Bi-Weekly Podcast Focused on the Craft of Woodworking
Episodes
4 days ago
4 days ago
Brians Questions:
Hello and greetings from Texas,
I’m an amateur woodworker who may have bitten off a little more than I could chew. I started building full closet cabinets for my walk-in master closet, and at this point I’m too far in to turn back, so I’m learning as I go.
All of the cabinet boxes are installed, and I’m now working on shelves and drawer fronts. My question is about face frames. I’ve seen a lot of people recommend assembling the full face frame first and then installing it as a unit, rather than attaching each rail and stile individually.
What are the real advantages of building and installing the face frame as one piece versus installing it piece by piece?
One complication in my situation is that my walls weren’t perfectly square when I started, and as a result some of my cabinets aren’t perfectly square either. I’m trying to figure out which approach will give me the best final result given those imperfections.
Thanks for taking the time to read this, and for all the knowledge you put out there—it’s been a huge help on this project.
Thank you,
Casey
Wood You Rather
1. The first question is about accuracy. What is your own degree of tolerance when it comes to measurements, without going crazy? I guess it depends on the project, but for example, when cutting panels to specific dimensions with a track saw, do you try to get the measurements down to the nearest 1/16th? nearest 1/32nd? 1/64th?
2. On a related note, the measuring marks on the ruler or parallel guides of course have a width themselves… Do you place your pencil or stop pointer just before the line/mark, in the middle of the line, or just after the line? Does it not matter as long as you’re consistent? I know this isn’t NASA, but I don’t want the project to ultimately look amateurish. Josh
Guys Questions:
First, thank you for answering my other questions.
Guy points out that Rubio Monocoat is made for wood floors when others talk about using it on wood furniture. Is there an actual disadvantage or problem with using Rubio on fine furniture when you want a finish that can withstand the abuse that a floor gets?
Thanks again for the great show!
George
3. Any advice for staining blotchy baltic birch plywood with Gel stain and tips for finishing with water-based urethane topcoat? I have heard so many different opinions, from putting a slip coat of mineral spirits, to using preconditioner, to applying gel stain directly on the wood, etc. Josh
Huys Questions:
I am working on a large kitchen cabinet project and have come across a few questions I thought would make good discussion. Project includes 16 base cabinets, 14 uppers, range hood and a couple of custom spice racks, open shelves etc. Upper will have 14" upper uppers stacked on them with glass fronts. Lowers are almost entirely drawers. Carcasses are about done heading into face frames and drawers.
-Ripping down face frame lumber. When batching out large amounts of 1 1/2" strips what is your preferred method. Table saw then sand? Table saw proud then plane? Table saw then drum sand? Will a bandsaw with ripping blade provide a nicer edge? Major concerns are efficiency and accuracy while avoiding saw marks that have to be hand sanded off.
-Ever use a shaper to add dado on 8' strips of wood for drawer box parts? Wondering if there is a good way to setup the shaper with power feeder to run through all the strips then cut to length. Essentially making my own drawer blanks.
Any other thoughts or recommendations when batching out large cabinet projects.
Matt
I have the Grizzly benchtop oscillating edge and spindle sander that I believe a couple of you have mentioned owning currently or in the past. I’m working on some oak glue-ups that are using some odd angles that will be template routed later. The problem I’m having is that when I use the edge sander to dial in these pieces my edges are getting slightly rounded over and becoming convex. I’d love to have a large disk sander but this is what I’m working with and I can’t figure out if it’s a tension or pressure issue or the oscillation is causing it… any help is greatly appreciated! Keep up the great work! Shawn
Friday Apr 17, 2026
Friday Apr 17, 2026
Brians Questions:
I am getting ready to build a mission style entertainment center. This project will use what I'm told is arched pedestal legs which was used a lot by Gustav Stickley. I will be gluing up three 5 3/4"x 28" quarter sawn white oak blanks to make the legs. I will then route the curve using a compression bit and template which I made using the Shaper Origin.
My question is what are some good methods to ensure there is a tight (almost invisible) line on the glue up of the blanks. The legs are going to be a major feature on this piece and I would hate for the lines to be visible. I've done glue ups for square legs before and have pretty good success although not perfect. I know grain match is a big deal but wanted to pick your guys brains on clamping methods, glue type and anything else you can suggest to ensure success.
Yours is the best podcast on the net.
Tom Young
I recently upgraded from a 9” ryobi bench top bandsaw to a craftsman 10” Floor standing. I’d like to build a mobile base for it. My question is, how tall should the table be? Should it be elbow high? Waste high? Higher ? Lower? For context, I’m mostly a hand tool guy and, although I have a dinky table saw, I don’t use it much, favoring the bandsaw. I’ll do some light resawing and other more detailed work with it. Thanks guys and Guy. Love the show.Jason
Guys Questions:
I am working on a large kitchen cabinet project and have come across a few questions I thought would make good discussion. Project includes 16 base cabinets, 14 uppers, range hood and a couple of custom spice racks, open shelves etc. Upper will have 14" upper uppers stacked on them with glass fronts. Lowers are almost entirely drawers. Carcasses are about done heading into face frames and drawers.
-Drawer box preferences or use cases for solid wood vs plywood with edge banding. I am leaning towards plywood due to number I need (38), being simpler to use prefinished ply then mill down rough cut. But it seems like cheating.....Large Pots and pans drawers 3/4" sides or 5/8" sides?
-Drawer box construction when using overlay fronts. I do not have a dovetail jig. I may end up just pocket screwing them which is what I have done in the past but I wanted to add an upscale touch. I tried my domino with Sipo dominoes, pin nailed the box together first and then put two 5x30 dominoes in. To me the hole created was not that tight with the domino, didn't look nice. I see some YouTube experts make it seem easy, any experience or thoughts? Also thought of using drawer lock bit on the new to me shaper I just picked up but no experience yet. (Grizzly 3hp) Thoughts or preferences?
