Workshop Setup & Tool Maintenance

If you're like most woodworkers, you've spent a lot of time picking out the best woodworking machinery, hand planes, chisels, scrapers, rasps, clamps and all manner of specialized jigs, tools and accessories that help make your work more accurate and go more smoothly.

From unwanted wood expansion and contraction to rusty tools and equipment, there's no question about it: humidity is not a woodworker's best friend.

What's the best way to deal with the dumb end of a board? Whether it's ripping down lumber or cutting a long piece of trim on a compound miter saw, you have to have some way of overcoming the effects of gravity and leverage at the out-feed end of the operation.

Are you getting the most out of your table saw? If you're like many woodworkers, you use your table saw almost exclusively for ripping wood, and haven't really explored its potential as a crosscutting tool.

I have stored my planer on the ground for years and lifted it up to the workbench whenever I needed to use it. Although I knew I needed a more permanent home for my planer, I never seemed to be able to find the time to make it. That’s why the Rockler Rock-Steady Shop Stand, with its large number of customizable options, is perfect for a project like this. The assembled frame is 32” x 20” x 28”. After adding the casters and a 1.5” top, the final size of the cart came out to be 36” x 24” x 33”, which was the perfect size for me.

Project design and plan by Alex from Bevelish Creations.

A table saw is a powerful piece of equipment, and deserving of respect. Learning how to use one correctly is the best way to stay out of trouble, and it's also the best way to get the most out of this valuable, versatile woodworking tool.

All table saws share the same basic anatomy: They all have a base, a table and extension wings, rails and a rip fence, a motor, trunnions, gearing to raise and tilt the blade, and an arbor and arbor assembly.

When you're allocating funds for tools and equipment, it only makes sense to give a nod to the measuring department.