are ageless.

Right-click to download this episode in Quicktime format (156 MB)
Duration: 14:24 minutes

I would love to hear from you:

  • Which do you cut first, pins, or tails?
  • What type of saw do you use?
  • Do you have to do a lot of paring to get good fit?
  • Or are you good enough that the joint fits right off the saw?

— Al Navas

Filed Under: Blog, Cincinnati, Conference, Dovetails, Joinery, Popular Woodworking, Woodworking in America Tagged With: , , , ,
October 21, 2010 By

Woodworking in America video: Using dividers to lay out anything

From the Woodworking in America “Instructors” web page, this is the summary of George Walker’s session:

Use dividers to lay out anything, from dovetails to casework

One of the simplest woodworking layout tools is also the most powerful. The are precise. They don’t require mathematics to use. And they simplify many of the layout operation. You layout dovetails quickly and perfectly with dividers, plus you can use them for many other layout chores that would be tedious and prone to error with numbers and math. George R. Walker, the host of two influential DVDs on design and the “Design Matters” columnist for Popular Woodworking Magazine, shows how you can use dividers at every stage of a project, from designing the carcase and mouldings to placing the hardware.

In this video Walker gives the historical background of the divider, and sets the stage for laying out drawers. I had a bad angle to show properly the layout of the graduated drawers using dividers; but you are in luck, because you can read his Popular Woodworking Magazine article “Graduated Drawers”, at this link. Toward the end of the video Walker shows the “classic Doric order” to illustrate proportions (bingo – perfect for using dividers!), stating that it “…contains the “DNA of traditional design…”, studied by architects, carpenters, silversmiths, etc.

— Al Navas

Filed Under: Blog, Cincinnati, Conference, Layout, Video, Woodworking in America Tagged With: , , ,
October 19, 2010 By

Woodworking in America video: Honing the iron for the jointer plane

Christopher Schwarz shows how to easily and properly sharpen the iron for the jointer plane. Included by popular demand, and with thanks to The Schwarz.

The question that is likely to follow is: Will a similar technique apply to the iron for the smoothing plane? Answer: Yes. You just vary the count (see below, and watch the details in the video).

In its simplest form, you count to ten (or to twenty) while honing the outermost edges. Then… Oh, heck – please watch the video.

Using this technique will make you the sharpening guru you have always wished you were – guaranteed! But you will need a $10 blade holder, and some stones, or sand paper, whatever you use to sharpen. Be consistent, and admire your sharpening skills as they move into the stratosphere — OK, I exaggerate. As a bonus, you will be able to tell your friends that you put an arc to chord of only 0.008″ (8 thousands of an inch!) on that iron – they will be impressed!

I am first to admit that in the last two years I have been doing a much better job with my blades; but from now on I will follow Schwarz’s technique of sharpening. I just know I will be able to get them much sharper than I have to date. And my arc to chord is on the money.

Please let me know:

  • Are you already a sharpening guru?
  • If you are, do you use the technique described by Schwarz in the video?
  • How do you achieve consistent, terrific sharpness on your plane irons?
  • Or have you been struggling (like me), but look forward to improve your sharpening results?

— Al Navas

Right-click to download in low-res (53 MB)
Right-click to download in Quicktime format (590MB)
Duration: 15:51 minutes

Filed Under: Blog, Cincinnati, Conference, Popular Woodworking, Sharpening, Tools, Woodworking in America Tagged With: , , , , ,