Hi Marc, I like this site. I have learned a lot from it. I am new to this woodworking thing. My next project is going to be an entertainment center which will basically be two tall cabinets with doors. The doors will be stiles on the sides with a tenonned rail at the top and bottom with a recessed panel that sits in a routed “slot”. My question is what do you do to the ends of the stiles to make them look good? I have built some doors as a test and the end grain just soaks up the stain and doesn’t look good. I have similar doors in my kitchen and they look really nice, but they were done professionally. Any help is appreciated.

And my response:

End grain is one of those things that can really bite you in the butt if you don’t prep your projects properly. Many times, you finish sanding and everything looks and feels great! But then you apply the finish and all of a sudden your project looks like it was made from two different woods! The end grain soaked up so much finish/stain that it now appears to be a much darker color. Since the end grain is on a different face, where shadows can sometimes play tricks on the eye, you can usually get away with this color discrepancy and few people will ever notice. But there are some areas where this end grain issue is much more obvious and you absolutely must take precautions.

It really all comes down to sanding prep. End grain will always soak up more finish than face grain, and the result will be a darker color. But if you sand it to a higher grit, it tends to burnish the surface and limits the absorption of finish. The result is a lighter color that more closely matches the face grain. So if you plan on sanding the project to 180 grit, I would sand the end grain to 320. That will greatly improve the results.

But here’s the catch: end grain does not sand as easily or as quickly as face grain. So you might be wondering, how do I know when I have sanded enough?? Well, if you recall in our recent Keepsake Box video, I explained my system for sanding end grain. Here’s an excerpt for your convenience:

Marc, I am watching your Entertainment Center Video (Pt 1) and noticed something odd with your large chisel. How did you flatten the back of it? It looks like there are three channels cut into it.

The chisels I use on the show (most times) are Fujihiro Japanese chisels. In general, Japanese chisels are made with harder steel than their Western cousins, which means it can take a lot longer to flatten their backs. And a flat back is an absolutely critical component to any chisel you actually intend to use! So to speed up the flattening process, a good amount of steel is removed from the back of the chisel. And as you can see in the picture, wider chisels can have multiple hollows. So now the actual amount of steel that needs to be removed in the flattening process is significantly reduced. Which means you are going to spend less time at the sharpening stone, and more time at the workbench.

This is the same concept behind creating a hollow bevel. Many folks prefer hollow bevels because they can be easier to sharpen, not just because of speed, but because its easier to balance with two points of contact. FYI, some may disagree with me on this but this is just my opinion from my experience. So the hollows are a little unusual-looking, but they do serve a purpose.

I borrowed the image to the right from a great article on FineWoodworking.com called “Speedy Freehand Sharpening” by Hendrik Varjhu.

I am building maple morris chairs and I am thinking of using water based dyes from General Finishes. I would like to do the leg outside edges in say a burgundy or ebony and the rest of the chair in light or medium brown. My question is : How much, if any, might the color applied to the edge bleed onto the surrounding surface and if so, do you know of any tricks to remedy?

And this was my reply:
Hello Ray. Trying to do two different colors can sure be tricky with water-based dye. The water just absorbs so quickly and pulls the dye into the grain, that the color is difficult to control. So even if you tape it off, you will surely get seepage under the tape. So, if you are planning on making a crisp transition, water based dye might not be the best choice. If you plan on doing a bit of a faded transition, you might be able to pull it off.

Now the one way you might be able to get away with this is by spraying. If you tape off your edges, and spray very light misting coats, you could end up with a fairly crisp line. But take your time. As soon as the liquid pools, you are in trouble.

If you do wind up with the color set you are after, you’ll have to seal that color in without disturbing it as well. So very light misting coats of dewaxed shellac would be my choice. then follow up with your topcoat of choice. Hope that helps! Would love to see the results of your work!

