NO.

40

NOTES FROM THE SHOP

$2.50

Sawdust
Number 40

July/August,
Editor
Donald B. Peschke

Deslgn Director
Ted KrallC<lk
Assistant EdttOfS
Steve Krohmer
Dougl.s L. Hicks
Douglas M. Lidster

Art lil1rectOl
Kay Mulder

Technical lliustrators
David Kreyllng
Mike Henry

Subscription Maneger
Sandy J. Saum
Subseiiption Assistants
Chrls1el Miner
Vlcii:y Robln.$on

1985

Sllt\.ttP.Acouple of weeks ago I was helping

friend, set up and sharpen a brand new
jack plane. As he took it out of the box for
the firs~ time. He was a little surprised
when I looked at it and said. "Boy. this is
going to take a 10& of work."
"rt's brand new,' he argued, "why
should it need a lot of work?'
The problem is tha. we usually think of
"11e\v'! meaning l"hai iioJ;nething is in the
best condition possible. Bverything n-om
there on jus.t wears it OUI.
Rut with ,vOC)(iworkingtools (espeeially
hand tools). just the opposite is tl,,~.A
new tool usually needs a lot of work .'pecially,ifit's one that has (or'is supposed
to have) a sharp edge. Plane irons, chisels,
and carving tools all need to be sharpened
when theY"'e new. And this (ask continues
as~ long as the ,tool is used.
Oka)', ')~\femade

Inj'

case for l:lha'iJ>enin.g

It's messy, and the ends of your fingers

turn a lot of different colors, but mixing
your own stain is an interesting process.
The article st .. ting on page 19 gives an
overview of the different t.~pesof stains
available. Then in Talking Shop (page 23)
of this issue, we give a formula for making
your own home brew, It opens a lot of
posslbilities for coloring wood,
TIllS article continues our series on finishing, \Ve're already at work On the upcoming articles on top coats. varnish, shellac, and urethane.
1"MUOUns. While I'm on the subject of
discovering new ways to dOi!!&,things, I
found iI new use for a tambour. Although
the typical application IS to use it as a
Sliding lid (as on a 1"Oll-topde~k)_ it does
have at least one other intereating
application .
I used a tambour to form" cylinder to
buJld the umbrella stand and planter stand
shown in this issue. (See pages 6,"nd 10.)
(By the way, in ease you!>'e wondering
about the word "bambershoot" in the subtitle on page 6, it's English slang foJ'
umbrella.)
SOURCEBOOK.Last year in Septembe~
we sent out the fll'St edition of the lVood
8'liritlt SOllTcel>Qok. The response to that
first. effort \VASoverwhebning' - -mcre
orders were placed than we (or the advertisers) thought possible. Which indicates
one thing: the SOl,,,,e~k proved to be a
use!ul guide to ~he information that's
availilble on woodworking catalogs, tools,
and supplies.
Tbis year; we're doing an encore with the
SOl,,'Cebook. I twill be mailed out the end of
August so you should receive il by the
middle of September,
For those ofyou'Yho have subscribed to
1V00dsmitlt recently, the Sou)'cebook may
ceme as a surprise. Almosteveryone likes
the fact thab the pages of lVoodsmilh aren't
cluttered with a lot of ads .
On the other hand, many of our subscribers miss some of the information that advertising provides. So, we initiated the
iVootL.mit/. Sourcebook to PI'Ovidea single
source [0)' ordering catalogs and product

- albeit not. very centroversial one, es

p<tcially when we're ealkJng l\OOU~ plane;;
Jackl&.Stroud
and chisels. But how about Forstner bits?
Diana Sterr
This is one tool most of us would never
Compuler 0j)eraUons
dream of sharpening, ;'he firRt one I
Kon Miner.
bought cos~$15 (for
bit). And all it
ClreulaJloo Manager
took was one look at the i5usil'ess el,d to
JeH farris
convince me that there's no \yay to sharpen
a.Ferstner bit. Even if it could be done, it
Administrative Asst$tanl
would eertainly require an expensive arCheryl Scott
ray of machine shop equipment.
BulkUng Maintenance
So, the only alternative. was to assume
'Archie Krause
that "new' in this case meant that the bit
was the best it was going to be. Ane]when
WOODSMITH (ISSN 01644114) is publlsj1fl(j it gol dull, 1 would just have to toss it.
bimonthly (January, Marcil. May. July, Septem
\Vaitaminute. Throw awaya$l~ bit just
ber. NOII.moor)by WoodsmithPublishing Co, because irs dull. No way.
2200 Grand Ave., Des Moines, Iowa 50312,
That's when ! decided to leann how to
WOODSMITH Is a reglstered uadema!l<of the sharpen Forstn,,.. bits. (Sec page 4.) It
Wo6dsmlthPublishing Co.
didn't take long before I discoveJ;e(l that a
<Copyright 1985 by Wood'smilltPublishlng Co. FOJ;Stnel'bit is l'elativ~l)i easy to sharpen.
All Rights R... ",od.
And then comes the fun part. Just like
Subscriptions:
O!"~year (6 ISSUBS) $10. Two working on a plane and seeing the first
yea""(12 Issues} ~18. Slngle copy Plloo>$2.50 cI'isp shavings; it's a thrill, to see the long
(Ganada and Fotelgn: add $2 per ye~r.)
ibbon of shavings that emerges fl"Oma
Change Of Address: Please be sure (0 Include
well-she rpened ['orstnel' bit. In fact, it's
both your oJd and new address,
betl6.,. than ,nC.\\T.
Second class postage paid at Oes Moines_,
S'mf"S. Ft's obvious that I can got excited
Iowa.
about sharpening. But the. subject of anPo:stmaster: Send change of address notice.
other article in this issue - working ,\,itb
Form3579, to Woodsmltl1 pubnshlng Co. 2200 stains - is one 11"0 never been too inter- dnformatlon.
Grand Ave . Des Moines. towa 50312.
ested in.
Inside this year's SOl<1'CeixIokyou'll find.
Pari
of
it
is
that
I
like
natural
wood.
descriptions
of 43 woodworking cat;Jlogs
BACK ISSUES
Stain always seems artifieia]. But the and products. Yet, the lll'gos oflVooo$l>litit
All bact issues Qf Woodwith are still avaIlable.
other pal.. is ~hat J never knew what to do magazine stay just the way everyone likes
Send 'or a tree booklet describing_ the COnl91'!1S with a stain if I didn'. like the particular
them - advertjsing free.
and price$ 01 all back issue s,
tone 01'color. T~e big questlon forme waS:
r hope you lind th~ S.l<",elxx>k helpful in
liow
do
I
get
the
colo,'l
wallt?
providing
the information you need to buy
SAMeLE CaPlES
It turns out that the ans\Vel' is not much shop tools and supplies.
If you have a 'riend who would like to soo a copy different
that the answer for how to
J:(IlX'I'l'Atl-'''C. The september/October
of Woodsmlth, just send Ihe name and address.
shai<pen " F'ol'Stner. All it takes is some issue of \Voods",i!1( (No. 41) will be maited
and we'lI SO<ld .. sample tat no cost).
dmiog th.. week Qf October 15, 1985.
e"pel'imenting.

0".~.

WOODSMITH

Tips
&
Techniques
--------------------------screws twisted rather than tightened as 1

NO-CLAMPS FEATHERBOARD

turned the wing nuts. I solved this by

Fumbling with clamps to f.. ten a feather-

cutting lh~slot in the top or each screw a

boanl to a saw table always seemed like a

lot of trouble to make one CUL Recently I
built this no-clamps featherboard to solve
the problem. It'. an ordinary featherboard
with" thin guide bar (Mten.d to lhe bol-

CLEANING UP NOTCHES

tom that mounts in the cnblo SJl\\f'S miter

gauge slot.
Ibegan by making n (eatherboard oulof
614 stock. Overall. mine L. 5" wide by 18"
long and has a 45 cut on the feathered end.
The indi"idual barbs o(the feather are"",;
wide by 3" long.
After the "feather" end is cut, rout two
V,'"ide by 6'-longa<iju~tment slots all the
WaY through the featherboard, The slots
aro 2!-'l' apart and start I" n'olll the barbs.
Next, cut a guide bar to width and thick-

Since I dOJ1'town a bandsaw, I used nly

sabre Kl'\" to cut out the notches In the top
and bottom pieces when I wns building the
English Wall Lantern (Wood.mit/, No, 36).
But I wasn't able to get an even, smooth
edge. The router table solved the problem.
AfWr making ~"-wide. full-depth end
cuts on the ",ble saw. mark a c"t-<lff line
about
less than the full depth. Then CUt
along this line with a sabre saw,
Next, mount a 11.. straight bit on the
router [ubi. and raise it up "ntllit's above
the thickness of the workpleee. Set the
distance from the fence to the outside of

V,.

little deeper and then gluing

11

r.nit;hing

nnil into the slot with epoxy,

ness so it fits precisely in the miter gauge

slot of your table saw, Make it at least as
long as the entire table (or no'" - later it's
cut to 12"'.

ofsemp fUl n stop that'sjuat thiek enough lO

wedge in the groove.
\\'endtll ;\,Idenwll
Ho'n~lrood, Illinoi.s

Ro~rl K. Graul
,111011,1I1;'lOi$
MITERtNG SMALL STOCK

USllfHCf

TOaUIOf

WOIltQ'ttct IN
Slu.JGHT lIHE

a.f1W1(N
N01CH($

I've made a number of l)roj<'ClS that require 'I." quarter ..-round moldings as glass
stops. These usually require a precise
miter, it's difficult to hold the, smnll moldings tight ancl in the correct position on a

tnblc saw 01" traditional miter box,

~l)' solution was to make a miniature
GUIDIaAa/'

miter box. The work surface is u piece of

44 .tock with a V.-\\;de x l(..decp groove
cut down the center to hold the molding.
('The.., measurements could be altered to
fit the piece to be mitered).

Afiercuttingtheguide
bo,' to fit the slot,
CIIlI11J)the bar to the bottom orthe featherboard. Line it up parallel with the feathered end (that is, at a 46 angle to the edge)

or

the bit the same as the depth

the table
sawn notches. This should be just deep
enough to clean off the 1',... and stl'llighten
up the uneven edges.

Tb Dmi)l.
Woodland. ",<,./tillglon

and over the adjustment slots.

Using the slots as a gauge, mark their
locations on the guide bar with an awl.

Editor' Not: we lrird str: Drain'$.

~"tthod RJtd it lcori;8jiJre. But ~I"t'dlike to
add a CQI'plt C(llltio'~3:Be
not to

Unclamp and drill a ~"-dia. countersink

nnd 11."-dia, hole centered on the guide bar

$(lICll

at each marked location.

Afier the two holes nro drilled,

CUL

table so it's width is centered right over

the blade. Then$lowly ralse the blade until
there's an 8" long slot, Finally, the bar can
be cut to 12" long.
A emble the fe_therboard
with a
couple 2".long, y."-(Ii a. nllthcad machine
8CrC\"s. washers, and ,vlng nuts, llighten~
lnA'the \\ring nuts enU$CS the sca'e\vs to slide
up into the countersink, As they slide up.
the 1>," slot is opened and
th" bar
to hold it """"""Iy in the mller jr.Iug" slot.
One problem I discovered was that the

\VOODSMITH

"ofella

80 U8 to gouge III(! C(lrttl'r$.

OWeOJTOM

(Stop blork. could be olUlcllcd 10 Iii. [en

to p)'eu<,,!lI,ig), A,1d lUil" tlu: E"gli." "'.11

JIO IN VISE

Lantern,

SCREW BlOCK

v.."-stopped slot (kerf) centered on the

hole 11the way through the guide bar. To
do this. clamp the piece down to the saw

$P'".'''

co."/,,'

siort o>ld,lop 'h_ cuI 100far into tilt tobl.

to HOLO

To cut the 45" k",-r in the work surface,

fi1'8Llayit out with a pencil, Then clamp a
temporary guide board to the line and cut
with a baeksaw along the board until
there's a ~"-deep kerfin the work surface.
No.t Oip the piece over and drill a
II""-dia. finger hole centered on the
groove nnd about S" from Iho kerf. 1'h" hole
Jnttkc~ il cnsie1' to hold all(1 _'01l10ve the
\I/Ql'kl)iccc and helps elenl' OUl8a\\f(lust bel ween Ctlts.

Then screw a block to Lhe bottom of the

jig toclamp it in a \ise. Fin.,lIjr', ('Ut a pi~

th6 cut is bei'llg ~'Olttcdill fJ'Ild

orallt. Be 8"'" 10 /wld 01l ttcCI'J'fly (1M a

router bit ttray gra/)"the end 0,,1;11-

1-

-1

SIND IN YOUR IDEAS

1----------------1
Ifyou'd 1,1<810oh8l8 a ~

lip Wllh 01llef

readers of Woodsmilh. send YOU! Idaa to:

Woodsmlth, Tips 8< Tocnnl<tuos, 2200 G,and
Avo.. Do. Moln.. , Iowa 50312,
Wo pay 8 mfnimum ofSl0 tor tips. and $1 5 or
more 'or special techniques (that 8'6 occepted
tor publication).Please give a compIote
bOO of YOUl idea_ H a _
is needed, send ~
along; we" draw a new one.

pI"".3

Sha~ening: Forstner Bits

HOW TO GET A SHARP EDGE ON A BORING BIT
f crstnerbits Can do IhillgS no other bit can
do. Fur-example. if you want t~drlll a hole
at an angte (even a very steep angle), a
Forstner bit will do the job.
U )'ou want to drill overlapping holes
(for roughing.ouLa mortise, for example), a
Fors mer bit is the one to choose. Or. if you
need to drill. nat-bottomed hole, or if you
nave to drill into end grain 01' wild grain
... you guessed it.
The reason Forstner biM can accoltlillish
these tasks when other bits can't is because the rim, rather thn)\ the center
point, guides the bit through the wood.
Although there is a small center point in
the culting head, it's used only to position
the bit at the starting location. It playS no
role in guiding the bit through the wood.
The rim scores the circumference of the
hole being drilled. Then. while the rim is
holding ehe bit in position, two chisel-like
lifters (radiating from the center of the bill
pare away the wood " vith a pJanit'lg action.

C,ENTER
POINT
Unfit BfVEl

A HEAT-SENSITIVE BIT
But with all it's abilities, Forstner bits are
not without problems. The most serious is
it. tendency to overheat.
Fo rs tner bits were developed for use in
a bit brace (hand brace) nd not intended
for the speed of. motor-driven driD pres .
Since the entire rim of the bit is in full
contact with the wall of the hole, Forstner L.
bits must be run at slow speeds (less than
If the bit is sharpened, it will slice
400 rpm) or they will overheat.
tfirough the wood with very little resisIf the bit is run too fast, a t.remendous tance (which reduces heat build-up). And
amount of beat will be built up 8S the rim instead of clog~ng, it will actually produce
rubs against the circumference of the hole. long ribbons of shavings, see photo.
'Phis heat can draw "the temper from the
TOOLS NHDED FOR SHARPENING
steel very quickly. (If the steel tW1lS blue,
the temper is drawn.)
However; a11 it takes is one look at the
Once the temper is (l1'3}\'I1, the rlm will business end of Forstner bit to real;:'.e
be too scft, to hold n sharp cUlting edge.
that there's )10 '''3)' to sharpen it. The rim
Then it's usuaDy forced into the wood. or can only be reached from the. inside, and
the speed is increased to II(al.-e it cut, which the lift ers are.impossible 10get to.
Okay, it.~sno secret that sharpening' a
just ruins the bit.
Another problem with Forstner bils is Forstner bit is trickier than sharpening
that they're very 1'00" ~t ejecting wood other edged tools. But it can be done. And
chips, especially when they're not sharp.
with the hell>of a few tricks and the .ight
'I'he eJection throats tend to clog and then equipment, it's really pretty ensy. J use
it's difficult to feed the bit into the wood,
two small e01ve slip stones (medium and
when this happens. t6e most common fine), and a simple jig to hold the bit.
solution is to "jog" the bit - drill. Iitlle,
SI.I~STON~. The slips I use are made for
lift up, dlill a tittle more, lift up. If the sharpening carving tools: a small (o/~'x
e.logging is really bad. you bave to stop bhe 2V<") medium-grit India and a hard A,drill press and use an awl or ~malJ nail to kansas make a nice combination 1.'01'sbarpclear the ejec~ion throats.
ening Forstner bits. (See Sources, page
But, there's a better solution, Forstner
24.) rho India is used in lheinitial stagesto
pits clog for one reason: they're not sharp.
rough down the edge, and then the hard
In facti even a brand new bit isn't as-sharp
Arkansas is used to 'hone th~ edge.
A.ltJtough rve used the Indiah\l'kansas
as it should be.

