Woodshop Life Podcast

Brians Questions: Thanks for sharing your knowledge and opinions - and answering my previous questions. It's been a great help. My shop is in my single car garage, which I share with household storage. It has a very high ceiling.  I recently got a good deal on a new Jet AFS-1000B Air Filtration System. (note: I do not have a dust collection system, as I try to do mostly hand tool work, but I do use power tools as needed. So there is plenty of dust). The question is: where to locate the device? The options are:  1. I have a shelf that is suspended from the ceiling and could test to see if it will support the Jet unit.  2. There is a metal storage cabinet that I can set it on, and attach to the wall (per Jet instructions). 3. Place it on the lower shelf of my Moravian style workbench.  Attaching it directly to the ceiling is out, as it is too high, and I don't have ladders or scaffolding to get up there. The easiest is option 3 - on the lower shelf of the workbench. Will it be effective down there - about a foot off the ground?  Or should I go for options 1 or 2? Thanks for any insight.  David V. - Baltimore, MD Gentlemen, Thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedules to share your knowledge through the podcast. I’ve recently caught up on all the previous episodes and really look forward to the bi-weekly insights you provide. It’s been a tremendous help as I navigate the early stages of woodworking and material sourcing. I have a question regarding quality expectations when purchasing from regional hardwood suppliers. I’ve recently started buying from a distributor in the Texas/Oklahoma area that operates multiple warehouses. While I’m still relatively new to this type of procurement, I’ve noticed a gap between what I expected from a “select & better” grade product and what I actually received. My recent order was for cherry lumber—select & better, RW&L, averaging 6 inches wide, 9 feet long, and 15/16" thickness, graded 90/70+. The issue I encountered was significant end-checking and splitting—some boards had cracks extending 10 to 18 inches. Since the lumber (along with some maple and walnut) was bundled and strapped to a pallet, it wasn’t until I got home—over an hour away—that I realized the extent of the damage. I understand that some waste is always part of the equation, but I’m trying to get a sense of what’s considered “normal” for a premium grade. Should I have contacted the supplier once I noticed the issue? Or is it standard practice to inspect the order before it leaves the yard? I’d appreciate any guidance or rules of thumb you might recommend for handling situations like this. Thanks again for your time and for all the valuable information you share. It’s been a huge help. Best regards, Mark Guys Questions: I’m preparing to build a set of kitchen cupboards from white oak.  The style will be Mission, with some Frank Lloyd Wright Prairies Style touches.  I have several questions.  I’m going to build some assembly tables.  I don’t want hundreds of dog/hold-down holes in each, but I will probably drill a few.  I’m wondering about 3/4” (the traditional North American standard) vs. 20 mm (a standard popularized by Festool, etc.).  I know this isn’t a black and white choice, but could you share some thoughts on what one might consider before committing to one size vs. another. Darrin    I frequently seem to struggle with keeping the countersink concentric concentric with the screw clearance hole. I have both the multi-flue countersink and the countersink with one diagonal hole but they both want to wander.    I also have a tapered drill bit with set-screwed countersink.   Maybe I should be trying harder to use that type. So my question is - do you have any suggestions for keeping the countersink centered on the clearance hole, and what is your preferred type of countersink. Steve Huys Questions: Hello guys, my name is Jim Rose.  I live in north central Kansas and have a couple of completely different topics for questions. Before the questions, I wanted to say, thanks so much for an awesome podcast.  I have been a listener since Brian came on board.  In fact, the 1st episode I listened to was his 1st episode!!! First off, I have a question about beetle kill pine.  I am currently building a new house and have purchased beetle kill pine to put on the walls and ceiling of a sunroom.  My question is what finish should I use if any so that the blues and reds of the beetle kill pine will show the best and not change colors in anyway.  I have seen different opinions on the internet ranging from a clear poly to nothing at all.  Some have even said that a finish will change to colors which I definitely dont want. Not sure if this is true so thought I would the experts.   Thanks in advance.  Any suggestions/advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks again, Jim Hey Fellas' as many say "love the podcast", I've learned a ton and look forward to more as I work my way through previous shows and keep up with new ones. The ask ... you've shared a fair amount regarding adhesive/glues including talking shelf life. How can we tell when an adhesive/glue has exceeded its shelf life and should be discarded and replaced? I mean knowing this is prior to using it and the project failing and pieces not sticking as needed. Thanks, Chris Hudson

