The cover story for the February 2018 is Christopher Schwarz’s three-legged folding campaign stool – and he shows you three ways to make the legs (no lathe required for two of them!). It’s a perfect piece for carrying along on a picnic, or for plein air painting.
Ben Brunick is a master at making arches – he’s been restoring and making massive windows for an historic South Dakota building. So we asked him to adapt the process to furniture-sized work. He teaches you how to make a “spoil board” then use a router to make arches of any size, whether for a window, door or cabinet front. In Peter Follansbee’s “17th-Century Desk Box,” you’ll learn the simple joinery that has held these handsome projects together for centuries – and they’re built with just a handful of tools.
You’ll also get inspired by whimsical furniture world of Judson Beaumont’s Straight Line Designs. Read the story behind his practice and get a look at his stunning (and fun) work. And Willard (Bill) Anderson teaches you how to make three joints by hand as you make some handy shop supports – they’re great for cutting down lumber and sheet goods, or as a workbench in a pinch (with a piece of ply atop them).
In this issue’s “Tool Test,” we try out the new line of REVO cabinet clamps from Bessey, the Lixie Dead Blow Mallet, the new full-size handsaws from Bad Axe Tool Works (the D-8s) and the Texas Heritage Saddle Bag. George Walker encourages you to check out your local house museums for inspiration in “Design Matters,” and Peter Follansbee shares a lunette and floral carving design in a step-by-step pictorial in “Arts & Mysteries.” Bob Flexner explains what orange peel is – and how to avoid it – in “Flexner on Finishing,” and long-time woodworker Bill Murr shares his story of passing on knowledge to a young neighbor in “End Grain.” Plus Tricks of the Trade and more!