RichC | September 18, 2022
Who hasn’t needed to repair, or re-repair, a broken piece of furniture? In today’s world, most furniture, as well as other items, are throw-away after they break, but there are still a few of us who enjoy getting the last few useable years out of a well worn piece of furniture. My like-minded son-in-law showed […]
RichC | August 14, 2022
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RichC | August 3, 2022
It is likely that I’ve used and cleaned over 100 paint brushes in my lifetime … besides the throw-away bristle and foam versions. That said, I find myself gravitating to a couple favorites that I hang over the basement utility sink. These are of the softer full-bodied brushes that hold paint well, brush smooth and […]
RichC | July 23, 2022
Here’s a very short video highlighting several different kinds of popular wall anchors or mollies and how easy they are to use compared to each other. I saw it on social media and found it an interesting tidbit for woodworking or for those of us spending time in a workshop.
RichC | July 20, 2022
Some time ago I spotted a Rockler article with a couple of experienced woodworkers explaining the placement of a vice on a woodworking bench. Years ago (decades) I remember contemplating where to put “my” vice too (photo left) … so just stuck to tradition in the trade and put it on the left. I’ve often […]
RichC | May 25, 2022
Now that the desk and hardwood floors are complete, and floor finish has cured enough in my home office, it is time to tackle the trim painting, putting the closet and bookshelves back. Another project I’ve been contemplating is to revitalize my older well-worn corner computer desk. Having used it for a couple of decades […]
RichC | May 11, 2022
Since I use these dovetail MicroJig clamps for woodworking in my workshop, it seemed only logical to archive a photo so I can build a "jointer jig" or perhaps more appropriately just a jig to use with the table saw for small tapers … or especially for cuts when the piece of wood isn’t flat […]
RichC | April 12, 2022
While ordering Titebond III glue in the 16 oz size (best choice for wood glue) from Walmart.com ($7.98) instead of Amazon, who happened to only have other sizes and bulk packaging (although gone is $67 Prime shipping), I needed to add another item to my order to avoid the shipping charges. The Kubota ZD326 zero-turn […]
RichC | March 29, 2022
I’ve been thinking a little bit more about workshop safety (although always do) and after posting about zero clearance throatplates the other day, I started contemplating adding a splitter to my table saw or to the insert when reading the Instructables.com article. Since my Delta Table Saw is pre-riving knife (below left), I either need to […]
RichC | March 22, 2022
“A place for everything and everything in its place,” is probably not the most fitting idiom for my cluttered workshop, since the debatable originate has to do with “neatness” according to an Ohio Repository (Canton, Ohio) article by Charles A. Goodrich in 1827. Although with a little sleuthing, it has also been credited to Benjamin […]
RichC | March 13, 2022
When it comes to workshops, tools, jigs and helpers, we all have our go-to favorites and my 35 year old featherboard is no exception. For years now, I’ve told myself that I was going to make a new one since this was just a quick temporary one (like the miter saw hold down below), but […]
RichC | March 8, 2022
The final steps of finishing the rocking chair for my granddaughter are finally getting done. The canvas strips of material have been added with a little flexible adhesive in the center and epoxy on the ends. The canvas material should do a couple things, first prevent the painted rockers from wearing to bare wood and […]
RichC | March 1, 2022
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RichC | February 20, 2022
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RichC | February 19, 2022
I used the word “customized” because besides getting the “rocker” for this chair from a set of plans … for safety sake … I’ve been tweaking the children’s rocking chair from collected ideas … and trial and error. Besides wanting to use dimensional lumber and running it through the planner for the frames, I’ve pulled […]
RichC | February 8, 2022
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RichC | February 1, 2022
For a soon to tackle project in the woodworking workshop, I tinkered with my older plug cutter in order to hide the heads of a few drywall screws. For a test, I used contrasting wood just to see how much gap there was going to be – it looks as if it will work. To […]
RichC | January 19, 2022
For the lack of a better subject line, this will be called a Workshop Wednesday post … even though I’m rarely in the workshop on Wednesdays (it was last weekend). Anyway, I was busy making a jig to help cut the “cheap” (and I mean “cheaply made”) crown molding that I purchased from Wayfair for […]
RichC | December 28, 2021
As usual, I was late in coming across a simple workshop miter guide for my table saw, although more recently something I needed for my small bandsaw. While working on a Christmas project for my granddaughter, I needed to cut a bunch of small pieces where I didn’t lose so much wood to the table […]
RichC | December 22, 2021
It has taken me a long time to cut into the outfeed table that I added to my Delta table saw in 2019, but I’ve finally added “the notch.” The spacing between the often used Shopsmith band saw and my lumber rack has always been tight … so tight that I’ve found myself angling it […]
RichC | December 12, 2021
After years of collecting a variety of tools and “tool” parts (bits, blades, etc), I’ve noticed that the mish-mash of storage containers have become even more interesting as the actual items being stored and saved (click photos for larger). Here are a few photos with a variety of storage items in a Where’s Waldo (or […]
