It's time to wrap up the construction of the wooden drink carrier (six-pack) so we can all get back out in the sun and enjoy the rest of our summer (or for our friends in the southern hemisphere…prepare for the summer). Today's episode we pickup at the bandsaw where we'll shape the middle divider and then continue from there to create some finger h…

In part 1 of the Teak shoe rack build I milled this amazing Teak stock my friend Jim sent. In today's episode it's time to wrap up the milling process by taking the components over to the router table and profiling the edges on all the pieces followed by prepping them for the mechanical fasteners. The final result is an amazing project that my fami…

Thanks to a generous donation of some amazingly beautiful Teak boards from a friend of the show, I have an opportunity to work with an species of wood I probably would ordinarily not use. It's not that I don't want to use different species, I just have a few that I'm readily familiar with and just haven't had a reason to step out of my comfort zone…

Welcome back to part 2 of the Bedside Table Build. We again have some wide panels that will make up the sides of the tables and they need to be milled and glued up. But rather than tackling the task by “going ALL hand plane” on the wide boards like last week I decided to mix it up a little and use both hand planes AND power tools. In other words, l…

I'm sure you've heard the trope "The cobbler's children have no shoes"? Well the same thing in the Vanderlist household can be said about furniture. Around here it feels like I'm always making something for someone else's house (or more than likely for my shop). For a long time now my wife Samantha has been asking me to build us a matching set of b…

On today's show I'm walking you through the steps of building a very basic, utilitarian shoe organizer. And I'll admit it, I obviously didn't pay close enough attention to the warning signs when things started to go bad! It started out great. The components were milled in near record time, even with just having 30 minutes here and there during the …

ENOUGH TALK ABOUT THE NEW SAW, LET'S BUILD SOMETHING WITH IT!!! I'd love to tell you it would be something über cool, ultra modern and hip...but then it wouldn't be on this show if it were. Instead, the first project on the new saw is something FOR THE NEW SAW; it's a very basic, no frills crosscut sled. [caption id="attachment_6965" align="alignce…

As table saws go, I've had an opportunity over the years to use one from each of the three body types; benchtop, contractor and cabinet. While they're all tablesaws and do the same job, the specifications of each are very different. Where benchtop and contractor saws are portable in their own ways, the cabinet saw is one you probably won't be throw…

I've been doing a lot of resawing lately in my workshop. Not for the purpose of making my own veneers instead it's all about milling thin stock for the boxes I'm making for my wife's photography clients (shameless plug...www.shuttersam.com). Resawing thick stock into thinner pieces is a great way to save materials and money too! As a beginning wood…

Over the years, I've done my fair share of experimenting with sharpening. From the early days of sandpaper on glass to waterstones and now on to my Tormek, I had one goal in mind...to create the scariest sharpest edge anyone could ever imagine!!! I won't claim to have achieved that dream yet, but I've managed to create edges that were sharp enough …

At the heart of my workshop's redo is the massive Bench Dog Router Table system I reviewed with ToolSelect.com - see the review HERE. Compared to previous router tables in my shop, this version is a beast! Of course it's not really a fair comparison, given its predecessors were all bench top models, but that's beside the point. The Bench Dog ProMax…

Following up on the last episode, where I revealed recent changes made to my shop to improve work flow and efficiency...at least in theory...,today's show is a closer look at some of the "accessories" and little shop helpers I've added all around it. We've all heard the cliche "it's the little things that matter". In this case, it really IS the lit…

We're now about halfway through Safety Week 2012 and hopefully you've found that one or two golden nuggets you'll carry with you every time you step in the shop. Regardless of what it is, the most important thing is to take what you've learned this week and turn it into the kind of habit that becomes second nature. Because it's those kind of habits…

Without a doubt, home ownership is probably one of the biggest catalysts to propel people into woodworking. Even if you grew up with a woodworker or took shop classes in school, being a homeowner reignites that spark and grows into a passion for tools and creating projects intended for in and around the home. Most of the time that spark occurs beca…

On today's episode we wrap up the construction of the Hock Smoothing Plane Kit from Hock Tools. Last week we assembled the pieces, glued it all up and set it aside to dry in the clamps. Today we start the work to make it a fully functioning hand plane. I'll walk you through one method of truing the sole to make it flat, which is extremely important…

Today's episode is the first in a two (maybe three) part build series featuring the Hock Smoothing Plane Kit from Hock Tools. Previously we had such success building the Hock Shoulder Plane it only seemed like a great idea to come back and build this kit. Just like before, all the materials for successfully building a completely usable plane were i…

After the last episode of Samantha's mirror frame project many of you wrote me to ask how I installed the mirror in the frame. It was a SLIGHT oversight on my part not to cover the topic, so I'm coming back with a third episode to remedy that mistake. While we're talking about how I did it, I'll share with you some other potential options for takin…