Any other thoughts or recommendations when batching out large cabinet projects.
Matt
Hola Y'all,
I have been listening to y'all for a little over a year, and woodworking for two years. Best Podcast on the interwebs!
I was recently gifted a used Grizzly Go555 14" 1HP. I have never owned a Bandsaw and I want to use it mainly for resawing. I was told it is working fine, but I prefer to "Trust, but Verify". My questions are:
1. What tune-up/preventive maintenance should I do immediately?
2. What upgrades should I do for resawing hardwood?
Thanks so much!
Peace, Love, and Sawdust
Norris Sebastian
Grandad's Workshop
Huy's Questions:
Hey guys! I am a full-time journeyman carpenter and I work in the commercial sector around the Indianapolis area. Currently working at the new IU Health Hospital downtown. I’ve been doing carpentry professionally for nearly 9 years. Almost half of a year ago, I decided to purchase a 4x4 shapeoko 5 pro and got involved with learning about cnc. As friends and family found out about my new acquired skill, I’ve been asked to make various types of wood related projects-some requiring cnc and some that don’t. I have a decent amount of handheld power tools and jobsite tools I’ve acquired through the years. Thankfully those tools have helped me in completing non-cnc related projects but my problem is the lack of woodworking tools and equipment at my disposal. Many times I’ve turned down projects due to not having the right tools. Other times I’ve taken extra steps to complete tasks, but had I just had the right tool, it could’ve been a breeze. I want to have a nice wood shop in my barn eventually but not sure how to prioritize my wants and needs. Considering trading the cnc to instantly increase my wood shop tool budget and maybe revisiting it in the future. With a focus on increasing my wood working tools and building up my shop—What are some upgrades/ tool trades/ must-have-tools to kickstart my wood shop? What tools should I get rid of?
Tools at my current disposal/ 4x4 shapeoko 5 pro, a dw 8-1/4” table saw, dw 735 planer, dw 10” miter saw, Bosch random orbital sander, metabo belt sander , ridgid oscillating spindle sander, central machine drill press, various dw drills/ impacts/ saw zalls/ oscillator/ hammer drill/ jig saw/ circular saw etc.
Tools that could’ve made my life easier in the past- a jointer, band saw, track saw, drum sander, router table, etc
Thanks,
Holden
P.s. My dad and I carpool together during the work week and love listening to the podcast-we especially have come fond of Guy’s no bs, straightforward attitude. Keep up the good work!
Korey from Independence, KY again. I was thinking about getting radial arm saw to use exclusively for dados. I have never seen a radial arm saw in person. They can be found very cheaply on Facebook marketplace and space in not an issue for me. Do you think it would be worth it and can you use it to cut dados safely. What are some other good uses for a radial arm saw. Thank you and keep up the good work.
Korey
Saturday Apr 04, 2026
Saturday Apr 04, 2026
Guys Questions:
I am going to be adding a 25/50 drum sander to my shop. I can’t afford a powermatic so it is between the Jet and Laguna Supermax. I went to AWFS this past year to see them in person and Jet was not at the show and Laguna only brought their large tools. I called one of the nationwide woodworking stores that sells both brands and asked the employee which he thought was better and his response was “ they are both great tools, but if you have a problem with either one of them Jet will take care of the problem immediately, and Laguna will eventually take care of it but it will take a while”. Laguna also charges a $199 shipping fee where as Jet does not. I would appreciate any advice on which one you would recommend.
I always look forward to listening to the podcast. Keep up the great work gentlemen! Tom
Hello Fellas
On my third round of listening to all your episodes. Thanks for all you contribute to the community. I am getting ready to move my shop from the garage to the basement. I want to keep the dust down to a minimum. I was looking at getting a Grizzly T10113 - Universal Overarm Blade Guard for Table Saws. Have you used or this or something similar. It is very pricey do you think it's worth the money. If not do you have any alternatives. Thank you and keep up the good work
Korey Griffin, Independence KY
When is a drawer too wide, specifically for under mount slides? I keep seeing these huge kitchen drawers that look to be almost 36-48" wide. How do they account for the large amount of weight that could potential be in these drawers. Do you guys have any experience using the blum tandem stabilization bars? They state they can be used up to 53" but that seems widely wide. How would you go about building drawers that are over 36" wide? Jesse
Huys Question:
Hi Woodshop Life Podcast Team,
Thanks for all the great content—new woodworker here (not a cheap hobby by any means and I mostly blame you guys for this), I went in deep with about 50K in tools but so worth it as I love the idea of building things for people that they will have when I'm gone. I'm a Power Engineer by trade, and I learn a ton from the podcast.
Quick question: I’m in Sylvan Lake, Alberta (-40C to +35C weather) and store a decent hardwood stockpile (Walnut, Wenge, Maple/Figured Maple, Zebrawood, Rose Woods—kiln-dried from a reputable Calgary seller) in a 14’ x 10’ room in the back of my heated oversized 3-car garage. Winter RH is usually ~22–25% and summer can swing much higher. I could add a small humidifier in the storage room but that's about it. Storage room has air flow, in floor heat and wood is sitting off the concrete stored vertical on ends. Whole home humidity control is hard to achieve in Alberta without creating a lot of condensation on the windows in winter months which is not good. So we just except the cracked bleeding skin during the winter months.
Would you leave it alone and accept seasonal humidity movement, or try to hold the storage room around ~35% RH? If you would control it, what’s a practical target range? Part B - Is cutting wood stored at 22% RH a good idea - I assume it will swell so much in the summer months and assume 22% is way to low to store wood long term over a couple years.
