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March 23, 2010 By

First look at the Resaw King band saw blade

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Duration: 30:35 minutes

I bought and used the 3/4-inch wide Laguna Tools Resaw King band saw blade on my 17-inch Grizzly band saw. The results were amazing! In the video I show:

  1. The steps I took to correct for drift, and show the actual resaw operation.
  2. The results of resawing quarter-sawn white oak, a very dense, hard wood.
  3. The importance of blade tracking, and the effect of adjustments to the blade position on the wheels.
  4. Details of the resaw fence I have used for several years, and
  5. A summary of everything I did in the video.

I can summarize the results of my first resawing with the Resaw King blade in one word: Terrific! I have never been able to get such great quality of cut with any of regular blades on my Grizzly 17-inch band saw; the surfaces of the resawn pieces were so smooth, I think I might be able to go directly to sanding. I think now I will be set to start resawing some lumber, for some projects later this year. I am excited! And I hope this video will help you in resawing lumber in your own shop. If you have a chance to try this blade, you will love it.

A special discount from Laguna on the Resaw King, only for my readers:

As part of launching a new program as a sponsor of the blog, Laguna Tools is offering 25% discount on each and every purchase of a new Resaw King blade, until further notice. The code word is sandalwoods; simply enter this code while ordering your blades online, and you will receive the discount (I tried it, and it works!) If you have difficulty with their web site accepting the code, please call Tim Lory on phone . Alternatively, you can send him an e-mail message, at Tim_Lory@lagunatools.com. He will handle your order personally. How cool is that?

I hope this video will help you in resawing lumber in your own shop!

— Al Navas

Laguna Tools Resaw King blade.

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Filed Under: Band saw, Blade, Blog, Featured, Reviews, Tools, Video Tagged With: , , , , ,
October 28, 2008 By

First review: Moxon’s ‘The Art of Joinery’, with Commentary by Christopher Schwarz

'The Art of Joinery', by Joseph Moxon with commentary by Christopher Schwarz. Image copied from Woodworking Magazine's RSS feed.

I received my copy of this book yesterday, and I have already speed-read it twice. Now I can take my time, and leisurely absorb every concept and word I missed the first two times.

My verdict, in one word: Terrific! If you use hand tools, and you wonder how they were used 330 years ago, The Art of Joinery is a book you want in your woodworking library.

Christopher Schwarz does a brilliant job updating the text to something we can read in this century. Furthermore, his Commentary provides insight into Moxon’s explanations and thought. More importantly, Schwarz provides some insight where Moxon did not. For hand tool users, this book is a re-discovery of ‘stuff’ worked 330 years ago.

From the RSS feed:

… I decided I should get Moxon out of my system before I started wearing powdered wigs to work. So I’ve re-published Moxon’s sections on woodworking, which he calls “The Art of Joinery,” and I tried to make it accessible to a modern audience.

… This is not an academic work. It’s an attempt to make a very important woodworking book accessible to craftsmen today. So why should you read Moxon?

… Well if you are interested in hand work, it’s fascinating to see what the tool kit of the time was like and how it was used. I developed a deep respect for dividers after reading Moxon, and I find myself using them more in my work. It might make you rethink your sharpening lubricant. Or even how you use a block plane…

For me, personally, came the satisfaction to learn that it is OK to use the jointer plane “upon the traverse” (that is, cross-grain). That is exactly what I did when I flattened my workbench top. And that was the first time I used a hand plane for such a huge job. Thank-you, Joseph Moxon, and thank-you, Christopher Schwarz, for bringing this book into this century, and for making sure I was reassured in my technique.

One mental image remains: Christopher Schwarz in Berea, wearing a powdered wig.

Filed Under: Blog, Book Review, Popular Woodworking