This Episodes Questions: Brians Questions:  What are the the most useful 3d prints for a woodworking shop.  I often print out small pattern templates and fixtures for hole placement.  Even storage solutions for various tools etc...  what are your top suggestions? Josh Hi, let’s talk about working with laminated plywood.  I just picked up about 25 sheets of 3/4”x 22”x6’  birch plywood that has Formica laminated on both sides from the free pile of a high volume cabinet shop. I want to encourage everyone to find local cabinet or mill work shops  in your area and drive by them often! I do on my commute to and from work.  What kind of design/construction considerations would you make when building cabinets with drawers for my garage using only this 3/4” plywood? It will be for my garage.  I know it’s common to make drawers using thinner plywood but I’m not trying to spend money if I have to.   how would you finish the edges? I’m going to make a blanket chest next, The laminate is a fancy textured walnut wood grain that actually looks pretty good. I currently don’t have a shop but have some hand tools and hand power tools like a router,  circular saw with track, and a lot of imagination! With the help from your podcast I just recently purchased a biscuit jointer and a large (rather intimidating) 45 degree chamfer router bit. Haywood Guys Questions: Hi Guys, I’ve been listening to your podcast since the beginning and it’s by far the best. There’s not even a close second. My question is: I want to make shop sawn veneer. I have a band saw with 11” cut capacity, grizzly 8” jointer, a dewalt 735 thickness planner with a Byrd Shelix helical cutter head, but I don’t have a drum sander. I would like to end up with 1/16”  cherry veneer that is 10” wide, but I’m not sure about the process to make it. Would the thickness planer be too aggressive to remove the bandsaw marks or would I need to purchase a drum sander?  Also, after cutting a piece of veneer from the stock, do I need to reflatten the stock before cutting another piece of veneer. In general, I guess what I’m asking is given the set of tools above, how would you go about making veneer? Mike I am building a trestle table out of African Mahogany, more specifically Khaya. I am using 8/4 for the top and 12/4 for the legs. It is going to live on a jalousy window sun room that is not climate controlled in the state of Florida. What finishes do you guys recommend to use to help preventwood movement or warping over time, or is that just going to happen. David Huy's Questions: Hello Gents, This is a bit of a long winded question regarding aftermarket sliders for the table saw and how to best use them. I recently purchased an old Excalibur sliding table from my saw.  This is an older model but from my understanding is almost identical to the current SawStop sliders, as SawStop took over the old Excalibur models (maybe this is incorrect or you have more insight?).  I mounted the slider to the extension table on the left so I get the full size of the TS top and the slider fence is long enough to reach all the way to the blade.  I figured that this way I get the best of both worlds, and I do have the space for it. My purpose for the slider was to help break down sheet goods, manage angled cuts on larger pieces, and to help cut miters on larger case panels.  I've made a few cases in the past with mitered corners and running a long case panel on the TS to cut the miters is a bit of a pain.  I was hoping that the slider would simplify that process as it would allow the long panel to move over the table smoothly while held square to the blade. Here is the kicker, the slider mounts on the left of the saw which is the direction that the blade tilts.  In my mind, this creates a problem as I have to run the panel up-side-down, under the tilted blade, and the offcut would now be dropping on top of the blade where it will create a kickback situation.  In general, I wouldn't run the piece "under" the blade when using a rip fence as it is trapped, but with the slider that's not really true.  Seems problematic for the offcut but gives more accuracy and control on an otherwise unwieldy piece and may be worth rolling the dice.  I figure that with the slider I have plenty of space to stand out of the firing line when that offcut goes flying, but it is probably smarter to avoid the situation in the first place....  What are your thoughts? How are others handling miters with a slider?  It seems most folks in North America have them mounted on the left, and most of the saws tilt to that side. Bojan Hey guys I’ve been listening to lots of episodes of the podcast lately and find it very helpful me being a beginner. This will be a long one but here is the situation, I’m not far from Indianapolis so a couple of you understand the weather. Earlier this year I cut down a couple of trees from a family property before it got demolished for development. Trees were run through a local saw mill and kiln dried for me. When I picked them up from the local guys I brought the stack back and put it in a barn on the family farm. The barn is generally shut up but it is not conditioned. I do all my wood working in my basement at home that is conditioned. I’m getting ready to buy a used 8” jointer to help me handle all these boards. I will not be carrying a large jointer into the basement to do the work it will be at the farm where the wood is stored. Question is, with an unconditioned barn do you think it will be a problem to joint a few boards there, bring them back to the basement Woodshop and let them acclimate for a few weeks before proceeding to plane/cut up for projects? Would it be better to joint just a couple at a time as I’m going to need them or would jointing most of the boards and storing them unconditioned during the year and moving them to the Woodshop as needed be ok? Thanks for the podcast and all the info you guys provide. I’ve learned multiple things from you guys already and hope to continue learning more. Drew

