Kelley Bagby

I grew up around woodworking tools (see picture, age 4-5ish) but only recently started doing some of my own woodworking.

NEW Stanley Sweetheart Chisels Now Available at Highland!

Feb 142011
 

The Stanley Sweetheart Socket Chisels have been a topic of speculation for quite awhile, and now they are finally available! Based on the classic Stanley 750 Series chisel design, the Sweetheart chisels are made from high carbon chrome steel, and feature durable hornbeam handles and long, thin bevel-edge blades.

Highland Woodworking is carrying eight different widths sold individually, as well as a 4-piece set and an 8-piece set. Chisel lengths vary from 1/8″ (~4mm) to 1-1/4″ (~32mm).

Take a look at our selection, and pick one up for yourself today!

Product Video: The Steel City 13″ Helical Planer

Feb 112011
 

We had Ben Arthur, one of our sales associates, go through a few of the features of our Steel City 13″ Helical Planer. He even demo’d a few passes with a nice piece of curly maple so you can get a feel for the simple process. If you’ve been considering getting one of these planers, take a look at the video to learn a bit more, including how easy it is to adjust the helical cutterhead.

Another Happy Wood Slicer Owner

Feb 032011
 

The Wood Slicer does it again!

We received these unsolicited comments from a recent Wood Slicer customer, and just had to share them:

I want to give you feedback on a product I purchased recently. Last week I received a 3/4″ x 105″ Wood Slicer. I was very pleased when I received it so soon after ordering!! I had saved some beautiful Cherry Laurel from a fallen tree and looked forward with great anticipation to sawing it into planks for gift boxes. I installed the blade on 14″ Delta bandsaw with risers. The instructions that accompanied the blade were indispensible since this was my first venture into resawing.

I could hardly wait to see how it would go. I was flabbergasted at what I felt and saw as I pushed the rough-cut piece of log through the blade. The cut was so easy, and the wood tracked through the blade straight as an arrow. I did not have to make any allowances for drift or blade curvature!! I almost cried it felt and looked so good. The sides of the cuts looked like they had been through a planer or jointer, no blade marks whatsoever!

So, I just wanted you (and other customers who might wonder if all of your claims for the Wood Slicer are true) to know – I can say that they most certainly are!

Sincerely,

W. Osburn

We at Highland Woodworking are very proud to carry such a quality product as the Wood Slicer. Thanks for your comments!

February 2011 Wood News is out!

Feb 032011
 

Hello Woodworkers everywhere,

The latest issue of Highland Woodworking’s Wood News Online is available, and packed full of informative tips, stories and of course, great deals.

We are kicking off our Festool sweepstakes this month – enter to win over $1000 in Festool products, including the new RO 90 Rotex sander, available for pre-purchase and in stock on March 1st!

We’ve also got Michael Curtis’ DREAM shop – you’ll be starting to make plans for your own shop renovation after taking a look at his pictures. Chris Brettnacher’s corner wine rack is featured in this month’s Show Us Your Stuff column. You’ll read a smart safety tip from Bill Peterson, and a great new column from our Down to Earth Woodworker, Steven Johnson – he finally gives us a tour of the Down to Earth Workshop, only to declare that he is building a NEW workshop. It is sure to be another dream workshop we can all appreciate/drool over.

All this, and MUCH more, in the latest issue – enjoy!

An Axe Becomes As Good As Its Smith: A review of the Gränsfors Bruks axes

Jan 182011
 

An axe becomes as good as its smith. The motto belongs to one of the finest axe making companies in the world, Gränsfors Bruks.

Gränsfors was originally founded in Sweden in 1902, but went through a major philosophical shift in 1989 under the direction of CEO Gabriel Branby and skilled craftsman-designer Hans Erik Perrson. They redeveloped their axes to be the best in the field, while reflecting history, tradition and a common set of company values, including stewardship of the environment and a rigorous focus on quality.