.,M

'-S

stones for years/ I've recently

switched 10a pair of Japanese
water slip stones in 1000 and
4000 grit, These stones measure 2' x 4". (See Sources, page

24.) Because they're larger

than the India/Arkansas
stones, feeling for the o.oigil'lal
..J bevel is more difficult. But I
find my lf putting up with this incon-

venience because the J apanose stones

cut faster and produce a better edge.
BOLDINGnc. '!b help bold the F9rstnel'

bit at the proper angle when using the

stones, I use a simple holding jig. This jig
isn't. fancy, it's just a piece of scrap with a
hole the iSi?.eof the bit shank, see ,Flig. I.
Shop Note: Cut a kerf through the hole
so when the jig ts placed. ill a vise, the
amount of pressure on the bit can be adjusted by loosening or tightening the vise.
This will allow the bit to spin free or be held
securely ill the hole.
SHARPENING THE LInERS
Once the sharpening

equipment

is col-

leeted, I start working' on Ihe lifters.

SHARP};N LIf'TER U,\CK. The back of the
li.fter has to be Oat and smooth before t.he
bevel can be sharpened. The first step in
flattening the back requires getting Ihe bit
into position so the back of the lifter can b.
.reached comfortably, see Fig. I.
I find that-securing the jig in a vise so the
bi~ is parallel to the Door and pOinting to
the left feels comfortable. Tllis puts the
back of the lifter in line \,ith my arm for a

WOODSMITIf

na(ur&!b"'k-and-forth sharpening motion,

Onee the throat is lined up comfortably,

6tart ,,,'ith the medium-grit stone to

.mooth the back. Rock the stone on the
back of the lifter until it ",51<> fiat. Then
~(roko back and forth. see F'ig. 2. '[1,. key
il' to be consistent in the stroking motion.

R1I0\,"E rue II1R6 F.I)G':. As the lifter

bevel is honed, a wire edge i. raised on the
back (nat) side. To remove the wire edge,
position the jig and bit as the)' were when
flattening the back, SeC Fig. I. Then very
lightly rub the fine hlminl!'stone across the
back to hone off tho wire .'Ige.

Keel) ~toning until the backs of both

liftol'lIlook smooth and nat. Then switch to
a fine honing stone and go through the

$tone on the in-side bevel of the rim. ~

Fig. 5. To $CCL a eonsistenr honing angle.
slide the end of the stone in so it rests 011
the bit's center point.
Now it's just a matter of holding the
stone .tcudy and rotating the bit so the
entire edgo of the rim rubs against tho
edge of the slip atone. Justspin the bit with
your- nng ers.
When the i.. ide of the rim is uniformly
smooth. repeat the process on the opposite
rim. Then swileh 10 the fine stone to hone
both rims smooth.
Rt;~'O\8 "'IRE EOCE. The last step is to
remove the wire edge from the outer surface of the rim. This takes just a second.
Hold the faee of the stone flush against the
.ide of the bit and rotate the bit against the

SHARPEN THE RIM

The next step is sh,lI-penlng(he lim s, Ifthe

bit is in really bad _hOI><.',
or h.. sloppy
snARI'f." LIl"T&R sevecs. When both
grinding from the factory. the inside conlifter backs are fiat and mirror smoetb, the
tour of the rim has (0 be shaped before it
Ufter bevel. can be sharpened. At lil'$t. it can be sharpened. Thi. requires a rather
nul)' look like this part of the lifter is imunorthedox technique.
po!'l;ible to ~t to. But there's. ~m.1Icleat'I scrape the edge "ith the sharpened
anee noleh in the rim right next to the edge of a triangular liIe. 1'0 do this, lightly
lifter. This notch allows enough clearance grind the three sides at the tip oflhe file to
for the stone 14 rest fiat on the lifter bevel.
make three sharp cutting (.'(lgC8. BCC3l1se
To sharpen t.he lifter bevel, I begin by the file steel is con.idc,.bl~' harder than
clarnl)ing thcjig in the vise so (he bit i. hold the Forstner bit, this tool will actually
almost upright, see t'ig. 3. Then place (he shave the metal.
medium-grit slip stone on the bevel and
Now hold the bit in one hand and use a
foci for the original angle.
sharp comer of the me to make several
\Vben you lind the angle, rub the stone smooth strokes .lonlC the entire rim. see
back and forth. (Although it look$ like Fig. 4_ It.'s easier than it sounds to carve
~'ou11ron into the rim as the slip stone i~ the inside be'-el to ~mooth shape.
streked, the angle of the lifter i$ ouch that
sro~1"GnlF.RIM.The technique I use to
the stone i. actually guided up and away sharpen the rim is to rotate the bit against
from (he rim, see Fig. 3.)
the rounded edge of the slip stone, Put the
After one lifter is stoned. rotate the bit bit in the jig. and clump the jig in a vise so
and stene the opposite lifter. Then repent it's roughly at. 46" angle. Make sure .he
the I,roce$. with the fine stone to hone (h.
bit is fI'ee to plvot.
!il'lers to sharp edge.
Now plaee the l'(fund edgo of the slip

same procedure.

k~

'f-1L

c_1'I
-

I"

',-- -

J'Y
,,,,

(he rim. (lrthe cutting edge is beveled in.

it will eut 8 circumference smaller than (he
rest of the rim - so the bit won't feed.)
T>;;,'TTilt 00.:. Once the bit is sharp.
the final te-t takes place on the driU pre.,,_
Set it for lh e s lowest speed possible and
find piece of scrap to bore a test hole.
The bit should slice a bole smootbly
without clogging. If it's really sharp, (he
bit will cut. a conttnuous strip of sha"ings
- even in maple AS shown in the photo.
Now, holl' could anyone call thal boring?

~'(~.~/)~~:f
~
::...
V "
.'/../

lACK

~- ?-.

\I---~
I-

the bit. You don't want it to tilt in and

er eate a negative bevel on the outside of

"'~TUITlEa
SlON.lACK
flAT ON

OM

-,

stone, see t'llI. G.

Milke sure the stone is fiat on the "in>of

HOIOING"0

J.
\.. \\

___

Platten tlte Iif/ol/tack by .'tl'ONng

SIIIU1,"11 Iii_ lijler be.el by strokillg
2
3
lite ston ttlllilf ,,'ail(ioi,!ing tIle orig
sUmeflat against th. surface.
tinue till all tool marks oro g"" e, Ihe" jnai be,rl. Clrol'<l"c~.Dlck allows (lCC'"
tile"

COIt-

hone to fr,irror jin;4h '''ill'fil~ 8tOrl~.

I-ClHTU POI...

u'1'thoulePldallgrriug ri))l edge.

. / '<!:=-.~",

.... StOHl (.

r.t..........~~~_\ ) , :,:
INSIOE tlEVES.

,.~

(C_.,;I
!tOTAl' '"

I\

)'

{I

i)lside oj' nvr U..-ilil Bha~n.td

Sharpen i idt 0/ nlll by rotati,lUthe
tht wi" edge mised w/ltn
4 SIrat'e
f>ld 01lriallgular file to uniform an- 5 bil (held 1008<lyill ,,,. jig) again., the 6 .harpening th. rim by rotating the
RtltlOt't

gl<. Rotat. lilt and bit in opp<nil~ di

"(liO)1810 scrape a smooth M"t.l.
WOODSMITH

edgo of the .1011e. U..

pi.'OtllJe bil 0>1 the .'fd

In, cellltrpOint to lrueo!llJt rim lighUyagainst the.tone. 8.

of th Ion.
Cd"'I,,1 not 10 lu",e a negal;'.. bl't..I_

Umbrella Stand
strips.) Then cut the veneer to width to
equal the combined width of the .trips (2(1
times lW' equals 25") pIll.';2" Cor trim. or 3
total oC ZT'.
The startinl! edge sbould be trimmed to
a right angle before applyinl! the conUlcl
cement, To trim the edge. butt the lon~
edge oCthe veneer against tbe bottomedl!e
ofthelayoulframc.
Piace a Cr..minp:,;quare
on the right edge and trim with knife.
APPL1' CO!\L\CT C~lt:'I.\Vhen the "eaeer ~ square, cont8Cl cement can be applied to the veneer back and the backl<01
the strips. Apply two even coat. of conwcl
cement. As the cement is brushed on lhe
strips be careful it doesn't run down on the
edges of the strips. (You don't want the
edges to stick together when the cylinder

The column of thls umbrella stand i. an

adaptation of the tambour ,,><e<J in roll- top
desks - it's t'iml)~'a ~rit':o. of 2!.lntiflht
slats fastened t.) a flexible back. On PY(>\;OUSprojects. Iused C8n\'~ for the backmg. However, since the inner ~urra,* is
,wble on the umbrella stand, I decided to
use flexible veneer (see Source- PII. 24)
rather than can\'8b for the b.'w::king.
THE STRIPS

1 started by CUtting the slrips needed to

make the column. You need only 20 strips.
but 1 made a fe,\! extra. jU~l in case. To
make the strips, start with 12 pieces of 1/4
stock Ilh" "ide b.)' 24" long. Then resaw
(rip on edge) these pieces into strips o,,"
thick. see Fig. I.

is formed.)

RESA\\'lSGTIJE STRII'S. When resu\\'ing

the strips, Leenteredthe blade Ilreei,ely so

I could cut two strips in one pass, see I-'ig.

I.(Depending on the thickness of'the stock
YOUstart 'lith, the strips Ina~'tun) out
thicker than 0/.... That'. okay.)
Shop Note: 1\) resaw the strip" aceurately (and safely) usc II fenth er boa'11 to
hold the strip fi"mly against the felice. (Sec
page 3 for.
lip on making
this
fe..therboard.)
MOI1NI),.,,.: f:D(lf:S. Aner nil the .trips

have beenresawn to thickness, cut them to

final length of2Z.'. Then the outer edges
are rounded QVe]' with u V,"I'oun(lovcr bil
on the router table, sec Fig. 2.
Shop Note: The strips lire "" thin that
the pilot won't guide the bit. instead. UHO
the fenee to control the width of the cut,
see Cross Section ill Fig. 2.
MAKE THE TAMBOUR

After all the $trips have been rounded.

they can be glued to the veneer. However,
keeping everything lined up and absolutely square t. eritical, 1 used layout
AGUUl

f''lIlne to keep
1.\VOlJT PRA''':. The
frame is just
two Oll'1lightboards clamped or tacked at
right. angles to one another on a work surfnee, sec Fig. 3. It'.critical that the co", er
b. exactly 90', so recheck before the
boa"l. ar(; elamped down.
C"l'1' VP..sER.Now the veneer can be cut
to .i,.., using a knife and straight edge.
ti ...t cut it to length to equal the length of
the strips (22."). (Note: The grain on the
veneer runs the same direction as the

---

ASS~MBLY. Now the strips can be assembled to the ven ee ,. Begin the assembly
process by putting lhe veneer race down in
the. corner of the assembly frame, (I [)lIt"
couple of small pieces oC double-faced tape
on the bble BUI'Caee to keep the veneer
from shining.)
Al'I'LYING rns S1'lt}llS, No"'. aI)ly the
first !!llip by butting the end of the .trip
against the bottom edge of the assembly
frame and "tipping" the st"ip down onto
the veneer, As it's towered, make SU)'C the
right edge of the strip rubs .gail'~l the
right frame pieee. This will ensure the first
strip is square just before it cont.'ct$ the
veneer,

When the strip

contacts

the veneer,

press it firmly in 1'18" and pound it down

with a block of wood and hammer for good
adhesion on the entire surface.
Apply each sue ee ssive strip like lhe
first, rnakingsure the end is butted tightly
against the bottom edge of the o...,,,,,mb[y
frame. and the right side oC the strip i.
tight against the previous strip.

uSt: lUSH
STlCIt

12'.~ lOHO

....,

USEKHCI
FfAlHER
SOAi!O

."

StADt

A\JXIUA~
FINer

STRtP fACESIOt
DOWN

flAJHlI
IOARO

",.1
I

ROUlER
tAO"

1/,, ItOUN~Ovt.

III

WOODSMITII

----

After several ~trip$ are positioned,

cheek for square, see Fig. 4. COlltinuC'to,

flGUR! 3

check periodically lind if the stril).< are

getting out of line, increase the "plleing
ever so slightly. The key is to make .ure
the u.sl strip i~ parallel with the Ii"'l.
(These t\\'O will meet when the cylincl(!r i~

formed.)
"'-1 CI..UB ." ..\1'. Whc.rt 20 strip" nrc in
place, there should b. an ext ... flap of
veneer lofl, "Vel' 'rhi. tJap is trimmed to
form a glue flap,
Remove lhe tambour from the layout
frame and place one of the extra .trips
(t.hal doesn't have contact cement on it)
tight against the I.. t strip, see Fig. 5. Wit.h
R sharp knife. trim ofTthe excess veneer

'21"
stCllI: V(NUI
fO WOII SUlM(:
WIT11oouatE.S1DtO tAPE

fUXlIIf

VEHEEll

lea\'ing a glue OSI>that's-exactly nit wide as

.......

, G II 5

one strip (lY.r).

RABBI;:1TI:<GTllf: ~IlS. To complete the
tambour; the top and bottom edge are
rabbelted to produce a 'I<"~hicktongue to
lit inti>grooves in the top and bottom rinll"
of the umbretla stand, see Detail in I"il(. 6.
The flex of the tambour presents a llute
problem so it helps 10use a featherbonrd to
hold the ends down tight against the table.
Also. use. dado blade to cut the rabbet in
one pass. see rig. 6.

US! 'RAMING
SQUAll' to
CHIC'; fOil:
5QUA.fN(S$

....

S.\~"l)WlI:l0'"R.Aller rabbets are cut on

both ends. sand the tambour and it's ready

for final assembly into a cylinder.

OS( DTiA ST""

NOlE: LAsr STRIPMUS' or

FORM THE CYLINDER

'AtlAlLEl Wlr~ 'IRSt STRI,

AS WIDTH GAUGI

,Olt ClJrflNG S"-I'

'1'0 form the tambenr into a cylinder, the

glue flap is Iastened to the back (veneer
side) of the tambour. refer to Fill'. 8. The
glue ilap already has contact cement on it.
so JUSt the veneer side on the cpposite end
bas to be ccsted.
To do this, murk the width of the glue
nap on the back (veneer side) of the tambour. Then apply masking tape to the edge
of this line. and apply contact cement to
this area, see Fig. 7. When the cement is
d,y. the masking tape can be removed. and
the tambour is ready for assembly.
ASS>UlU. To form the cylinder, lay the
tambour down with the glue flap to tho fal'
side, Then "011the tambour into" cylinder,
ooing careful to bend the glue nap toward
the inside of the cylinder. see Fig. 8.
Butt the edltes ofthe fit'St and last strips
tightly to8"ther. making certain the cnd.
line up properl)'. Be very careful not to let
the glue nap down until the edges lire
alignecl. (It helps to have someone else
hold the edge. tightly togethel:)
When the edge. are aligned. pres.< the
glue tJapagainst the contact cement on the
veneer surface to form the cylinder.
)IEASt'R& THE OIAMETR. In order lO
make the top and bottom rings to complete
the umbrella stand, you have to know the
"ough inside diameter of the cylinder.
Place a basketball in one end of the cylin.
del' to force it into a circle. Then you can
measure the rough diameter,
\VOODS~UTH

VIN.I.

StOE UP

w.o'"
O.
$fIll'

\ IOU.......,.,.

mUll'

TOP VIEW

INTOUHorl

MEASUREINSIOf

DlAMfT11t

USE LAItOI IAU.

ot

MllONGBOWl TO S'.fAD

,,

T~1I0U. INTO
DUE CYUNDI.