Thanks for the wicked podcast - I'd love to come on, I'd have so many questions during each show.
Thanks!
Trenton (Sylvan Lake, AB
I started a stripping project of my redwood door. It’s old old old! So I am trying to be thoughtful of the contours and the soft wood. I need some guidance since the paint is fighting me and Ive kind of hit a wall. Ian
I have another closet door that my kids have forcebly pulled the screws from the hinge. Not sure how to approach fixing the holes for screws other than cutting a chunk out of the door and glueing and sanding a new piece in. Any thoughts would be helpful. Ian
Friday Mar 20, 2026
Friday Mar 20, 2026
Brians Questions:
My sister and brother-in-law would like to recruit/hire me to install/build built-in bank of drawers and shelves for them for their new home. The only relatable experience I have with this type of woodworking is building a face frame cabinet and constructing some under the bed drawer storage, each of which I have done exactly one time. The remainder of my woodworking experience has involved making small knick-knacks such as cutting boards, boxes, etc.
Considering your experience with built-in shelving and closets, I was hoping you could lend me your expertise in regards to the following questions:
1. What's the easiest way to go about coming up with accurate calculations for the amount of materials I'll need? I might need a very dumbed down explanation.
2. How do you price projects like this? Do you estimate the time it will take and give the customer a set price, or do you use a time + materials structure? I want to help my sister do this for significantly less than she would pay someone else, but I also don't want to be committing an undetermined amount of my time for free.
Thanks in advance for all your help. Zach Owens
I have a question about Sawstops and the brake cartridge. I recently tripped my brake last night after changing from a Forest Woodworker blade to a Diable blade. Not sure why it happened. They are both 10" blades. Any suggestions for how to prevent this from happening in the future? Mark
Guys Questions:
I've had this question in my mind for a few months now. How do I know when I'm qualified and ready to teach others how to woodwork? For context, I am a teacher by trade, and have only been woodworking for about 2 and a half years. I am single and have no family, so I do have a lot of time to myself. I primarily use hand tools though I occasionally break out my track saw for sheet goods. I don't have any experience with power tools like a table saw, bandsaw, jointer, planer. My dovetails range from "functional-but-ugly" to "decent", I can chop out mortises with chisels, I can joint my edges with my hand plane, and I can get my surfaces to be "flat enough".
With all that said, is there a point where you know you can effectively teach others how to woodwork? Down the line, I wouldn't mind being able to teach some hand tool woodworking classes. I do want to hold myself to a high standard and to be able to teach everyone proper technique without seriously hurting themselves. Thanks in advance for your input, Jose
1. Over the past a couple years I have gotten spoiled by building with a bunch of rift sawn white oak veneer, large slabs of walnut where I can cut parts out as I see fit. Now I can't go back to flat sawn boards!! All I see is the glue line, cathedrals that don't match, or kinda do and just a jumble of boards that just kinda go together. Am I doomed to only hunt for the straightest best grain board? How do you guys incorporate flat sawn (cathedrals) and other wildly grain boards into your work? Or are you only trying to select straight grain for table tops, and use flat sawn stuff for lesser seen parts? Jesse
Huys Questions:
My question is about moving my shop. My wife and I are moving from California to Washington - about 800 miles north of us. I'm going to upgrade from a 1 car garage shop to probably twice the space.
We're going to hire professional movers but I'm wondering how to prepare and ship certain machines. The ones I think most about are the Sawstop, the Festool Kapex 120, the DeWalt 735 planer, and my Laguna 14" bandsaw also with wheels.
The Sawstop has an extension table. Would you remove that or let the professional movers move the fully assembled saw? I would remove the blade and cartridge. How about the Kapex, planer, and Laguna bandsaw? Any special precautions or recommendations there?
For my planes and handsaws am thinking lots of bubble wrap and packed into boxes.
Would appreciate your thoughts. Thanks for the great show guys!
Ron Novato, CA
Hi guys, I am relatively new to the podcast so maybe it has been talked about before, but I had a question about Maloof inspired rocking chairs. Have any of you attempted making a chair with a Maloof inspired design? If so, did you use/purchase a pattern and do you have any recommendations? I have found several patterns out there, but some of them are a bit pricey and I don’t want to commit to a specific pattern without doing my research. I consider myself an intermediate woodworker and this would by far be the most difficult project I have attempted so any advise is appreciated. Zach
Friday Mar 06, 2026
Friday Mar 06, 2026
Brians Questions:
Hello gentlemen,
I love your podcast. I appreciate the care and detail you put into maintaining a consistent format and clean, listenable audio. Having been a radio production director in a former career, I loathe most podcast audio, so your effort to provide a professional listening experience is apparent.
In my brief time as a woodworker, I’ve found it difficult to source hardwood. I don't have any woodworking stores nearby—the closest is several hours away. Buying from private parties feels unreliable, and I strongly prefer kiln-dried wood. Furthermore, online ordering is expensive, even for small stock.
So far, the only hardwood I’ve been able to work with was purchased from big-box stores or salvaged from pallets.
Do you have any advice for sourcing hardwood in my Southern California area?
Thank you! Todd from Barking Beavers
I’m curious your take on shop lighting. I’ve got 12’ ceilings in my garage and I’m on thinking the lights could be far away. Maybe I should focus on task lighting instead or possibly lowering lights on chain but that is a less appealing option. Tyler
-What are your best strategies on negotiating time with the wife to be in the shop? Brian
Guys Questions:
I’ve been listening to your podcast on and off for a couple years now. I know I haven’t listened to all the episodes but I’m trying to work my way through them on my commute to work. I appreciate the podcast, I’ve learned a lot. Thanks for doing it guys!
