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Whereas I accept it as a characteristic of the design with which I can happily live. It takes me little time to do and so I don't mind. An alternative would be to ease off the pressure on the cap and use the mechanism directly, then do the shaving test on a small offcut (as seems to be...

Not rubbish at all. There's a lot of self deception goes on about these fancy bits of kit - such as the idea that the Norris adjuster is "better" or more precise then the S/B. This is completely wrong. But if you prefer self deception and wishful thinking, you don't have to let reality get in...

The only woodworking course I've managed to attend was run by Garret Hack who you probably know is a bit of a guru on hand planes. He expressed the view that the **** planes aren't quite up to scratch. I know that that hardly constitutes a review or user report but his views are probably worth...

You're a professional so I respect that anything which offers more speed/efficiency is to be siezed upon. However, is it not so that most of the time sharpening is confined to touching up the secondary bevel? No difference there but you're right that it will take a couple of minutes longer on...

Have you had the chance to see this clip where the chap compares and contrasts BU vs BD planes? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TnrOtbnUaVg In essence he says that he thinks BU planes, being mechanically simpler, are great for beginners but he finds that with time he has moved more and more to...

It seems to me that almost every hobbyist and professional in almost any field (except maybe yachting) is likely to own more key bits of tools than they actually need. For instance a photographer might have 10 cameras. Will he take all of them with him when he goes out a clicking? Unlikely...

I'm sorry but that's a bit too much of a non-sequitur for my logic systems. Let me put it simply: there's a suggested tool kit. With that kit and having acquired the necessary skills, you can do almost every joinery task you are likely to be confronted with. There's also a suggestion for a...

But he does not maintain in the book that one should attempt or even think of putting all one's tools in it. He cites his scorps and travishers as not getting a look in. What he does say is that the chest holds a tool kit which will enable the woodworker to complete everything but the most...

I had a think about this last night and I think a number of points can be made. First, your aesthetic, subjective and possibly political dislike of the title is effectively an absolute and it is of course your right to take that view. It does however, have little bearing on the content of the...

It seems fairly clear to me that the books is aimed at beginners. Much of what he describes is simply uneconomical for professionals. He's quite clear in one part that it is amateurs who are best placed to keep the traditions of hand work alive. I'm sure there are many criticisms of the book...

Not when he's discussing a specifically American brand of anarchism. He describes Josiah Warren's experiment with the Cincinnati Time Store (google it as it makes quite interesting reading). Should you overcome your aversion to the title and read the book there is a fair possibility that you...

There's more to the use of the word "Anarchist" in the title than a wish to be eye-catching. In the book he makes it quite clear that he's not referring to what we in the UK and Europe usually understand by the term i.e. an extremely radical political movement. He uses it to refer to an...

Curiously enough, I think that the perfect companion to the ATC is The Essential Woodworker by Robert Wearing. They complement each other well - while being utterly different in tone and characteristic of the nations they come from - and so with two books you end up knowing what tools you need...

THE ANARCHIST’S TOOLCHEST By Christopher Schwarz This book is probably on its way to acquiring seminal status if only to judge by the frequency with which it is recommended on this forum. It has therefore probably earned a review. The first thing to deal with is any apprehension which may be...

In those days it was probably the plank trick. Mind you, the tool itself could have come in handy for settling arguments about sharpening systems.

It seems to me that your account of this project is pretty well undiscussable. You've set yourself a task and achieved it. There would only be food for discussion if people thought you had made mistakes or done something sub-optimal and that is clearly not the case. That only leaves the...

I followed up your links and then looked around a bit and found this: http://www.rutlands.co.uk/sp+woodworkin ... ota+dk4way It looks very similar to the Rockler system. Out of stock at the moment but I'll keep an eye out for it.

Have you used any of those? The Rockler one looks nice and simple. I take it one makes the wooden components oneself?

Two other advantages which I find, are that I get to putting the clamps on instantly because it is impossible for the boards to slide around on the glue (obviously) and secondly that for the technique to succeed, I have to plane the reference faces very accurately, which is a good skill discipline.

I'm currently trying to build the anarchist's tool chest and progress has been slow but steady, while the learning curve with respect to planing accurately has been steep and very rewarding. What I have discovered is the benefit of whacking in a couple of dowels when gluing the edges of boards...