HOLD ,lAP UNnL EDGESOf nasr

)
ANO lAST STllPS AilE aunto TOOITHU

.'1)1

USE

t'''>.,

SIOCJC
ffGURE 11

US( YlUOW GWf

TO .M)CHrtECU

StA.Jn &YGlUING MI.'

uS( WAXlO''''liON
RAI' SUR'ACI
",OlD
rOOITH(1\ FOR AIOUT
ONE MlNUfl

2
HOlD HA" H(XAGON

_-

3
StiAVE ENDS
to "fftUl'"
JOINT liNtS

ttE 12

-HEXAGON

Once the tambour cylinder i. complete. the

lop and bottom lings can be made. There
are actually four lings (two for tho top and
two for the bottom), refer to fig. 21. Each
of thesse lings starts out as a hexagonal
(six-sided) frame.
lUTERTII&S1'OCK.To make the segments
for the four hexagon.'. start with 2-1 pieces
of 4;4 ffi') stock :r wide by 71',- long. see
Fig. 10. Then cut a 60' miter on both end.
.feach piece so the final lenjtth (from point
to point) is T.
To do this. first miter 0"" end of all 2-1
pieces to a rough length of 7'1.- ue the
point of the miter). see Step 1 in Fig. 10.
Then reverse the miter gauge in the .Iot to
miter the other end. see Stop 2. (Thi. way
YOludon't have to change the setting on the
miter gauge.)
Use a mitered stop block to hold the
mitered end of each block in 1,I3cot<>cull he
second miter SO the point-tc-point lenjtth

is 7",

TIGHT AGAlNST FENCE

-e-.--~

ft

MAKE THE RINGS

nAME

MAKE IlAL'IIEXAGONS. Aft..r nil the

blocks are cut, they're glued togothel' to
form hexagons, The secrei to makinjr hexagons with tjght-fit.tillg joints is lo make
half-hexagons first.
Start by gluing pairs o(hexagon .ection~
together. Place 8 piece Or,~!lts.ccll)apcr on II
nat work surface and hold lhe pail' down
nat on the work surface while pl",~ging tho
ends tightly together fOI'about 1I minute
(hand pressure if; enough). see .'ig, II.
Glue up eight pair" like this. and thon add 1I
thiJ-d section to each pail' to fOI'11la half-

hexagon.

TRUETOE EIlG~S. When the giu~ i.dry.

true the edges on lhe table saw. 'lb do this.
mount the hau-bexagon to 3 pleee of plywood (screwing from the bottom side) and
'IOUR

shave the ends to form a $traight line, see

Detail in Fig. 11. Th.n glue the oppo.inl!

1$

ADJUST CUTTING

half-hexagons togetber.

IAblUS INWAID
UNlit CYUNDflt
,rrs INTO
CIOOVE

MAKE ROUTING JIGS

LAYnlAlGHt fOGt
ACaOSS JOINT lmlS
CYUNOU MUST "f
~UGt.yINlOTtST GItOOVI

lOUT
COUNlft
OOCWlS<

After the four hexagon. are formed,

thev're routed into eirel es. To do thi s,
meum each hexagon to a plywood 1>0.se. (I
mounted each hexagon to ill! own base so I
could make duplicate CUi' withou; having
to reset the router each ume.)
F,\SfE" TlIE I.&XACO~.Fasten the hexagons to the plywood bas with three
..,.,..W5. drilling &om the underside of the
base. Locate the sere ws I~,from the out.ide edge so the points won't project into
the bit's path, see Fig. 13.
~lAf(KTIlE Ce"TER.

AL-.o.

mount a piece

of scrap to serve as a cent-er (or the tram-

.-

...
ROUTt THROUGH 'lYWOOO

TO fOl.M 10TTO#o\

mel point.attachmem, see Fig. 12. Then to

locate the centerpoint for the trammel, lay
a straight edge across Ihe joint lines and
draw three intersecting lines on the bloek.
see Fig. 14. Drill a hole 8tthi. point
the
trammel point.

f.,

WOOOSMITH

~lQNEDVtEW

ROUT GROOVE

When thejigs are set up. the firat step is to

rout, a v..~\\ridegroove rOJ' the rabbetted
edge on Ihe top and bottom of the column.
sec Step 1 in Pig. 18. The trick is to lind the
exact diameter for t..c groo\'e to hold the
rabbeted ends of tho cylinder.
TRI.\t. CL'T.The procedure I used was to
rout a test groove in a pieee of +"4- plywood,
Set the trammel attachment to cut a circle
.lightly larger than the inside diameter of
the column, see Fig. 15. Theil make a trial
cut ill' piece of plywood, Reduce the diameter and rout another !>'Ul)!' until the eylinde,' fit. snugly into the groove, see Pig. 16.
Ttll: 8<Y1'TO)'. When I had the final radius
setting, 1 made sever-ill more successively
deeper passes in the plywood until a full
eirele \\"3$ cut out of the plywood. This
circle is used later lhe bottom of the
umbrella stand.
ItOL"T TH E CROQVE!ol. \Vilh this same
"tldillS setting onthe trnmmel attachment.

rout ;Y,,".dcep grooves in the!' t,\VO middle

hexagons. see Fig. 17.

1(0(.;'"1'L"TO RL.'iGS.Now t\1I(ow' hexagons
can be routed into linin'. 1b eIlt the Inside
diameter of the linin' .... t the trammel
auaehmem to rout a radius 1t4" 1('55than
the ....diu. of the groove for the rabbets.
(TlII~ should be about 3-Yr.)

!'4.._

COlUMNliNG orA. 10"

U' ItfNG DfA.. 10......
tAU tiNG OIA. 11 v."'

....
...

lOUT AU OIJTSlOEOIAMfIDIS

ItO\lt a groove at this 15etling in aU four

hexagons, see Step 2 in ~Ig. 18. Then

JJrogressively lower th(_lbit to deepen the

groove unril the center is rre<.'(1.
TilE OL"1'3IDE.IIA." C'T.:n. Tocomplete the
linin'. the outside edge or the hexagons ls
routed to tbrcc dirrerent diameters, sec
Step 3 in F'ig. J8. The cap ring is 101'.,the
two middle rings arc 10", and the base ring
j.R 11v.... in diameter.

SECOND,
SUO[ AUlOUARY

F(Ne' OVtl TO
FRAME. ClAMP
IN'LACE

FIRST: ...oSlftON RING

f,liwce AND "LOT

00 NOT lOUT
RJLlI"tOHLE
IN OH[ ,,us

-jLJ-"AG;:;Al=N':::T

PROFILE THE EDGES

\VJ1('nan the riJlgs are cut to size, remove

AGURf 'J I

y,'
SHOUf..OIl

them rrom the jigs _0 the edge. can be

routed on the router table. I used the bits
~holl'n in Fig. 21 to rout profiles on the
""llIide edge of each ling.
Shop Not,,: 1b support the ling while
routing the profiles, I attached an auxil-

10.

",

illr~' fence at right nng'lc~ to the router

table renee, see Figs. 19 and 20.
(11.V.: THE RL~C:ST<><1r.'rIlF:Il. After routing the profiles, apply glue lo the inner
surfaces of each ring and elamp the pairs
together. For strength. make certain the
joint lines <ofthe he.'qlgon.)do>l 't line up on
both lings (jog them about Y.").
rlSAL.'SSt,mL\'. Before l.~uingth"Iings
to the eylinder to form the umbrella stand.
inflert the plywood bottom into the oy!in.
dc'. Then, glue the rinll'! onlo the .alr
betted ends of the eylinden
.'ISI$H. When the glue WIIS dry, I finished this stand with two coats orMin'~'a.x
Early American Slain. and two coats of
Hope's 'lUng Oil \amish.
\VOODS~!ITH

MIDQLE RI,tI.Il
NOTE:

ClUt fACtS
WJTH SCIIW
HOUS FACI

TOfAeI

.----

~I(.~

IOMAH

OGlE an

GItOOYt

'II'RD.

ovea 81T

Planter Stand
CONTEMPORARY TAMBOUR IN THE ROUND
When I tini.hed building the umbrella
stand (page 6), I wondered it this same
l<:ehniquc could be adapted to a more conten'IJOrtI.y style. It only took a liltle experirn<!'nLjng to come up with this new

the same as the length of the strips, Then

cut the edge. $'IUll"lSO the final width is 2"
longer than the combined width o( the 28
tambour strips (abcut ~71.
APP1.\' (~(')I\"'A(~T(;"~1\II-;N'f,After the veneer is eut to ijiv.f',carerUu), brush contact

verslcn.
Dc~lglI Note: Mony of the basic techniques us('<1 to build thi. planter/wastebaskeVgl",," (01) table are the same as used
on the' tlmbreUn stand, 80 there are several
reterelu..'es in lhi~ article to the one on the
umbrelle stand,

THE CYLINDER

The sequence (or making the cylinder is

almO>I exactly ihe same as (or the umbrella stand except (or the number o(
$lrips and lh() dimensions.
The finn step is to cut 21! tambour strips
(plus. (ew exira just in ease.) Begin by
cutting .1/4 ~tock into pieces 114'"wide by
13\<.. long. Then res aw these pieces into
,,,"-thick strip, see page 6 for set ..up.
AIter nil the .trip" are cut to final dimenI;!OI\, round the' t'{lgeg with a I/..~ roundover bit on the roul<l" table.

cement on the hack. of Ihe strips and the

back o( the vene .
A1"~-\(:11TII"~srun-s. While "he cement is
drying. aSllcmbic the l'ightangle layoul
frame shown 011 page 7, Flit. 3. Then piaee
the veneer in the frame and attach the
strips. when .11 the slrips are 1)1"(:.......
down. trim the exeees backing to ronn a
glue flap that', <'<IUJlIIOthe width of one
tambour strip. ($(,c page 7, Fig. 5.)
R.'ORF.T I)(:E. Next. cut ~;..-x Y/, rabbet on thotol> and bottom edges. see Fig.
I. This rabbeted ('(Ige is not mounted inwa
groove. Instead. the ",boot forms a border
area between Ihe nat .trip" and the circular cap and 1>.'1>1 inl(l;, I cut it \\-ith a
dado set and then sanded il smooth.
FOIl .. TIIF. (:YI.INnEn. After rabbets ate
cut 011 bolh encl. of Ihe Iarnbeur; ''011the

place a basketball in it to determine the

inside diameter. Then the rings (or the top
and base can be made, 'nl'!sc lings start
out .., four hexagonal (~ix-.irled) frames.
~lt\K-';"Hf: S"~(:)I~!~'TS.
Start

by cutting

241)iece. from 11<1atoek :3' wide by 8"long.

Then. miter t,he end. o( Ihe bloeks to 60',
making certain t.J1C (inol point-to-pciut
length o(the segments i. 7W'. see Fig. 3.
The a.c:;sembl~'SCCIUCllt'C to (01'111 the four
hexagons is the same (l~rQr the umbrella
stand see page 8. fig. II.
THE RINGS
After the (our (ram.", re IIlued up, they're
routed into eirele to form the end rings.
Theproeedure here b different (rom on the

umbrella stand because the cylinder

doesn', fit in a groove. lnstead, it's glued to
a rabbet routed on tho eutstde edge oft we
rings. SAl<' fig. 7.
Routing this rnbbct call. for some (airly
precise work with u router and trammel
attachment. r started by making some test
cuts on a pieeo of :y,/' plywood.

tambour into n c:~'lind(lr.(Again, this is tJ1e

'I'FSTCUTS.The fi~ttest cut ismade with
cylinder i~ same as on Ow umbrella iumbeu . 00 page the trammel attachment ndjustcd to cut l
forllwd by mnkillll. tambour (just like on a 7. Fig. 8 fOl' all$embly dctails.)
ci.'CJeslightly I"'!lel' than the OIli.,;d" diamTA~lll0Ult (\I,INI).:R. The

top de.k). except flexible veneer is

used (or the tarnbeur I,"eking.
Trim the veneer to a length o( laW 1'011

THE HEXAGONS
when the tambour

c)tlindcr is formed

eier o( the tambour cylinder. Mount.a II,

stlaight bit in the router nnd cut. a circular'

groove. see Fig. 2.

...,JKT

lEOUI'.S

2, STIltS

,.'
ItOUNOOVIR
\

lABan &01.. 'NOS

OF TAM&OUIt ",'TIR
ASSEMBlY
FJRSflRour rEST

GROOVE 121r.~

OUT$tOE DIAMET1t

TO.P VI~:ol>!

IHSlO! DlAMnlk

SfCONOlour ptOOtfssrvm
Slr4AWI OfAMfTUS UNnt
COlUMN fI'S SNUGl"'l
IN TlST GlOOVl'$

10

WOODS~UTH

the cylindcl' fit. snugly ill the groove,

TIlE uorro. 'Vhen the cylinder fiUlthe
groove. make several more passes nt sueeessivelv d('(!per !>etHnIC"until a circle i.
cut from the plywood, Snve this eutUlllit will serve il.'l the bottom later on,

flGU >

GUR

.c

SECTIONEDVIEW

TOP VIEW
-

71,.

ROUTING THE RINGS

With this same diameter .ctting on the

tra.m,ll{'l attachment. rout a groove in t.wo
of the h~x.gonal f!lImcN, (\\'hen the two

12 .THIS MfASUliM(Hr

EQUALS

INSIDE DtAMT'1 Of COlUMN

hexagons are cut into etreles, thts l(I'oove

will aClually be the rubbet that hold. the

cylinder in place. ref.r to fig, 4,)
FOR)! TIlE SUOt:LDEH. Start. by rouling a
')It-deep JlTOC)ve
in two hexagons. sec ~'ig,
,I. These hexagona will be the middle rings
that hold the eylinde.', ... F'ig, 7,
Next, increase the trammel se \lillie to
progre ....;,.ly "iden tho JlTOC)"e;; outward
until the outside diameter of the widened
groove i. l(I""t.,. thall the outside diametel' of the tambour cylinder, see ~'ig,,I.
ROL'I'nu'! I"SIOE, After this wide l(I'OO'e
isrouted in twoofthe hexagons, thecenter
of all four hexagons can be roul<!d to a
circle, .'1"'1. set the trammel to rout a ,IVoradius, sec ~'ig,3, i'1'01(I" .. ively reset the
depth and rout these l(I'OOves until the
center i. freed,

NOTE:ROUT OIOOVts iN TWO

MlDOU I'HOS ONlY

1
lOUT IN$JD( CKAMETU

TJACE OutslOe DiAMETER

OF COlUMN TO OlTEIMINE
outSIDE OfAMliTfR OF RINGS

Of AU fOUl .INGS

...

ROl,. TIIR OLI'SIU. Next, the outside

edges of all four he"''\gOn. are routed. To

find the olltside diameter, place the cyhnder in the wid" groove in one ofthe middle
rings, Then trace the outside diameter of

lOUToors.OI Of AU. fOUl

IlHGS TO SAMI' DW,IDlI

...

the <yonder onto the bottom of the greove,

see Fig. 0,
After tracing the ollUlide diameter et

the trammel auachment sc (he route)'

('lit.!;

groove just outslde the traced circle.

Make a trial cut. then make light u<\iust,
ments until the inner edge of the routed
gTOo". touches the traced circle,
When the groov touches the circle,
make the same cut on the other tlll'e.
hexagons, Then progres-.ively tncre ase the
depth of eut until the euteide Is cut B"'8)r'
from all four rings. see Fig. 5.
CLl! 111

PROFilE DETAil

w tOUNo.Ovtl_
ENO .'NO

"' ....

MIDDLE.'NO
.","lOUNo.ovtt_,""'"

mxcs 'T'O(;eTtlR. After rout-

ing the rin~ to size, they're removed Irom

Lhe jigs ulld glued tol(elher in pail'S, For
strength, stagger the joints SOthey're offSOt by .bout ~., see Fig, 7,
PROFILE THE EDGES

When the gille is dry. the edges oftht' rings

can be rOllnded on the router table using.
~'" round-over bit. To roUt the outside
edges, use the right-angle set-up on the
router table as shown on page 9, Fig, 20,

NOlf:

WHEN GlUING
liNGS roOITH!I,

StAGGER JOJNr
UNES

The inside profile can be routed free hand.

Fll'tAL I\SSE!'tUSLY. Ancr Lhe rings are
routed and sanded, th~y can be glu!'d to
the c)Jinder. Be sure to in._">ert the pl)'\\'ood
bottom into the tambour cylinder Iirst, see
Fig, 7.
f'L'lISll, 1 wanted U natural finish, so 1
rubbed 011 two coats of (ung oil.
\VOODSMITH

II

_Joinery: Tongue & Dado

THE STRONG, INVISIBLE SHELF JOINT
It's one of the nlOst frequently used joints
in woodworking (especially in cabinet
work), and nobody knows what to call it.
The joint I'm referring to is a tongue and

groove,

a tongue and dado, OJ' a stub

tenon and dado. The name changes deJle]1ding on hO\\L i~~$
cut on tbe workpieces ..
1"01'

01'

example, it's called a tongue and

groove joint, when it's used eo join two

boards edge to edge - a longue is cut on

the edge ofone bo.. ~1
and a groove is cut in
the edge ofthe other, such as on tongue and
groove flooring.