I’m a weekend warrior, with an old craftsman contractor saw. Well maybe not that old, 20 years. Not old enough to be really sturdy built but it’s been a good saw. I would like to upgrade to a cabinet saw. I’m interested in getting a Sawstop for the safety aspect as well as I’ve heard they are well built saws. One convenient feature on my Craftsman saw is it has a built in router table on the table saw wing. I can get the same setup on the Sawstop.
I’m not a professional wood worker but I do want a good quality table saw and router table set up.
My questions are:
1) Will the Sawstop be a substantial upgrade to my Craftsman contractor saw or should I consider another brand?
2) Do you know anything about the Sawstop router table accessories such as the router lift and downdraft box. Are they good quality components, anything I should be cautious about.
3) What are the pros and cons to having the router table built into the table saw versus a stand alone router table? Would I be better off getting a stand alone router table?
Thanks for the help! Appreciate the Podcast! Marty
I recently purchased a shaper and power feeder to run mostly door profiles and other trim as well. It's been a huge upgrade from the router table, but I still get tear out if I try to mill for example a shaker style door in one pass (the long edge not the coping cut). I've seen videos of other guys running their shaper in reverse and cutting for profiles with a climb cut but ONLY WITH A POWER FEEDER. Would this be a case where you would be comfortable breaking the "never climb cut" rule if you had a power feeder in order to produce a cleaner edge? Thanks! Jared
I would like to begin my first foray into veneering. I’m thinking a small table top for a side table or nightstand would be a good first project. How would you suggest a first time veneerer approach this—I don’t want to invest a lot into veneer specific tools (vacuum bags, etc), so any tips for using stuff already laying around the shop would be appreciated. Thanks for the great pod! Andrew
Friday Feb 20, 2026
Friday Feb 20, 2026
Brians Questions:
I currently have a Sawstop PCS 1.75, an 8” Laguna spiral head jointer, a Jet two-stage dust collector, a Laguna 1412 bandsaw, a Bosch cabinet style router table, a Dewalt DW734 lunchbox planer, an entry-level CNC, a Festool ETS125, a Festool dust extractor and various smaller power tools. I’m not particularly happy with the stability, adjustability and fence on my Bosch router table and I feel like my planer isn’t giving my a consistent cut across its width. I’m thinking of upgrading either the router table to something with an Incra lift, or maybe a planer like the DW735 with helical head or similar. However, I’ve also been seriously considering a Festool Domino DF500. Lately I’ve been working on decorative boxes and small furniture like side tables and coffee tables. Who knows what’s next? What would you purchase next and what do you think would make the biggest difference in my woodworking?
Thanks, Kevin Westbrooks
Hey this is Brooks from BROOKS BOARDS in Utah, I really enjoy the podcast while I work on the shop, and a lot of my questions get answered, but I was hope maybe you could help me understand the best way to round over a board that is a curved shape like my longboards I make, when I use a bearing router bit the issue is that when you flip the board to route the other side where the bearing would ride along the wood it routed off so the roundover is un-even and usually a line is left over, would you guys have a potential solution to this? I would love your suggestion, thanks in advance you guys are awesome. Brooks
Guys Questions:
When making flat panel drawer fronts I keep running into drawer fronts that need to be just a little bigger than my 8" jointer. Say 9-10" tall. Most of the rough stock I buy is 8-8.5". In this case I have two options, use two boards of similar grain and try to hide the glue joint which becomes a straight grain only situation. Or make a veneer drawer front with some wider stock if i can find it. How do all these European cabinet makers do it with large flat drawer fronts. Do they all just have a 12-16" jointers? Jesse
Hi y’all! I’m Chris. I love your podcast and listen to it while I drive for work. I am on my second round of listening while I wait for the new episode to drop! I will be proposing to my fiance soon and I am making a ring box for her engagement ring. I am going to use White Oak and I have seen several videos of guys using a rub on finish that slightly darkens the wood and leaves a minimal sheen. I am wondering what finish you would use for durability, to darken the wood, and leave no sheen! Thanks and love the show! Chris
Huys Questions:
I have a Makita Track Saw which I purchased a couple of years ago. I use it only for cutting full sheets of plywood and melamine, mostly plywood. Although I haven't used it all that much the Makita brand saw blade is not making clean cuts and leaving burn marks on the sheet goods. It's a 48 tooth blade measuring 165mm x 20mm. I cleaned the blade hoping that would solve the issue but it hasn't. The cut quality is the same. I've considered sending the blade out for sharpening but not sure if it's worth it. I'm thinking my money might be better spent buying a new blade. I could always buy a new blade and have the Makita blade resharpened and use it only for cutting melamine. I'm sure track saw blades are not all made equal so I'm looking for your recommendation for a new blade based on your knowledge and experience. I'm interested in saw blade brands as well as the type of blade such as the number of teeth for making clean cuts in plywood. Looking forward to your comments and thanks for hosting such an informative podcast. Jack Francis
Hey guys, I’m a long time listener and continue to learn with every episode. You’re one of only two podcasts I listen to cause there’s no stupidness and you just talk woodworking and don’t feel the need to waste the listeners time talking about what you had for lunch or whatever other personal garbage every other woodworking podcast seems to delve into.
I have a very simple question. Last week I was routing a dado in some oak with a quarter inch straight bit. Nothing unusual about the setup and nothing I hadn’t done a hundred times before. This time, however, the bit managed to come loose from the collet and came up through the work piece and essentially ruined it. Has this happened to you guys? Should I assume that I just didn’t tighten it enough? Should I be constantly checking it as I’m batching parts? This one bugged me cause I don’t feel like I know how to prevent it in the future.