Gränsfors axes are forged by professional smiths. The proof of this lies in their ability to create blades with such precision that no supplementary work is needed. The forging craft is allowed to take its time so there is no need to stone, grind, smooth or paint the axes in order to hide imperfections. Such is the personal investment by a smith into each axe that when he is satisfied with his work and has accepted his axe, he marks the head with his initials beside the company’s crown label.

Lost to many in urban environments is the range of axe variations and uses. For instance, pictured above are a felling axe (on top) and a splitting maul (on bottom). The felling is for chopping down trees, the maul is for splitting wood and carries a heavier poll (butt) which allows it to hammer wedges without damaging the axe. In addition to these, there are specialty axes and hatchets for limbing, game processing and skinning, throwing, carving, woodworking, etc. Each has a unique blade, handle shape, size and purpose. Today, the family-owned company produces about 30 styles of axes and related tools; each comes with a 20 warranty.

Fortunately, Gränsfors is not just passionate about building quality axes, but educating others about the history and uses of their axes, including tips on felling, splitting and maintaining good firewood (and fires). For free downloads of their essential The Axe Book and historical The Ancient Axe Book, click here. You can purchase Gränsfors axes in Atlanta at Highland Woodworking.

This review was originally written for Bearings. You can see the original review here.

My Woodworking New Year’s Resolutions

Jan 122011
 

I know that mid-January is a little late to be making my New Years Resolutions, but I had to think for a bit about these ones. Woodworking is still a very new craft for me, and I want to advance my skills, but not set goals that are unrealistic. Here is a first shot at my woodworking resolutions for 2011.

  1. Learn Google Sketchup, and use it to design at least one piece of furniture this year. I’ll be using Bob Lang’s Woodworker’s Guide to Google Sketchup to learn the ins and outs of this highly capable free design program from Google.
  2. Organize my workshop. This is a big one, of course, and a subjective call on when I have actually ‘completed’ the goal. But there are some specific items that I want to finish, including improving the lighting, moving the wood rack to a better location and building another bench/table for my Triton miter saw to sit on.
  3. Learn a few specific techniques that I think are pretty cool, including hand-cutting a dovetail joint and hand-cutting a mortise and tenon joint. Maybe I’ll read through the Woodworking Tips Library on the Highland Woodworking website for ideas and help on other techniques that I am trying to grasp. And if I can’t find it there, I bet the Info Search will help me find what I need.
  4. Start building the arts and crafts bookcase from this book that I’ve had my eye on for awhile. I already priced some lumber, and now I just need to re-read the instructions 50 times and spend some time with a friend who has a tablesaw setup with a dado stack and a miter gauge. Or figure out a way to cut 24 tenons without a tablesaw. Any ideas? I guess I could get really good at hand-cutting them, i.e. Resolution #3!

What are YOUR Woodworking Resolutions for 2011?

Lie-Nielsen Hand Tool Giveaway Winner Announced!

Jan 112011
 

Our sincere thanks to all of you who entered our Lie-Nielsen hand tool giveaway that just ended. More than 500,000 entries were submitted through Dec. 31, 2010.

Congratulations to Chris Benner of Lebanon, Ohio, the lucky winner of the five Lie-Nielsen hand planes and set of 5 Lie-Nielsen bevel-edge chisels. Chris is the proprietor of Benner’s Woodworking, a business that he started with his brother in their parents’ basement back in 1991, handcrafting 18th and 19th century furniture reproductions. The business has grown a lot since then, yet he still employs many of the traditional woodworking methods that were in use 200 years ago.

Chris’ response when he received notice that he’d won was an excited “Wahoo!” He says his new Lie-Nielsen planes and chisels will get daily use in his workshop.

Highland Woodworking’s next online giveaway features the all new Festool Rotex sander as well as a Festool CT26E dust extractor system – details will be posted on our website and on this blog at the beginning of February – make sure to check back!