Ray then wrote back and asked:

Thanks for the info. Doing further research, I think I am going to cover the entire chair first with water based dye, light mist of 1lb shellac and then gel stain for the offsetting edge color. How does that sound to you? Also, I am using dowel pins on the arms. I have double tenons on the frame. Do you think it is necessary to pin those? I am hoping not, but your advice would be appreciated. (pin the backrest tenons?) I truly appreciate your time and hope all is well.

And my response:

Sounds like you have a great solution there. If you mask off with tape, you should be fine using the gel stain. Just be careful near those taped edges. Now lets talk about pinned tenons. I have repaired more chairs than I care to admit. In many cases, a pinned tenon makes the difference between a chair that simply falls apart, and one that gets loose and needs to be tightened up. If the glue ever fails, you’ll at least have a couple pins stopping someone from falling on their butt. So if you can manage it, I would include the pins as an extra precaution. And just so you know, most of the chairs I repair are commercially-produced to lower standards than you and I would have. They are also chairs that were used and abused in restaurants. So essentially we are talking the worst case scenario here. If the chair is in your home, it will be a much lighter duty piece and you may not find the pins completely necessary, especially on the backrest. Hope that helps.

Hey Marc…Found your site while looking for a good cutting board “how-to”. Went through the site and watched all the videos to catch up and they are great. Anyway, my question is this: I watch New Yankee Workshop and every time Norm has a squeeze out of glue, he cleans it instantly saying it could affect the finishing. I see glue squeeze out of your work and looks like you let it dry and scrap it out. Does that not affect the finish? Keep up the good work and love the site.

And this was my reply:
Thanks for the kind words Nick. Well, here’s the deal on squeeze out. I hate to say it but this is one area where I have to disagree to some extent with His Normness. Wiping the glue away, especially with a wet rag, could very well increase your odds of having a finishing problem. Since the glue is water-based, the water in the rag dilutes the glue as you rub it into the wood grain. This could easily lead to an area near the joint that is partially sealed, and as a result won’t accept stain as well as the rest of the piece. Now if you wipe thoroughly enough and sand afterward, chances are you’ll get enough of the glue off the surface that it won’t be a major problem. This is why Norm probably doesn’t have issues with this (that we know of). But personally, I would rather not take the chance. So instead of wiping with a wet rag right away, I let the glue droplets set up for a little while (about 20 minutes). At this point, the glue has skinned over and you can easily scrape the droplets away with a card scraper or some other type of scraping tool. You’ll know you are scraping too soon if the little glue bubbles start bursting easily. And you’ll know you waited too long if the glue is hard to remove and starts pulling out wood fibers. Once the bulk of the squeeze out is gone, I will clean off the scraper and take one final pass. Once the area is pretty clean, then and only then will I take a damp rag to the area and do a final cleaning. Any glue that was left on the surface will now be wiped away, or simply diluted so much that it makes no difference.

Ultimately, both methods will work. But scraping while the glue is just skinned over is less messy, and in my opinion, the safer bet. And of course, tape your joints off whenever possible to prevent squeeze out from being an issue in the first place.

This is just the way I like to handle squeezeout. I’d love to hear how everyone else deals with it?

The first picture above was taken from a Popular Woodworking article, “Prevent, Remove, and Disguise Glue Splotches” by Bob Flexner. The second image was taken from the Benchcrafted Blog.

I am working on a set of cabinet doors with mitered corners and I am wondering what you have found to be the best clamps? I am not having much luck with the glue process using a set of cheap corner clamps that I picked up praying that they would work. I am new to wood working and have not put together a collection of good clamps but I have no problem spending the money to get anything that works like they are supposed to. I hope you have time to respond it would be very much appreciated.

P.S. I love your web site and it has been very helpful and entertaining.

And this was my response:

Hey Trent. I have never been a fan of those dedicated corner clamps. I just never get good results. For me, I get the best results doing a two part process. First off, I like to use a biscuit, dowel, or domino at each joint whenever possible. This helps keep the pieces from moving vertically during the glueup and takes a lot of the stress out of the equation. Not to mention it makes the mitered joint stronger. After adding glue, I use a band clamp to pull everything together. This is the one I use is made by Bessey (pictured left).