Guys Questions Hey guys, I really love your show. My question is about food safe finishes. I do a lot of CNC carving and one of my favorite is deviled egg trays. The first couple I made for my wife I just finished with some butcher block oil, the composition of an egg Has something  in it I think and it quickly turned the reliefs in the wood surface black. I talked to my sister-in-law who’s a chemical engineer and she told me that polyurethane once it’s cured would be fine for this. I have done a few with this and it seems to be holding up OK but I am curious what your guys thoughts are  on the long-term effect of this. Most of my egg trays are made out of a butcher block style material that has lots of maple cherry ash a little bit of oak and various leftovers. Unfortunately, I can’t use walnut in my wood shop due to my wife’s tree nut allergy again guys. I really appreciate your podcast and look forward to listening to it. Albert Thanks for the great podcast, I learn something from every episode.  I recently made a few band saw boxes for Christmas gifts.  They are a good way to use up some offcut lumber and the family seems to appreciate something handmade.   The 3 drawer box with a curved top and side (pictures attached) caused me a bit of trouble.   Joni had preciously asked for a sideboard style cabinet to place between out living and dinning room areas.  After 2-3 month we still hadn't found a design she liked....until she saw the curved band saw box.  I quote "I love that design and want one like that only much bigger"   My question is what suggestions do you have for making the curved top and sides,  I am thinking the sides could be made using walnut plywood by cutting kerfs and bending the plywood over a frame but I am open to other ideas.   The top has me stumped, I have made segmented arches for a table support  but they were only 4" wide and I cut the arch on a band saw.  That would not work for a wide dresser top. Approximate dimensions would be 30" -35" wide and 45- 55" tall and 20-22" deep Thanks in advance for you help DH I realize this isn’t a fine precision woodworking question, but I figure you guys have probably dealt with manhandling sheets of plywood. We have about 140 sheets of plywood that we need to put down on a floor. The median age of the guys doing this is somewhere between 65 and 70. Any suggestions for how to safely handle this many sheets of plywood to minimize strains and injuries ? Thanks,  Mark Huys Questions Good Morning, I appreciate the podcast as I continue to learn its been a great resource, thank you! Quick background. I grew up watching PBS's Norm Abram and This Old House but never had much opportunity to learn wood working. As an adult I started learning both construction building and cabinet/furniture making helping others, reading and youtube etc. Starting in basement workshops with mostly benchtop tools. ~15 years into the journey I am starting to get a decent foundation. Recently I built a house with a planned garage workshop and have started outfitting it. Bones are there, lots of organization needed but I have now have 3hp grizzly table saw, bosch miter saw with large counter style station, 8" Grizzly jointer, 24" Grizzly Drum Sander, Grizzly Bandsaw and dust collector Planer still needs upgrading, have a Ridgid 13" but watching for a used 20" helical head. I have been busy chasing used deals! Also recently setup a 10'x10' popup tent with furnace filter setup tied into 12" exhaust fan as a spray booth, works great! Spraying with a Fuji mini mite 5 stage and PPS cup system.  Space is 32'x32' when cars are out with 12' ceiling, in floor heat. Rural northern New York. Not a Rockler or similar store within a days drive but we have ample local sawmills to find solid wood if your willing to mill it and access to cabinet grade plywood delivered from suppliers. With this shop setup I am now building cabinets, furniture, trim, doors etc for our house. Starting in some areas I don't mind making some mistakes. Two areas that I am struggling to figure out: Finishes-your recent episode had some decent comments but I would love a thorough discussion on when you would choose a certain finish over another. In particular thinking of kitchen cabinets, vanities, built in's, kitchen table. High traffic areas. I have played around with conversion varnish from Woodwright. Seems like very durable stuff and I don't mind cleaning up with solvent but when is that necessary vs going with an easier to work with finish such as Sherwin Williams Emerald? Or middle ground lacquer??I do have Bob Flexners book but would love to hear your experiences/ opinions? If I do use conversion varnish how do you handle any touch ups? I have quite a lot of experience with airless on sheetrock so its not a huge jump but any suggestions on HVLP setups, when to use which tips etc. would be helpful. *Doors- I appreciated the conversation on doors recently. I have several very custom interior and exterior doors I want to tackle. I agree with your comments on buying pre hung for standard doors but between custom nature of what we want and because I just want to do it I am going to try to build my own. I want to buy the festool domino machines in time anyhow and I think that would be a good way to build the doors. I would enjoy hearing a conversation on specifics on how you would choose to build interior vs exterior doors, rail and style material vs. panel material vs jamb material. Is there a way to insulate the exterior door? Finishes? If you had the shop described above and both domino size machines what would you do? Thank you! Matt Wendig This one is a wood selection question. I am looking for a wood that has both good elasticity and shock resistance. I am building a Japanese makiwara board, which is a training tool that provides progressive resistance to striking force by the martial artist. The training board is about 55" tall, 5" wide and is tapered - so thick at the base and gradually tapers to the top. This allows for "flex" when the board is struck. In Japan - Japanese beech is typically used, but not readily available near me. I am thinking along the lines of Ash or Elm for my build. I appreciate your thoughts. Crafted Carpentry Tampa Hello gentlemen and thank you for the wonderful podcast. I live in the niagara region in Ontario Canada and for the last while I've been looking at upgrading my current table saw (Ridgid R4520) to something that runs on 220v for more power  or possibly replacing it all together with a bandsaw.  