Your growing interest in the Jumma smoothing plane deserves some inside information. I have put this plane through its paces of late and found it to satisfy my greatest demands. Can I fine a better make anywhere? I don’t think so. This plane equals the best of the rest and researching its background encourages me…
This free-standing wardrobe was lovely too. This had no inlays, but simple carved motifs on either side of the central door. £80 buys a nice chunk f beautiful hardwood to rescue the work of past artisans and rework it into something more useful, perhaps a smaller cupboard or cabinet, using the rest of the wardrobe…
Car boot sales are remarkable places to discover traditional hand tool woodworking and to discover hand tool methods and techniques for creating hand inlays you might not access in antique shops without drawing attention. No one usually bothers at car boots. I found this Arts and Crafts bed quite lovely–creative and inspiring. What do you…
Sharpening stones: honing skill and knowledge Ever thought through the process of using so-called Japanese water stones or waterstones? The principle of fracturing surfaces that create new cutting particles to abrade your steel makes good sense. We all want something that cuts steel fast when it comes to sharpening. Especially if we are in the…
As part of a strategy to rediscover real woodworking, we take a look at some core issues in a vast topic Honing guides for edge tools For some time I have wanted to address sources of misinformation put out by tool makers, magazines and catalogues, to help guide my fellow enthusiasts on their passage through…
John and I went to the car boot sale and bought 2 nice Spear and Jackson hand saws (ugly at first glance), a #151 spokeshave, a sawset, a large lumber saw, a snipe bill moulding (molding US) plane (V nice with boxwood slips) and two good, but rusted gouges. If you are interested in restoring…
I’ve commented on inexpensive tools available to woodworkers because sometimes it is false economy to buy something that seems cheap because it seems inevitable that the tool or equipment will fail by breaking, or have some built-in faults from low quality standards in manufacture or materials used. Aldi chisels for example are extremely cheap in…
Have you ever thought how rapidly life’s progressive changes affect our lives? 50 or so years ago young people left school, applied for an apprenticeship (as I did back in 1964) and started to learn a craft from elders in their field. The traditions of a craft and trade were handed down, as they say….
I tried to imagine life without a workspace. I think the nearest anyone can come close to understanding how I feel is to imagine life without their favorite thing to do and magnify it a hundred or so times. Creativity has many dynamic dimensions not the least is the ability to create a creative space…
Help at last. My wife Liz quit her previous job and started working for New Legacy along with Joseph. She will organize several areas including the office, accounts and bookkeeping, customer liaison and class bookings. Liz and I have worked together in business for over 20 years and raised a family of boys at the same time….