In our recent article on trouble shooting wood burn on a table saw, reader and tech/power tool/DIY blogger Jude asked: “So where can you get a blade sharpened? I’m forever burning lumber and think my setup is pretty squeare.”

My first thought was Scott Whiting, who’s an active and respected member of Woodnet. (Here’s Scott Whiting’s blade sharpening rates over at WoodworkersZone) As a Woodnet regular I see him posting a lot and offering great feedback and advice.

My second thought was… well, can you do it yourself?

In this short post I share what I learned on sharpening carbide tipped saw blades yourself and then provide a list of potential saw blade sharpening operations for you to try out.

DIY Carbide Tipped Table Saw Blade Sharpening
My first recommendation on DIY blade sharpening is that you don’t fool with it. For one thing I read that blade sharpening is a trade skill. In addition, carbide tipped blades have complicated and exacting angles that must be perfect for safe operation.

Time and again I read warnings that people NOT try to sharpen their table saw blades on their own. And lots of reminders that you try cleaning your table saw blade first… From what I picked up sharpening yourself is kind of like doing home dentistry. Possible, but not recommended.

For those of you who haven’t already skipped this section to move along to the list of blade sharpeners, here are a few of the tips and pointers I found out there.

1) You’re probably going to be better off “touching up” your blade rather than giving it a full on sharpening. If you’re touching up your blades you should still count on sending them off to the sharpeners periodically. And at the expense of dignity I have to admit that I’m ignorant of whether or not “touching up” and “sharpening” are actually the same thing… My impression is that they are different.

2) You will need a diamond sharpener, because carbide is as hard or harder than any non-diamond sharpeners. My limited understanding is that 320g diamond wheel is a good place to start.

3) Mr Scott Whiting in the Woodnet forum doesn’t recommend against doing it yourself, though in a thread on a $75 sharpening machine he says: “Based on what my learning curve was 19 years ago plan on using up about 10 blades before you get acceptable and maybe 100 before you get good. Having somebody teach you would cut that way down.”

4) So from Whiting you can see that getting a teacher would be a really good idea if you’re serious about sharpening your blades yourself. So would having a good supply of dull, inexpensive carbide tipped blades and lots of spare time.

5) This Harbor Freight 120 Volt Circular Saw Blade Sharpener is what started off that discussion I keep referencing here. This is the tool that Whiting cautions you will need 100 blades to get good at using.

6) A Mr. John Paquay offers this advice in his short article Dealing With ‘Dull Carbide’: “Hone the flat, leading faces of the tips, taking care to keep the hone flat against the face of the carbide. Unlike HSS blades, carbide blades cut along the sides the teeth as well as along the tips, so be careful not to round these edges over as you work. Do not attempt to hone the side faces of the carbide tips — those edges will naturally sharpen as the face of the tooth is dressed. When you’ve finished honing the tooth faces with the fine or ultra-fine paddles, you may find it necessary to just touch the top of the tooth with the extra-fine hone. If you choose to do this, again be very careful to just barely polish the carbide. Any more than that and you risk irreparably changing the shape of the tooth. At all times, take care to keep the hone flat against the surface you’re dressing.” His is the only full on “how to” I could find out there. I recommend it for those of you who are going to give sharpening a go.

Also read through Looking for a blade sharpening wheel for little tidbits and pointers.

Again, I don’t recommend that you sharpen blades yourself. If you do, let me know how it goes Good luck and be safe!

Carbide Blade Sharpening Services
I’d like to hear from you if there are any sharpening services you’ve used that you liked that aren’t on this list. Also, what have your experiences been with the companies and individuals mentioned below?

1) Find the Locals
Check your yellow pages, check your hardware stores, ask the local cabinet shops. Go local because you will save time and money on shipping. Some hardware stores outsource though, which will add that shipping cost back on. Try to find the guys who actually do the sharpening.