I have an oversized single car garage that houses my furnace, hot water tank, ATV, motorcycle, mechanical shop and woodshop so space is at a premium and that is the motivation to possibly do away with a table saw all together. I have a router table, mitre saw and track saw so I feel all the functions I may lose not having a table saw will still be covered by these tools plus I have a Ridgid job site table saw (R4518ns) I use for the odd job I do off site. I currently have an older 110v 14" king bandsaw that I find severely underpowered and that I want to replace anyways, so with the sale of my current bandsaw and table saw plus my current budget and with some convincing of my wife I'm thinking I'll have roughly $3000-3300CAD to buy either one bandsaw or have to use those fund to buy both a bandsaw and table saw. I am 6'4" and if my memory serves me correctly guy has said Laguna bandsaw tables are closer to the ground and I've quickly looked at some king bandsaw and craftex bandsaws but I'm not sold on them either. So my question question to you guys is, what would you do? Use all the funds on a bandsaw and if so which one and what type of blades should I purchase with it? Or split up the funds to purchase 2 machines and again which ones? And do you go new or used in both of those situations? Thank you ahead of time for taking the time to read and respond to my inquiry. James

This Episodes Questions: Brians Questions When making trivets, how to cut the grooves - when I cut mine I hogged out half the thickness of the wood in one pass.   That led to some pretty rough cuts and gouges (i.e. scrap).   I assume the answer is a router table with a lift, but of course I don’t have one YET.   :)      Also, what finish to put on a trivet (which is used for hot pans)? - different finish than a cutting board?   Tung oil?  Danish oil?   I assume ’not’ ArmRSeal. Mark I’m preparing to build a set of kitchen cupboards from white oak.  The style will be Mission, with some Frank Lloyd Wright Prairies Style touches.  I have several questions.  I have a SuperMax style cantilever 25-50 drum sander.  Do you think that this is a feasible tool to level out the boards to remove the planer snipe?  …and avoid having to cut 3” of the end of each piece? Darrin   Guys Questions:   Been enjoying your podcast through several projects. My background is homebuilding, but through my sawmill hobby and unwillingness to pay for overpriced garbage…I have found myself learning about woodworking. My question is about making doors.    I have made one door so far using only groove cuts into the stiles’s and gluing  the tenons of the rails and panels into these cuts. I don’t have much faith in the longevity of this door, but it’s been a year now.   What is the traditional methodology for attaching the individual parts of a simple 3 panel door   Should I just buy a domino and get it done…    Also per your latest podcast episode, what is the best way to midi gate the wood movement at the joint of the rails/ stiles. As these joints are not small nor parallel.    Sorry for the low brow question. Appreciate the knowledge. Lucas Hello esteemed woodworking gentlemen! Thanks for the amazing podcast and the contribution to the woodworking community. I’m seeking some general advice and hope you can help. I was recently watched a YouTube video where someone stated that a track saw blade should always be buried for the straightest possible cut. That made me wonder if I can be causing unnecessary blade deflection on my jobsite table saw and Dewalt miter saw. I often struggle achieving perfect 90 on those machines when crosscutting. As a hobbyist with limited shop time, setting up machines is pain but I understand its necessity. Can you speak on this blade deflection and are there any go to tricks that you have for ensuring your machines are set up properly? Thanks for any help you can provide.-Jose    Huys Questions: A while back my wife and I bought and moved into a house with no dishwasher, then later purchased one after realizing how much not having one sucked. We made the mistake of assuming that we would be fine putting the dishwasher at the end of the counter, because we figured the top of the machine would look like a run-of-the-mill home appliance like a washer or dryer, rather than the monstrosity that it actually is. It is ugly. I think I actually recall my wife crying when she saw it, and not in a good way. Since then my loosely held plan has been finding a way to move or dispose of the contents of one section of our cabinets, then cut a section out of said cabinets big enough for the dishwasher to fit underneath. Recently, however, thanks in large part to your podcast, I have developed enough confidence in my woodworking skills to attempt a different idea. My thought is to make what is essentially an end cap or sidewall, which will match the existing cabinetry, anchor it somehow, and then place a