-But when tnis$amejoint.-is used tc jolnn

shelf to the side of n cabinet, the names
Change.The groove is now a dado because
it's cut across the grain on hho face side
(rather ,than the edge) of the board. The
tongue.Js now a ~rl0n because it!s cut on
the-end rather than the edge.
'lb take this one step further, a short
tenon that fits in a dado rather than a
mortise is usually called a stub tenon.
APPLICATIONS

1 FUll THROUGH DADO

2 BARE-FACED TONGUE

APPEARANCE. The problem is that there

are usually slight.- variations ill tJlicl;c'nes..~
across the widtll of the shelf, o"it's warped
slightly. Then the dado is cut to fit the
thickest part of the shelf, odt's cut a little
too wide to accommodate the warp, SQ
when the joint is assembled, there are

gaps.
No matter what you call it. this joint is
To produce a cleaner joint, cut the dado
very handy in cabinet work. Most frequenlly iVs used to join shelves to cabinet
sides, or to join the sides of the cabinet to
the top and bottom. ft can also be used to

narrower than the thickness of the sbelf.

Then it's easier to.cut-a tongue (!;tub tenon)
on the end of the shelf to fit the narrow
dado. Any variations are hidden inside the

construee drawers.

joint.

In all ~ftbese-spplications, what ,you're

doing is euttin&,8 tongue (or. stub tenon)
to fit ill a dado. (Even though I know it's
not proper;1still caUthis joint a tongue and
dadO,r'~he, thanstub tenon and dado. Old
habits die hard.)
Bllt why use this joint in the first place?
If you're joining shelves to the sides of a
eabinet, xvhy not save time and cut Ithe
dado to width to'match the thickness of the
shelves, see Ftg. L This way you wouldn't
have the extra step of cutting a tongue to
fit the .dado.

STOPPED DADOES. Another way to improve the appearance of the joint is to cut
slol'peil dadoes. If the dado is run all the
way across the cabinet side, you ,viI) see
the joint on the f"ont edge of the cabinet.
Howey.. ; if the dado is stopped \,/, 0" SO
from the l1'Ont,edge. it has cleaner appeal'ance because the joint isn't exposed.
BARe-FACE!)TONGUE.There's one more
variation on this joint ..Ifth~ shelf is going
to be subjected to considerable weight. the
tongue can be made thicker lor greater
strength,

~~------~~~=
THIRD: MARK STOPlOCATIONS

AND, valll HO~STO WIDTH

AND DiPTK OF DAOO

12

3 'TONGUE

AND DADO

In this case, the dado is cut only 110"

narrower than the thickness of the shelf.
Then a bal.. {ueed, tongue is cub on the end
of the shelf. (A bare-faced tongue is one
that has-only aile shoulder, sec Fig. 2.)
Just to add to the confusion. this variation is usually called a rabbet/dado joint.
(A rabbet is cut to produce tho bare-faced'
tcngue.)
This jointfis commonly used to join the
top and bottom of a cabinet to the sides.
and also tojoinihe back of a drawer to the
sides. (See example on page 18, Fig. 29.) In
both of ihese'cases, the rabbet is cut a little
deeper to produce a thinner tongue.
CUT THE DADO

Once the basic configuration of the joint is

determined, the next decision to make is
which part.to cut first, the tongue or the
dado.
I've found itts easier to sneak up on the
size of the tongue (it's exposed and easier
to geL to) than it is to adjust the width Qf
the dado. So, I start with the dado, and
then cut the tongue to fit the dado.
$TOPPED DADO. There are a lot ofways fa
go about cutting" dado, but the triek is
how to cut stoppeil dadoes on bolh cabinet
sides, and make sure they line up exactly,
To do this, I use a router and the following
procedure.
First, I clamp tt1e t\VO c-abinet sides
together - back edge to back edge, see
Fig. 4, With the sid~s clamped together
like this, mating dadoes can be cutin both
pieces b)' routing one pass across the.
boards.
"OSITIONh'lG FENCE.1'he critical part or
this procedure is positioning the fence to
guide the router. I work off the center line
of the dado. For example, on the wall cupboard (page 14) the top dado is centered
~" down from the top of the side piece.
WOODSMITH

To position the fence, one method is to

mark off a distance equal to one-half the
diameter of the router's base. it.router
with. 6"di. base is used, the fence is
positioned 3" fJ"(Imthe center line of the
dado.
PROBL~"S. This method usually works
fine, but
noti~ed at times the dado has
been as much as a'" ofI'where I thought it
.should be.
The problem is that the collet that holds
the bit ,is supposed to be centered in the
router'. housing, and the housing is SUIr
posed to be een tered on the plastic base,
But this is rarely the cOS<!.And it.'s $W"
1'.ising how far off these things can be.
Since tile plastic base Play not be
centered on the housing, tl)e distance from
the edge of the bas~ to the bit <"lUI vary.
This means the position of the groove depend .. on which "edge" of the router base
you hold against the guide (onee.
ANOTHER ~t,,"'1'1(01).After getting frustt.. ted with this approach, 1 came up with
another procedure that ensures accuracy.
Clamp the boards edge to edge as before, and mark the center line of the dado.
Then mark the stop points - where the
dado must stop from the front edge of the

I'".

cabinet'S side piece, see Fig. 4.

At these points, ,It-i11 a hole the same

diameter as the width of the dado, (On the
wall cupboard, r drilled a I(,-<lia. hole,
deep.)
Now here's a trick, Mount a y.' straight
bit in the router and position the bit in One
of the '/,'-dia. stop holes. Now hold the
router in the same l)ositi611it will be during
routing and mark- a partia.l ID-Cto Indicate
the fircuntf er.ence of the base, see Fig. 4.
Do the same at the other stop hole.
Then, using those two ares, align the
fence and elamp it in place. To '"OUL ~he
dado, pia,.. t.he router bit in one oethe stop
holes to start the cut and rout to the other
stop hole.
Shop Note: Always move the router
counter-clockwise, Since (he guide fence is
a st'raight line, think of "turning the cornet" M (he end onbe fence so therouter is
moving around the fence in a counterclockwise.rotation.

0/.-

THE TONGUES
After the dadoes are routed in the cabinet's sides, the tongues (stub tenons) can
becuton thuends of the shelves. There are
actually two problems here.
The tongues have to be cut so they fit
snugly in the dadoes. But since tongues are
cut on both ends of the shelf, the other,
Clitical measurement is the distance between the shoulde r QC the tongue on one.
end and tli. shoulder on the other end.
To get the right sboukler-to-shoulder
length, cut the shelf to length allowing for
the length of the tongue. on each end.
Then, as the tongu are cut to length to 611.
WOODSMITH

the dado, also be sure to cheek the

shoulder-lo-shouklerdistanee between the
tongues.
nOUT~R TAIl!.&. If I'm working with
shelves made of plywood, Tuse the router
table to cut the tongues. (The router always seems to cut a much smoother shoul ..
de,' on plywood than a "Saw blade.)
To set up for lhe CIII,_ T lise a ~raight
router bi!, that's larger in diameter than
the length of tl\e tongue, That is, if the
t:<mgUeis .1I.00Iollg,
J use II ~. or oy.;" straight
hit on the router table.
Then i\,;; just matter oC adjllst.ing the
fence for the length of tongue you want,
lind '1ljsing the bit to cut a rabbet on each
face of the shelf. (It's usually best to raise
the bit in increments, sneaking up on the,
thickness oi the tongue until it fits snugly
in the dado.)
OAI)OuwlJl.& ....."'1"1101>.
tc the sbelf is solid
wood (rathe~ Inan plywood), I usually cut
the tongue ona table saw or radial arm SAW
using a dado blade. (S<>lidwood seems to
put a lot oC strain on a router bit, so r
switch 10 the saw and dado blade.)
On both the t~ble saw and rac1ial arm
,'8\\', tfte tongue is formed by ma!>ing one
pass with fhe.da(io blade to cut a rabbet on
one faee and then flipping the shelf over to
cut a I'abbet on the other fa ce. \Vllat remains is the tongue,
lAe.tE SAW
FEHC~

TAB(.E SAW. To use. the dade set On the

table

a~ac:h an auxiliaryweoden fence

to the table saw's metal fence. Then move
S8\V,

the wooden fence over the dado blade, see

Fig. 5. 'Ium on the motor and raise the
blade into the fence to cut a relief.
Then turn off the motor and' adjust the
blade height to cut-rabbets on both race. to
produce the tengu es.
Rt\OIAL AR(\1 SA\V.

On the radial arm saw,

the process is very similan Just clamp a

stop block to the fence and adjust it's position so the dado blade cuts a tongue to th .
length needed. see Fig. 6.
ge,OIAL

ARM

SAW

SAWDUST

."'IE'./
TRIM TONGUE

As mentioned above, 1usually cut stopped

dadoes in Lhecabinet side. This means the
front corner of the tongue has to be trimmed back to fit the stopped dado.
It's tempting he.", to use a hand ssw to
cut down the shoulders and fonn a notch.
Bnta saw (evena Iine doveteil saw) makes
a .1lgged cui. Iprefer to use ~ chisel to get a
nice smooth shoulder on the front edge of
the shelf.
MARKSUOULI)Ea. Firstl mark the shoulder on the tongue by .hol,ling the back cic a
chisel againsti one rabbet and roll it halfway over the top of the tongue, see F'ig. 7.
'fhe pOSition il on the other rabbet and
roll the other side.
When the lop bas been marked, hold the
chisel in this m,ark and press down Iilmly
to mark Ibe shoulder line. Doo't use a
mallet yet. It's better to use hand pressure
to ca"efully mark the shoulder line and
carve out a small-notch.
This small notch sets the sheulderline as
it \\~ll be seen on the front of the shelf.
Once this line is set, it's just, a matter of
using the chisel and a mallet to chip away a
larger )lotch 10 fit the stopped dado, see

Detail in Fig. 7.

SIZE OF NOTCH. One thing about the size

orthe notcb. It doosn't have to be cueso the
front on ehe notch fits snugly against the
Il:ontoith. stopped dado. In fact, iLeanbe
cut back an extra ViI' or VoN.
AU of Ihe alignment of the shelf should
be (lone o(flhe back edge because it's easier to get to during assembly.
Ct1IStI.
1 S(T
IN NOTCH
ANDWDOWN
WrTHMAUfl

=l2
CHIP OUT
HorCH

fROM

~NO

13

Wall Cu~_b_o_ar_d

COUNTRY STYLE CHINA SHELF

If your family is like mine, you've probllbly

acquired a number of family heirloom x, My
collection includes the fonnal plate that my
grandmother lmtionally
used to serve
the Thanksgiving turkey, ""t of china
that'. too good Cor everyday use, and some
figurines that belonged to my j!1'C.t aunt.
Afierpostponing it longer than I ~hould,
I finally decided to build this w,,11 cupboard
to display these heirloo"", and give them
the home they deserve,
THE SIDES

To build the cupboard. I started with the

sides (A). Glue up enough 414 .tock to get
two blanks with rough dimensiono of lOll,"
wide by 31" long. After these blanks are
dry and planed Ilat, trim them to " final
s)7.e of 10" x 29\>2', _
fig. 1.
O;\I)()F.S. The two l:Iide pieces arc joined
to the three shelves with tongue lind clndo
joints. This mean. three Y.".widc by
%"-dcep dadoes are routed in both side

pieces.
;\tARK CENTt;ttLI:-lf;S.

ji'iI'8t,

mark the

centerlines Of the three dadoe s, The top

dado is centered 70/( down lrem the tOI)
edge of the side piece and StAlll" 4'YI' Crom
the back edge, sec ~'Ig, 1. The bottom two
dadoes are centered 4%0' and lOW' up fI'OIn
the bottom edge, and both of these cludoes
are stopped 7v." from the back edge,
ROL"'T DADOES. To rout the dud oes nnd
keep them lined up 'C~6 both sides, 1
clamped the two side pie ces together, back
edge to back edge (bookmatch style), and
then routed the dadoes across both .idl'
pieees at the same time. (See pug. 13 for.
detailed explanation of this teehnique.)
TilE SIDE PROf'II,f;$. An.r the dadoes
are routed, the profile on the ~ide. ean be
laid out. Star! by locating the six centerpoints to draw the six 8J'\':S on one or tnt
side pieees , see Fig. 2.
The small radius 3I"C> (at points A. B, D,
and F) can be drawn with. standard pencil
compass. But to draw the two lal'l(C arcs
(at points C and E) I used a beam compass.
Shop Note: A beam compass i. jW>t a
thinstripofwood with a notch atone end to
cradle the point of a pencil. Then a II,, hole
is drilled along the "beam" wherever
pivot point is needed, Insert a brad in this
hole and pivot the beam around it to draw
the Jarge radius arcs. (This i$ shown in
n'ood8mith No. 38, page 4.)
After the six ares are drawn. you have t.o
draw some connecting curves to complete
the profile, (This is just 8 matter of sketching a gentle curve tojoin 'Ire B tAlarc C. arc
C to arc D, and are D to arc E.)

14

eU'T OIJT I'ROf"L, Before cutting the

profile. Iused a hole saw to drill the holes
ot pc.ints D and F' to form the "',"radius
(1Y; diameter) arcs, (Since these arcs are

so small, a 1~"-dia. hole saw makes a

$moother cut.) Then cut the rest of the
pronle u.sing a sabre saw or bandsaw
Shop Note: I found it was best to cut
about
to the outside of the marked
prome, just to be on the safe side. Then 1
used drum sander mounted on the drill
press te sand the curves down to the

v.".

piece is sanded. us. it lUI U template to

mark and cut the other side piece.
THt SHUVES

Next, the three shelves are cut to size. Rip

the top sheIC(B) to a width of 4\>2", and th~
middle and bouomshelves CC)toll width of
T.Then eut aU th1'ee to final length of

:....see Fig. 3.
t1.'T'TOSGI1ES. After

the se three shelve.

are eut to size, a tongue is cut on each end

CtlT SF.COSI)SliE. Aner the first side

to fit the dadoes in the side piece s, (See

page 13 for more on the teehnique used 10
eut th ese tongues.)

MATERIALS LIST

CUTTING DIAGRAM

marked lines.

w.

Overall DiI'Mn,ion~37'hA Sid.. (2)

lop
(I)
C Mlddl.tlotlom Shelv" (2)
o Otow., Divide ... (3)
E Stop Molding' (2}
F lode Ponti PiKe, (IO)

s~tr

G SpUn"
H Orow.,
I Oraw.r
J Drawer
K Dtow.t

9'"d x 30";''' h
'YI 9 291h
faA 4'..4 ~ 3S~
'JA. x 7 ~3SY.
tv.. r 7 ~SV.
'Vi Y. ~3S
'h. 3'h..32

twlbzz)J

5=

'\',_sw ..72A

'.I

tlWO IOAItOS)

I,

on

,A

L'Ul

cut from wo,te

4'.1 ~ 8'/1.

Fronts (4)

lilY,

Sid., (8)
8oelt& (4)

'h 47/1 6'"

8oHom' (4)

.,......sw ~72'

'I. 3Yt .7tA

,/." plywood (wt

10

bJII';'I~IIIIII"IAzllll'j

t)~Z)nlll'tlWlA

fit)

WOODSMITH

,\twr the tongues are cut to fit snugl!in

the dadoes. notch each tongue W' back
{romthe front edge, see Detail in Fig. 3.
(1'hM notch serves two PIlI'JlO5"5. First, it
pro"ides a neat-looking joint line on <he
front comer of the shelf. It also allows <he
shelf to be pu.hed fon"ard 14 10 permit
room for !.heback panel.)
STOI' "OI.UING GIIOOVE. After the
tongues are cut. grooves are routed on the
lOP 8)\(1middle shelves for the stop moldings (E) thaI IlI'O mounted near the from
edge of the shelve s. (The grooves are
routed now, bUI the stop moldings aren't
.ddc'li unut late.., refer to Fig. 140.)
1b rout these gl'OOVt'S, set up the router
t.tlble to rout (I \14" x y,," groove centered :Y....
from the !nml ecigeof both shelves. see
Detail in ~ig.4.

ftGU.f 1

r---~----'.

inerements.)

To get lho right .pacing. take the distanee between the shoulders of the shelf
(this Mould be :151.nd dh;de tb~ distance
by four (to get BY.I.
Then add one-fourth the thickness of !.he
drawer dividers (D) to this distance. (After
planing and .andlng, my 4 '4 stock finished
out close to y, 0 I divided "". by ,I to get
I lidded this to S:y.- for (t total of
8Io/lll".)
'I'hls is thl' CUtilluncefrom the center or
the middle ",opped dado to the center of
the other two "lopped dadoes. see Fig. 6.
(Note that th~ remaining distance is only
8'1\.' from the middle oflhesedadoes to lb.
shoulders a( the .nds .fthe shelves. 1'hM is
the correct di"nnl" to get equal spacing
when the fli\"j(lcncarc in plaee.)
After marking the centertines or the
three dadoes. clamp the two shelves
toll"th.r (bark edge to back edge) and u..""
the same technique A..~on the sides to rout
the stopped dadoes,
All three dadoes are Y."-\\'fide b)'
v...-deep and stop 11.. from the Iront edge.
see Fig. 6.

f ""NT'"
t-

SIDE

J<

leUI rwo "1~fS THISSIlO

11..-

POfN't
1 ."