2) Scott Whiting
A regular contributor at WoodNet, Scott Whiting has made a solid name for himself there and looks like the go-to sharpening guy for many of the regulars. He answers sharpening and blade-related questions with accuracy and promptness. Just the thing you want in a sharpener I don’t have direct contact info for him. You may have to actually join the forum and send him a PM (private message, it’s how you send email to forum members).

Update: you can check out Scott Whiting’s blade sharpening rates at WoodworkersZone

3) Forrest Saw Blade Sharpening
Forrest is the preferred sharpener for most woodworkers. Marc the WoodWhisperer uses them, so they have celebrity endorsement too They sharpen non-forrest blades of all shapes and sizes, not just table saw blades. See also Forrest Sharpening - Very Satisfied Customer it’s not all roses though… check out the thread.

4) Ridge Carbide Sharpening Services
According to a post in LumberJocks, the owner of Ridge Carbide recently contributed to an article on blade sharpening in Woodworkers Journal (WJ got 9th in our recent woodworking mag review) I think that’s a good sign! I saw a number of positive remarks about Ridge Carbide.

5) Dynamic Saw Blade Sharpening Services
A lesser-mentioned but still prevalent sharpener, you should consider Dynamic Saw when you’re considering your sharpening options.

More Sharpening Resources:
Blade and Bit Resharpening
Saw Blade Sharpening
Mr. John Paquay’s Dealing With ‘Dull Carbide’
Tools, Sharpening and Power Machinery
Sharpening Table Saw blades
Sharpening Saw Blades
sharpening carbide blades
Forrest Sharpening - Very Satisfied Customer

Wow! Check out this wood-glue and dowel machine created by a 70 year old woodworker! Your jaw’s gonna drop. Parts of it he patterned after a flyball or centrifugal governor.

He built the whole thing so it would be easy to take apart (!!!) and out of various types of hard wood. It even has threaded screws and nuts. I guess we can add this device to the list of things to do with your wood cut offs

According to Del in the video: “It was quite a chore to figure out how to build it.”

From the fellow who posted the video: “An intricate hand-cranked machine made entirely of wood and glue (no metal or other materials). It was designed and built by my friend Del, using many different woods and incorporating a variety of mechanical motions. He has made several other wooden machines, but calls this latest one his crowning achievement. Del is 70 years old.”

I spotted this at BoingBoing.

Woodworking magazines provide great plans, tips and - especially - inspiration for your woodworking projects. In my research into 6 different forum threads I turned up 28 different woodworking magazines, so if you’re a newbie or just looking for something different to read you have a lot of options left open.

Be sure to let us know which ones you read and which ones you leave on the newsstand! You can leave comments or send an email to gfrench@toolcrib.com.

A Note on Skill Level:
Before getting into the top 5 magazines I want to point out that many of the titles reflect different woodworking ability levels. Fine Woodworking for example is widely considered to include plans and tips at a very high skill level. Shopnotes is more accessible for the beginner and intermediate level woodworker. It’s always a good idea to check out a copy at the newsstand or library before you subscribe, even if a magazine ranks highly in our list.

A Mr. TerryB in the RigidForum lays it out well:

“Woodsmith and Shopnotes are very good for tutorials and beginning to intermediate projects. Wood and Popular Woodworking are both good for project plans and techniques - Popular Woodworking at a little more advanced level, I feel. Both of these two are also very good for tool reviews. Fine Woodworking - that’s for showing what’s possible when your skills reach a really high level. It’s beautiful and provides inspiration - but seldom a project that a relative klutz like me can do. It also offers good tool reviews.”