new section of countertop between this end cap and the existing end cap of the cabinets. I would essentially be "extending" the countertop, thereby concealing top and visible side of the dishwasher. From what I can tell, all I would have to make, stain, and finish would be a cabinet side panel, a piece of trim to run along the bottom, and a partial face frame. So here come the questions: do you think this is doable, either generally or the way I am thinking? And what would be the easiest way to tackle this project? Note that I'm not particularly concerned over whether or not I use the same method of instruction as was used for the rest of the cabinetry. For example, I don't particularly care to use particle board with a veneer as the rest of the cabinets may have done if it would actually be easier or cheaper in this instance to just make the side panel out of a solid piece of wood. So long as it looks close, its fine with me. The applicable tools I can think of that I have at my disposal are a table saw with a crosscut sled, a compound miter saw, a jigsaw, fixed base router, various types of Sanders, a pocket hole jig, 15, 16, and 23 gauge nailers, and of course all of the basic hand tools. I would describe my skill level as approaching novice. Sincerely,Z achary T Owens Howdy yall, I'm wondering if you can recommend any smoke detectors or carbon monoxide detectors in the woodshop? I work out of a one car garage in Minnesota so have a gas heater to help me stay warm during our bitter winter months, but am also worried about oil rags possibly spontaneously combusting. When I first moved into the shop I tried installing a regular smoke detector however it kept on getting set off when I had excessive dust flying (thank you router). Is there anything that you know of on the market that won't get set off by dust but that I can keep my home protected and have a little more peace of mind? Thanks,   Paul at Twin Lake Woodshop

This Episodes Questions: Brian's Questions: My neighbor gave me a beautiful maple root ball that is approximately 3' in diameter about 6 months ago. I am currently letting it dry for another 12 to 24 months. I'm thinking of eventually rough cutting it with a large reciprocating saw. The wood will be used for small boxes or knife handles. Am I crazy? Do you have any advice on dry times and using root wood? George Guy, I am making a bow front dresser and plan to use Blum Blumotion undermount slides for the drawers. However, I’m not sure how I should attach the front of the slide to the bottom of the draw, since the draw front will be curved. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Also, the draws will be inset, but since the blumotion has a fair amount of flexibility (up/down and left/right)  I am thinking aligning the draw fronts should be doable. But do you have any suggestions to make it as simple as possible? Finally I see Rockler has a “JIG IT” under mount drilling guide. Do you use this jig and do you recommend it? Thanks so much!!! Mike Guy's Questions: I live in Fishers, IN and am new to woodworking and was wondering how to find good places for hardwoods? It’s been pretty tough to find anything local without driving a decent distance to a mill on the west side of town. Chayse Bell I’m preparing to build a set of kitchen cupboards from white oak.  The style will be Mission, with some Frank Lloyd Wright Prairies Style touches.  I have several questions. How much planer snipe is too much?  I have a Dewalt 13” model 735 benchtop planer.  If I take a short board—say, two feet—and run it through once taking a 1/16 cut, I get 8/1000ths snipe.  Is this to be expected?  …or should I look at getting my planer serviced or maybe trading up.  (The Laguna Tools PX16 planer looks amazing, but six times the money.) Darrin Huy's Questions: Thank you all for what you do. Like so many other woodworkers, I have accumulated quite a bit of wood through my own purchases and also from inheriting my fathers wood collection after he passed away. I would like to move it out of my two car garage workshop to free up space, and am considering building some sort of dry storage box to store it under a deck in my backyard. (I don’t have room for a large lumber shed). Thinking roughly 14 foot by 4 foot by 4 foot.  This box would obviously be exposed to the weather as the deck is not sealed. What are your thoughts on this?  And if you were to build this box, would you seal it relatively airtight or would you simply stack the lumber off the ground and put a piece of tin or something over the top to allow airflow. In the second example, I worry about snow, rain and bugs getting access to the lumber. Thanks in advance for your response. Eric in Lincoln Nebraska Hey gentleman, first of all, thank you for the amazing podcast and the fluff-free format. I’ve been a hobbyist woodworker for about 6 years and I’m at the point where I’m considering turning my hobby into a side job of sorts. My question is: in your opinion, what separates an amateur woodworker from a professional woodworker? Are there certain skills, techniques, or projects you learned that really elevated your confidence or status in the craft? Thanks again, and keep up the awesome content! Adrien from Toronto (Canada)