Any advice would be appreciated! Bill
Saturday Feb 07, 2026
Saturday Feb 07, 2026
Brians Questions:
How do I take my woodworking skills to the next level, short of attending an expensive workshop? Up to this point most of what I've learned has been from either your podcast or YouTube videos (special thanks to Guy for all of his router table videos.) I have quite a few small projects under my belt, such as cutting boards, boxes, and a face frame cabinet. I'd like to move on to building small furniture pieces, but I don't feel that I have the skills to figure out how to design or build something of that scale without some sort of tutorial.
I'm sure there are tons of videos on YouTube showing how to build coffee tables and the like, but I don't want to just copy and replicate someone else's design. Most of the videos I've come across have also been using pocket holes and big box store lumber, which isn't really the direction I want to go. What I want to learn are the skills and techniques that go into building furniture so that I can put my own spin on them. If I tried to build a coffee table right now I'm sure it would just be a flat panel with square straight legs.
Thank you in advance for whatever suggestions and insights you are able to offer me. I appreciate all the time and effort you guys put into this show. I hope your projects are going well, and I hope that you're doing even better.. Zach Owens
Throughout your time woodworking, have you ever hit a point where you lost your motivation for woodworking? If so, how did you reignite your passion and get back into it? Zach Owens
Guys Questions:
I appreciate the podcast and look forward to new episodes, keep up the great work.
Here is the background:
I have attached a picture of the front of my workshop. I have the Tablesaw/planer and jointer in a square with a poweratic 1 3/4 hp single stage dust collector with "turbo cone" separator:) servicing all three using a 10 foot flexible hose with magnetic couplers on the flexible hose and at individual machine ports. This makes aligning dust collection very quick. I am very satisfied with performance at planer and jointer. I still wear an apron and safety glasses when using the tablesaw because of the dust coming off the top of the blade. I have sealed the cabinet of the saw as much as possible. I have used an over blade collector by shark guard which captures most if not all of this dust, however, I remove this most of the time because it interferes with so many operations.
Here is the question:
Do you belive there would be a noticable improvement in dust collection,at the tablesaw in particular, by upgrading the dust collector to a product like an Oneida Dust Gorilla or Supercell? I would still like to use the flexible hoses vs. hard piping to support being able to reconfigure the shop in future. Every piece of equipment is readily movable.
Thanks, keep up the great podcast.
Dave@ Xcuse4tools Custom Woodwork
I’m a hobbyist furniture maker working in a home shop. I have several kiln-dried ash boards that have visible insect tracks and wormholes — no active infestation, just the character left behind. I’m building a benchtop seat from this material and I want to lean into that look instead of hiding it. What finishing approach would you recommend to best highlight and preserve the insect damage — things like filling the voids, stabilizing the soft areas, and choosing a topcoat — so it looks intentional and high-end rather than defective?
Thank you again for the content. Catching up on old shows though I cannot locate the older shows on Spotify! Have a great week.
Greg Wolf's Den Homestead
Huys Questions:
Hi guys,
My house came with a work bench when I bought it. It's nice and sturdy but the Masonite top had seen better days so I'm replacing it with a piece of 3/4" plywood.
I just took the top off, and realized that the structure underneath the top isn't totally flat, up to about a 1/8 inch dip in some places. (picture below for reference -- it's about this uneven for the full length).
I have a couple of questions:
1) How flat does this need to be? Will the plywood on top make these gaps irrelevant? I understand that a very flat top is important for assembly purposes, although I didn't really notice a problem with the old top.
2) How would you go about flattening this? I have taken down a couple of high spots with my #4 bench plane, but doing the whole table would be quite an undertaking.
3) My plan is to nail the new top on, router the edges flush, and add a coat or two of Danish oil since I have a jug of that lying around. But I'm curious if any of you would do differently. Do any of you use benches with replaceable tops?
Thanks!
Max
My question is this. I own a high end furniture and cabinet shop and to provide quality I prefer to build my drawer boxes from solid wood (not the bottoms those are plywood). I box joint the corner joints, but my question is on wood expansion. 1st - when milling the sides to 5/8 thickness I sometimes end up with a 5" wide board. Usually this would cause cupping but it seems like the corner joints locks everything in place. Would you build with wider boards or cut it into say 2-3" strips and glue back together before milling? 2nd - a lot of drawers now a days can easily be 8-9" deep and up to 14" deep for some of the largest drawers I build. With this width the expansion and contraction of the drawer box concerns me, especially once you fix the drawer fronts. I mount drawer fronts with the standard 4 screws in each corner and haven't had issues but I'm curious your thoughts. The drawers are finished with a few coats of water based conversion varnish. Thanks! Jared
Friday Jan 23, 2026
Friday Jan 23, 2026
Brian's Questions:
Gentlemen,
I thoroughly enjoy your podcast, so thank you for all that you do. What is you opinion on dog holes in the workbench? If you use them, how? Include favorite accessories. Thank you again. Josh
What is the best way to accurately put dog holes in your workbench without buying a $300 one time template tool? Josh
Guy's Questions:
Hi guys,
Thanks for the awesome podcast, I learn new things with every show and for that I am so appreciative!
I’m in the early stages of designing/building a dining table made from quarter sawn ash (just purchased a bunch of 4/4 lumber). I’ve designed the table based on a picture my wife showed me for inspiration.
It is a trestle style table in which the two uprights are 16” wide by 4” thick. The ‘feet’ or ‘bases’ will be 30” wide by 6” thick, while the ‘trestle tops’ which support the table top will be 34” wide by 6” thick. The thickness of these trestles concerns me both in how much they are going to weigh, and how much material they are going to require.