TerryB

Top 5 Woodworking Magazines
Fine Woodworking: 169 votes

Taunton’s Fine Woodworking is widely considered the finest woodworking mag available. I did read comments that some people find they’ve started to get repetitious and that, in recent years, the quality has fallen off some. Still, it came in #1 by a margin of over 100 votes. Look at the other margins and it’s tough to argue that it’s providing some kind of benefit to its subscribers. One note - lots of folks mentioned subscribing online, where you can search and access all their past issues as well as get access to new articles as they come out.
Taunton’s Fine Woodworking
Review of Fine Woodworking

Wood Magazine: 65

From the Better Homes and Gardens publishers comes Wood Magazine, that very narrowly took second place on the list. Check it out if you’re looking for a solid, consistent magazine at the intermediate level of ability. Looks like they have a good forum going too.
Wood Magazine
Wood Magazine Review

Popular Woodworking: 64

Popular Woodworking ranks 3rd on the list. It sounded like another solid woodworking read, with a little something for everyone. Again it sounds like it straddles that novice to intermediate space.
Popular Woodworking
Popular Woodworking Magazine Review (from epinions)

Shop Notes: 49
Shop Notes is a favorite for its focus on jigs and plans. I read high praise coming even from veteran woodworkers. It’s well worth a look. Also it’s owned by the same folks who run WoodNet, one of my favorite forums.
Shop Notes

Wood Smith: 48
Another solid contender. Also a part of the WoodNet forum family.
Wood Smith

11 More:
Woodworking Magazine: 23
This “newer” magazine has really started to make waves in the forums. It doesn’t have any ads. As far as I can tell the editors live and breathe woodworking and writing, so it looks like a great magazine to me.

They also have a blog written primarily by editor Christopher Schwarz, who made it into our list of sawhorse plans in the celebrity section
Woodworking Magazine

Woodwork: 19
Woodwork Magazine seems to have a contemporary feel to it.

American Woodworker: 13
Woodworkers Journal: 8
FWWonline: 2
Woodcraft: 2
Workbench: 2
Cabinet Maker: 2
Canadian Home Workshop: 2
Router Power Woodworking: 2

Everyone Else:
Note - just because these didn’t get as many mentions in the forum threads does not necessarily comment on their quality. Some are just more narrowly targeted.

Canadian Woodworking

Woodshop News
woodworks
Fine Homebuilding
This Old House
Edifice
Furniture and Cabinetmaking
WoodenBoat
Power Tool Woodworking
The Family Handyman
Scrollsawer

Forum Threads Referenced:
Favorite Woodworking Magazine Poll
What Magazines do you get
What WW Magazines do you like/dislike
What woodworking magazine do you like best?
Best Woodworking Magazine
Best Magazine?

So this is a little out of the ordinary for the ToolCrib blog but I thought I’d throw it out there and see what you think…

Get in touch with your inner power tool This fun quiz will tell you which power tool matches your personality. If you think it’s fun, send it to your friends.

If you have ideas for quizzes for woodworkers I’d love to hear about them! Email me at GFrench@Gmail.com.

1. You prefer LARGE woodworking gatherings to small groups hanging out in the shop.

YES

NO

2. After too much time around people - even with family and friends - you have to recharge by reading, getting solo time in the woodshop or some other solitary activity.

YES

NO

3. Theories of woodworking interest you.

YES

NO

4. You feel fine - and even prefer - spending your non-woodshop time actively socializing with groups of people

YES

NO

5. Outside noises distract you pretty easily.

YES

NO

6. You are an enthusiastic woodworker but less than enthusiastic draftsman and planner.

YES

NO

7. You are the life of tool swaps, woodworking gatherings and other social situations - you meet new people easily and quickly.

