Est. 1998 — 27 years of woodworking knowledge
Woodworking is all about using our tools and our wits to solve design problems, using appropriate materials and skills. But those skills are common to a lot of other activities, too. This month, I asked our visitors,”How many of you engage in other creative and/or mechanical pursuits, such as carpentry and other crafts, and how … Read more
At some point, just about every woodworker entertains the notion of making some extra money by selling the fruits of their woodworking labors. One money-making strategy is to find a niche and be the best at it. Apropos of this notion, the question I posed to our visitors this time around was, “If niche-playing really … Read more
New beginnings are always an adventure, and getting started in woodworking is no exception. As with so many other activities, the quickest way to get off on the right foot is to get succinct advice from someone, or in this case a community of helpful people who have been down this road before. We were … Read more
Nobody likes the prospect of getting older, but it sure beats the alternative. Like everyone else, woodworkers have to adjust to the inevitable ravages of time, which affects everything from our energy level to the kind of work we are able to do. Curious to hear how others cope with this challenge, I recently asked … Read more
Woodworkers are a pretty diverse bunch, to put it mildly. But, one thing we have in common is the capacity–no, the propensity–to dream, of projects that we would like to make, if skills and resources were no object. Tapping Into this theme, I asked our visitors the open-ended question, “What is your dream project?” The … Read more
Every year as the holidays draw near, there is a lot of discussion about Christmas gifts for friends and loved ones. This year, I put the question to our visitors directly: “What are you making for the people on your gift list this year?” The replies collected here are probably too late to be of … Read more
In the September-October issue, we printed–in this column–the first set of responses to my query of WoodCentral.com visitors: What was your dumbest woodworking mistake? There was no shortage of confessions. So, in the spirit of helping others avoid some of the classic bonehead moves, I present you with a second set of tales from which … Read more
Whether we’re happy about it or not, most of us learn life’s lessons the hard way: by doing things wrong the first time. Sometimes the results are comical; sometimes not funny at all. But, we usually end up learning something useful from them. So, in the spirit of helping others avoid some of the classic … Read more
Many woodworkers dream of making the jump from hobbyist to professional, but they have no idea of how to price their work. Others just want to build an occasional piece for sale and not lose their shirts in the bargain. And, of course, professionals had better have their pricing formulas figured out, because their livelihood … Read more
Woodworkers are a thrifty and innovative bunch. When the need arises for a new tool or fixture or specialty jig, many prefer to make it from scratch if possible, not only to save money but also for the satisfaction that goes along with creative problem solving. When one of our regular visitors asked what kinds … Read more
Tools are at the intersection of the woodworker and his or her materials. Because woodworking is a subtractive process, practically everything we do with wood involves cutting it or subtracting from it in some way. No wonder power and hand tools are such perennial hot topics on the WoodCentral messageboards. Over the years, I’ve noticed … Read more
After our recent discussion about sustainable forestry and ways to protect endangered species of hardwoods around the world, I was curious to know which, if any, of the so called “lesser known species” that our visitors had used instead of the over-harvested ones. The fact that we had far fewer responses than usual leads me … Read more
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