So with a cold glass of citrus green tea, I sat down to 104 minutes of turning school, Popular Woodworking style. After hitting play, I was pleasantly surprised to see Steve immediately jump into turning a chisel handle. Instead of spending 20 minutes filling our heads with terminology and rules, Steve skips the foreplay and gets right down to business. I love this approach because it gives you time to think of questions. “What is that?” “Why did he do that?” “What do you call that tool?” By the time the chisel handle is finished, you are ready to have these questions answered and Steve does exactly that, from turning techniques to sharpening to tool terminology, its all here.

As a self-taught turner, I basically figured out what each tool does and I use it in the way I think it would work best. I don’t always know the how’s and why’s of what I am doing but I know it works. Well, with Steve’s descriptions and demonstrations of the cutting action of each tool, I can safely say that I’ve filled that gap in my knowledge. If I had this information when I did my first turning, I would have saved myself a lot of trial and error. If you are new to turning, there is really no substitute for getting in there and trying it yourself. But if you watch a DVD like this first, you will have a much more satisfying, safe and productive first experience.

Steve’s calm demeanor will guide you through just about everything you need to know to jump into the shop, chuck up a stick and start making shavings. I am giving this DVD a strong recommendation for anyone new to turning, or for those who are self-taught and feel like there may be gaps in their understanding of the fundamentals (like me). Experienced turners may want to take a pass, unless you just can’t get enough turning content.

And please enjoy this short trailer provided by the folks over at Popular Woodworking:

Want to win a free copy of this DVD? Simply leave a comment on this blog post to be entered into the random drawing. The winner will receive my gently-used copy.

Check out the Easy Rougher site to learn more about the tool and head on over to David’s site to find out more about his Signature version.

Moving an entire wood shop is no fun. But you can save yourself a lot of back ache if you hire some help. Money well-spent if you ask me. In this episode I show you everything I did to get my shop ready for the road trip. By no means is this meant to be a guide of any sort. Rather, its just a peak into my personal experience. And if you ever have to move your own shop, you’ll know what you’re in for.

Hey Marc….I’m a big fan of your work and website. I finally finished my work table and was hoping you might post it on your site. It was fun to make and inexpensive. Here is a brief description and a few pics.

Introducing my multifunctional work table. I have limited space so I really have to make things practical as well as functional. I started with making the base…It’s fairly simple mortise and tenon joinery using 2x’s. Then I added the doors and drawer. Looking at the pricey router tables on the market I figured I could make my own top and buy the essential accessories that would keep everything flush and square. I spent a couple of bucks on the fence and insert, but I still saved on making the top myself. The safety switch was fun to install just some basic electric work adding safety switch and receptacle to the side. After the router top, I made the assembly top. The bottom is a heavy old kitchen table. I added the hardboard and trimmed it out with maple. I got the idea for the clamp table from Festool…but instead of spending $600 I spent $25 on a piece of MDF and still have left over. I measured out a grid and drilled 1” holes every 4”. All of the tops have 3 coats of wipe on satin poly. I added 1×3’s on the bottom with t-nuts so that the tops are secure to the base. I am looking forward to many projects with these tops and maybe it’ll give you an idea on how to do it cheaper with a little imagination. Enjoy!

How do I tell what wood glues are FDA approved for using with a wood cutting board? Watched your video on making one and you recommend using Titebond III. I bought a tube but no where on the label on the bottle does it say it is approved for food use. Great site and thanks for the inspiring how to videos.

And here was my reply:
Hey Danny. If its not on the bottle itself, I would just do a little investigation on the web. Most companies will give a lot more product information on their websites. For instance, check out this info sheet on Titebond III. You should see “FDA Approved for indirect food contact” in the bulleted list.

I know that Gorilla Glue also claims to be FDA approved so you might look into their products as well. So in the future, check the associated website. FDA approval is a feature and a benefit so if you can’t find anything about it on their spec sheets, they probably don’t have it. But honestly, Titebond is really the only glue I use for food items anyway. Polyurethane glue is not my friend for various reasons. Good luck.

So, what’s your preferred glue for food contact?

As with all my Popular Woodworking columns, this one has an accompanying video on pillowing ebony plugs. You can check that out here.

And finally, if you are looking to actually make one of these beautiful Hall Frames, you can download the templates here.

Click to play

What’s on the Bench?
Marc shares his shop moving experience and Matt tells us all about his time at a recent Woodcraft event.

