Your top hand tool tips

[bugbear]

You don't have to spend mega money to enjoy woodworking.

A few good books on the topic are a wise investment, a useful source of information, fun to read and a useful guide though the craft.

Or visit your local library - cheaper for you, and saves your local library from closure.

BugBear

 

[dm65]

Mine has to be - ensure your workpiece is held firm

Try planning a piece of Oak against your knee to see the difference I just did exactly that and its not the smoothest edge (surprised ?)

 

[speeder1987]

Make yourself a shooting board, I hated planing and squaring end grain. I built a shooting board and donkey ear and it has been a revolation!!

John

 

[Jelly]

I've found my local junk-shop to be a good source of quality tools... if you have the time to browse opportunisticaly for things that you'd like (to make life easier) but don't need (to urgently finish a project) anyone who's regularly doing house-clearances will have a selection, usually in usable or usable but rusty condition.

Also, if your cross-cut saw is starting to cut a little rougher, before taking the time to fully sharpen it, run the sides of the teeth over a fine sharpening stone once or twice... you loose a little of the set, but so long as you're gentle*, it will usually give you time to finish what you're getting on with, without any adverse results. I know this is normal after sharpening and setting, but I realised it can also give a given saw longer between sharpenings.

*just incase anyone's granny doesn't know how to suck eggs: you need to be equal with the stone too, if you make the set of the teeth on one side unequal, it's just going to pull to one side in the cut.