I’ve read about the strength of lock miter joints and am intrigued by the idea of glueing up a panel and essentially creating a hollow ‘box’ for the upright portion (boards would run vertically). I’ve read that these types of joints are very strong and I imagine they would be sufficient for this application (correct me if I’m wrong). I also like that they may give the appearance of using ultra thick 4” lumber.
My question is whether you believe there will be enough wood movement in these hollow uprights to cause concern, as they will be constrained by both the feet and tops of the trestles? I just don’t have enough anecdotal experience to have a good feel for how much movement is likely to occur. Are there any good “rule of thumbs” regarding how much movement is expected to occur? I know there are a million variable (humidity swing, plain sawn vs quarter sawn, species, etc.)
Thanks for your consideration and response to my question! Evan
Hi,
I recently upgraded my benchtop planer from a straight-knife Ridgid model to an Oliver 10045 with a helical head. I was excited by all the reviews raving about the ultra-smooth finish, but I've been disappointed. I'm getting noticeable scalloping from the inserts, even after removing them all, thoroughly cleaning the inserts and seats, and properly re-torquing them with a torque wrench. It's still requiring way more sanding: starting with 80 grit (which takes forever to remove the scallops), then 120 grit (longer than with my old planer), before progressing normally. My old straight-knife Ridgid needed far less sanding overall.
From my research, this scalloping seems pretty normal with standard helical heads. I've heard one temporary workaround is to run boards through 2-3 extra passes at the final thickness setting, offsetting or skewing the board slightly each time to better overlap the cutter paths and reduce the scalloping (making sanding easier). I plan to try that soon.
I was saving for Grizzly helical-head jointer and planer upgrades, but now I'm worried about the same increased sanding time.
A few questions:
Is noticeable scalloping typical with most helical-head planers, including Grizzly and Oliver models?
I've read that the Silent-Power spiral cutterblock on the Hammer A3 series produces a much smoother surface with minimal ripple or scalloping, requiring far less sanding than standard helical heads. Is that your experience?
I'm now leaning toward a Hammer A3-31 combo machine down the road. I wanted separate jointer and planer for better workflow and time savings, but I can't deal with doubling my sanding time. For those with 12" combo machines like the A3-31, do you ever regret not going for a 16" model (e.g., A3-41) for the extra width capacity? Thanks for any insights. You guys are my go-to for real-world tool advice! Jeffery Hiughes
Huy's Questions:
Gentlemen,
First let me say how much I appreciate your podcast for it's practical woodworking advice. I have a comment and question. The comment is in response to the podcast of yours that I listened to today regarding the future of reclaimed wood. I wonder if the future will include recycled wood products designed with the look, feel, and workability (or close) of natural wood? Just a thought. Anyway, here is my question: My workshop is an unheated 3rd bay of a garage. It is not insulated. I use a shop vac in conjunction with Home Depots dustopper for dust collection. Better than nothing but not perfect. The cold is a deterrent to want to work out there and am wondering about safe budget conscious heating options. What are the safety considerations to take into account (dust, fumes, other?) I have a Mr. Buddy Propane Heater that has some nice safety features but don't know if it's safe to use. Do you have any recommendations on how to safely heat up a workspace? Thank you. James Aydelotte (aid-a-lot)
Hello great podcasters, and fine woodworkers. :-) I am looking to replace the "Deluxe" fence on my 18" Jet bandsaw, since it is not parallel to the blade but is to the table, isn't adjustable, and will no longer clamp tightly to the rail. Do you have a recommendation for a replacement bandsaw fence that makes it easy to resaw and cut small pieces. Also, I am looking for one that is adjustable to ensure it is parallel to the blade. One under $200 would be ideal. Thank you, gentlemen! George
Saturday Jan 10, 2026
Saturday Jan 10, 2026
This Episodes Questions:
Brians Questions:
Since my work typically uses traditional joinery, I cut a lot of tenons. I’ve tried all kinds of methods, but I am really looking for that one method that works for all size boards (cutting bedrail tenons on the table saw isn’t going to happen) and is quick to setup – something that corresponds to the ease and simplicity of cutting mortises using my floor standing mortiser: using your layout lines on the workpiece, you walk up to the machine and start cutting. Easy. For that reason, I really gravitate to the idea of using a radial arm saw with a dado stack for tenons. Norm makes it look so simple: with layout lines already on the board, simply set it against the fence and set your depth of cut, and zip zip, flip, zip, and done (insert Guy’s sound effects for simple operations here). No clamps (unless it’s a small piece), no moving long unwieldy parts across a table, no complicated jigs. And best of all, you see the layout line while you make the cut – it’s not upside down as in a table saw or router table. It looks so simple, and easily a one-size fits all if you have the floorspace for a dedicated machine.
But I know radial arm saws have fallen out of favor. I hear about the danger of the saw “walking” toward the operator (can’t you just stand to the side? It can only go so far, right?), and perhaps even more vexing, they are really only available used – and I don’t have time to tinker with vintage machines, as fun as that’d be in retirement one day. I’ve heard that the ubiquitous Craftsman machines on FB Marketplace and Craigslist have a lot of deflection and the bearings and tracks the saw rides in usually didn’t wear well with age, and that the real old DeWalt’s are the best. But again, I’m hesitant to buy something that old without having the time or knowledge to refurbish it. But maybe a week unpaid to refurbish one is worth the long-term labor savings I’d get?
An alternative I’ve imagined is a router fixture (possibly even as a stand-alone table), where the router rides along a fixed fence and atop a flat reference surface, and where the workpiece is placed under that surface. Using the same router, bit and fence setup every time, I’d have reference marks on the fixture that help align the workpiece’s layout marks for consistent results. I’d walk up, insert the workpiece, align it and clamp it, set my router depth and route the shoulder of one face and then the edge facing me (yes, the router has to be held horizontal for this edge), and then route the additional meat left at the end of the tenon (if any) - then pull the piece out, flip it, align it, readjust depth if needed and route the other face and edge. The idea is to mimic the action and simplicity of the radial arm saw as close as possible, where the cutting tool is what moves rather than the workpiece, and the workpiece is quickly and easily aligned using its layout marks without complicated one-off jigs.
