Woodworking Magazine Blog

[Alf]

I confess I'm a bit of a Blog junkie , but somehow I'd overlooked this one on Woodworking magazine's site. Despite their cheerful sacrifice of electrons within the magazine's pages (judging by the back issue info anyway) the Blog seems very hand tool orientated. Some interesting stuff in there I thought. Anyway, fwiw.

Cheers, Alf

 

[MikeW]

Hey Alf, thanks for the link.

I've recommended this mag and included the link for others to check it out and I didn't know the blog was there.

Mike

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks, Alf! I hadn't found this one in my search for woodworking RSS feeds. I now have a block on the Traditional Tools portal with the RSS feed from this blog.

If Charlie is reading this, could you please add an RSS feed for this board?

 

[Wendell]

Good call Alf! I just found the blog last week. I've been waiting for the lastest issue with the Roubo bench to come out and stumbled across the blog. Good stuff. Since most of the blog seems to be written by Chris Schwarz, it didn't surprise me that it was very hand tool oriented. Chris seems to be on a mission to introduce people to hand tools and he is doing a fine job. I really like the blog entry "The 12-step Program for Smoothing Planes". I think the idea that not all planes should be setup as the ultimate smoother is key idea that most modern woodworkers miss when they say using hand tools is inefficient.

Wendell

 

[ydb1md]

Since most of the blog seems to be written by Chris Schwarz, it didn't surprise me that it was very hand tool oriented. Chris seems to be on a mission to introduce people to hand tools and he is doing a fine job.

I really like the emphasis that Woodworking Magazine and its parent, Popular Woodworking, has been placing on hand tools recently -- Chris Schwarz being one of their loudest and most visible voices. I began woodworking thinking that I needed a lot of power tools to be a good worker. The more "mature" as a woodworker that I became, the more I realized that it was making the most of each tool and enjoying the work that made woodworking satisfying. With each new project, I find myself finding ways to stay away from my power tools because they don't provide the satisfaction of hand tools and they don't necessarily make my tasks any quicker. It's a good project when I don't have to pick up the random orbit sander.

Speaking of magazines, I used to view Fine Woodworking the pinnacle of woodworking magazines but the likes of Woodworking Magazine and PW have me relegating FW to almost coffee-table magazine status. Conversely, my issues of WM and PW are dog earred from being read and reread on a continual basis.

I used to read Wood Magazine and others of the ilk but they're starting to read like never-ending advertisements for power tools.

 

[Midnight]

With each new project, I find myself finding ways to stay away from my power tools because they don't provide the satisfaction of hand tools and they don't necessarily make my tasks any quicker.

likewise..

takes me wayyyyyyy longer and after a full day in the shop I usually hit the sack dawg tired... but knowing that any progress made was through my effort makes it somehow worthwhile...

 

[ydb1md]

I'd overlooked this one on Woodworking magazine's site

Do you folks across the pond get the print version of Woodworking Magazine? It's hard to find sometimes and sometimes it contains reprints of Popular Woodworking articles. But, at its core, it really tries to get back to the true essence of woodworking. The lack of advertising is great and the focus on hand tools is refreshing.

In the same vein, Woodcraft's magazine is a good read too.

 

[Philly]

Alf
Thanks for pointing this out-A good read! I'll be keeping my eye on that one....
Dave
I have managed to buy 1 copy-am hunting down the latest issue as we speak. I agree with you on most of the other US mags-lots of adverts and not a lot else. FWW I still enjoy but, as you and other here have said, it is not as good as it used to be. Thank goodness for PW! :roll:
Cheers
Philly

 

[engineer one]

i was actually able to get the first few copies through my local WH Smith's
since i already have popular woodworking saved.
i know that i am writing to impercunious woodworkers, but there are a couple of ways if you live near some larger conurbations( whoops big words sorry )
the american book store chain BORDERS import many of these mags, including but not always This Old House, Woodworkers Journal, Wood,
as well as those above. The biggest problem is they will not save anything like a magazine for you. Next is the price FWW is about £6.25 whilst in Smith's only £4.50. but it does come into store about a month earlier.
Smith's can also supply American Woodworker too.

whilst many American mags major on power tools some of what they build gives one ideas that could be adapted to the uk, if not the health and safety.

by the by does anyone understand why if you get a store bought sofa(settee) and chairs they are now generally bigger than the rooms they have to go in. surely that is an opportunity for pro-active woodworkers??

paul

 

[bugbear]

I have to say - I'm not big on magazines.