RichC | November 6, 2021
The Ridgid brand of cordless tools have been my choice for the home workshop for a few years now and until this past week I have had a positive experience. Earlier this year Ridgid even replaced a couple failing batteries under the LSA (Lifetime Service Agreement) … BUT now this brand of choice is a […]
RichC | October 13, 2021
When it comes to tools in the workshop, there are a few of them that I keep at arm’s length or in a small toolbox. The same goes for kitchen utensils and products. One of my favorites, if not thee favorite, is GLAD Press’n Seal® wrap (mentioned year’s ago when I still had a Keurig). […]
RichC | August 3, 2021
Weather and years (and abuse) has pretty much destroyed the gate, hinges and latches that I took off of the gate. I disassembled it in anticipation of our driveway project (I’m still waiting – they were delayed). The final disassemble and hauling to the back was on my weekend list, but I did not anticipate […]
RichC | May 27, 2021
When I come across an item that interest me in woodworking, I either try to write them down, take a photo or save the plans. In this case the idem is a simple shop helper … a table saw push stick, of which I have many … BUT, I really like the simple curves and […]
RichC | May 13, 2021
A big thank you to my son Taylor for the Amazon gift card for my birthday last week. When he asked me what I was going to buy with it, I didn’t immediately have an answer … now I do … so I’ll now post a couple new woodworking workshop items that I’m using it […]
RichC | April 24, 2021
There’s not much a tools and gadget guy like me likes more than getting something new for my workshop. After breaking a bit in my cheap-ish countersink a few weeks ago (probably imported from China), I opted for a new Montana Brand Tools which are a USA-made set rather than just buying a new cheap […]
RichC | February 24, 2021
After setting up my router for better, cleaner and easier woodworking dados last week, I started thinking about something better than using my table saw’s stock miter gauge for making “coping” style end cuts on the router table. Beside a $220 commercial Coping-Jig (left), there are hundreds of homemade plans on the Internet to do […]
RichC | February 20, 2021
The weather has been … well, wintery and I’ve been working on a self-designed prototype desktop bookshelf or bookstand with the thought of making a couple of them. Unfortunately desks … let alone books … are disappearing as a Future of Everything WSJ article mentioned this past year. The design is relatively simple in that […]
RichC | February 16, 2021
It is time for a little more research on better dust and chip control in my basement workshop. Brenda can deal with the noise and giving me a place to escape, but she is not fond of the dust that makes its way upstairs – those with basement woodworking workshops know what I mean. I’ve […]
RichC | February 3, 2021
RichC | January 30, 2021
My basement woodworking shop is a dust-making mess in our house, but there isn’t much I can do about it now other than to improve how I collect and filter and keep dust from gravitating into the furnaces cold air returns and upstairs. In our previous house in Hudson Ohio, I was fortunate to have […]
RichC | January 20, 2021
It is common when woodworking on a bench to use some kind of vise or clamp to hold down a work piece. For longer boards I’ve always used either a couple of clamps on each end or my home-built vise and square hardwood bench dogs. (below) BUT … I’ve envied woodworkers who have 3/4” holes […]
RichC | January 17, 2021
In keeping up with lithium battery powered tools, those of us who have married into a brand have our reasons (battery warranty in my case).In reading most of the comparison literature and write-up websites, Price and warranty aside, I would probably choose Milwaukee (and have for a couple 110 volt wired tools) as a rechargeable […]
RichC | October 13, 2020
Thrifty or maybe frugal is the word choice that I use, but occasionally “cheapskate” might be a better fit? I’ve used a 3-speed Jet Tools Air Filtration System to clean the air in my basement woodworking workshop to reduce the amount of dust. It works reasonable well but suspect a lot of dust still makes […]
RichC | October 4, 2020
In my goal to gain space in the poolhouse garage (a failure) and clearing out and cleaning the east-side wall, I shifted my attention to the beat-up bench top. Part of this was just clearing the workbench of junk, then reorganizing and cleaning each shelf. The boxes have been sort-of shuffled (drawers ignored), but I […]
RichC | October 3, 2020
As much as I love working in an organized space, for the life of me I have trouble keeping it that way. Also, I can’t get rid of things I use, might use or that are too good to sell or toss. The truth is that I have the packrat gene. My parents were not […]
RichC | September 27, 2020
When bragging that my latest sewing cart project had zero cost in it, I held off until the end of the post to mention that I was spending money and would post about that on Sunday. Well here it is: I bought my first planer; it’s a semi-portable DeWalt DW735, with the “X” option (extra […]
RichC | July 25, 2020
It looks like Ridgid has a great new tool (I have a few other ones), but at $79, it seems like a lot of money for the ordinary handyman homeowner to spend for an 18-Volt 10 oz Caulk Gun? Nevertheless, I’m looking forward to at least looking at tools the next time I stop in […]
RichC | July 22, 2020
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RichC | July 15, 2020
“So that’s what this is for?” I had a “duh” moment the other day when sifting through subscribed emails from vendors. A company called OnlineMetals.com sends out educational marketing emails to customers who enjoy working with metal. I’ve used them as a supplier for a variety of small projects as a source for steel and […]