Once the frame is secure, I put the whole assembly on a set of clamps. I place two in one direction and two in the other direction, keeping them as close to the corners as possible. Using clamping pressure, I can then tweak the fit so that everything is lined up perfectly. Sometimes I use an additional clamp vertically on the joints themselves to make sure the pieces are sitting flush with one another (a nice alternative to using biscuits as I mentioned previously).

If you can, try to use a slower setting glue like Titebond Extend or 30 minute epoxy for this. The joint will be stronger and you’ll have plenty of working time. Most times its the fact that we’re rushing that makes miter glueups so difficult. Hope that helps. Good luck.

When I see a piece of wood I think to myself “what a waste…” so I store scraps and miscellaneous sized pieces – my shop is full of wood. Yet when I get into the shop, I have no idea where to start even though I have plenty of vision. How do you jump into starting a project? I have problems starting if I know I’m not going to have time to finish it that day, which is why I have recently only been turning pens.

And my response:

What makes this question difficult to answer is the fact that it deals with personal motivation. What motivates me may not necessarily be the same things that motivate you. Having gone through this variation of “woodworkers block” in the past, I’ll share my own story and maybe you’ll be able to get something useful out of it.

When I first started my woodworking business, I had a real hard time managing my time in the shop. As a former hobbyist, I was accustomed to thinking in terms of 1-2 hour shop sessions. So I had this misconception locked in my little brain that a “day” in the shop consisted of about 1-2 hours worth of work. Obviously, if I wanted to stay in business, this wasn’t going to fly. Thanks to a suggestion and a smack upside the head from Nicole, I started breaking my projects down into a simple list of steps. So instead of feeling overwhelmed by the distance between the start and finish, I am focusing on simply finishing the next step. As a goal-oriented person, it feels good to have a to-do list, and scratch those items off my list at the end of the day. For me, it was just a big change in my mentality and approach. And breaking a project down into smaller more manageable goals was the most satisfying and efficient way to reach the seemingly distant finish line.

So lets say we are making a table. On Day 1 we’ll layout the parts on the rough lumber and then mill the lumber to rough size. On Day 2 we’ll mill the parts down to final size and layout/cut the joinery. On Day 3 we’ll finish sand and assemble. On Day 4, we’ll apply the finish. Now, of course, you’ll have to adjust these daily goals to fit your actual time-frame and work style, but you get the general idea.

So with that in mind, write yourself a schedule at the beginning of every project. Chances are you won’t follow it exactly but you’ll get more accurate with every project. The sense of structure will help you feel like you are actually making progress even if you only have a few hours a day in the shop. Hope that helps.

I’m having a hard time finding a good design for mounting my clamps on the wall. I am interested in your design for your clamp racks. Maybe you could post an upclose pic?

And my reply:

My clamp racks are about as simple as they come. For my Jet parallel clamps, I use a 2×4 and a strip of 3/4″ ply. The ply has numerous cutouts on it that allow the clamps to slip in. I used the bandsaw to make those cuts. When its done, it looks like a giant comb. I then attach it to the side of the 2×4 and and drive a couple of screws through the 2×4 into the wall studs. The pictures should make this much clearer.

Now for all my other clamps, I use a simple rack made from various piece of cheap construction lumber. No need for anything fancy here.

On a related note, I covered the topic of clamps way back in Episode 12 – The Big Squeeze. And at around the 10 minute mark, you’ll see a video shot of the clamp rack in the old shop.
http://thewoodwhisperer.com/episode-12-the-big-squeeze/

***If anyone else has images of their clamp rack online, feel free to post your link in the comments.

I’m hoping you can help me with a finishing problem I’m having. I have completed a bubinga veneer coffee table, which I’m sure you are familiar with, as it is a David Marks’ design. In the past, I have always had good success with the General Finishes Arm-R-Seal Satin product on much smaller projects/surfaces. However, the large surface (18″ x 44″) of the table top is giving me fits. I can’t seem to produce a finish with this product that is streak or haze free. My technique thus far included:

1. First coat the surface with Seal-A-Cell followed by a light sanding with 320 grit.
2. I apply the Arm-R-Seal with a foam brush, spreading as thin as possible then wiping with a cotton rag, as lightly as possible. All application and wiping is done with the grain. I’ll work an area approximately equal to 1/4 the table top at a time.
3. Inevitably, as I’m about to move to the next section of the top, the wet edges of the previously wiped area are already setting up, making it difficult to blend the wet section back into the previous section.