On today’s show we’ll continue where we left off last week on the construction of the Cherry Mirror frame I recently built for my wife. As I mentioned in the last episode we purchased a full-length mirror for our bedroom and after getting it home I decided it was just a little too plain for our tastes. Thankfully I’ve been holding on to a stash of …

Today we start a new build project. We’ve (and by “we” I mean my wife) been in need of a full-length mirror in our bedroom for quite a longtime now. We (this time I mean “us”) finally purchased one not to long ago and I intended to hang it behind the door in our bedroom. Even though it’s beveled on the edges it just looked to plain, so we were tryi…

The folks over at Benchcrafted really know how to make tools. Jameel and everyone stand by the products they make so we don't have to worry about whether or not they're going to hold up in our shops. I think it has a lot to do with the fact that they're woodworkers too. They don't just make tools to sell them, they make tools to use them! It's very…

The guys over at Bora Clamps recently introduced their latest clamping system, the Bora Wide Track Clamp Edge. A straight edge clamp that works very much like a traditional clamp with the added benefit of having a straight edge body attached to it. The beauty of a straight edge clamp is you can attach it to a surface, such as a workpiece or a table…

Today's episode is the 5th part of the series on the Child's dresser. We've jumped ahead a little bit as in real time I started to fall behind so I did some assembly work with the camera off. I'm trying to document as much as I can on these projects, but occasionally things kind of fall through the cracks. For the most part, today's episode covers …

Today's Try It Tuesday is a look at the Czeck Edge Ruler-Stop currently available at Highland Woodworking. A handy little tool that literally fits in the palm of your hand but still has the ability to do great big things. The Czeck Edge Ruler-Stop works much like a traditional square, but with one big exception...you're not stuck with only using on…

Today's episode is the final in the series on the Maple, Child's Dresser build. Unfortunately as will happen on this show, I did have to jump forward in time a little as I started to fall behind my original schedule to have it completed. Up to this point the vast majority of the construction has been documented, and the only thing that was left to …

There are a lot of workbench accessories on the market, but typically they're either something that needs to be built as part of the workbench top and are nearly permanent components or they're small useful items, but don't have much versatility to them. A newer accessory that hit the market in the past year is the Veritas Surface Vise. It's a grea…

We all want to kick the tires before we buy, but when it comes to certain things in life it's not always possible. Thankfully the folks at Lie-Nielsen understand this and travel across the states and into the great white north to give every woodworker an opportunity to man handle their planes, saws, chisels and more. While the events are slightly d…

There are times when I just want to make something for fun and I don't want to spend a lot of time worrying about all the details to make it right. Of course, I do want to make sure it's something I don't mind my name being associated with too! One type of project that's fun and can make a great gift for a loved one is a custom wooden sign. Whether…

It's Safety Week 2010 and it only makes sense for this week's "Try It Tuesday" to be a safety device. A while ago we had a chance to give-away a Micro-Jig GRR-Ripper as part of our monthly schwag drawing. I couldn't just give one away without trying it out for myself, so for total openness...YES I did get one to tryout and talk about on the show. T…

We're close to wrapping up SAFETY WEEK 2010 and I stumbled across a great article at WOOD Magazine's website. Not one to let a good thing slide by, I asked the folks at WOOD for permission to share it with all of you. Thankfully they said yes! Today's episode is based on the 12 point checklist mentioned in Shop Safety Checklist. It's a great read a…

It's another Tuesday and that means it's time for another "Try it Tuesday". This week we have the Kreg Multi-Mark, a great little multi-marking tool for a wide assortment of jobs in and out of the shop. With three possible blade positions for quick measuring and marking the Kreg Multi-Mark is a handy tool for setting up your blades and bits or crea…

Today's "Try it Tuesday" is all about my shop apron, more specifically the Leather Apron from Highland Woodworking. With it's generous proportions, it's deep flap covered pockets and it's really comfortable feel (once it's properly broken in that is) this is a great apron for any woodworker. Why would you need a shop apron? With all the little thin…

Today's Try it Tuesday is the Lee Valley Handplane Screwdriver. Since the next few episodes will be continuing our discussion of hand planes, it only makes sense we need to cover some tools or accessories that go along with them. The Handplane Screwdriver is one such accessory. Unlike an ordinary screwdriver, the full length slot and brass ferrule …

Finally returning to our discussion on hand planes we pick back up by talking about the roughest planes on the bench. The Jack Planes! This class of bench plane falls between the large jointers and the smaller smoothers, but they're the perfect size for doing rough work without wearing out the user. In the Stanley-Bailey numbering system the Jack P…