.'.

Rour .AlL
srOPi'lO OAooes
I.. WID. II ..,.. OIEt'

NOTE,
(N'"

,-1.

I"OIN, 0
~/.It

M(ASUItIMIH1$ 10

0' DAOOIi$

"'

_ 2'.

P(IC'" I:
6~..

10~.~

f.-

'0'

' ....
<..a

..

IOUND or,

SUO"tTlY
.AOIUS
fOOf

4'.

tACk lOGE

l- ",

r ='=' '=.=---:f._.
,..

_l

I'OINT C -

rLATt: GHOOVE,Next. a plate gTOO\'eis

routed On th~ same sides of these two

pieces. (This i,. rounded groove that holds
Ihe edge of !.heplates upright for display.)
To make thi..groove, use a v". eore boxbil
on the router table set to cut to a depth of
.... Center this groove 2v.. from the back
tdg. of the shelves, see Detail in Fig. 5.
IlAO(;~''OR nl\'II)~R.-;'To complete the
shelve topped dadoes .. ..,routed for the
1111..,.divide rs (0) that are mounted be
tween the middle and bottom shelves.
rIb locate these (Inclocs. strut \\llUl the
middle dado. I'h'tll, measure the distance
between Ihe shoulder on the ends of the
shelves And Inlll'k n line centered on this
di.l.nc. to locate the middle dado. see
rig. 6.
Then to determine the toearion o-f the
other two dadoes, I bad to do a little math.
(In order to get equal spacing between the
divid ers, tho dadoes do 'tOllay OUt in-equal

SIDE PROFJLE
DETAIL

SID); DADO DETAil

...u
-.J

POINT fI

fl';

I'- .. ," ..j

If." ~

..~.-~;::::~.j
II

Ir

35" SHOUlOEa lO SHOULDER

41"..

TOP SHELF

i1

~ ~=-=-!=-=-=-=-=-=-=-::::....IO_N~'="='=)=="':O=Nl=OOG='=::~
r:

...

MIDDLfJBOTTOM SHEtVES ~
AU,TOHGU()
CTWOf'IfC.fS!
." rHlClC_ '. tONG
RONT lOCI:
C(NfI.fO ON 5100

....

RONTlOGl

f-'ONT
lOGl

lOUT!'

FEHer

0/0..

\I,IOODSMITH

lS"S}fOUlOOl '0 St40UW(It-

I
TOP
VIEW

stOflHO Ol.oolS
IO' 0l4wtR
(MVIDIIS
~

BACK .1. L

View

MIODlfSH[U- .:
10"0."

..

,. ~

~.1.

;,

AU.....,"
......WfD _.

_+.- DH9-

.. ....
~

,r;-

..

am'IMIDOlI
DAOO t(1'W(IN

tAex lOGf

""""ott>

"~
.... -

..... ....

SH[lI

15

AGURl7

tONGUE.

(
Dl.Y ClAMI'
to DITUMIH
SHOUlOEII:
TO SHOULQlR
OISTANC'E OF

., THtCk

"l, ....tOHG

(INTl_fO

ON STOCK

DRAWER DIVIDERS

.-.< 1--'
, ~"4.

After the stoPlled dadoes are routed on the

middle and bottom shelves. the three
drawer dividers (D) can be cut to fit. (Note:
Since the di v irlen; are mourned itO the
grain run.' vertically, the length is shorter
than the width, see Fig. 8.)

10_
ON_
'1:

DMOllS

DIVIDERDETAil

5' ,.

y
r:
,

"'h&

HOIOl

""'" mTO
SlOff'IO
DADOU

.L

,,"

I' 10
FlONT lOG( OF
MlOOUSKnF

;':':"~~--I

OTR'tISlNG THE 1.E~GTII.

To

BUllNOSE DETAil

",.,...TONGU[ e(NT'.Eo
ON srec..

deter-

mine the length or the divide rs. Imt dry

clamp the middle and bottom shelves to the
side pieces, Then measure the distance
between the two shelves to gel the .houl
der-to-shcetder distance or the dividers,
see Fig. 7.
Th this measurement, add the depth or
rbe rwo dadoes to allow ror the tongues on
the ends or the dividers. In my ease. thi"
came to a total length or 5Y.". Now CUt the
three dividers to this length and to a width
ofrto match the width of the 'helves .see
Fig. S.
Cl'TTISG TilE TOSG~&S. A Iter cutting the

dividers to
PLAIf STQ_PDETAIL(!)

size. cut longue!' centered on

both ends to fit the dadoeo in the shelves.

Next, notch the front edlle of each
tongue to fit the stopped dado so the [l'Ont
edge of thc divider rests flush with till'
front edge or the shelves, S<~l'ig. 9.
STOP MOLDING

1'0 Complete the shelves, l eut the tWO .tol>

molding$ (E) that fit in the grooves routed
in tb. top and middle shelves.
1'0 make these moldings, cut rabbets on
FIGURf 12

all (otlr edges of a pieee of 414 $toek. creating tongues to fit the grooves in the
s-helves. sec Pig. 11. Mel" t.he tongues urc
cut, rip o/,"\\ride molding strips off each

CLAMP ,AND c... ex. SHllF

ENDS FOR SQUARe

edge.

....
I

USE .:~.
SPAct. 1l000S

CUT STOP'~HG
to ttT AfTI. ASSlMIll'

IOUHD OViI lOtH

'IOfoIT (OGU Of ~OfS

ROtlSOING TilE EOGES. Now the top

edges of the molding Strips can be rounded
to a partial bullnose profile. Thil5 profile i.
done on the TOuter l ..ible with a ,v,," round
over bit . ee Detail in Fill. 1J.
ASSEMBLY

Before assembling the pieees. I used the

same set-up to round over both (ront edges

oftbe side pi.. e. and the tOP .heU', the top
front edge of the middle sheU'. and the
bottom Cront edge or the bottom .helr ....
Delllil in Fig. 14.
I)R.-,\\ERSTOP HOLES. There's one other

ItOUHO OVil 10TH ,IOHT

reers Of rot' s..fll

eon"",
SHll'

16

thingtodobe(ore
assembly, Lawr. drawer
stops are added to the unden1ide of the
middle shelr. refer to Fig. 30. The pilot
boles fer these stops have to be drilled
bifore assembly . see Fig. 10.
ASS&)lULY.At last verything is reody
Cor asse rnbly, Start by gluing the dhide ....
between the middle and bottom shelve
making' sure that the ends are squ", e. see
Fig. 12.
When the shelf/dhider unit Is dry. glue

this unit and tho tOI>sheU' between the

sides. As these pieces are clalnlJCd into
position, be sure to push the .helv,", ror\VOODSMITH

Ail
'J

ward jU8~ enough to leave reom for the

~thick back panel. To get uniform spscing. place a vt -thlek spacer block between
each shelf and the pipe clamp. see Pig. 13.
Finally, cut the stop moldingR to fit between the sides and glue them into the
grooves in th{l shelves, we ~"'i,g. 14.

liOURE IS
.,J 3",."1+-

I'

__.,.
3V.~

(10 1S00ltOS)

"GURE 16

!lACKPANEL

.tOUl ',.

",r

are trimmed to Ht laten)

CH.U[FERISG.NexL rout a tr',," chamfer
on both edges of the face (front) side of the
first eight pieces, but only Ollr edge of the
\11'0 outside pieces, see Fig. HI.
CL'TTIN(; ,.".: CRooVES. All oflhe"" back
pieces are joined together with splines. To
do this. first cut a 1/,.'-wide jtrQOve (kerf)
centered on both edges of each piece, see
t'lg. 17. (On the two outside pieces, cut the
groove only in the edges wilh the chamfor.)

I_~'

3v.-

".

NOTE,

edges, see r'i$t. 22. To cut the curves, 1

made two templates. Tape" piece of poster
hoard to the edge of the workbench and
drav.. a 6",radius and a 3Y4"~radiusare to
form the top profile, see Fig. :211. (Actuall)'
this is only half of tbe profile, just Oip [he
template over to trace the other half.)
Follow tile same procedure to draw U
26"1'3di"5 lind 8 IO"-radius are f,II'the profile on Ihe bottom edge, sec fig. 2L
crrnxc TIlE' PROFILE. No"- clamp [he
back panel pieces together and use Lhe
templates to mark the profile s. After
they're marked, cut the edge. to shape

\vith a eabre SA',,, see J."ig. 22. Then sand

the edges smooth and rout a YIII" chamfer
on tbe top and bottom face (front) edges.

r}4

''I fit t

II
.!
,,

." SlUNES

ruSH

~_J.

19
GWESPUHlS
INTO ON!

~.~~
...

!--.....
~

;r.
-J
)

..

.,

COHNKl tAHG(HfS
WITH STRAIGHl UNf

3~~)aR

IOU

-.

~v7
17',,,'_

U:lf ON
ONE fOGf Of
OUfSJOE"[CIS

..

80TTOM_f~QFllf TfMPLAU

RlSTDaAW

o-!

11' ,

'1

-r

0-

r yo ",$l
.J
I

DRA::t,
SHOUlDER 11 "

Jv,t

::::-:....

ro':"

13'.-

:..~

!"GUIlE 2'1

,,I..,,,,

''j

!lACl "OAll

,l

MAJ. SHOUl.OfR

!-

NOTE: CINTtR SCREWS ON

8ACI( 'I(CES OVER10f' AND
IOno,,", SHRVlS

........ ' L

"..

1-

RGURE--2J

M.C~ e8I::!ELP~OF'tE

centered
see Fig.
in place

''''CH

foo

lAI'f f'Osr(1 IOAlO 5OUoUI

W1THlOGE Of UNCH

10' Il

9'.1."

261.

"

SHOULD.R UNE

-~

~,.,

cur

.,

~''::;~

;: CE!""?-....

'<Clt.

- '~j
._
,
-/

GItOOYfONt'

TOPP~OFILETEMPlATE

$101

rOWA,JlOS'INCt

JIO

.0uR! 2G

"4CE

~,

K.(';--QfAM'-(IIEO
00[$

uS<

rom.Of

SAW
.. NCI

~1

..j

".u..
'~-

....."

-1
-'

".

).,.",..:t:I

\VOODSMITIi

lIIlM

\T"t.\CflL."'C;
TilE U.\CK. At thi!C point the
down by

back panel pieces <an be [.. tened

drilling countersunk pilot holes
on the ,..ridth of each back piece,
23. Then screw the back pieces
with No. S x I" flathead screws.

I Wli"

CHT!RKI.'
ON STOCK

c......,.....

I.

CC) off the edg" of a piece of 4/'lstoek. see

'ig. 18. Then glue each spline into olll!l 011'
groo," oJ rocll back piece, see Fig. 19.
Design )0/01<': Since the board. are unsupported at the top and bottom, the
splines are ulK'd to keep the fnees of tbe
boards nuoh - preventing them from
twisting rcrward or backward, However;
they're glued into only one groove to allow
for expansion and contraction.
CL.".t~G BACKTO FIT. Now. place the
back pieces between the Iwo ..ide. on the
assembled wall cupboard. The combined
\\;dth should be too wide to fit. "0 lrim the
two outside pieces until they fit between
the sides, (see Talking Shop. p. 23).
Tf:~IPLATES.To complete the back panel,
curves are cut on the top and bottom

CHAMfla ONl,(
OHllOGt 01
OUTSIDINCH

ftG.U1t[ 17

OU,SID1i~EC:ESExr.A

TllE SI'LINt;S. Now, lip y,.""thick spJil1es

I00'I''
J(NCl

'

THEBACK PANEL

To complete the wall cupboard, I made a

baek panel out of 10 indh'idual ..,Iid-wood
boards. Start by cutting eight pieces of Yo'
stock 3Yt'" wide by 32" long. Then cut. ~\\'O
1T10l'epieces an extra Y.... wide (3%'"wide)
for the two outside pieces, (These pieces

CHAMfER

otI 'Act SlOf.'\.

I,

iHOUlOlI

/f

-+ "'''

._-

~. .--

~-'"
.. ...

_--:;::._

..\ \ ,\:c: .

TlMptAtf/

UNI POS1TM;ltf

'~

-.d?'

AUO.....
D .. '~ '.'
OF
tAac MHtl
FIrOM BOTtOM Of SlOf

CRO~ SECTION
...1_ COUNlUSINI(
lACK A'
PANEL
scaEWS

PI'"

SHElI/

-"""__#i lo I"

,.. wooosca.w

17

fiGUltl24

FRONT

After the back panel is screwed in place.

tbe only parts remaining are the drawers.
FROl'ISA:<I.lSU>t:S. To build the drawers.
start by cutting the four drawer front. (H)
from 414stock so they'", Yo." I than the
width and length of the drawer openings.
Then cut eight drawer stdes (I) out of 'I{
stock to the same widtb 3$ the fronts and
6~"long.
JOL'<&Jn: The drawer fronts and ,ide>
are joined together "ith dovetail tongue
and groove jeims. (See Il'ood.mith No. 31
for more on thi!<joint.) first rut y..-deep
dovetail groeves on lh. back oflhe drawer
front, using a Vol- dovetail bit in lh(.' router
table. see fig. 2.5.
Next. keep the dovetail bit at the same
height and move the renee to rout a tonj!\le
on one end eteaehdrawer sid c.see Fig. 26.
Sneak up on it. taking a little bit off each
side until it just fits the groove.
Th hold the plywood bottom (K) in the
drawer. routstraighl grooves on the in.id.
of the sides and (ront. see Detail in Fig. 24.
Roul through grooves in the side . But in
the front, start and stop the bouom groove
at the dovetail grooves, sec .'ig. 24.
RAISED fRI)'''1'. Aner the joints nre cut, I
used a Sears Panel R"i.ing Bit (No.
9HT.25465) to cuta beveled border 011 each
drawer front, see l,'ig. 28.
THt: OftA'\''''I{ UA(,'K. Now ll\e drawer
back (J) can be cut 10sire. 1'0 determlne it.
length, dry assemble the sides to the front