This Episodes Questions: Brian's Questions: I’m preparing to build a set of kitchen cupboards from white oak.  The style will be Mission, with some Frank Lloyd Wright Prairies Style touches.  I have several questions.  I have a question about milling lumber.  There seems to be a trade-off: keep the boards long and you need to joint more off to get a flat face, hence the risk of falling below your desired thickness.  But cut the boards to length first and you have to allow for more cut-offs on the ends to remove planer snipe.  How should I think about this?  In general, do the three of you cut longer boards to length for parts first and then plane and joint?  Or do you joint and plane the boards whole (mine are 6’ to 8’) and take the perhaps larger losses to thickness but avoid multiple areas of planer snipe?   I know that much depends on the boards, but I'd be interested in your general approaches.  Darrin    Hey guys I absolutely love the podcast, amd have already learned a lot. I recently have decided to do this for more than a hobby. I have been doing small or easier projects like cutting boards and tongue and groove ceilings. I have been wanting to start building entry level tables and furniture but keep psyching myself out of it. How did you guys build up the confidence to move on to more advanced projects? And did you guys get discouraged or frustrated at the beginning? Thank you David Caraway Guy's Questions: Thank you all for such a great show!  I'm an amateur woodworker working out of a 550 square foot two-car attached garage.  We keep two cars in the garage, so all my equipment is on mobile bases. My question has to do with shop climate control.  I live in southern Indiana, with hot muggy summers and cool-to-cold winters.  The garage is insulated, including the door, and sits under a conditioned bonus room, but the garage itself is not heated or cooled.  Although it never freezes, for a few of the coldest winter weeks, it will be in upper 30s.  Mostly it's at least 45 degrees. I'm contemplating installing a 1 ton/12,000BTU mini-split for heating and cooling, DIYing installing it for less than $1000.  I'm trying to decide if it's worth it, basically for the few hottest and coldest weeks.  I can also migrate easily to my unfinished basement in the coldest weeks for glue-ups and finishing.  I wouldn't want to run the mini-split all the time, and often I am only out in the shop for short bursts, so pre-heating or pre-cooling seems wasteful.  $1000, plus the energy to run the mini-split, could buy plenty of other woodworking equipment and supplies.  If this were your shop, what would you do? Thanks, Kyle Kramer Always a pleasure listening to your podcast.  Thank you for your knowledge and insight. I am planning to rip the carpet off my Stairs treads and somehow get a relative match to my wood flooring either upstairs and downstairs.  Assuming the exact color isnt important in my question. The treads are likely just pine but I haven't pulled the carpet yet to find out.  My thought was to veneer the treads.  Then I would most likely us a transtint dye to reach the color and finish off with shellac washout and water based poly for durable finish.  Is this a good approach or destined for failure? Thanks for your time. Josh Huy's Questions: Thanks for the great podcast. I have learned a lot from all the great content you put out. I really appreciate your advice and perspective. I have a couple questions I was hoping you could answer. My second question is about compositing saw dust. My wife likes to garden and keep a compost pile. We use saw dust and wood shaving to balance the moisture of the compost pile. I occasionally use MDF and plywood  and I am wondering if all the bad stuff in those materials are bad to use in the compost. I guess I'm pretty sure they are not good. I've heard that most of those chemicals breakdown form the heat of the compost but I am skeptical of that. I use an oneida dust separator. Do you think it is worth trying to partition two dust bins, one for raw wood and one for everything else? Do you think a blast gate under the separator would accomplish that or would it mess with the air flow of the separator? Thanks. Keep up the great work. Jon Moch A lot of people talk about spraying water on wood when changing sanding grits, to raise the loose fibres and get a smoother finish. I have taken to spraying isopropyl alcohol (I think you would call it rubbing alcohol) between grits. I can spray it quite heavily and have it evaporate within a minute so I can continue sanding without having to wait. I doubt I'm the first person in the history of woodworking to think of this (I'm no rocket scientist, Huy), but I never hear of anyone else doing this. That makes me think there may be a good reason to not do this. So what do you blokes reckon? Is there a reason why I shouldn't be doing this, apart from water being free and alcohol being expensive? FYI, I usually work in recycled jarrah (an ultra hard Western Australian wood) and finish with Tung oil when using the alcohol Thanks fellas, love your work! Jim

This Episodes Questions: Brian's Questions: I know planing before face jointing is sacraledge but I was recently visiting with an older experienced wood worker who noted he never face joints. Planes both sides then edge joints and it’s fine. Thoughts? Thinking if you want it dead flat perfect or board is not great to start with jointing certainly makes sense. But anybody just plane it? Perhaps starting with a decent board it would work for most applications? My 20” planer is a breeze to put wood through, the jointer is great but takes more effort/time if it’s not needed would be a nice step to drop. Curious on your thoughts, Matt Wendig I’m preparing to build a set of kitchen cupboards from white oak.  The style will be Mission, with some Frank Lloyd Wright Prairies Style touches.  I have several questions.  I need to cut up a lot of 3/4" plywood.  I have a good track saw and a cabinet tablesaw with side and outfeed tables.  When watching videos of some people constructing kitchen cabinets, I’m surprised that they cut the sheet goods with the track saw but then cut them again, to final size, on the table saw.  