For newly minted tools, I get better reviews and varying viewpoints on the various forums here in netland.

For handtool woodworking the magazines are pretty useless.

Again, the net is my (and your) friend, along with some carefully accumulated retro reference books (Hasluck, Jones, Hayward, Ellis etc)

BugBear

 

[ydb1md]

by the by does anyone understand why if you get a store bought sofa(settee) and chairs they are now generally bigger than the rooms they have to go in. surely that is an opportunity for pro-active woodworkers??

paul

I think it's just a product of our super-sized society.

It does present a problem when trying to move contemporary furniture into an older home -- with its narrow doorways, tight staircases, etc.

 

[engineer one]

forget older properties, most builders now really steal the space, and seem to sell their product with 3/4 size furniture in it.

and what about people like redrow who built houses where you could not get standard units around the stairs at the bottom, and of course the windows are too small for people let alone furniture.
if it is too big how do they sell it??


now we know why they display it in big sheds, not room sizes.
anyway room for another moan, thanks :lol:
paul

 

[wstellwagen]

Alf

They carry it in grocery supermarkets here.

Walt

 

[Alf]

Do you folks across the pond get the print version of Woodworking Magazine?

Thanks to a Generous Benefactor, speaking for myself I can now say "yes". I've now seen the last three issues, and I'm impressed. The word that immediately struck me was "gravitas". It's the first modern magazine I've seen that looked like you could really rely on it to give you authoritative articles. I don't believe it's the absence of ads; more the detail of the content and the presentation. I think anyone familiar with the old black and white days of FWW would recognise the influence right away. Yes folks, it's largely in b&w :shock: , apart from the covers inside and out. Actually I rather like that; don't be surprised if I come out in a rash of b&w pics in the near future. The content is extremely detailed, which is great for the beginner needing I's dotted and T's crossed and also the more experienced reader who can pick up detail and new ways of approaching their craft. Something other magazines just don't seem to understand at all... :roll: It's really nice to read a magazine where they assume the reader isn't an silly person who won't be interested in anything but the most basic information too. F'rinstance, I now know a 17thC sixpence was 1/16" thick - something you'd usually expect to be cut from an article as "superfluous". But that was the recommended off-set for draw boring by Joseph Moxon in the 17th Century and it'll stick in my memory as an off-set that'll always work. Apparently 3/32" worked out a little more effectively in testing though, fwiw. :wink: Not that it's perfect of course; there are articles that I'd happily live without, as I'd expect, but I did manage to read all through an article on pocket hole joinery and it was, er, quite interesting... Different types of plywood though? Less so. :-s The aim seems to be to appeal to what they're calling "blended" woodworkers; that is those of us who use machinery and hand tools, as seems appropriate. Not sure about being a "blender". Think I prefer Normathal or Neanderite; sounds less like you're going to be making smoothies... :lol:

Anyway, I hope that might help folks to decide if they want to go to the trouble of searching out a copy. Apparently there are plans to offer a subscription in the near future, all being well, btw.

Cheers, Alf

 

[Anonymous]

Like, Bugbear, I'm not a big fan of magazines but I do subscribe to Popular Woodworking and I buy Woodworking magazine at the stand.
To me, Woodworking is the bridge between the older woodworking texts and current reality.

 

[ydb1md]

PW is going to publish my tip on how to camber a blade using the Veritas MkII honing guide in next month's issue.

 

[Philly]

Nice one Dave!!! =D>
Philly