M&T: Do you still do conservation work or are you mainly building furniture these days? DW: At this point in my life, I’m doing very little conservation and only for already established clients. I don’t take new clients. I suppose somebody could come to me with a project that would really wow me, but I’ve been restoring objects for 50 years. Instead, I’m doing things of my own creative impulse. I have a sketchbook of things to be built. There’s a lot of historical technology that I want to relearn or reinvent. I enjoy working from a spare framework of information to figure out how things were done in the old days. Not that I necessarily want to work that...
John Brown had a unique shop habit that caught the attention of anyone who entered as he worked on his chairs: At one end of the workbench, he kept a lit candle. Now, as anyone who has done a reasonable amount of handplaning can attest, the curly waste products so produced do not mix well with open flames. Actually, it would be more accurate to say that they mix all too well – a spark or drip of flaming wax into a pile of shavings creates an almost instant conflagration. But Brown used the candle as a device, a means, to promote focus. Counterintuitively, he introduced this new element of risk as a way to actively prevent mishap. He explained:...
True to my initial vision, I had determined to keep my methods and tools for blacksmithing old-school. I banished the arc welder early on and sought ways to bring my shop closer to those of the 18th century in most (but not all) ways. Not only did I want to keep my work fun and interesting, but I wanted to preserve a sadly neglected side of blacksmithing: the historical approach. I greatly enjoy the “experimental archaeology” side of things, figuring out “how they might have done it.” This decision has invoked criticism from some of my friends who are full-time smiths, and even after three years, with a grinder as the only power tool I use in the blacksmithing shop,...
Nasu had a large collection of hand tools, particularly saws and planes. The only power tools we used were a circular saw and electric plane. We did all the final finishing of surfaces with handplanes. Nasu used an axe for rough shaping and for chopping out plugs. Other critical tools are his kasugai (metal staples, or dogs), of which he had several dozen. We used these instead of modern clamps to pull parts together, align planks, and to secure boards tightly while we glued and nailed them. We also weighted the bottom with large stones to hold it in place, and used posts to brace the planks against the ceiling of the workshop. When planking the sides we depended on...
It’s been a wild ride working on the 1810 house project. We’ve been planning the rubble trench and granite block foundation, cleaning up and selling my double wide home (gone first week of June!), setting up the cottage for moving into (building railings for the loft, digging a water line, running wiring, etc). Anyway, there’s been a lot going on around here. But in the midst of it all, Issue Twelve arrived! Our printer, Cummings Printing, has done a top-notch job, as always. We moved to them a few issues ago and have been so impressed with their consistency and quality. And the page spreads in this one are fun to flip through because the photographs are so captivating. I...
In this episode, Joshua and Mike discuss something they both feel strongly about – the primacy of wooden hand planes. In unpacking Joshua’s article in Issue Twelve (heading to mailboxes as we speak!) about making your own fore plane, they go over why wooden planes are just plain better than their metal-bodied counterparts, and how approachable the craft of planemaking can be.
Most modern woodworkers view toolmaking as a craft dependent on NASA-level precision, but in his article, Joshua dispels that popular misperception. In this podcast episode, he and Mike talk through the pre-industrial process of planemaking, explaining that appropriate tolerances are determined more by the eye than rule.
SHOW NOTES
Issue Twelve
“There are no passive aspects of hand-tool woodworking, no downtime as you absent-mindedly feed that board for another trip through the planer. Our bodies are integral to every motion, every operation. And this engaged work is actually beneficial for us: Much ink has been spilled declaring the positive effects of physical activity, especially as we age. There are myriad studies that universally proclaim the dangers of a sedentary lifestyle, and they can be summarized with the words use it or lose it. A habit of physical inactivity will eventually kill you, but before it does that, it will take away your ability to meaningfully engage in creative work. If using our bodies and maintaining physical fitness is the ideal,...
This cover design, based on the Spanish chairmaking which was written about by Masashi Kutsuwa, was the result of several experiments. First, we purchased an antique blade (an English beet knife, actually) that we modified with a second (perpendicular) handle to be a cuchilla, a Spanish push knife. Then I made a wooden stop fitted to my staked bench to brace the stock while shaving. We did some experimenting to get a feel for the skill and are delighted to find that it is quite effective. We knew this technique belonged on the cover. So, a hearty “thanks” goes to Masashi for making these ways of working known to the rest of the world. We believe that the craft is...
This post is part of a blog series revealing the table of contents of upcoming Issue Twelve. As is our custom, we’ll be discussing one article per weekday in order to give you a taste of what is come. The subscription window which includes Issue Twelve is open now. To get Issue Twelve when it ships early April, you can sign up for a subscription here. If you aren’t sure about your subscription status, you can reach out to Grace at info@mortiseandtenonmag.com. Keep in mind though, if you are set to auto-renew, you never have to worry about getting the next issue of Mortise & Tenon. Issue Twelve is coming your way soon! ___________________________________ Michael Updegraff – “Risk and Reward” Risk. It’s a concept we’re all...
This post is part of a blog series revealing the table of contents of upcoming Issue Twelve. As is our custom, we’ll be discussing one article per weekday in order to give you a taste of what is come. The subscription window which includes Issue Twelve is open now. To get Issue Twelve when it ships early April, you can sign up for a subscription here. If you aren’t sure about your subscription status, you can reach out to Grace at info@mortiseandtenonmag.com. Keep in mind though, if you are set to auto-renew, you never have to worry about getting the next issue of Mortise & Tenon. Issue Twelve is coming your way soon! ___________________________________ Masashi Kutsuwa – “The Van Gogh Chair” Half a century ago in...