I imagined myself using the track saw only—to do very precise cuts to final size and not cutting the panels twice.  What is your process?  Any advice on maximizing my chances of getting near-perfect panels with the track saw only and avoiding the two-cuts process? Darrin    Guy's Questions:    Hey guys, love the podcast. I’m making a screen door for the porch out of cedar that is 1.5” thick, 36” x 84” with 5.5” wide stiles and rails (top, middle and bottom). I have a festool DF500, if I used 10 x 50 dominoes for the joinery would that be strong enough or should I use traditional mortise and tenons? I’ve read that cedar is pretty dimensionally stable. I was thinking about just staining or oiling the door (I don’t want it to turn gray) but does it need an actual topcoat to help keep it from warping? Just don’t want to use a finish that is going to flake off and I will have to sand and refinish every year or so. If it needs a topcoat could you recommend a finish? Thanks, Scott in Birmingham. Throughly enjoy the pod cast. I am almost up to date on all past episodes and they hve been quite informative. Little back story on my question. Had a client contact me about repairing a dinning table they had built for their home. For clarity I didn’t build the table. The top is a solid wood glue up with breadboards on the ends. On one end of the top the breadboard sticks out about 1/16” past the rest of the top. On the other end 2 boards have a split between the glue line  that stretches roughly 2 feet along their length. I’m sure it is from the wood contracting. Any pointers on how to repair the issue?  I’m 99.9% sure the table top is made from southern yellow pine. It is stained with a top coat of poly acrylic. Robert Huy's Questions: Hello guys, I love the podcast and have learned a ton from you. Keep up the great work and thank you for your time.  I have a question on how you store your tools that require precision/calibration. Specifically, I have an Incra 5000 cross cut sled. When not in use, I store it standing on its side on the shop floor. Is there a better / more correct way? Similar question goes for any other shop made sled / jig that you expect to use over and over again. How do you store it? Max Greddie Woodworks It was mentioned that one of you repalced the wheels on his band saw, do to it wearing out and it was a pain. I have bought a used 14 inch delta bandsaw, and I have no idea how to know if parts are worn out beside the obvious part being the blade. So how can I figure out parts are worn out, sources to shop for replacements ( no home depo in Okinawa) tips and or youtube videos on how to do these maintainance tasks? Oh and what you do to increase the function of a band saw, like would you buy a bow system fence for it? Many thanks, Paul Mitchell Oki Mitch Crafts

This Episodes Questions: Brians Questions: Hi Guys love your podcast.  I have a quick question regarding table saw blades.  Can you give me a recommendation on a good quality 10" table saw blade that I can get re-sharpened when needed.  I keep blowing through blades and I'm tired of buying new ones.  Also, do you send the blades back to get re-sharpened or take them to your nearest local blade sharpening place thanks in advance Dave I’m making an ash table top (never used ash before) and had a few questions. How should I edge join the boards for glue up (domino or biscuits), what’s the best finish for ash when used as a desk to avoid feeling the grain on ash. I don’t have a sprayer but could be a good excuse to get one.  What edge profiles do you guys like to use for tables and/or desk that get lots of use and also look good? Chayse Guy's Questions: My latest project is an Arts & Crafts sideboard made in quartersawn white oak. I'm at the point in the project where I need to start thinking about how to finish the piece.  Its my first time working with this wood and I'm considering fuming the piece with ammonia as I've read that this process will really make the grain rays stand out.  People seem pretty divided on whether its worth the time and risk of working with harmful chemicals and I wanted to get your collective thoughts and experience.  Have you used an ammonia fuming process? Do you think its worth it?  Any tips or tricks to share?  I'm in the northeast so the current low temps add some complexity as I've learned that colder temperatures slow down the process. Regards, Adam I'm working on a veneered box. Normally you'd glue a similarly oriented veneer on the back surface to prevent warping. For the veneer, I'm planning on cross cutting small strips and then gluing them together, roughly like how inlays are made. I'll then be cutting thin slices from the resulting laminated assembly. I'll be using the thin slices as the veneer, like a mosaic or a quilt. The grain of these thin slices will run in different directions. Do I still need a backing? If so, in which direction should the backing grain run? Lauris Huy's Questions: The topic of wood movement comes up pretty regularly on this show. When it does, however, it is typically related to questions on how to account for it in regards to a specific project or joinery method. Meanwhile, I'm sitting here wondering what wood movement actually is. I understand that humidity and temperature cause wood to expand or contract, but that's about where my understanding ends. Why is it important to account for wood movement? What happens if you don't? What is this business I've heard mentioned about projects exploding? On a related note, often when questions about mitigating wood movement come up the answers to those questions are something along the lines of "If you use __________ (type of joinery, layout, etc) you shouldn't have to worry about wood movement." As someone still very new to the principles of woodworking, the question I always have is: why? Why will using such and such method or assembling your project in this or that manner mitigate wood movement? Zach Hey guys. Love your podcast and appreciate the help you’ve given me over the years with your knowledge and experience in the craft. I have an entryway table I’m building out of walnut and cocobolo. The top will consist of a glue up of the two woods. What glue should I use for the glue up since cocobolo is very oily? And what sort of finish would you recommend for this application? Thanks again and take care!  Ryan of Mountain Custom Woodworks

