Ed

I can’t find the large bookcase video any more to have a look. @SANFORD do you have a link to it?

The Pro Art brush is the one I have. I’ll give the other one a try if its the one you think is working for you.

@GREGM which one did you buy? I’ve tried them and liked how the shellac went on, but the ones I’ve tried shed too many bristles. It would be wonderful but for that.

Guess I’m off to LV tomorrow on the way home

I should look at mine for you. I’d think you could make one in five minutes from a stick of hardwood. The recipe is probably, “screw the blade to a stick, maybe with a small rabbet to keep the blade from rotating.” The dimensions don’t matter, as long as the stick doesn’t hit the stone.

@SAILOR Is this the regular (large) router plane? Mine came with a finger-sized metal bar that you can use for sharpening. Unscrew the blade from the normal post and attach it to the sharpening bar, which then serves as a handle.

Alternatively, you can use the old fashioned method of keeping the blade on the regular post, flipping the thing…[Read more]

I’d bet you have not worn out or ruined your stones, but have simply broken them in well. The diamond plates do not work well for flattening for me because they are so slow. They are fine for sharpening bevels because then I’m only abrading 1/8″ of material, but they are just too slow for most flattening unless I’m lucky and the iron or chisel has…[Read more]

Hi Laci,

Just keep in mind that, once you put down a barrier or partly close the wood, as I expect will happen with the tung oil, you reduce how strong the color can ever be, generally, often by a great deal. You can still achieve good results. It just depends on what effect is desired. Also, while I mix water and oil based products on the same…[Read more]

“…laminate your section onto it.”

After more thought, this is probably a bad idea. If there is any cupping, the section from the tree would probably break.

@toddu If you like the appearance of the end grain section for the stool (I do!), I wonder if you could make a three legged stool using a piece of flat sawn material from a mill for the seat for strength, and then laminate your section onto it. You would have flat sawn material for strength and the end grain for appearance. You might then…[Read more]

The ‘Stain’ I’m using is spirit based and needs to be given a top coat after or it can be added to a clear varnish for a 1 step process. On that basis, I think it’s what you’re calling a dye.

Not necessarily. I’d put a top coat over a stain. Probably the single best test is the stir test. When you first opened the can, or after the can has sat f…[Read more]

The guy that taught me finishing gave the exceptionally clear advise of, “it depends.” You need to think through the details of your piece and your finish and decide. First, you need to distinguish between dye and stain. Stain has both pigment (color) and binder. Stain is like color plus top coat mixed together. With a dye, you can apply coat…[Read more]

Is this the joiner’s chest that has two raised panels and you are gluing up the material for the raised panel?

Raising the panel means removing material all the way around the perimeter of the panel to form the bezels. If you stare at things the right way, you may be able to see a way to glue up with the bow in place, but then when you raise the…[Read more]

You have taken a section of the tree as the seat. Everything in that photo is end grain. It’s like many short straws side by side. As a result, it isn’t very strong so, as it dries it is likely to check. Even if it dries without checking, if you bore holes and insert legs, I’m not sure if the seat will have the strength you need to support a…[Read more]

Sorry to belabor this, but if I were making a scrub, I’d search for a traditional, Bailey/Record sort of thin iron. Since you likely will need to adjust the radius, it’s just a waste of time and steel to do it in modern or thick irons.

If you get a used grinder, ring the stone before you turn it on, remount it, then let it run for a while before standing in front of it. Actually, you shouldn’t trust a new stone either, really, and should ring test it, too.

There’s a bit of a tradeoff to make. A strong radius will give a plane that digs deeply, but the shavings will be narrow,…[Read more]