414

AND SIOijS AU SAMEWIDTH

t'\ .,:l STOCk....

~~~~\!'IH
""")\
OJ DlAWlI
'ItONTS

".

rr'- ~_

~.,":.

BACK ~

--....~ I'" SlOQCl

"

-,

~I"'-

' .;

./

BOTTOM

""

SIDE

(,. ';000

.~/:

GROOVE

~P-Y/
v:;

'"

DETAIL

UNTilt NOtCH
ON L(NGTH Of.,
O.AWE. BACk

... ...._

OUWIt

SI:Ol

SHlAKWON
TONGUl tiNT"
If flfS GROOYt

ItOUl ONE fACE

It

T f(H(l

t~~~
,T

_.1~

1"':

' ..

OOVttAIl III

PR~r'fr"============::::==============~
, ..
~

DO~I1AJ'

i~r~~L
~

I-~-

BOTTOM
PLYWOOD
(CUT TO Al}

'.'

~:'\
i'
I

r-o""." .

'/." V

'-'-..l.
r<1It toTT"'"
-.'TO M,.t.TCH
IIOUIGOOO"'~\
PU'WOOO

It::l...-j

I~~"O'

DRAMI STO'

~GU.E2.
RAISED PANEL

OETAll

i=~1!"'~~N~OT~CHI~..DEEI'

_.'\ .....
_r

..

...
DU.W!:R

~NI

_"",,')::~_

!....r

IJ ~

:.d~~
r
n

StAllS ItAISED
fiANEl&IT
RGUltf 19

BACK CORNE!! DETAIL

l1r""'1
LJ ;

"' f-l.- _to

l-t- ',~.

D~~:R

, r'

It,

18

-)

-T

r
-.

n..c

.'..- ~

.. ONT

6 ..

and measure the distauee between the

sides. sec Fig. 27. Then add
fOlthe two
14".long tongues and cut the back. to Ibis
length and a rough width or "".
Now join the back to the 'ido" with"
tongue/dado joint. see }'1g. 29.
Next, cut the <lrawer bottoms (K) out of
W' plywood to fit. and slide them in place.
Then cut the back to fini.hl!(l "idth se it',
flush with the top or the side. when it',
"""ling on the drawer bottom.
Also. before gluing up the drawer, cut a
~wid. notch centered on the top lodge of
the back for the drawer stop. see Fill. 27.
ORA\\,ER STOPS. The drawer st0l'$ are
simply small wooden turnbuckl that
keep the drawer from pulling oul too rar.
see Fig. 30. Mount tbem to the bottom 'ide
~f the middle shelf.
DRAWER GlaDES. To make the drawer
guides (L). rip eight """wide pleees ju~t
thiek enough so that each drawer fits comrortably when the guides arc glued to the
dividers, These guide. are rut to length to
act as drawer front stops, see fig. 33.
IIASGBRS. Finally. tc mount the wall
cupboard, drill ~" holo. on the back edge
of each side and mount hange .. Over lhe
holes. see fig. 31.
PINISH. To finish the plate rack. I used
Minwa" Puritan Pine Wood ~'ini.h and
lOPped it with two coais of lung oil.

DRAWER

) I:? 7t

....

lOOf'.

--.::::_-_..".~

2.5

DOVETAIL GROOVE
PETAIL
.,J \l~ ....

...",

:n;;.::ss

......

flGut

NOtE: ORAWER fRONTS

tHE DRAWERS

CUT'TONOUi)

To,n$AWi(t.F

..

',. ~

DRAW'. $IO( _

".

ftGURI3'

BACK
~

NOlE,

TO ....,.,..

"'.N

01lAWl
..... W..

"'"
I"IACI<-_'V'

~E'STOf'
_

4I

...

OIVIOll

tOP

r
t

V'EW

GlAWEIt
GUID-LS

_;a" I- OIVIO'.

.
BOTTOM
OF:f."D

O"W"OUIOE-

10....

IS flUSH WrrH OPlNtNG - ..;

WOOD$MITti

Finishing: Stains
A DYING ART
\Vhy on earth would anyone want
If> slain a beautlful piece of hardwood? That's a thOught Ihat goes
through my mind whenever r see
8 can of stain. or especially when I
see the mass-produced furniture
in a. ShO\\TOOm (where the grain
and character of the wood arc
almost totally obscured with
heavy stains and toners),
There.

arc

BOJUe

perfect 11laich for some color or

shade they're rnrniliar with or already havc ona piece offurniture.

Bob Aumann. Technical Sale.
Advisor for the Minwax Company.gets phone ""lis all the time
from woodworker. who are trying to match a color to an existlng
piece or stained wood, He explains that it's next to impossible
to obtain a /)('Ifecl color match
lind better to talk about color

woods that 1

jUotplainrefuse to stain. It would

be almost crtmlnal to stain any
exotic wood. And there are some
domestic woods that are best len
alone to develop their cwu natu ...
raJ COlorand patina us they age.
Cherry is one example ofa weod 1
USllSUy leave alone,
When cherry is ~-e5hl)'cut and
planed, it's a light salmon colornot very interesting. But after
it'~exposed to the ultra-violet

"tones."

ra)IS of the gun fot a couple

Inonths it slowly turns to a deep,

rieh red.
It may Seem quicker to IISC a
stain to create thnt aged coloryears of fake patina ean be added
by a quick wipe with a stain-eoverod mg.
But once the wood is stained. the color will
remain fair))' constant, over time, and it
loses much of ittl character,
However, I'll ndnlit there are times
when [ reach for that can of stain. When
the natural colors of the wood need a little
assistance, or when the style of furniture
(older period piece s, ror example) dictates
a darker oolor.
L"<-'OXStsrE~'TCQI..oRS.1think one ofth.
best uses of slain is to even out ineonslstent, colors. No two boards (even of the
same species) 31"0 the same tone. in rACt.,
color can vary dramatically within the

same piece of wood- between the heart

wood and sapwood.
lf you have to glue up a wide panel u.ing
several diffe.rent boards, the color variations can be very (Iist.nlct.ing. 111 this ruse.
stain can help even out the colors,

theory about that famous blond. Marilyn

llonroe. creating the popularity of this
furniture. I always listen to hi. theory in
its entirety and then tell him to get his
mind back on his drawtngs.)
Staining hn" become so poputar that
wood in iUlnatural color seem. almost odd
to many people. As a matter of fact. many
people who don't work with hanlwood5
assume that oak is naturally golden the
minute it'. CUtfrom lhe log. They're almost
disappointed to find that maple i$n't uarurally honey brown, and cherry lan't naturally deep rod. To hasten nature (mel to "correct" the color of the wood. ~tain i. used to
make the woodlook like the color we think
it should be.
TtlE :;.0'& GA"&. One of the problems
with coloring wood(and one of the biggest
points of confusion) is ~henames given to

stain colors. ftyery manufacturer has an

idea of what color "golden oak" or "brown

mahogany" is. it's even worse with names
ColOringwooo i. "ha~ staining is allabout. like "Earlv American" or "Provincial."
Every period has had its popular colors, [t
The name. are simply mark<ting tools
was golden oak in the early part of this - It's nicer to $A~f "'Earll' American"
century and blood red mahogany during rather than "Number 230." Bul other than
the Victorian era.
that thej'<)'sreally no particular r on for
In lbe 1950' the fad was to bleach wood the names and no consistency {100m manu(even walnut) to obtain alig/d blond color: facturer to manufacturer,
(It's at this point that Dave. one of our
COWR TO~.S. Another <Iosely related
technical illustrato rs, always memions his problem ts that most people want to find a
COLORS

\VOODSMITH

Each piece of wood is different

and changes as it ages. So when
staining wood. I look for a tone I
like. or on. that's compatible \lith
an existing piece of furniture.
As I'm IOOkin,K at. color sampies. I try to pick out the closest
lone to what I want. Let's say I
want something that I would consider fruitwood. If I used the
color samples as guide. this
might be anything from a light
tan.to a reddish brown depending
on the brand of atain.
So the best nppreach is to ignore the names and look for the
lOne that comes Clo.'WlSllOwhat ~tOUwant.
Then ifit's not quite right. look foranother
tone to balance it oUI. A. long as they're
from the same manufacturer and have the
same solvent base, 011(! stnin can be mixed
with the other until you get the tone you
want.
Shop Note: I mix up samples using
table'poons of stain mixed in baby food
jars. I'll start "ith a light color and slowly
add ~ dark colo. Each jar is labelled with
the exact amount ofeach eolor added. Then
when I get the correct tone. I use these
prOI)()rtions to mix up enough in a quart
mayonnai.c jar to complete the project.
One ofthe biggest problem" comes when
~'OUwant to make one wood look like another. For example. oak is on.en stained to
have the color of walnut. mahogany. or
cherry, But one of the rule. of staining ls
no~10~I"'y too far from the natural color.
and don't. b-y t-o force a eolor on a \\'00<1
that's not right for it.
resr s..,IPI.s' Whilebuilding. project.
I'C$CIlC few scraps of wood to use as test
samples before they reach the trash canor in my case get kicked under the table
S:l\V. When it comes time to prepare the
surfaec for finishing. sand these scraps the
same 'Ill the rest of the project.
Then. followthe camp/"If finishing procedure that will be used on the finished

19

project on all of lhese test sample . Stain

the scraps (liff'crcnt colors, and then take
the time to follow up with a top coal.
~1oststainK (especially dye stains) elr)'
much duller than lhey will appear under a
top coat. The resins in vamishes aJ1(1oils

Lots of manufacturers claim to make

pigmented stains that penetrate. But sine.
the pigment~ are filtered out, it's the solvent lha~ penetrate. the wood. not the
pigment.
When you think about it, pigment. are
darken and intcn..-rl(,' colors. The onl)' way really ju..~ colored din - contaminant
to geta true idea of what the color wilt look that's added to the surface. Jr the layer of
like Is to apply the top coat.
pigments is light, some oflhel(l'nin pattern
will still show tllrough. But mllll)' heavily
PIGMENTS AND DYES
pigmented (sometimes called semi-transPart of the conru~ionin staining is Mlmp):: parent) stains hide the grain almost enwading through the variety of materials
tirely, like a light paint.
available to color wood, There are "peneOYS. Dye s. on (he other h..nd. don',
trating oil stains." "pigmented wiplng' hide the grain or character of the wood,
stains," "aniline dyes." "non-grain rait'lng lhey color It. Dyes soak in nnd penetrate
dyes,' "gelled stains," and many others.
the individual wood fibers. Since they acSo, \vhat's the difference between all tually "st.ln" the fiber., they're much
these types of .talns!
more trl\nRpal~nt than pigments.
BasieaUy, all wood coloring materials can
Oy" are some times rel'crrt~1to as "anibe broken down into two main groups.
line dy... " Aniline is a benzene or coal tar
those with pigments. and those v.ith dye s, derivative th.t's used in the manufacture
PIc)IE~TS.Pigments

erals ground

w a very

are opaque min.. of rubber, vamtshes. reslns, 8J\d in this

fine powder nnd held

in suspension in a liquid solvent. - like

bananas in jcll( .
A binder, usunlly varnish, is .1110lidded
to lhe mixture UIhelp lhe pigments "stick"
to the wood a....the solvent evaporates. The
amount of blnder added can val')'. Those
stains that art! called "sealer-atains"
usually contain a higher proportion of
binder allowing them to stain nnd seal in
011epass. But lhC'y also dl"Yslower because
the binder take. longer to dry.
Pigmented .lai"" are 3 surface treat.
ment - they don't penetrate deeply into
lhe wood cells. When the stain is applied
and lhe solvent and pigment mixture soaks
into the wood. the pigments gel mte,'Od
out by the first row of wood cells. The
pigments will.it in the PO''O'and on tep of
the wood to forrn the layer of color.

FI

likely to J!')t blotchy - such as on pine,

maple, 01" birch.
lIut I choose a dye or II dyeJpigment

eombination such as ~fin\\'ax (see box

below) when I want a deeper. richer oolor
that accents the grain -such ason butternut, oak. or ash.
Whether it's a pigmenl or a dye, the
staining agent has to be dissolved in n
liquid medium: oil. water, or alcohol, Each

has it'$

0\\"""

advantages and disadvan-

tage~.
PIGMENTED OIL STAINS

The mest common stains on the market are

pigmented oil stains. Duffy's, Carver
1\1[",'5, Ace Pigmented Wood Stains, and

Senl.. Open Hearth Stains

<II-e all example.

of pil(1l1ented oil stain . They're made of
pil(1l1.nts and a binder that are held in
suspension in a petreehemleal (oil)sol\ent.

~uehas mineral spirits.

AI PI.1CATfON. To apply n pigmented oil
stain I use an inexpensive sponge brush,
The br ....h shouldn't be dripping wet, but
wet enough Cor the ~tain to flow out without excessive brushing on the wood surfaec. Sometimes I use 3 Q.Tip to get, into
1

l'tGMNTI! VS. DYES. Okay, 80 how can

you tell if a stldn is a pigment 0" a dye? The

easiest. way it; ~imply W open the call.
PigmCJIltl!lttle out and build up as sedimeet on the bottom of the can. They need
UI be .~im.d before and oeeasion.Uy during use. Dye. are dissolved in the $01"en~
and thet<: should be little or no sodiment on
the bottom.
Geol'ge P,.nk in his book Advelltures in
Wood INlli8/';IIY deseribes the differenoe
between u~ing dyes and using pigments
"like the difference between getting a deep
suntan and USing makeup to imitate 000."
Whioh is actually better - .tain. with
pigments or those with dyes? A. a general
rule [ use pigmented stain. wherever I

want a uniform color 01' when the wood

grain isn't. too spectacular. J'd uleo recom-

tight corners and molding,;.

Bnhth with the gnin and whenever pessible, till the work SO the surface being
6tained is horizontal. If there are. number
of vertical surfaces, .t.Hrt at the bottom
and work up. This allow. any runs UI be
wiped and blended into the already stained
surf aces. It also helps to St_3t the middle

of a surface and \\'ork

so excess stain
over the edges.

lO\\'artIs

the outside.

doesn't collect and drop

WIt'INC O,','TII& EXC,:;;s.Ifthe stain is to

be wiped (sometimes It's called a wipillg

slain). allow it to si( on the surface for 5 to

a closer look at Minwax

l've always liked using lIlinwa, W,,<J<lFin-

ishe-s, but l've never been qulte sure \\'11:'1

they're c.aUed n 1"\'00<1finish" rather than a
t'taill. I've al:-iO \vonciered

case, dyes.

mend a pigmented stain on weeds that are

'\'h~'
only t'o<uncof

don't, he explained that some colon; (N~.

contains mineral lipirill' that dissolve
21013. 2U, 2716, 218, 27IS, and 2760) are the resins.
tranSI)Rl'Cllt and only contain <l)ol(>t) (oil ~olNote: Dontt use l)luin 1l1ineral spiJits LJI
ubI. dye.). The other 0010.. are wh.L he \\i~ off dlips or ruhl:' 0.' ~lrCasthat havo

the Min",a" colo", ,...m to settle 10 the

bottom ofthe elIn. while other oolon. don't.
I finally d~id('d to give Bob Aumann 0(
~lin"..1lX a call to qu(,~n<:h
my curio~ity. Bob

called 'ma._king colol'$" and oontam both

dyes and pir:m.n~. (It'. th.,. that
we gunk in the boUom of the can. I How-

thick.ned

ever, since alIltlin\\1l.'( eolot'l\ arc dissol\'ed

in the Snnl(! solvent, they can be inter-

and the surface "ill look bright and unifornI, il dilutes the color. After the wiped

[)ccouse it eontain~ a highe" per.c~tuge of

r<)sin. than ",allY stains. (Regnl'(lIe of

mixed to got different shade .

the name, it doe~nft contain \va.x),

apply. I follow lhe direclioll~ on the elIn and

Because of lhtse resins. Min\\'RX cJaintS

their \\'00<1 rini,h"Oaks in and ;eal. in one
step. Ho\\"e\'er, the)' admit that ror proj.

u..o;;e a rak or

said that ~('n\"oxis called a \\'(,)0(1tinish

eels thatC!om~in contnct 1\.ith \\'eal~(Iirt. or

moisture (which [ consider just about ,my
project), ~ top coat should be added ov~r
the ~fillWax sl.in .

\\'hen I a~k(.a(1him \\'h,:\' ~mC' M ill\\'l\x

rolors settle out of solution \\'hen others

20

ha,.

APlll~\'IS(; O'IIN\VA.\.X.l\1in\VAX

roam

Il! ea.sy l'o

brush and ti08k the sur

Cace. Let it penetrate for 5 to 15 minutes

and th.n \\ipe off all the ""irluc.

~Iinwnx1~a sloy.. dr)';ng st1tin (~'l~

of the reoin <ontent) so lap mark~ ure n.L a
problem. nul if the humidity i. low, lhe
stain (aotIl811)'the resins) ran j(otl(Ummy
befOre it can be wiped off. If this happens.