This Episodes Questions: Brians Questions: I am making a toy box for my grandson out of white oak. The dimensions will be 38” width, 18” depth, and 30” high. The front will be 4/4 quarter sawn, while the back and sides will be 4/4 flat sawn lumber. I plan to attach the front and sides, and the back and sides via dovetails. Since quarter sawn wood will move less than flat sawn, should I be concerned about the wood moving at different ratios?  Also, can you recommend hinges that will prevent the top of the toy box from crashing down on my grandson’s fingers? Mike My question concerns the router table that I built myself out of out of MDF and 2x4s last year. I'm pretty satisfied with it overall. I am by no means an expert, but I'd have to say having the router in a table seems to be roughly 1,000% more effective than using the router freehand. Having said that, I've been struggling with the fence, especially When I'm trying to edge join a board. My approach for securing the fence has been to clamp down each end of it with a trigger clamp, placing an additional clamp on the support frame or what have you at the rear of the router table. I've included a picture of my setup for this as well for clarity's sake. Here's the problem I'm running into: I position the fence, clamp it down, then check it again to make sure it hasn't come out of alignment. When I initially begin running boards over the router table, it works great. However, before too long, sometimes as soon as the second board, I find the fence is no longer properly aligned. When I check it I always find that the fence has shifted back towards the far end of the router table, usually by a 32nd of an inch or so. As you are all aware, this small difference has a pretty significant impact on how my boards come out, particularly when edge joining. My assumption is that this shift is due to my exerting pressure against the fence while feeding material through to keep the work piece tight against it. Do any of you have any suggestions regarding how I can secure my fence more effectively? Part of me wonders if I am just applying too much sideways pressure to my work pieces, but I also feel like I am applying just enough pressure to keep it from wandering away from the fence when passing the bit. Zach Owens Guy's Questions: I'd also like to hear about your process for organizing your shop space and how often you revisit the layout of your shop. As a follow-up to each question, I'd be curious if organizing and maintaining a shop are aspects of woodworking that you enjoy? Or loathe? Or maybe just tolerate? Marc I think there is a good question about red vs blue. red corner is woodpeckers, the YouTube influencers certified measuring and layout tools. Then there’s the poor humans with affordable blue corner igaging. I believe woodpeckers is rated in their accuracy to .002 inch and igaging is .002 inch. So, I wonder if that .001 would make my skills somehow greater?? I think honestly that having a set of tools that I can use without each being a different measurement, as tape measures often would be. I also think about cost, even with a higher shipping fee due to my location I nearly outfitted my shop with all the marking and measuring tools at roughly $300 instead of $300 for one ruler or square. Thanks for the ongoing pod cast hope you all have a great year. Paul Mitchell Huy's Questions:  On the face of wood, there is clearly a right and wrong direction to plane. Going the wrong direction causes gouging, chipping, and/or a time tough pushing the plane across the wood. How do you tell the correct direction to go with the plane, without having to risk messing up the piece by potentially going the wrong direction across the face of the wood with your plane? George  I just made my first attempt at cutting dovetails for a small box with dividers that my wife asked me to make her for work. I cut them using a router table that I made just for the occasion. It went fairly well, meaning that they all fit and there aren't any unsightly large gaps. Starting with test pieces was definitely the way to go. I did have one issue, however. I'm not sure what the appropriate name for the different pieces of a dovetail are, but when I was cutting the female pieces I kept running into an issue where the router bit would jerk the work piece away from the fence, resulting in a somewhat crooked portion in my otherwise straight dovetail cut. I tried feeding the work piece into the bit from each side to see if one direction worked better than the other, but that didn't seem to help. I know that typically the recommendation is to make several shallow passes, but obviously this is not possible with a dovetail. Do you have any guesses as to what I might have been doing wrong? Should I have been pushing the work piece more firmly against the fence? Thanks in advance for your answers and insight. Can't wait to hear your next episode. Sincerely,Z achary T Owens