YES

NO

8. You are quick to come up with a solution when something unexpected happens with your project.

YES

NO

9. You MUCH prefer hanging out in small groups rather than large groups.

YES

NO

10. When you’re working you focus on what you’re doing more than what you’re doing next.

YES

NO

11. The more people you talk with, the better your mood.

YES

NO

12. You learn best when you do things by hand.

YES

NO

13. Solitary hikes and other time alone are really good for you.

YES

NO

14. You’d rather start a project and figure it out rather than read books, articles, forum posts and blogs before hand.

YES

NO

15. Communicating in social situations is easy.

YES

NO

16. You’d rather learn from personal experience than from the experience of others.

YES

NO

17. You prefer taking action to slowly thinking a situation through.

YES

NO

18. You easily see the “big picture” behind specific occurrences.

YES

NO

19. You usually speak softly.

YES

NO

20. You are “the life of the party.”

YES

NO

21. What age group are you in

Under 18 years old

18-24 years old

25-30 years old

31-40 years old

41-50 years old

51-60 years old

Over 60 years old

22. What is your gender

Female

Male

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The humble sawhorse. It’s often the woodworker’s first project. You often inherit them from woodworkers who’ve passed. No matter where they come from they are the unsung heroes of many woodworking projects. I found a great thread over at woodnet (show me your saw horses) that got me hunting down all the sawhorses I could find. I’ve corralled a good mess of them here for you - 25 different plans.

If you’ve built any of these I’d appreciate your thoughts. If you prefer the metal/plastic collapsible kind let me know what brand and why. You can leave comments on this post or email me at gfrench@toolcrib.com.

The sections are as follows:
1) Celebrity Saw Horses
2) Wackiest Sawhorse
3) Best Sawhorse Idea I Couldn’t Find Plans For
4) Sometimes You Need a Mobile Carpenter Bench, Not a Sawhorse
5) Your Basic and Free Sawhorse Plans
6) Space Saving Sawhorses
7) Sawhorses for Sheet Goods
8) Sawhorses Etcetera

1) Celebrity Saw Horses:
If a woodworking celebrity designed it or uses it… it has to be good, right? Well, you’ll have to be the judge of that. I just thought it would be fun to break them out of the pack

Norm Abram’s Picnic Table and Saw Horses Why did they put the sawhorse and picnic table together? Who’s gonna pay 6 bucks for sawhorse plans? That’s more than the cost of materials! Anyways, there are folks who have built this style of sawhorse and love it. This is the only non-free plan I link to.

Roy Underhill’s Sawhorse Design (PDF) Underhill’s one of the original galoots. His sawhorse is solid and suitable for corded tool users too - it’s based on a sawhorse he found in his parents’ basement.

Chris Schwarz Sawbench
Chris Schwarz is the editor of Woodworking Magazine. He’s a big handtool aficionado too, a galoot if I understand correctly His Sawbench is well suited for hand tool users: Free Construction Drawings for the 2008 Sawbench.

Schwarz’s sawbench is similar to this Sawing Trestle plan from the 1900s.

2) Wackiest Sawhorse:
This is just a patent, so don’t take the idea and make millions from it. You’ll get sued. That said, it might be a good influence on your design if you’re crafty enough to figure out how to build one.

FIVE-LEGGED SAWHORSE

3) Best Sawhorse Idea I Couldn’t Find Plans For:
SawPony - shorter saw horses for when you want to put a foot or a leg up on the work you’re cutting to help hold it down. I guess you could just make shorter saw horse legs… Here’s where I read about them: show me your saw horses

4) Sometimes You Need a Mobile Carpenter Bench, Not a Sawhorse:
Are you using your sawhorses as mobile carpenter benches… setting up your chop saw on them, etc… It might be that you really need a mobile carpenter bench.

Mobile Carpenter’s Bench from Tim Carter

Or… maybe you just want to store more tools on your sawhorses. Check out these sweet sawhorses: Tool Tote Sawhorses.

5) Your Basic and Free Sawhorse Plans:
Sometimes vanilla is the best flavor. These sawhorses are straight ahead, no nonsense sawhorses that you will have for the next 25 years. So pick your plan carefully

The Cheapest, Easiest, Ugliest, Most Functional Saw Horse Known to Mankind

Simple Sawhorse

The Classic Sawhorse

The 14-Minute Sawhorse

the Ultimate Wood Sawhorse

wide topped sawhorses

a functional, strong and elegant sawhorse

The World’s Best $6 Sawhorse?

6) Space Saving Sawhorses:
Sometimes space is at a premium. These sawhorses will politely fold up or stack up and get out of the way when they’re not in use.