l'e+v,'et t.he ~urfac:e\\'ith more ~lin\\'ax- it.

because the .tain has spilled

ov\'r (rom another

:o:urface. Although min~

c_.ral1'Ipiri~ "-ill elean up the problem are~
n"l.'!l has dried a couple hours, it will be

much lighter thall the SU"''<lundingurea.

I S':(,ONIJ COAT. After the staln drie.
eompletcly (12-24 hoW'll), t he color may
look pal. ond lhere rna)' be 'poLS ",nere the

stain ha...,nt penetrated

e\'e-nl}', Then, a....

thedirection3 ~ugg.. t. al>plyalight second

cont and wipe it off. The R,",ondcoat bring.
the color lip and tends to soak into tho ..
spot. lhat did not t~kc the first couto
Finally. I always finish iLo(("ith a top tonI

or tung oil or varni~h.

\VOODS~UTH

20 minutes before wiping. (Check the in-

OIL SOLUBLr DYfS

structiens on the can slnee t he amount of

varnish added and Ihorefore the drying
time varies from brand to brand). Then,

use a clean, lint-free rag to wipe in the

direction of the groin. Sometimes I'U use
Q.TiJl" ora dry bristle brush to soak up any
extra stain in eorners 01' tight. spots.

The amount of pigment len on the sur-

fa.., or in the pores erthe wood (and therefore the intensity of the eolor) is controlled
by IWO factors: 1) Ih. amount of time left
before wiping - the long.. ' the time. the
d.rk.r t he color, and 2) how hard the surfnoo Is wiped - the harder it'. wiped. the
lighter the color.
Don't try to stain and wipe 8 large surrace (such as a d.. ktop or tabletop) a seetion at a time. The stain ma,y be applied
heavier or sit longer on one area thao an ..

other \\1bich results in (liffe-rent. shades, If

this happens, a second c()n~may solve the
problem, since it difl.~olv('l,otthe first coat.
GEllED STAINS

I've had some good experiences with

gelled stains. They eontain pigments suspended in a heavy-bodied oil mixture. One
of the advantages of thi> approach is that
Ihe pigments don't settle 10 the bottom of

the can. So, as the stain i~

used, the color
remains consistent-It clO{'SIl't get darker
1\11 you get to the bottom of the can,
However; 011 the n(!,w,tl"(1 side, gelled
stains are much more difficult to mix to get
a certain tone.
The thickness of the gelled stains varies
from brand to brand. WoodKale Gelled
Stains, for example, are like Vaseline petroleumjeUy but Formsby's Wiping Stains

In addition to pigmented Qil~lllins, there

are powdered aniline ,IYC8that can be dis-

the eolorft when the)t come in eontaet with

tannic acid in the wood.)
The basle "rule of thumb" for measuremcnt" ifJ 1 oz. powder to 1 qt. hut. water,

solved in oil solvents such a~ IUCqlICI' thinncr, naphtha, and turpentine, or in finishing materials such as tung oil. varnish. or

(Nole: The various dye colo,'. differ in

'\'eight, KGyou can't use volume ru; an indi-

Danish oil.

another.)
If. darker shade is desired, ndd more
powder. II a lighter shade i. desired, more
water, J fa different hue i~
desired (fi,uch as
red mrlhOl(anybeing too red), nnother dye
(fol' example, brown mahOJ.,'1U1Y) can be
added.
Aft(!r the aniline dye mixture hns cooled,
pou,' il through a filter or piece of chee....
cloth to fltrdin out an}' undissolved dye,
Then keep the mixture stored in an airtighl gI...., or plastic container.
APJ'I~YI'G,\ \\'ATER SOLL'UI.M 1)\',.:. Dyes
soak inlo the wood and don't need the

)1

\1\.: VQI;R O\\'S, \'00 ~u811~'

can't run

down to your local paint or hard ware store

and buy oil soluble powdered aniline dyes.

(Though some of the Atinwax Wood Ptni,hes and someoflhe other brands labelled
IICncu.ting,oil finishes nctually are a solu-

tion of dyes in mineral spiritM nndreslns.) I

usunlly send away for Ihe powdered dyes
from one of the mail order suppliers listed
in Source. on p. 24.
I've been experimenting with mixing my

O\l..n colors in a solvent !Ouch ft... mineral

"Pigments are suspended in a liq~tidsotvent ... like

bomamas i?t jello. Dyes at'e
c01npletely dissolved, they
penetrate and actually
'stain' the fibers."
spirits,

u makes a penetrating

stain with

wide color choice that's slow drl'ing and

won't I<UlvC lap marks.
'1'0 get a tone that's similny to Minwax's
Golden Oak for example. I mix I oe, of J.
E. M"""r's Golden Yellow Oak Oil Soluble
Aniline Dye and 1 qt. of mineral spirits.
WATlR SOLUBLE DYES

and Behlen's Gel-Stain arc like \\a:t..elj\ Morc common than the oil soluble d)'os are

cation

of quantity

\,rjpinJl' that. pigmented

from one color to

stains do. But some

strange things can happen.

In filet, it's

easy to panic after applying. watersoluble

aniline dye and allowing it to dry.
The t'Olo" thaI initially goes on i. very
close 10 the color the dye \\;11 be once iI'S
covered with a topcoat. However, as it
drie . the dye will lose it's brillianee and
even ~h.Rnge colors. A brown ma~' turn

green and )'ou'U think you've ruined your

whole pmject. JUSI put a lop eOllt 011 and
the eoler will come back,
I usually apply water-soluble dye. with a
wide .pengo brush or rag. '10 darken the
cclor,l1 second coat can be applied afte,the
first eoat iJ< completely dry. By applying
more eoats, it will continue to darken,
Be.idea having to nLse the grain, I've
had one m'lior problem with w81.,. soluble

holfmclted jello. (Now: The trucker ones

ean build up in corners Bll(1 moterings and be
difficult to wipe out of .ome projects.)
The advantage of the_. slow drying gels
(Ii the}t'J'e eas~tto wil)C on \vilh a rag, espe-

the powd", ...d aniline dy.s that arc made to

be ,1I olved in wate1: 1110Y Ilrovide the

dyes - they {IOn'l settle do'\'1' \'er~'\\'ell

into lh(' o)(!n gI'3.in of oak an(llI~h,'rhere
arc little "llOl.$where the dye l'('rU.eS t.q

(leepclll, ,\ridt!st valicty, clearesl, and most

l>ennnllcnt colors available, The)"re inexpensive. <lry reJatively quickly, and won't

penet,-atO. These spots stand oUI white

against th. sl.1ined baekground.
At\or talking 10 a number of finishers

cially on vertical surface!', You also don't

have to W0rTY about spilling it all o,'er as

bleed inlo lop coats.

Sounds like the perf""l 51ain, rillhl? 111
have 10 admil, they do .. und appealing.

and manufacturers.

you work. Lap

mar"'- aren'l

a problem

since llOU can "'ork in just the area

\,'anl an<l the gel \\'on'" drip or run.

)'OU

LATEX STAINS

Lutex stain. became llOpular a few ye...,..

ngo \vhen fini$her$. like eve''Yone else.

bct:ame coneerned aboul the chemicals in
the products they wcre working with.
Latex stains are en\,jronmentall!o' safe,
"'on't emit fumes. and ~et\S)' lO clean up.

Den. is the mo.st eomroon brand and it.'s

onc of the only pigmctll.(."(1stains that \'{on't

Un, under Deft Clear Finish

(a lacquer).

AIthough late~stuins cl'etlt{!. a uniform

8ul'fnce, the pignlcnts !:lit. fl.0 hen\'tily on the
surface that the color iii very cloudy and
Ihe grain is almost entirely hidden. I reel
the disadvanlages of Ihi~ cloudy, hea"Y

color oul\'iteigh the 3<lvantages.

WOODSMlTH

But like an)'thing, lhe)t have a m~ordisad\'nntage - the}' raise the grain. \Vhen a
water dye contacls a f,'C.hly planed and
~an{Ic<1iiurface, the \\food nbcl':' 8\\'011 and
8umd right up like three days' gro"~h of
whi$kcrs.
R.t\ISI~CTIlE GRAlS. Th~ WA)' to prevent.

lrus problem is to purposely mi8e the grain

with elear water and knock orr the "whiskenl" bifort! applying the dye. Wipe tne
enlire .urfa"" with a damp Aponge and
allow two hours drying time. Lighlly sand
orr the raised whiskers lind fil1llllyapply
the dyo.
PR":I'ARING \V..\TER SOl.UU!.I'; I)Y.;S. Alli ..

line po,vder dyes m'e soh.l in It 4,0)'8 oz.

env~lopc8,jars. and cans., I nlix them up in
a quart ma~"on~jar.(Never U~ a metal
containcr since the metal '"'ill contaminate

l'\'e dil'Coov~red that

everyone _mo to have this problem, but

no On(" seems to ]moy: \\1l~'it OCCU~. or
whal to do about it - eXC<lptto not use
wawr .. Iuble dyes on oak or ash.
ALCOHOL SOLUBLf DYfS

Ifit weren't fo" the problems of raising the

groin and not soaking into oak and ""h
pores, water soluble dyes would be great.
Alcohol soluble aniline dyes .. he these
problems (alcohol ,,"on'l raise the grain).
bul ereate now problems.
Alcohol .. Iuble dyes (sometime. called

spirit

8tains)

aJso come a~ a po\vder.

'l'heil'O dissolved in wood alcohol (meth

anol) in the sanle

1~1'Uleof

t.humb" gunntit.v

(stllrt Ollt by trying 1 oz. powder to I ql.

.Ieohol).
BUIthe problem with alcohol dyes is Ihat
they dry almost instantly. This means they
don't soak in very deep, and lap marks are

2l

a constant problem. Lap marks occur anywhere Ih. dye starts to dry and then a
second pass is made over the dry spots.
lValeo used to bave a line of aleobolbased Pi\'. ~linute Stains but discontinued
that lin. a eouple years ago . .llany woodworkers withou; spra)' equipment found
that they dried so quickly that they were
dimcult to brush on,
But alcohol dyes are good for touch-up

work.

FOJ"

example. if I'm rubbing out a

tOI' cont and rub right through the finish

and the stain <Io\lvn to the bare wood, I use

an alcohol A!.tunto repair it. Tbe alcohol

provides cnoujth "blte" to help the <lye

penetrate Ih,'Ough II sealed surface,
NGR STAINS

Il would be I,.,,,at if stain could be developed that had all of lhe beautiful color
charaeteri"tiCl' of a water soluble aniline
dye, but wouldn't rai se the grain like the
aleohol soluble. It has. II's called a nongrain raising stain (or NGR stain for short)
and eome. in a pre-mixed liquid form.
~GR slain. use the same Iightfast ,
transparent. and clear (lyes as the water
soluble aniline dye~ but 3 special (and,

according to the manufacturers, secret)

solvent that won't raise the grain. I use
Bohlen's Solar Lux NGR stains and get
excellent results (see Sources, p, 24).
So what'. the pr-oblem? Why isn't
everybody II81np:NGR stains? There's one
cnteh. The sol"cnl dries quickly - not as
fast as alcohol 8talns, but almost. So there
remains the problem of lap marks. Once
again. it's best to spray it on.
Behlen has recognized the problem of
applying NCR stains with a brush or rag
and ha< developed a retarder that slows
Ihe e\'al>oration of the solvent. Adding
Solar I.ux Retarder (6-10%) slows down
dJ;;ng time and helps prevent lap marks,
I also apply Solar Lu., very weLand keep
a weI edge. If you're stingy. youll get lap
marks.lfyoudogetalapmarkoraecident
Iy hit your cloth Onan area already .tained,
II)' putling ""me nIeohol on a clean doth

Andgo ove,' t.he area to even out the m.vks,

PROBLEMS

1'hc biggest problems that develop when

I'm staining usunlly don't have anythinll to
do with t.he stain. They bave to do with the
\\I1'Y

{,he surratt'

\\'as prepared

(see the

8'tiele on Surface Preparation in Wood

8milll No, 38),
Staining magnifie8 all the problems that
shOUld have be<-n cleaned up .... lier. If
there's glu. left on the surface, there \\;U
be S<'aled white _pots aner it's slained. If
there are 8C'I'atch~.grain tear~ut, dents,

A eoarse r !(lit sandpaper scratches the

wood, opens up the cell walls, and creates
whiskers Ihat so p up ..xtra stain. Stopping
at SO!(lit sa ndpaper, for exampl e, and then
staining will result in a much darker and
seratehed up surface than a surface that's
been sanded up to 22Q.grit,
On rbe other hand, sanding too far beyond 220 will burnlsh the surface and

close orf tbe A'l'nin. Stohl won't soak ill and

Ihe colo,' will be light 0" blotchy.
Jo:NI)GIt,\IN, Another
problem is end
J.Tl"ain,r.{~tof' the time end grain is where
you expect it (on the end of the board) and

the (lark nppenranee it luke$. on when it's

stained is almost natural. But sometimes
end grain turns UI) where you don't expect.
(or WAnt)it. This happens on the beveled
borders ofraiSl"d panels, lathe turnings, OT
where grain switches dlreetion.
Grain i. rarely .lraight in a board. It
usually rolls along like 8 gentle farm field.
Vccasionally it make" sharp turn outward (such at! a knot and the surrounding

planer tear-out). Allor a sudden you're

working with end ~in in the middle of a
boanI. Stain soak." in unevenly and you get
a blotchy ap""arnnce - pines, maples, and
birches aTC notorious for this.
SEAI..I~(: TO I.I~IITrf:NE"'RATIO~.In
th ese s lt uat luns s e n le rs such as
McCloskey's Staiu Coruroller and \Vood
Sealer can be brushed onto these areas
before titailling, nUL J usually just use a
wash coat,ofdilul<' 8h.llae- I part3lb. CUL
while sheline to 4 1'81'18denatured alcohol.
If Lsuspec; lhat the whole surface might
be blotchy, I eoatthe entire surfacewirh an
cvttl coal of shellae scaJer, ""hen it's drj',

22

application o( scaler \\;th an artist's brush

on the selected are ... is all that's needed,
SANDINC; TO LI!)IIT I'.:SETRATION,

An-

other sohnion to the problem is simply

more thorough sanding, I've discovered
that sanding about two grits further-on end
grain will result, In a lighter color, For
example, if I finish nd the project with
lSOgrit, )'11go back lind sand the end grain
wit h 200'gril nnd then 220I\")il.
The finer sawdust eloKStil) t he pores and
the scratches are smaller and soak up less
stain. It's usually just the rigbt depth of
color to match the reilt of the project,
CONCLUSIONS

In choosing 8 Slain. you need to decide if

you want a unironnl,' colored surface that
eon be easily eontrolled. but without much
depth (pigmented stains) ...
or some

depth, and some unitormit}' (penetrating

oil/dye stains like ~lin\\'ax) . , , or a brilliant transparent surface that accents the
grain but can be more tiiffic:ult to control
(aniline dyes and NGR .!IItains),
Part of the fun of working with all of

these stains is experimenting with mixing

colors and concentrations and not l'el)rUlg
on the standard pre-mixed colors.
But. it's hnporL:111t to remember that
stains arc not Jini$hcs,1'hcy can't (10it all.
They're. simply 1\ IneUI1S of ehanging the
color or bringillg' out the grain, The wood is
still subject to heal. moisture, and dht anti
must be finished \\'ith a top coat.

the .urillee and tend. 10 hide grain. Pro-

Com~ in a \'ariet~'of colors. Good penetra

lion, E3>yappliealion, butcanrunanddrip.
\\'ATER SOI~l'ljl
: 1)1, ~lost common of

\ides unif'onn color, but $tir \\'ell to mix up

the po\\'(Jert><) aniline <Iyes. Clear, traJ1s..

O.)I,l.(::I) STAIN. PigJllcnts ij\18]>cn(led in

gel (llsunlly I'lboUL the consi.stcnc~tofjello),
Pjgtll~nt:;
\von't sQttJe to bottOlll of can so

before applic1\Lion. 111~ufficient penetra

you gel con~i8t(:nt colm' th,'oughout use.

line dye thal i. mixed with methanol.

Ver:'!' eas~''ll)plication.

Can be problem. wiping out of moldings.

Sometilnes call~cl "spirit stains, 'I 'Von't

J-ruse the grain, t)ri~8 vc_r~'
quickly \\'hich

eomc1"~. Difficult to 'nix eolor'$,

nlakes it difficult to a"oid lap marks unless

:<TAl".Cloudy, hea\'y color \\;th

Uttle ""n.tration. lIide><grain. ~o har.sh
chemical$. EMY water c1ean~up.

it"s applied \\'ith flprn~'l~llipment,Doesn't

penetrate \'cr)' d('{p. Bc!'t tor touch"up
work,

PIG~I.;''T.!I'()I'. ST.\IS,

Ranges from

hea\')bodied to thin and nann}', Lies on

parent, peI11lanCJ\l, colors, \Vide range ot

pigments. Easy to apply. Slow drying.
Wi"" o(f to cont,'ol color. Best ror re- colors th~\Lcan be cattily mixed, Inex
finishing work and on Ii{(htcolored woods. pensive, Will not bleed into top coat. No
with Iitlle grain (I,ine, maple). IVatch for ha,mful chemical. 0" ."I"ents needed, R.,.