My questions: Is using a radial arm saw for this task as wonderful as it looks? Is it worth the time likely needed to get one reliably working? Given the safety concerns I hear, as well as the commitment required of an old machine, which of the two alternatives above would you go with? Again, with the amount of tenons but of varying kind I do, I want something easy and simple and consistent from project to project – just walk up to the machine and, referencing layout marks on the piece, start cutting.
Thanks! Michael
Do you guys use anything in your shop that is not intended or marketed for wood workers? Right now my favorite is a fabric cutting mat, i used it once to measure the angle and length of a step stool and it has lived on my MFT ever since, it covers the holes nicely and it’s pretty satisfying bringing small pieces of wood to the mat to confirm measurements.
Thanks you for a great show, Heywood
Guys Questions:
I have been driving more than usual for work and find myself listening to several episodes throughout the day. Thank you all for making my abnormal seat time enjoyable!
I am contemplating purchasing a sliding table for my Harvey Cabinet saw, specifically the Harvey Compass ST-1500.
Do any of you have any experience or insight with these types of "add-on's" versus a dedicated machine? Would this be a valuable tool for breaking down sheet goods to final dimensions instead of a track saw? I have used a track-saw in the past and do see how valuable it is, but for my situation, I would prefer to manuver large sheets through the table saw.
Thank you, Nick Halverson
Hi guys I have listened to all your podcasts and thank you for all the great material. I have a couple of questions about a walnut desk I am making for my wife. I was wondering what is a good wood choice for the drawer sides? And can I use that wood on all four sides with dovetails and then glue a piece of walnut on the front so it appears as a half blind dovetail and if so how thick can that front piece of walnut be? Thank you enjoy the podcast while driving tractor on the farm. Paul
Huys Questions:
I am a new woodworker and have built a few furniture pieces. I've been hooked into your podcasts. I always have you on on my commute. I've learnt a ton from all three of you. Keep up the great work.
My wife has asked me to build a coffee table inspired from the following:
https://www.potterybarn.ca/products/palisades-wood-coffee-table/?subGroupId=palisades-wood-coffee-table-SPAF-color-remainder&group=1&sku=706535
I'm building it from white ash. The top and shelf are 3/4 stock and the legs are laminated from 1 3/4 inch board. I have the legs and the panels already done. I'm going to build up the edges with the extra length that I already cut from both end grain and side grains of the panels (I have 8 matching strips one for each side)
As you can see from the link above this table has no aprons and the panels are attached directly to the legs while being enclosed by the legs fully. Even the top is enclosed and the legs end grain would show. Here are my questions:
1) I plan to glue the panels on one axis to one side of the legs( let's call it north south axis) and the other axis is all going to be hardware that allows for wood movement. The idea is that since nothing but the glued panels restrict the legs the expansion/contraction of the panels would just transfer to the legs and they can move with it. How crazy am I? I spent days debating this with ChatGPT. Am I misunderstanding how it will work?
2) I'm now in the step of cutting square 5x5 in notches in each corner of both panels. But I'm very concerned about accuracy. It feels like this setup is not very forgiving. For example if I make the smallest errors on the top and bottom of the same leg it may throw off the whole table where I might have gaps between the leg and panel later. I also have no band saw or a jigsaw. I want to tackle this with a track saw ( also have a table saw but this table is 42x42 and my sawstop jobsite isn't good to handle this size).
Many thanks! Amin
Hey guys, love the show, I've been meaning to send this question this question in for 3-4 years but I'm always listening in the car and forget by the time I get to my computer. So, a few years ago I moved and added a bandsaw to my shop so I could start resawing lumber and my first project to incorporate that was a humidor. The resawing went great, but my table saw was out of alignment, so the mitered corners on the box looked terrible with gaps on the outside corners. To fix that I decided to add a contrasting strip along all the edges. The carcass is birdseye maple and I added padauk by routing out a 3/32" square on all outside corners, added 1/8" strips of the padauk and then trimmed it flush. This looks great, but with one issue. The 4 vertical corners are all cross grain between the carcass and the corner banding, so seasonally while the box sides move, the banding doesn't change length, so it either protrudes or retracts a bit (maybe 1/32") from the top and bottom. This is only a cosmetic issue on this box but I was wondering how I could plan for this in the future, as I could see a situation where all the movement is at the lid side and prevents it from fully closing which could compromise the seal on a humidor.
Some of my thoughts were only gluing the middle portion of the banding down, only doing this when the carcass is a veneer over a more stable substrate, or sucking it up and getting better at mitered box corners and not needing this at all.
I have some pictures from this build at https://imgur.com/a/humidor-build-iaXKQLI Jonathan
Friday Dec 26, 2025
Friday Dec 26, 2025
This Episodes Questions:
Brians Questions:
Have been listening to your podcast for awhile now and the more I listen to more questions come to mind. Here is my current one for a walnut waterfall bench I’m working on. The dimensions are approx 58”L x 18”W x 16”D. How should I join a shelf to this bench where the grain flows continuously from the legs up through the bench top? The shelf will also be a glued up panel with the grain running the same direction as the bench top. If I attach the shelf to the inside faces of the legs using a mortise and tenon joint, do I need to account for wood movement? The legs, benchtop, and shelf are all 1.75” thick. I would assume that given they’re all the same thickness and technically the wood grain is in the same direction as the legs, just perpendicular, it would expand and contract together, and I could just glue the tenon. That said I don’t want to guess and hearing Guy talk about furniture exploding has me concerned. If wood movement is a concern then what’s the correct way to account for this movement? Should it be treated like a breadboard end with dowels through the tenons, installed through the bottom of the legs (the shelf sits 2 inches off the ground)? Or would it be better, and stronger, to use floating tenons/Dominos for this joint instead and just not glue the outside dominos and cut them loose to account for the expansion and contraction while gluing the center domino(s)?
