It might not be so new anymore—it took me months to get my hands on the K5 Pocket Hole jig, but it was worth the wait. Years ago, the Kreg Tool Company changed the way we work by popularizing pocket-hole joinery. Since then, they’ve continued to improve on the original model. The new K5 Jig is extremely easy to adjust, comes with a box-full of accessories, and even though most everything is plastic and has that DIYer feel, this is a tool for professionals. Read the full article…
SawGear has improved their digital miter saw stop system and the improvements are worth knowing about. The system is still expensive—out of the range of most finish carpenters—but for production crews, or for companies that pre-cut a lot of moldings in their shop, the new improvements are a game changer.
I saw my first pattern book while visiting the Huntington Library Rare Books department in 1992 or 93. The book was Designs by Inigo Jones, written by William Kent and published in 1727. By the time I opened that book, I’d been working as a carpenter for more than fifteen years and specializing in finish carpentry for nearly ten years. Looking back, it’s amazing that I was able to survive without any understanding of architectural design, in a profession dependent upon architectural design. Read the full article…
The first time I used a Bosch sliding compound miter saw, with up-front bevel lock, I didn’t like the saw at all—it weighed too much. But after working with it for six months, I loved it (as long as someone else would carry it!). And when I first starting using a Kapex, I didn’t like it at all. Other than the fact that I could carry it myself, I just wasn’t comfortable using it. Within a month, I loved it. Tools are like that. You have to use them before you really get to known them, and some you end up loving. Read the full article…
Lately I’ve been surprised at how much I don’t know about stuff I thought I knew a lot about. And I mean some pretty simple stupid stuff—at least, I thought it was simple. That’s one reason you’ll be seeing some new “Tool Tips” articles on TiC, and they’ll be in our Tips department. This is the first article in the series. Read the full article…
Endura’s new articulating threshold definitely belongs in TiC’s ‘New & Cool‘ articles. I’ve never seen anything like it before. Read the full article…
Years ago, in a Fine Homebuilding article, I explained how to build corbels for an Italianate mirror frame. I ran out of pages in that short article before I could discuss how to layout the pediment. I have plenty of room here, so I’ll cover that part of the story, and I’ll include all the material that we couldn’t fit into the Fine Homebuilding Master Carpenter article. Read the full article…
We’ve been asked many times by attendees how to build the pencil dispenser we use at our Katz Roadshow events. It is a handy and cool thing to have in a shop. Just ask Jed Dixon—he has the very first one I made…at least, the first one that worked. Read the full article…
At my new home, I built a small guest cabin down by the river (reservations are booked years in advance, so good luck with that!). I wanted to open up the west wall of the cabin, along the river, to both the sight and the sound of the water. But I couldn’t afford a 12-ft. wide commercially manufactured sliding door unit. And besides, I wanted it to look cool. So I made the unit myself. Read the full article…
The joinery in baseboard forms the foundation for nearly all the joinery in finish carpentry, which makes perfect sense because baseboard is meant to replicate the foundation—the plinth—of a classical column. Though casing is the first molding profile noticed in a home, and often the first molding installed in a home, baseboard is usually the first molding that an apprentice carpenter learns to cut, and for good reason. Read the full article…
It’s pretty moist at my new home in Southern Oregon, but no matter where you live, you need to be sure to check the moisture content of your material before you install it, especially if you get a second shipment! Read the full article…
When I started to install the WindsorONE fascia on my shop, I learned that WindsorONE recommends using butt joints. Some of us has probably learned the hard way that manufacturer recommendations typically mean the product won’t be under warranty unless those recommendations are followed! Read the full article…
Co-written by Mike Sloggatt
Around 2,500 years ago, a Greek philosopher we all met in high school named Pythagoras discovered a theorem that can make life easy for carpenters and contractors—if we just knew how to use it, and how to find right angles!
Most of us remember our ABC’s from high school, and we remember the Pythagorean Theorem, too, which applies to any 90-degree triangle. Read the full article…
I’ve been hanging doors for over thirty-five years, and writing about it for nearly twenty-five. For many years, I approached door installs differently every time (like most carpenters). After all, there are so many steps, and there is a lot you need to watch for! It’s tough to do it the same way every time. But a door is a door is a door. Which means unless you’re doing exactly the same thing every time you install one, you’re wasting valuable energy and time. Read the full article…