Around the Web:
Tom Iovino’s Great Wood Movement Experiment

Matt’s Krylon Review

News:
LumberJocks Summer Awards

The passing of a great woodworker, Sam Maloof.

Don’t miss your chance to SAVE $40 when you register for this year’s Hand Tools & Techniques Conference by August 3, 2009!

WIA Hand Tool Olympics

Sweet Deals:
July 4th Eagle America Sales Event: Wood Talk Online listeners get a DOUBLE DEAL. Place an order of $75 or more and get $10 OFF their order PLUS pay only $4.99 flat rate shipping. **Offer excludes Festool and Fein merchandise. Offer valid now thru Sunday 7/5/09. Listeners must enter Promo Code “WOODTALK56” during checkout and select $4.99 Super Saver Shipping as their shipping method to take advantage of the offer.

Save 15% on all Whiteside Router bits at Woodcraft.com until July 23rd. This is only on individual bits and not sets.

Epifanes on sale at Jamestown Distributors.

Highland Woodworking has FREE GROUND SHIPPING on orders over $100. Delivered within 48 contiguous U.S., excluding items shipped via truck or with flat rate shipping charges.

50% off Fractional Calipers- Down to $19.99

Magazine Roundup:
Marc and Matt give you a quick rundown of some articles they found interesting in the woodworking magazines.
Woodworking Magazine - Summer 2009 - “Finish the Inside of Drawers, Or Not” by Megan Fitzpatrick
Woodcraft Magazine - June/July 2009: Various article about building your shop.
Woodsmith Magazine: “Gluing up Stronger Joints” “Using Glazes”
Popular Woodworking August 2009: “John Hall’s Frame” by Marc Spagnuolo, “3 Ways to Make Raised Panels” by Robert Lang, Christopher Schwarz, and Glen Huey.
Woodworker’s Journal - “The Fundamentals of Arts & Crafts Design” by Ian Kirby, “Compressor Powered Air Tools” by Sandor Nagyszalanczy, “Custom Cabinet Pulls”
Fine Woodworking - August 2009: “How to Veneer a Sunburst” by Mark Arnold

Email:
We received an email from Chuck, and injured vet, who tells us his story and how Wood Magazine and Grizzly helped him set up shop.

Voicemails:

We had two questions from our buddy Roberto this week. One was about removing brad nails and the other was about table leaf extensions. I found this Rockler item as one option for Roberto.

Audio Segments:
Tom’s Tip - A tip to remember!
Editor’s Review - Glen Huey tells us all about the new Delta Unisaw. What we can expect and what it means to be “Made in the USA”.

I had never been able to saw a straight line or even nail a board. About three years ago my son needed my help on his Eagle Scout project. We struggled but with lots of help, built a playhouse on the church playground. Afterwards I took the leftover lumber and made myself a little workbench. I began picking up a tool here and there and before I knew it, I wanted to make a few projects. For fifteen years my life revolved between my two sons. My oldest kept us at the baseball fields 9 months out of the year and my youngest kept me busy as an Assistant Scoutmaster. My extra activities had come to and end and I am so glad I found woodworking. My wife and sons even get into it occasionally. The following are a few photos of my humble little shop.

This is my first workbench made from leftover Eagle project. A grinder, sander and drill press are in the background. Also is the pegboard and table saw.

With more scraps I made a stand for a hand-me-down miter saw, complete with an old Kirby for dust collection. Also are shelves for sanders, jigsaw and such.

When the wood started piling up I had to make lumber rack, cutoff bin. The router table sits below.

After the projects started, I decided I needed a better workbench. I made this one with a low budget. The large and small shoulder vises came from Highland Woodworking.

I started playing around on a lathe and had to have one. I have made several bowls now. Plan to start turning pens soon..

My latest purchase, from Highland Woodworking, is my new 14 inch Steel City band saw. I plan on picking up the riser block and fence later on. I have already cut bowl blanks and attempted a collapsible castle.

Well, that’s my little shop. I started off small but I plan to upgrade most of the tools. Over the last couple of years I have made several projects including Adirondack chairs, quilt racks for charity, a cedar chest for my wife among other items. You can check them out at: http://lumberjocks.com/billboard You can check out my shop cam at: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/bills-basement-woodworking-shop or on Marc’s cam list. I am live in the shop a couple of days a week. I have been enjoying my new hobby, especially bowl turning. I plan to take the bowl turning classes at Highland Woodworking soon.