Thanks, Chayse Bell
Thanks for the great podcast, I discovered your channel about a month ago and now listen all the time traveling to and from work. I've been woodworking a little over a year now and currently working on a dining table made from ash and have picked up all sorts of pearls that have helped with the glue up, apron design, finishing, etc., so thank you for all that.
This question is directed to Brian, as he has mentioned that his shop is in his basement. I currently work out of my two car garage that I share with my wife's car. We just built the house in 2024 and I'm kicking myself that I didn't insulate the garage. These cold Northern Indiana days are making working in the garage pretty uncomfortable. I know I could just insulate it, but HVAC isn't attached to the garage either so to make it truly comfortable would be a big job/cost. So, Brian, can you share a little more about the layout/design of your basement shop? E.g. was it a room that existed that you converted into the shop or you framed the room specifically for a shop? How do you take extra precautions to make sure your family isn't affected by dust, as this is my primary concern. Obviously, I know of dust collection and dust filters, but it still concerns me to think I'd be working in the basement. Do you have anything you wish you did differently? We have an unfinished basement that is very open, so the sky would be the limit for me in the future before we finish it.
Thanks, Evan
Guys Questions:
Somewhat recently I made a gift for my wife using White oak. I had predetermined that for a finishing schedule I wanted to first apply Danish oil, then seal it with shellac, and minwax performance series varnish for a top coat.
I ran into an issue when I began to finish the piece. Not knowing a thing about wood porosity, I liberally applied watco Danish oil, and as a result I had a big problem with seepage. Now, my research had cautioned me that I would need to keep checking on the piece periodically for the next several hours after application to wipe up any seepage that came up. Even so, you this went on for so long that it became an issue. Two full days after application I was still wiping up seepage. I would wipe the piece down before bed at night, and when I'd check it in the morning there would be spots on the surface that took a considerable amount of effort to buff out. I couldn't keep up with it, and after a few days the surface was covered in spots, which meant that I had to start over.
As I mentioned previously, I could not find any information online regarding how to deal with this problem. Just to see what would happen, I decided to try aiming a heat gun at the work piece after it had been drying for a couple of hours. This worked phenomenally, and I could not have been more thrilled. Of course the heat didn't dry out the wood any faster or anything, but what it did do was vastly accelerate the seepage process. The oil was rapidly drawn up to the surface of the wood, where I could wipe it away, and after treating both sides in this manner for a total of perhaps 10 minutes it seemed that all of the excess oil had been drawn out. I wiped the work piece down and had no more issues.
Of, like with any application involving a heat gun, I had to keep it moving, otherwise it would start to bake the spots of oil onto the surface. Anyways, I just thought this was a neat trick that might come in handy with oil finishes if seepage is ever a huge issue. I hope you guys found this interesting. Zach Owens
Hello from Chico, California!
I have recently started listening to y'all's podcast while researching inspiration for reconfiguring and refining my workspace. I thank Guy for highlighting the importance of drawers, I realized that I previously had none.
I am a hobbyist woodworker looking for advice on air filtration for my two car garage shop. It is approximately 3960 cubic feet, 22' x 20' x 9'. While working, the garage door and access door (detached garage with no climate control) is usually open, weather permitting, and tend to have good airflow and supplement with a box fan when needed. I have a Harbor Freight 2hp Dust Collector for my machines, cabinet saw, planer, jointer, and router table and do feel that this my be slighty under powered for my system.
I do notice a fair amount of fine dust suspended in the air after milling operations and breaking down sheet goods on the table saw and a noteable layer of dust across the entire shop. I think that adding an air filter could help reduce fine particulate and could potentially allow me to work with doors shut when it is too hot or too cold.
Do you think that adding an air filter makes a significant addition to air quality or should I look further into optimizing dust collection?
If you feel an air filter is a worthwhile addition, what would you reccomend for an approximately 4,000 cubic foot shop? I have been looking at the WEN 3410 unit due to claimed CFM and cost. I have also contemplated building one with a second hand blower from an old furnace. I am mechanically inclined and competent with electrical. I also feel that timers and variable speeds are not needed.
I would also add that whatever I decide, the garage is detached from the main house and there is a studio above that is rented out to a seperate individual and would like noise and resonance to be kept to a minimum. The only real estate I have available for air filtration is the ceiling.
Thank you for your time. Nick Halverson
Huys Questions:
Longtime listener. Truly enjoy the podcast. I am considering upgrading my table saw to a contractor or cabinet model. The choice are really overwhelming. I get a lot of advice on different brands, phase of motor and should I buy new or used. Any advice appreciated. Greg
I recently bought a small bandsaw mill (Woodmizer LX30) and am becoming an amateur sawyer, exclusively to supply lumber for my own projects. Once I have dried lumber to an acceptable moisture content, what is the best way to store a few thousand board feet? My kiln guy says I should store packs of dead-stacked lumber horizontally, wrapped in 6-mil plastic. That sounds like a pain. I'd prefer to forgo the plastic and store the lumber horizontally, on edge, in a rack, in my unheated pole barn - which, I should note, sometimes gets a wet floor in heavy rains. Then I'd bring pieces into my shop for a few days to acclimate before machining. What do you recommend for long-term lumber storage? Kyle