RichC | July 5, 2020
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RichC | May 23, 2020
The workshop runs smother when there is “a place for everything and everything is in its place” … to quote the printer and publisher Benjamin Franklin. On the other hand, perhaps the British are not fond of a “revolutionary” like Ben and prefer to credit Samuel Smiles, Mrs Isabella Beeton or John Hacket, Bishop of […]
RichC | May 19, 2020
As mentioned on Sunday, the delayed Amazon shipment of the Kubota fuel pump set my maintenance and repair plans back a bit, but I did get around to replacing the previously substituted fuel filter in the John Deere 330. We mostly use the old John Deere diesel tractor for trailer duty (and snowblowing), but ever […]
RichC | May 13, 2020
After shipping back the defective mini amplifier that I purchase a few weeks ago (grr!), I decided it was a nice evening for a drive in the old Mercedes Benz 300D Turbodiesel. Since I was out and needed a few gallons of diesel fuel, it seemed like a good time to fill up the jugs […]
RichC | April 28, 2020
My wife and kids think I should be working for Ridgid Tools as I have been extremely happy with their cordless tools of late. I have updated my old NiCad driver and drills with newer Lithium based brushless tools and they are so much better. A big thank you continues to go out to Katelyn […]
RichC | April 24, 2020
A couple weeks ago I mentioned that our brightly color cardinal enjoyed “looking at himself” in our window’s Canary cam – he was probably looking for a mate. Now that he’s found one … he seems to be avoid her; she is likely checking his usual haunts and asking “where is he?” I suspect there […]
RichC | April 23, 2020
After cutting a few miter joints earlier this month with a 45 degree jig on my table saw crosscut sled, I started to contemplate the best way to cut clean tendons and dadoes. In the past I’ve used an added fence to the stock miter gauge, but it really doesn’t do a great job. Of […]
RichC | April 9, 2020
Last week while continuing to s-l-o-w-l-y work on the bookshelves and painting project, in-between outdoor yard cleanup and cutting the lawn for the first time in 2020, I also used the frame cutting miter jib previously mentioned. It is amazing just how much more accurate this set-up for my table saw crosscut sled is over […]
RichC | April 5, 2020
Snipped an idea for the woodworking workshop that I’m planning to add to my table saw crosscut sled .. nothing complicated, but a way to use geometry in order to make the perfect 45 degree jig for cutting frames. It is a way to use perfect squares to accurately cut the 45 degree jig. Check […]
RichC | March 21, 2020
The painting projects continue without a need to rush or complete anything quickly. Finished the ceiling paint, some patching and trim area and “might” paint the first coat of paint that Brenda has picked on Saturday – “Bermuda Sand” (which is more yellow than the pink sand color that comes to mind – see below). […]
RichC | March 14, 2020
It was a tiring week with the drip, drip, drip Coronavirus news and highly-reactive financial markets. Although frightening, investors rightly or wrongly responded with a selloff of historic proportions. The entire meltdown seemed more like hysteria and panic and had me wondering how our country and nation ever faced plagues, a weak economy due to […]
RichC | February 4, 2020
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RichC | January 23, 2020
It has taken years, but I’ve finally decided to move my woodworking bench dogs from the tool tray (see below). A bench dog is an accessory used on a woodworking workbench to allow clamping of wooden items while being worked or planed. Ever since building my work table and vices with bench dogs back in […]
RichC | December 28, 2019
Instead of cleaning the workshop as I was planning, I ended up sidetracked. Nothing new about that. Since each time I pull the plywood box full of “short cuts and scraps” out from next to the miter saw, it is as if I’m dragging a 100 pound box with sandpaper on the bottom across the […]
RichC | November 27, 2019
When we remodeled our kitchen in the spring of 2017, I disconnected the 40 amp 220 volt electric range that we originally had in the island, and dropped the capped wires through the floor and ceiling of my basement workshop. My intention was to eventually “drop” a 220 volt line so I would have a […]
RichC | November 24, 2019
While I was suppose to be cleaning up and throwing away junk that has taken over some of my basement woodworking shop, as usual ended up sidetracked in making a few jigs for my upcoming projects AND reorganized a couple of cabinets that were buried under boxes and clutter on a back wall. I moved […]
RichC | September 21, 2019
While talking with my good friend Mark Jones about accurately drilling pin holes to mount a few glass shelves in a tight space, he gave me a great idea to use a piece of peg board to align all the holes accurately. Thanks Mark, a great tip! But in my case, I didn’t have a […]
RichC | August 31, 2019
Last week I brought my old Poulan chainsaw back to life for a few dollars after giving away my newer one, but I ended up damaging my workbench while adjusting the carburetor jets. The saw was still in several pieces (without filter, the bar, chain or guard on) while making tune-up adjustments and I accidentally […]
RichC | April 11, 2019
A Smartthings- like plug that I used with the Amazon Echo virtual assistant failed this past week, so I took it to the workbench in order to diagnose. I suspected that I was not really going to be able to fix it, but was curious as to what what inside anyway (sort of hoping, but […]