Some guesses I have are that maybe the Arm-R-Seal product is too thick to start with making it hard to spread on quickly over the entire tabletop? But the instructions on the can indicate “do not thin”. Per the instructions on the can, wiping off the finish with too heavy a stroke can cause friction streaking, but I can’t seem to wipe any lighter than I already am? I’ve even tried not wiping the finish off at all, but the appearance after drying was too thick and heavy looking, not to mention the ridges from not being able to blend into the edges that are already tacking up. I’m in the process of attempting covering only a quarter of the surface at a time, not wiping with a rag, and letting this completely dry before proceeding on the the next section, but I’m afraid I won’t be able to blend the edges properly between coats. I’m working in a basement shop, approx 70 degrees with relative humidity in the “normal” zone of my humidity gauge. I’d guess by now I’ve already put about 10+ coats of finish on this project, sanding at 320 grit or 0000 steel wool between coats but still can’t get rid of the streaks/haze. I don’t have a lot of finish built up though, as I think somewhere during this process I sanded quite heavily in between to try to remove as much of the finish as possible.

Sorry for such a long winded question, but as you can probably tell, I’m a bit desperate at this point as far as what to do next. Hoping to hear from you, and thanks for all you do.

And this was my reply:

Hey Matt. You’ll be happy to know that this seemingly simple process baffled me for quite some time as well. Over the years though, I’ve developed a simple system of application that results in a perfect finish every time. The streaking you are describing seems to be the result of the finish being applied too thin. But you don’t want to go quite as thick as a brushed-on coat. The way I get a coat that is “just right”, is by using the wipe on/no wipe off method. And I would abandon the sponge applicator in favor of a simple folded rag.

Honestly, this process could take a while to explain in an email. And I hate to point to something you would have to buy as a solution, but this is the exact reason I created my DVD, A Simple Varnish Finish. In the video, I show each and every step of the process that I use. The DVD would essentially be a direct answer to your question here. If you are not able to pick up the DVD, I would be more than happy to help you along over email. But obviously this is something that is much easier to show than it is to explain. Good luck my friend.

Matt’s reply:

Thanks so much replying, and especially the same day! I thought if I heard from you at all it would take weeks! I will be placing an order for the DVD in the coming days. Meanwhile, it may be hard to answer this question without seeing the project, but are you able to comment on whether I need to strip all the old finish off as recommended by the guys at my Woodcraft store? My last sanding and buffing with 0000 steel wool seemed to clean up the imperfections pretty well. Perhaps watching the DVD, trying your technique first, then as a last resort strip if necessary? Thanks again.

My reply:

If you keep applying thin layers, you’ll never get rid of the streaking. So what I would recommend is giving it one more shot before deciding to strip. This stuff is outlined in the video but I will give you a quick synopsis. You want to get a couple of cotton rags and fold them over several times to create a good sized square applicator. No wrinkles or seams if you can avoid them. Put your Arm-R-Seal in a shallow dish or bowl. Pre-wet your applicator with a little mineral spirits. This has two benefits: it helps the pad glide along the surface and it stops the pad from sucking up and wasting a bunch of varnish. Now dip the applicator in the finish and start applying it in long smooth strokes. Move quickly, deliberately, but not frantically. Each pass overlaps the previous by about half. Reload the pad whenever it stops laying down a good even coat. If you proceed all the way across the table like this, you should end up with the perfect film thickness that will essentially “reset” the surface and cover any flaws. It might take two coats to get it done completely, but it should do the trick. Since you’ve already applied a number of coats, the question is whether the finish will now be too thick. If so, you’ll have to strip. Oh and just an FYI, you never want to apply finish on only part of a surface, especially when using a varnish product. It will create unsightly borders and lines that you’ll never get rid of.