The quickest and easiest way to improve an old hand plane is to swap out the original blade and maybe even the chipbreaker. Not that there's anything truly wrong with the original pieces, other than a little surface rust and maybe a nick or two, but if you were to hold the new old and blades side-by-side you'll quickly notice a big difference. The …

Moving along with our discussion of bench planes it's time to take a look at the jointer planes. The jointers are our middle of the road tools. These are the tools we reach for once we've taken our stock from it's rough cut faces and edges, leveled out the big hills and valleys and are ready to take the material to it's final finished dimensions. T…

Today's "Try it Tuesday" is the Veritas Jointer Fence. A great accessory for the hand plane user to help get nice square edges on your stock. Usable with almost all of the bench planes, it attaches to the body via two, strong rare earth magnets. Once attached to a plane, making square edges is a breeze and easily repeatable. Saving you time and of …

We wrap up our discussion of the bench planes today with a discussion about Smoothing Planes. Next to the Jack Planes, the smoothers are probably one of the more common planes in the shop. In the Stanley Numbering System, the smoothers are the lowest numbers, 1-4. But you can easily recognize them by their smaller size, as they're usually no longer…

Today's "Try it Tuesday" is a look at Bob Lang's "Woodworker's Guide To Sketchup". A really amazing tutorial covering just about every aspect of Google's Sketchup 3D modeling system that a woodworker would need to create stunning and detailed drawings for their next project. Bob is a great teacher, author and of course woodworker. Bob has taken it …

Long before the summer hiatus this year you might remember our last project build was a Maple Child's Dresser for a client and family friend. It was one of four pieces I was asked to build for their daughter's room. Today we're getting started with the first of a four part series that covers the construction of the next two pieces, a pair of matchi…

With the side panels glued up and grooved to recess our adjustable shelf hardware it's time to move on to the next part of the Maple Kid's Bookcase. In today's episode we cut and prep the fixed shelves then attach them, along with the top rails, to the side panels from Part 1. My method for this construction process is to use Pocket Hole Joinery. T…

In part 3 of the Kid's Bookcase construction we start the final assembly. At this point all the components are cut to their final dimensions and we've done our dry fits to make sure everything is going to come together without a hitch. While I chose to use pockethole joinery to bring everything together, we'll talk about our OPTIONS for possible jo…

Another Woodworking in America has come and gone and it's left a lasting impression. Not just on me but everybody I've talked with who attended. This is like no other woodworking show out there right now. It's not about the vendors, it's not about the lecturers, it's all about the people attending. And I'm willing to admit I was wrong about my fear…

Let's take one more trip back to Woodworking in America 2010 and I'll share with you a few more classes I attended as part of this ongoing amazing experience. I eluded to the "mourning phase" after leaving the show and coming down off my woodworking high as we drove away. That mourning isn't quite what it was a week ago, but I still have moments wh…

In today's episode we get a look at the finished Kid's Maple Bookcase. When I originally recorded the footage I was literally minutes away from the clients picking it up, so I may have skipped over some details you'd like to know more about. But I did cover as many of the final details as I could. The finish I chose for the bookcase was a combinati…

If you have any questions from today's episode or any from the first 3 episodes of this series. Don't hesitate to drop me a line "EMAIL ME". Some of you already have, and I'll be addressing those questions in next week's episode where we'll devote the entire episode to answering those questions. The Kid's Maple Bookcase project is all wrapped up no…

I can't remember the last time I did any kind of shop tour in my current basement workshop, so after much prodding by a few of you (especially you John!!!) I decided it was time to invite all of you down for a look around. Really there's not a lot to look at that you haven't already seen, but I figured while you're all here I might as well explain …

It's been a long time in the making and that has nothing to do with the kit itself! My Brese J-Style Small Smoother has finally been completed and is making the most amazing shavings a plane has ever taken in the basement workshop. For those of you who've heard me talk about this project on Wood Talk Online Radio you know it's been an ongoing laugh…

In this episode we'll wrap up the final assembly of this amazing little smoother plane and I'll explain the right way to do it, while also explaining WHAT I ended up doing instead. Of course luckily in the end it all came together and works just as well and amazingly as I had hoped and dreamed it would! If you're not familiar with Ron Brese and his…

It's official! Five years of Matt's Basement Workshop Podcast and it's still going strong. I've talked before about the beginnings of the show so there's no need to re-hash it again...but you're welcome to ask me about it any time! In today's episode we have a bit of catching up to do from the long holiday hiatus. One of the big things I wanted to …

It's time to get back to some serious content...or at least as close as I'll come to it. Today we start the construction of the Walnut Buffet. This is part 1 of a multi-part series and it begins with the rough construction of the buffet's body. The majority of components for this project were constructed from a premium walnut plywood with its edges…