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Don't despair, this all looks fixable. There are plenty of accurate bar straightening services, e.g. http://www.johnmacnab.co.uk and you may find one nearer. I would do this for the fence, which is critical as you say, and you want to preserve the rack on its underside. This shouldn't cost too...

Down to a thou/25 microns even cheap and secondhand micrometers will do fine. Worst case is usually a zero error, which is easily adjusted. Below that you need to get fussy. A small set of slip gauges with a calibration certificate is pretty cheap and gives you reassurance.

Yes remove the blade first. The table is held on by studs/nuts going up from underneath in each of the four corners. You might have to take the dust extractor cover off. You get at two from the motor side and two through the saw blade hole. Fiddly but possible. Lots of us own these saws and can...

Yes please! will PM you.

I didn't say it was a short term project. Some people are soooooo impatient!

You can keep the end shoots of branches for a few weeks if they are chilled and damp.

You can take a scion off a twig and graft it into rootstock, at any stage in a tree's life. I've done this with an old apple tree that I wanted to preserve. The character of the tree goes with the scion; the rootstock just determines the growth habit. Keith

To be a bit pedantic here, (a) it does not have to be parallel for edging (unlike ploughing). If it is out of parallel you just get a slight skew cut. (b) the fence has to be square to the blade, not to the plane itself. Which leaves room for a bit of adjustment. Keith

+1 for bench holdfasts. You can get them in either 20 or 25 mm though 20 mm can also take 3/4" accessories. It hadn't occurred to me before but they are perfect one-handed tools. Drop them into the hole and line them up on the work (with a piece of wood to prevent marking). Let go, pick up a...

Brian Unconventional, but I suggest you stiffen your bench with plywood sides and back, screwed or nailed on. 12 mm will be fine, you can get it cut accurately to size in e.g. B&Q, it will be stiffer than a jointed stretcher/frame and you can put shelves or drawers inside later on if you want...

These are very nice planes. I bought one at a similar price from a forum member and have been delighted with it.

A great help in jointing long boards is to use a shooting board set up. Custard has described this on this forum. You grind the plane iron square, set it up square to the side, then use the plane on its side. Clamp the work to the bench with a thin spacer (eg hardboard). You use the jointer...

Cascamite or Aerolite (the fancy version) is very strong and has about 30 minutes open time.

I always use washers on my own Wadkin AGS10 to go from 30 mm to 5/8", indeed I don't own any blades with 5/8" holes. I don't make a big deal about it, just push the washer into the hole, fit it onto the arbor (and refit it in place if it comes out during that process, but it usually doesn't)...

I have used G&S for beech, walnut and ramen, and found them good quality and rapid delivery.

Looking very good. That'll be fine.

Perhaps ask the supplier of the VFD? I used Drives Direct and their engineer is very helpful. For one machine - a 1930s Boley lathe - it would start but cut out at a certain rpm. He correctly diagnosed damp absorption in the very old motor and recommended baking it. Too heavy for me to get off...

Thanks, John Ah, kneeling. You're right that doesn't work, not at least without serious padding. More limiting in the garden than the workshop though. Part of the trick is not to be embarrassed at using geriatric aids such as kneelers and "reachers" to pick up stuff from the floor. One in the...

Thanks, interesting. Hmmm I see what you mean about lifting the 12" planer onto castors. I'm 78 and have had two knee replacements due to arthritis; they work very well and I am pain free, but have to come to terms with the fact that I have lost strength pretty well all round! We await the...

How about doing as you suggest, but keeping the big machines in the garage on castors? Then they would be largely out of the way and could be unused most of the time, except when you really need them?