And a few days later Matt writes:

Thanks for your continued support in my efforts! I really appreciate your time. I received your video yesterday and have watched it through to completion twice. Very nicely done, and of course you make it look so easy. And, I’m convinced that it really should be that easy. BUT, something is still going wrong for me. I decided to attempt to strip first, just to try to make sure I was starting with the best possible surface. I wiped down the surface with who knows how many applications of mineral spirits, I’d say about an hour and a half worth of wiping on mineral spirits and wiping off…I can’t tell if I’m getting any of the old varnish off though…for one, my applicator (white cotton rag) is staying clean, and not taking on the “color” of the wet varnish as it appears right out of the can. Also, I assumed this process would result in a somewhat “gummy, tacky” surface as the mineral spirits are dissolving the varnish, but I found this not to be the case. It was actually “easy on and easy off”. So I’m wondering if once the varnish has had a couple of weeks to cure, will mineral spirits dissolve it? Assuming I have 10+ coats of varnish on already, any idea how long or how many wipings with mineral spirits it will take to remove all the varnish?

Well, anyway, after said numerous wipings with mineral spirits and after arming myself with the techniques in your video, I went down to the shop and proceeded making a nice thick triple folded applicator from three cotton rags (I had been using one third of one folded rag). I decided to attempt to build the finish with gloss Arm-R-Seal, reserving Satin for the final coat in an attempt to reduce the potential streaking from the flatteners in the varnish. I poured some varnish into a plastic food storage container (I had been dipping straight from the can of Satin Arm-R-Seal), wetted my nice thick applicator with mineral spirits, loaded the applicator with varnish and began wiping on in one continuous stroke. Here’s where I notice an immediate deviation from what I see in your video. Now I know you say that I’ll never get rid of the streaking by applying thin coats, but, your varnish in the video appears to be very thin and “watery” as it’s going on the surface. Mine however seems MUCH thicker and heavier. So much so that the applicator has a noticeable “drag” as I’m attempting to wipe the surface. Also, despite the fact that I think I have the applicator very saturated with varnish, I’m not getting a continuous covering on my first application stroke. Then, once the entire surface is at least partially covered and I’m attempting to go over it that one last time to make sure I have continuous coverage, which I know I don’t yet have (by way of a raking light), even with a re-wetted applicator, the varnish feels SO thick and seems like it’s already setting up. This final attempt at smoothing over the varnish just completely ruins the application. I either get too much “puddling” in areas or still not complete coverage in other areas. Total elapsed time for wiping at this point couldn’t have been more than 2-3 minutes. So, out came the mineral spirits and I wiped the varnish completely off and I’m back to square one. This behavior leads me to several possible conclusions: 1) maybe my varnish, being at least 6 months on the shelf, has already started curing in the can, although I do not notice any solidified material around the inside of the can or any “skin” on the surface when I open the can. Or, 2), maybe I already have so much varnish built up, despite my attempts at stripping, that the new varnish is no longer absorbing into the wood, but instead sitting on the surface and is just drying too quickly?

So, one no-brainer would be to purchase a brand new can of Arm-R-Seal, or I am so tempted to thin it out a bit with mineral spirits, despite the can’s instructions not to. Truthfully, I’m tired of buying that Arm-R-Seal, because it seems once I open the can, its shelf life leaves a lot to be desired. Admittedly, I have not tried that gas in a spray can that’s supposed to displace the oxygen in the opened can. Have you ever thinned Arm-R-Seal from the can, and if so, how many parts mineral spirits to how many parts Arm-R-Seal? Would you thin or just buy a new can? Does it sound like I have to be more diligent at stripping?