nillS [lful dli~.Colot'lJ call be mixed,
quit"s the extl':I .lep of raising the I(l'ain

no drll>R OJ"runs,

LATEX

t.ion in pol'es of oak lInd

(181 ..

AIOlfOI,SOI.L'IJ1.Y.I)YJ::. PO\\'(iered ani-

xo~GRAIS ItAISISG (~GR) ~'TALS.f're..

mb:ed aniline d)o'e (liimilttr to \\'ater d}'e)
sold in liquid fonn Ihat won't raise the
grain, En.:;.)'to mix colol"'5. Dries quickJ)',
but I'elanler ean "" adeled ror brtlSh appU

cation to prevent lAP marks,

WOODSM1TH

If

SUMMARY

OJI. SOl.L HI: 1)\ t:, D)"C mixed in an

oilba,s(odsolvent (lacclucr thinner. mineral
spirits), Tran."il>arcnt llin\\"3..x colors are
darker Ihan the rest of the surface,
one ex;unpl('. t\1!;() u\'ailable in powdered
llANU'SC, And if the wood is not saD<led (oml to make ~'ouro\\'n stnins. Po\\'der can
uniforml)', the stain \\'ill soak in uneven1)"
be mixed \\'ith oil finigh4,!$an(1 \'aJ'nishes,

or mill marks, the pigments or dyes \\;U

:;;cllledo\\1\ into th~ spots and color them

I'll ...,ff it with 22Q.!(lit sandpaper and

then apply a eoat of pigmented oil stain,
BUl ir il'ili just end grain such as on the
beveled borden; of a raised panel, a careful

.. ___

Ta_lk_in_g Sho~

AN OPEN FORUM FOR COMMENTS AND QUESTIONS

The same goes Cor a protective (ace
mask. It's not $0 much the protection

I tnjoytd youramele ill Wood.mith No. ~8

011 tI,t jire hazard of s.IIding d'l$l. and I
ag ree ,vilk you Ihat tlu: /itst solidum lolhil!
problem is to kee; yoltr .'wp 08 CWaIl as
7108Mbl
e, I alway. lry to kcep (/16 dust 'ill

against the chip that might ny in my eye

and cause damage. It's the chip that hits
me on the cheek and causes me to mneh
wpen I'm light in the middle of a cut.

As the boards are mounted, place three

playing cards between the shoulders of
each of the spline and greove joints. This
should provide adequate spadng for the
wood to swell during the humid summer
months,

l1wllaueablc levels, ,wt

ollly 10"reuelll afire /",:ard, bitt 10 ... duce
what I feet is an evt .. more dangerous
'Ia:ord - i,!haling th ou:du.t 1>11
0 reg",

WOOD MOVEMENT

HOME BREW

Every tlme you use solid ~'00<1ror a project. you have to be aware or weod move-

The easiest way to get a pigmented oil

stain isjust to buy it. Butsomctimes [can't
find the exact color I want. It's.t these

WOODWORKING

DUST

11&1/ shop luitJ"tl

o.

ment -

the expansion and contraeuon

0'(

lor ba.iIl.
I hat,. U> admit I'm .. guilty
anyont
lor nol ,,'tOTing 0 dll$l ",ask twrylul1el'm

wood during seasonal changes in humidity.

When the humidity is high, wood (even
pieces finished with varnish or polyurethane) will absorb moisture from the

11,,'lIen,itl8 little to
thick as smoke,

low (usually winter months) the wood will

i" tit. shop, But !It. Q)I~ time I all""ys

make a poi,d of lIIori1t1lD,dust 1I111skis air

sa,td. The dust

gets {IS

Tlte masks I've fOlltld thai work the b t

art calttd d,m re3piralora a"d are ap
P'rO.'tdby NIOSH (NotiO>lall1l.titutefo,
Occupatio""l Softly and H.. IIII).
Th respirat_ are ouite a bil differ.
C'I.lfromtil6lypical hard..., ....stor mask..
thai leak mort air (a lid dust) around tI..
cdg()IJtho" tirrouglt tltejilter. Not ollly do
1/.... cspira/o,..
thicke"fillers, Qui t/wy
.1.0"8. 0 doub/~ 8!?'(t1l "I/.Iem that cr""(6.
a(/J.cti~. seal arollnd tit. mask,
Tilt ollly 80"ret r.t ben ble tofilld.JOr
tht.t ",ask" a,.. saftly ,,,pply .1(1n$. (I
{oulld Owrlocal *"pptitr blll001'1ng umur
Sqfttll Eqllip"lCli in the Ytl/o,o POg68).
AWlo,,!!" they're good, Iltey',.. also er-

.1$.

nnd expand, Then when tho humidity is

release moisture and contract,

How much does wood move? That's the

big question, As a general rule of thumb

you can count en kiln-dried wood (that has
been dried down to about 1'>1' moisture

content) moving about ~"per lZ- in \\1dth,

or about 1% in a typical home environ.

ment,
Noto: This illthe shrinkage fO"kiln-dried
wood. Air ..dried lumber 1l1't!l:Icnts another
problem. Air drying "ill usually only take
the moisture content down to about 14%
to 16<;>.
When it's brought indoora (especially

times I mix m)'

O\\"D..

Mixing up a "home-brew" pigmented oil

stain is not all difficult as it may sound, And
it can be a lot cheaper than buying a dozen

caU$ or V:lriOU5 colors or stain to fi1ld the

one you like.

Whell Ifil'Ststarted experimenting with

mixing my o' vrn stains, my greatest reser"anon was mixing the colors, 1 envisioned
an artiot'$ pallet with a dozen ba:;i. colors
and mixing them to produce subtle varialions until I found precisely the right color.
But it's not really like that. You're not
starting with basic colors like red, yellow,
01'

green, Japan colors and artists' oils

come in shades that are already very close

to many tltain colors.

Per example, burnt umber is very close
to a (ruitwood tone. YellO\\"ochre is a tannish yellow that will provide a light pine
during the winter), it "'ill have much
color. Burnt sienna is the reddish brown
greater initial movement as it dries dO\\1JI that comes close to many of the stains

labeled mahogany or cherry, And Van

Dyke is " dark walnut color.
i.t box 0{00, alld. c081 aba,,190",Jerma$k,
By choosing one ofthcse eetors lind then
IIII! i!yo1l:rc 9&;1I9to 7",t "p with 'Wa" in Bruce Hoadley's book, U"dI7'Biatldil1f/ adding dabs of another color; it' 'elalively
Wood, (See Sources, page 2<1,)
CJlsyto obtain the shade yeu want. [f you
i"g a dusl mosk ill '''.{;''81 place. Ih.lea8t
it ton. do ia'u:ork.
\Vood movement was a mnjo)' considerawant to experiment, here's a formula that
when we were designing the wall cup- will produce about one pint of stain that is a
Thoma Greenlee lion
board
shown in this issue (see page 14). medium bJ"OY,ncolor (somewhat JlimiJar to
St. LoJ.i.s, .Jlissouri The back
is made of 10piC<Ct\0(solid wood.
Min,\'sx'" Earl)!' American Slain).
Ediwl"s NotA!:After reading Mr. Green- eaeh 3"'" wide. Since each board is
10 make the stain, add 2 tablespoon. of
lee's letul; we bought. box of the 3M (astened to the she1ves y:ith s.crc\\'S ceo .. burnt umber Japan color w I cup ofturpen
home insulation dust reSI)il'at.ol'S #8710,
t.er<.'(i on the "tidth, \\'0 were concerned
tine and mix thoroughly. Then "dd Y, cup
a"d \yere impresSE:d \,Iith ho\\! \\fell they with the wood expanding "nd buckling 'he
boiled linscod oil and I tablespoon of val"
work. They do cost mOI'O, but we f~el piece. at each joint.
nish (not polyu,ethane). (1'hc v",'nish
they're \yorth it.
'Ye built this project ill the .ummel', 50 serve~ as n binder, holding the pigments to
1'here's ene other thing I'd like to men the wood is already at it's wide.t on the
the wood as the turpentine evapornte . )
lion about the safety IututrdJs concerning expansion/contraction
Starting \\;th this basic mixture, it's just
cycle. As \\'e
sawdust. r know the obvious thing is thst
mounted the boards, we pushed them
a matter of experimenting to get the tone
you're breathing in dust thatmay be harm tog1!ther with light pressure, Howe,'er, if de~ired, This mixture can be lightened to a
ful to your lungs, aut there's another
we had built this projec1. in the "int"r, the
"fruiIWood" color by using leas bunll urn
problem.
boards should be laid out with gtIl'" wallow
berO tbop, in,t.,.d of2tbsp.), or darkened
When I'm working on the saw or router
for 8ummenime e~pansion.
by adding" dab of Van Dyke.
table, I'm usually not so concemed about
Using the 1% rule of thumb, there
You can even start \~tit.ha diffel'ent. base
breathing the dust and harming my lungs. should be aboula V.. "gap between each of mixtuI'C by using a diffCl1lntJapan <'Olor,If
But I am co_med
about b.1lathing the 31{,"\\;de board. 1'he easiest way to gauge
you Wl,nt a \\'wnut stabl, start. "'ilh Van
dun and sneezing ... eSJ)<!eiallywhen I'm this gap i. with plajong card . The com Dyke. If you want a eherry .. ain, start
right in the middle of. cut. That hapJ)<!ned bined thickness of three playing <Md. is with burnt sienna. Then just experiment
to me once. Now I wear a dust mask.
wilhin a few thou.<andths of ~ .
to g1!t the color you want.
pe1JlJive'/'l.Oltrarca.

\VOODSM1TH

tJtCU'rcQl'lyavail<tble

to the level of most homes, Then it will

begin it's seasonal movement cycles.

'l'hc best explanation I've seen on this is

23

Sources
986-4~17 (Catalog: $2.50). \Vood finishing
Supply has 8 eomplcte line of Behlen stains
and products including 15 Minute Wood
Stains, Stainte. Wood Toners, Gel-Stains,
NGR Stains, aniline dyes, and Japan

be patient as it might take him awhile [0

lind the time to send it OuL
You can order the India and Arkansas slip
MINWAX COMPANY.INC.. 102 Chestnut
stones mentioned in the article from:
Ridge Plaza, Montvale. NJ 07645. Min,,'3'
Tiff: FINS TOO~ SIIOI'S. I.'C .. 20 Backus
has a toll-free phone number to call with
Avenue, Box 1262, Danbury, CT 06810; colors.
questicns about their products.
It's
800-243-1037 (Free catalog). india .thne,
The speeltle p''<l<luCIlI
listed in our article 800-026-0495.
medium, Order No. 600-1229. $4.95. AT- on stains thnt AI'C avallable from Wood
In 'Thlking Shop, (pllge 23) we made refkO"lIS(l.8 8tO"O, super fine, Order No.
Finishing' Supply include (see catalog for erence to Japan CQlo,'I'\ and artists' oils.
500-1230. $7.95. You can order both stones colors):
Japan colors lire nVllilllble from Wood Finin et, Ordel' No. 5001231, $10.95. Each
B,lIIe,,'. Gel SI. ill. $5.39 per pint, $3.68 ishing Supply and Wood~'inishing Enterstone measures 2Y,,' x 'hi" x 'VIIi",
PCI' qUR,1. J. E. Mo.c.'. Gold,," Yellow prises. Artisti\' oils arc available in
You can order the Japanese water slip Oak Oil Soluble Aniline Dye, Order No. toothpaste-style tub es (usually 1.25 fl. oe.)
stones mentioned in the article from:
Ll990, $3.00 perl 07.., $7.52 per 4 00.. from art supply store . Common brand
\,tOQIlI ..INK: TI'F; JAPA.", \\OOD\VOltKf;R.
$12.64 per 8 oz. Behlen' Sol...T LIl-" names are Liquitex, Bellini, Grumbaeher,
1731 Clement Avenue, Alameda. CA (NGR) Sloi" 35.39 per pint. $8.61 per and Windsor & Newton' s. Prices range
94501; (415) 621-1810 (Catalog: SI.5O). quart, $21.91 per gallon. Bell"''''. Solar from $2 to $7, but earth oolors (the siennas
1{)()() Gril JoptJ"tJst WaitT Slip. Order No.
LIl" Retard." Order No. B5QO.OOA2ii, and umbers) are the loast expensive,
01.100, $4.95. 4{)()() Grit JaptJ."",< Water 35.11 per pint. B.hl"I. JaptJlI Colors,
GOOD lOOKS
Slip. Order No. 01.101. 35.95.
$6.38 pcr ~ pint. $15.00 per quart.
TilE WOOIl"ORKf:HS' STORE. (see adIn the artiele on ~taining \VC used a quoUMBRILLA STAND/PlANTER STAND
dress above). The Woodworkers' Store
tation from George Frank'. book Ad,,,n
Vou can order the flexible veneer for tbe carries a complete line of Minwax prodIII,..,S ill Wood F'n!ohi"y. Tho book isn't
umbrella stand and the planter stand from ueis, Deft stains, wat er and alcohol soluble the most practical fini~hing book available,
the following source:
aniline dyes, Wood-Kote Gelled Stains, but it makes (or great reading. Frank in
8011 ~lon(:I\N\rrOOV\VonKlNG surrl.L SS.
McCloskey Sealers, and other finishing eludes tips and stories from nft.y years of
1123 BRrdswwn Road, Louisville, l(y products.
wood finishing and it's one of those books
40204; (602) 456-2646 (Catalog: $1.00).
The specific products listed in Our artide that's just, fun to sil down and read.
#...
F'1.",ibleVen.cr. Hill cut, SI>Celfyred oak or that are (l\loilnble f)'Olll/JTJ\C \Vood,yorkers'
It's available in )'fiJ'(lcOVCI' for $9,95 from .. "
white oak (or sec catalog for other species
Store include (see catalog for colors):
The Taunton Press. 6.~South Main Street,
and prices): 24" x 48" (for umbrella stand),
Mi",,,,,,,, Wood Fini.", $3.80 per ~ pint, Box 355, Nc w t cw n , c'r 06470;
$17.85; IS"x 48"(for planter stand), $13.65. $5.751>.r pint. $8.25 pel' quart. DeftVinyl 800-24$-7252,
([Aur) lVood Slo;',. $5.35 per pint. $8.25
InTalking Shop (1Iag<)23) we mentioned
WALL CUPBOARD
PCI'quart. Wood-Kale G.lled Wood S/4;'I$, the book Under.',"uJing Wood by R.
Vou ean order the hardware for the wall $4.30 per 8 0e., $6.50 per pint, $9.95 per Bruce Hoadley. It's one of tho most useful
cupboard (rom:
quart. McClo.key. Stoin Controue & books we know of for information about
rne W()(),)WORKERS' STORE. 21S01 InlI'ood Sl'Olcr,Order No. P1241, 35.75 per wood technology (espcclally problems with
dustrial Boulevard. Rogers, M.\: 55374; pint, $8.95 per quart, $23.95 per gallon.
moisture) and how it applies W designing
(612) 428-1101 (Note: $7.50 minimum cash
WOOOPI~ISIIIl<G .:~TERPRlSt:S.1729 N. and building proj..,ts.
order. Cat.l .... $2.00). Hangen (2). brass 68thSt., \VauwatO!'a, WI5.'l213. WoodJ-'inIt'.also available In hardcover from The
with 2 screws, Order No. 00008, $2.05 per
ishing Enterprises is a very small oompany Taunton Press for $19.95.
10.Maplt Knob (01), 1V( dia., unfinished
that has speclalized in providing hard-toWOODWORKING cures
with brass center top. Order No. E 1780. obtain lini.hlng products to woodworkers
S.85 caeh (Note: Knobs are in their sep- 8n(1 musical instrument makers since 1980. Here are some new additions to ow-list of
arate "Kitchen Con.side''atio",,'' catalog).
We called Dale 1"7.ybyl, the owner, and woodworking clubs:
You can order the panel-raising router
ARIZONt\ ASSOCIATION Of<' .'INt \VOOl).
found out th"t hi8 business is currently a
bit for the drawer fronts from:
part tlme cperntion l"UU out of his home. IVORKp.ns. This groUI) formed over two
S~;ARS.ItO."'UCK. Mill CO. (1985/86 Tool Therefore, he muy be 810\\'in processing
years ago to serve all wocdwerkers from
Catalog). Pa!!OI'1'CI'8'!!U bit, carbide- orders and you have to be very patient
novices to master CI'n(l.g'\len, Since thnt
tipped. Order No. 9HT-25485. $21.99.
when you order (\-<un him,
time they have gro\vn LOover 100 memWhat
does
Impress
us
about
Woodbel's. They hold bimonthly meetings and
STAINS
Finishing Ent.erpl'ises is his complete
monthly demonstratlons, If you are interYou can purchase many stain. (Minwax. selection ofharcl-to-find finishing products
ested, eentaet Robert Swanson, PresiDuffy's, Horner Formsby'a, Carver
(where else ean you obtain alkanet root, dent, P.O. Box 44264, Phoenix, AZ
Tripp's. Deft. Aee Hardware. Sears, and cutch extract. yacca resin, and Dragon's 85064-1264.
others) at local hardware and paint stores.
blood?). Dale i~ 8 chemist and obtains his
WOOI)Bt'TCn&RS. Richard Wonderlich
But many ofthe aniline dyes and non-grain
[mishes from aU over the world. He has a dropped b~' our office and told us about this
raising (NGR) stains referred to on pp, vC!")' complete selecton of aniline dyes (oil, club in southeastern
Iowa. They have
19-22 are difficult to find locally.
water. and aloohol soluble), pigments. and about fifty members and Iry to get ..
lVe order many of our fini'hing supplies Japan eelors.
together once a month. Their Christmas ....
from the following sources:
WoodFinishing Enterprises catalog is toy proj..,t last year was a big success. For
\"000 fINIS'IING Sl!l'llLY CO.. I~C..1267 interesting just to browse through. Dale
more information contaet Richard WonMary Drive, Macedon. NV 14502; (31~) wilj sen<1 it free of charge, but once again, derli.h, Rte. 2, Mt Plo38.,nt, lA 62641.
SHARPENING

24

FORSTNER BITS

WOOOSMITH