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It does strike a cord, and I think you'll find that despite the economic times, the native hardwood market has been a bit better recently. People are beginning to wise up to buying locally (for food and other things), and realising that we can't rely on imported materials and products for ever...

I don't think it's that difficult to find British hardwoods, though it does depend on the quantities you need, and if you're willing to cope with waney edges etc... If you're looking for something dark why not brown oak, walnut or laburnum? I think that the timber trade has survived on imported...

For me it's furniture that uses timber from overseas when there's perfectly good British wood available. I find that very dispiriting. If we want thriving woodlands we need to be using as many native species as possible.

It never ceases to amaze me how many compliments I receive from guests for our kitchen table, the top of which is made from shuttering ply, roughly cut to an ellipse. It's full of life from children writing on it, and one night, rather tipsy, I drilled a hole into one end of it because the base...

For the Pipsqueak stove go to www.canvasandcast.com.

A mate of mine bought a tiny stove for a bell tent. I think it was called a Pipsqueak. It is rather cute, and is actually best used with coal (smokeless potentially), but I'm not sure if it mightn't need too much feeding for you. As **** mentions, even a small stove will give off a lot of heat...

You can buy various very small woodburners that would be fine in a small shed (though oil-filled rads are probably the next best thing, or even better in many ways). The Frontier Stove from Bison Bushcraft and the Old Tool Store is portable. Otherwise have a look at Windy Smithy or KP Stoves for...

I have had a Relax woodburning stove from Hot Spot for many years. They are designed to burn shavings, and I used to do that, but it is very time consuming and dusty. These days I fill the stove with shavings in the morning (on the advice of Peter Sefton), and then use logs and offcuts. It gives...

Do come and say hello at British Woodworking! We've some giveaways if you take out a sub or renew. And we could have a chat, anyway. Nick

We tested the ProEdge a few years ago and were impressed. It rather depends if you want a hollow grind for turning or not. Personally I think turning tools need a hollow grind, which you don't get with the ProEdge, but plenty of people prefer a flat bevel on turning tools. I like a flat bevel on...

They are normally there. Don't know if they have special deals this year, but you will probably save on delivery so you ought to be able to get things a bit cheaper. Give them a call on 01246 561520 to find out. They are usually very helpful, and have a great reputation for customer care.

It's a strange show. I'm fond of it. It has a really good atmosphere, but doesn't always deliver as much as you'd hope. It would be good to see more furniture making. Nick

We have a list of operators of mobile sawmills on the Living Woods magazine website, so if you know of an ash (or any other tree) that's coming down and could be planked up it might be worth giving them a call. They also sometimes have stocks of timber and interesting cuts. Mobile sawmill...

Government bashing aside, the important thing is that good ash is used appropriately, rather than having it all burnt (for firewood or on pyres). So try getting hold of some locally and use it for furniture making etc... Nick

I expect there's quite little any government could do or have done about this, though delaying the ban of young ash was pretty unimaginative. I will ask around to see if there's ever been a tree disease that's been curtailed by action.

Do you have a router? You could use that against a straight edge to produce what you need. Work out the offsets, and you could make a square template which you tape to the workpiece, having roughly shaped it with a jigsaw. Just remove the finest amount with the router.

I suspect the story has proved so enticing for the media because there appeared to be such opportunity for blame. The government has been naive in not banning imports earlier, but probably more from a PR angle than actually stopping the disease. Few people know that larch, which is probably...

We tested one not so long ago, in the summer I think, and they were very much alive and kicking. The kit went together easily and was very effective. Have you tried emailing James at [email protected]? I have his mobile number of you have no luck. Email me.

Very good point. And migration of the dust may be an issue too, particularly if the lighter wood is more open grained.

It's not very clear cut. The chances are that ash dieback has been with us for a few years. Its spread may be quite gradual, though inevitable. There certainly won't be many ash trees planted for a while. So far there are no restrictions on the movement of felled ash stems and timber. Infected...