Well Marc, once again any continued help you can provide would be greatly appreciated. And again congratulations on an excellent video and continued success with it. I’m anxious to try the techniques on my next project, but I must find a way to complete this one first. Take care and hope to hear back from you.

My response:

Hey Matt. I hate to say it my friend but you can wipe that surface for 100 years and you’ll never get the varnish off. Cured varnish doesn’t redissolve in mineral spirits. We only use the mineral spirits to dilute uncured varnish in liquid form. To actually remove the finish, you will need a chemical stripper.

So, what makes your project different than mine in the video (aside from size), is the fact that you have so much varnish already on the surface. A well varnished surface will feel like it drags more than one that has raw wood or just a coat or two of finish. So if the finish is drying too fast and you aren’t getting the coverage you need, there is only one thing to do. As you mentioned, you should dilute it. You can usually ignore just about any can that tells you not to dilute. As long as you are diluting with the right material and in the right amounts, you can dilute all day long. Most times these warning are on there to protect the manufacturer, because it keeps the product working in a predictable fashion. You change the formula, you change the way it works and they can no longer help you if you have trouble. Also, by adding more of a thinner, you increase the VOC count. But I say dilute as needed and don’t look back. So given your description, I would dilute the material about 25% with mineral spirits. That should allow you the additional working time and will still leave a pretty good coat. But always move quickly. On larger surfaces, you get about 2-3 strokes to get it right before you need to move on. And don’t count on being able to go back, because it will already be tacky by the time you get there.

Also, even if your Arm-R-Seal is getting old, as long as you are not seeing solids in the can and the finish is curing, it is probably still good. And it shouldn’t have a reduced working time because of it. So I would stick with the same can and just do the dilution. Now remember that every second that can is open, the finish is curing. So if you had been dipping into the can, that means it was open the entire time you were finishing. If you just open the can, pour out what you need and close it back up, you have dramatically reduced the opportunity for oxidation. The finish will last much longer this way, assuming you seal the can up. And this is without products like Bloxygen.

OK so now you see what has to be done. If you decide to take a mulligan, you need to use a chemical stripper. This is messy business. The more environmentally friendly ones require it to sit for at least 30 min. You’ll see the varnish bubble up. Carefully scrape it off, let the surface dry, then give it a decent sanding to remove the residual varnish. You might need a second round of stripping in some areas, but the fresh varnish should come off relatively easily.

Keep the faith my friend. Its all one big learning curve. Think about how many things you’ve learned on this one project alone! Armed with all this information, the next project will be that much easier.

Matt’s final reply:

A month or so later, and I’m finally sending you some pictures of the finished product. I took your advice and thinned the varnish 25% and that made a world of difference. I chose not to strip the old varnish, but instead gave it a good sanding to the point where I “evened” the streaking as much as possible. In hindsight, the worst mistake I made on this project was with the sanding between coats of varnish…I think I was taking off too much of the finish with each intermediate sanding, to the point where I was cutting through the various layers to various degrees…that, I believe, is the streaking effect I was seeing. The finish is by no means perfect right now; to a discerning woodworker’s eye, it’s not something I’m really proud of, but to the average admirer’s eye, I can live with it. All the methods in your video are spot on, so I’m really looking forward to applying your techniques on my next project. For now though, I must again send you my thanks and appreciation for bailing me out of what at first was a complete ruination to a project I was otherwise extremely proud of. Of course, thanks to David Marks as well for coming up with an amazing design, and for making his designs available via Wood Works and his web site.

A few details about the table: Overall it measures 48” long, 18” wide, and 16” high. The legs and aprons are made from one piece of 8/4 maple for grain and color continuity, as well as providing the proper grain orientation for rift sawing the legs. The top is a bubinga veneer that I resawed from one 4/4 piece of “waterfall” bubinga that I purchased from Rockler. The underside of the top is a maple veneer resawn from the same piece of 8/4 maple. Substrate is a piece of ¾ ply. The inlay is ebony. This project was a “first” for me in many ways:

• resawing my own veneer and using a vacuum press for bonding the top panel
• mortise and loose tenon joinery, accomplished on the router table with the help of a shop made fixture for holding the 44” rails vertically on end
• bandsawing the rough shape of the leg and final shaping by hand with a block plane and sand paper
• inlaying the thin ebony strips and using scarf joints to hide the joints (which also gave me an excuse for purchasing a small, more maneuverable router!)

