An Overdue Recommendation – Charles Neil
As most of you know, I try to keep you updated on other popular blogs, websites and podcasters. But I think I dropped the ball on this one. You can’t type “woodworking” into YouTube without seeing this guy. I’m talking about the one and only, Charles Neil. Many of you have emailed me over the past few months telling me to check him out, and I did more than just watch his videos. I have had numerous conversations with Charles and his wife Sherri, and they are really great people. In fact, we are hoping to do some collaborative work this spring. That should be a blast.
While talking to Charles about woodworking and finishes I learned a little more about myself. It’s an important lesson that I thought I should share with you. As someone who teaches woodworking everyday, I have to make sure I never become complacent when it comes to my own woodworking education. It’s very important to me that I present myself as a lifelong student (a trick I learned from David Marks). And fortunately, there are times in conversing with other woodworkers that I notice a change in me. While talking to Charles, for instance, I observed myself making the shift from teacher, to student. 
And it really was a great feeling! As woodworkers, we absorb oodles of information over time, to the point where we think we know everything. But in reality, there are so many ways to accomplish a particular task, that we must remain open-minded if we want to learn. Personally, when I am in the “student” position, I try to temporarily throw out everything I think I know. Then, I listen to the instructor’s words and try to approach the lesson with a clean slate. Once I have the instructors complete message, I can let all my previous knowledge back in and make a judgment call about what I’ve learned. If you are one of those people who sits in a woodworking seminar constantly shaking your head and saying, “Oh no…..that’s not how you should do that….”, you may have already closed the door to learning. So, don’t do that. :)
So, with that said, head over to AntiquesBuiltDaily.com and see what you might be able to learn about yourself. :)
Biscuit Depression? – Question of the Week
This week’s question comes from Jim. He writes:
“I just finished watching all your videos and I have a question about the table top you did in Episode 11. A little while back I saw a episode of New Yankee Workshop where Norm said he stopped using biscuits in table tops because they found that later, depressions showed up in the tops from the biscuit slots. Have you seen this or heard of it happening before?? Oh, and love the videos and all of the site. And now I’m on Lumberjocks as well…thanks to you. Keep on keeping on :>)”
And here was my reply:
“Hey Jim. I have heard Norm say the same thing but I have never actually seen it in my work. As I understand it, the theory says that once the joint is closed up, you essentially create a nearly air-tight pocket. This means the glue takes a long time to cure and the wood fibers around the biscuit swell. Then of course, you do your final sanding for the top and flatten everything out. As the glue cures completely over the next few days (weeks?), the wood fibers shrink down a bit and create a sunken area visible from the top surface of the table. I will occasionally pass that warning on to my students as a “heads up”, just in case. But in reality, I have never seen it happen. So I still use them for alignment now and again. Hope that helps.”
So this week’s question is more like a survey than anything. I want to hear from you, the readers, about your experiences with biscuit depressions. Are you a victim? Tell us your story!
39 – End Table (Pt. 3)
High Resolution Version
In this episode, I start by gluing the leg blanks to the aprons. I then cut the rough shape out on the bandsaw. And finally, I use the template and a flush trim bit in the router table to get the exact shape we’re after. I also spend a good deal of time discussing the dangers involved with this routing operation. And finally, an nice treat for everyone: a Nicole Break!
End Table (Pt. 1)
End Table (Pt. 2)
End Table (Pt. 3)
End Table (Pt. 4)
End Table (Pt. 5)
End Table (Pt. 6)
Cutting Board Warping – Question of the Week
This week’s question comes from Tony, he writes:
“I recently made one of your cutting boards as described in Episode 7 – A Cut Above. No problems with the manufacturing or finishing process. I gave this as a present to somebody and about a week later they returned it to me. The board had bowed & buckled in the center, about 5/16” (big central high spot on one side, and depression on the other. The board was made from Jatoba and Beech, using a water proof PVA glue. OK I thought, maybe the dissimilarity in the woods was too great (beech SG64 & Jatoba about SG80), so I have just made another board this time using Beech and Walnut and using a polyurethane glue. Whilst belt sanding I noticed that this board is also starting to buckle the same way the first board did (1/8”). It is now being clamped and flattened again. I was wondering if you had ever come across this type of problem before? All the timber is kiln dried and between 6-8% , the only common factor between the two boards is the use of Beech, but I have been using this batch of lumber for other projects without any problems.”
And here was my reply:
“Hey Tony. It should ease your mind to know that this happens all the time. There are many reasons for it. Moisture, jointing inaccuracy, and of course, the X factor just to name a few. In many cases, these boards cup for no logical reason. The good thing is they can be straightened out to some degree. If you have a cup, you can overclamp it slightly the other way to straighten it out. Also keep in mind these boards will move a lot over the coarse of time depending on their usage and the way they are cleaned and dried (be sure the user is drying the board on its side). In fact, last week my board had a 1/8″ cup to it after cutting a hot piece of meat. I just checked it today and its nearly flat again. Now with any luck, when your board develops a cup, it will face down (looks like a frown). This way the board remains nice and stable on the counter top. If it goes the other way it will spin. So you may want to put the boards in the reverse clamp for a week or so. Don’t be afraid to spray the board down with a little water before you throw it into the clamps. That will help to “reset the memory” of the board. Then hope for the best. As long as the board is sitting with the cup down, 1/8″ is really nothing to worry about. Wood generally does not want to stay perfectly flat all the time. If your recipient wants something perfectly flat, I recommend plastic. :) Good luck!”
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