Funny how it wasn’t my first attempt at using a wipe-on varnish finish, and that’s what ended up giving me all the problems! Since my bubinga stock was neither wide enough nor long enough for the top, I had every intention of using a 2 way book matched pattern, however after laying out the book match, I decided against it due to the different way the light reflected off the top when the grain changed orientation. Instead, I chose a slip match to preserve a continuous reflective quality to the entire top.

If you deem it worthy, please consider sharing the photos with others on your web site. Or, feel free to indulge in a little self-promotion with my quotes of gratitude; you deserve it. You might be able to sell a couple extra copies of your DVD in doing so.

I am setting up a woodworking hobby shop. Would you recommend a 6 or 8 inch jointer. Thanks.

And this was my response:

A 6″ jointer will certainly get you by. I know people who get along quite nicely with small benchtop jointers and even some crazy individuals who would rather use their #7 jointer plane to get the job done. Avoid the latter group as they are very sick individuals! Just kidding of course, but you see my point.

I owned a 6″ jointer for years before I had the opportunity to upgrade to the 8″ model. The reason I upgraded was simply one of efficiency. Nearly all the wood I purchase from my supplier comes in the 6-8″ range. As a result, I was always sacrificing a few inches to the woodworking gods in order to accommodate the 6″ bed. Having that extra 2″ saves me both materials and time, so it was a no-brainer for me.

Now keep in mind there are certain tricks of the trade that will allow you to flatten wider boards with a 6″ jointer. But these usually require more tools and more time. So in my opinion, the better long-term buy is the 8″. I can’t count the number of people I’ve heard utter the words, “I should have bought the 8″ model!” I’m not saying that’s you, because this all depends on your personal needs, wants, and budgetary restrictions. But if your name happens to be Average Joe Woodworker and you plan on being in it for the long haul, the 8″ jointer should be something for you to seriously consider. Hope that helps!

*** I know this is one of those topics where everyone has an opinion, and I can only offer one. So what do you folks think? 6″? 8″? Aircraft Carrier 20″? Or maybe just a few hand planes? Leave a comment!

Firstly, I absolutely love your show. The reason I am writing is that I have been watching David Marks Woodworks and noticed in a couple of his episodes he uses a pneumatic power sander. There is not much literature on the web regarding these machines. I was wondering if maybe you could highlight some of the characteristics of these machines. Watching the video I could not see any visible dust collection and all I could gather about these machines is they are more powerful than the electric sanders. Thanks a lot!

And this was my reply:

Good question! I actually don’t have a whole lot of experience with pneumatic sanders. In fact, the only time I used one was in David’s shop. But there are a few key differences that may or may not matter to you. Pneumatics are generally lighter. After all, there’s no motor. As a result, they can also be quieter and longer lasting. The tools themselves are usually much cheaper too. That is, on a tool for tool basis they are cheaper (again, no motor). But obviously to use a pneumatic tool, you’re gonna need a big daddy air compressor. The smaller units will cycle repeatedly which will ultimately kill the compressor. And from what I hear, pneumatic sanders can also be more powerful than our standard electric sanders.

Now one big disadvantage that I see is the one you mentioned: dust collection. Although I have seen a few models on the market that have a connector for the dust. For most of us these days, good dust collection is a must-have. So that’s something to keep in mind. Ultimately, if you already own a big compressor, or if you envision yourself using other air-sucking tools like die grinders, air guns, and conversion spray guns, the pneumatics might just be a good choice for you. Thanks Nathan and good luck.

***Anyone out there use pneumatic sanders? Feel free to chime in with your opinion.