Knock-Down Sawhorses

Foldaway Vise Table & Sawhorse (PDF)

Stackable sawhorse plans

Sawhorse - Knockdown Workstation Accessories

7) Sawhorses for Sheet Goods:
Sometimes you need a little extra help with those sheet goods. These sawhorses will gladly and ably pull more than their own weight.

Sheet Rack

Knock-Down Sawhorse Cutting Grid

8) Sawhorses Etcetera:
I didn’t know which category to put these sawhorses in, but I knew I needed to include them. Here’s everything else that didn’t fit in the categories above.

chain saw sawing horse (pdf)

Replaceable Inserts Save Sawhorses

Saw Clydesdales

Other Resources:
Workshop Sawhorses = 29 plans with pics and everything
Any Sawhorse Plans?
Free Saw Horse Plans
Saw Horse Plans

Other Free Plan Resources:
ToolCrib.com’s Ultimate Guide to Free Woodworking Workbench Plans
9 Sandpaper Storage Ideas (+ free plans)
ToolCrib.com’s Ultimate Guide to Over 4,000 Free Woodworking Plans
ToolCrib.com’s Ultimate Guide to Free Router Table Plans
ToolCrib.com’s Ultimate Guide to the Crosscut Sled

Sniff sniff… is something burning? Burn marks on your wood can be early indicators of some serious issues down the road. Learn to correctly diagnose any burning your table saw blade makes and you will extend the life of your blades, table saw and appendages.

1) Dull Blade
A dull blade doesn’t move as quickly through the wood, thereby creating friction. Friction creates heat. You know the rest. Try sharpening your blade or buy a new one.

2) Blade Alignment with Miter Slot
If the blade is out of alignment with the miter slot you could have burning and other performance issues.
Squaring Your Miter Gauge the Right Way

3) Blade Parallel to Fence
If the blade’s not parallel to the fence you’ll get the burn, especially one side of the wood. Fixing this is fairly simple though.
Table Saw Alignment for $0.05?

4) Blade Bent or Warped
If your blade is bent or warped then it’s HIGHLY kickback prone. You should immediately replace it. Warping often happens when a saw blade is overheated, so if you’ve been having burn problems for awhile then you could be aggravating the problem
warped saw blade?

5) Blade Height
In one forum I read where a fellow kept getting burns on his cherry. The blade manufacturer suggested he raise the blade height and this worked in stopping the burn. Blade height affects the angle that the teeth hit the wood. Too low and you make your blade work too hard, causing friction.

6) Appropriate Blade for the Cut
Are you ripping with a cross cut blade? If you’re new to woodworking you might not even realize it’s happening… Make sure that your blade matches the kind of cut you’re making.

7) Dirty Blade
A dirty blade moves through your stock more slowly. This causes friction and burning. Clean your blades.
ToolCrib.com’s Ultimate Guide to Cleaning Saw Blades and Router Bits

8) Feed Rate Too Slow or Uneven
Those who are newer to woodworking may not realize that their table saws can usually accept a pretty high feed rate. If you’re stopping and starting to adjust your hold, or just moving the stock through very slowly you’re likely to get burn.

9) Warped Wood/Improperly Dried Lumber
Warped wood will bind, as will improperly dried lumber that releases as you cut it. Both instances can cause burn.

10) Splitter Misaligned or Missing
A splitter will help keep the wood from binding around the blade. This bind can cause friction and kickback.
When Kickback Calls… Six Favorite Table Saw Splitters

11) Arbor Flange Run Out
Arbor flange run out can be a bit of a larger project, but if you correct this issue you may see a big increase in performance.
How I Fixed my TS Arbor Flange Runout

Some Woods Prone to Table Saw Burn:
NOT that you should blame the wood, but it’s true, some woods are more prone to burning than others. Here are a few. Have you had experience with any others?

Cherry
Mahogany
Maple
Purple Heart

Highly recommended table saw tune up resource:
TLC for Your Table Saw This video from woodworker Craig Stevens gives you a great guide to tuning up your table saw, including corrections for blade burn. Sweet!

More Blade Burn Resources:
Wood Species and Table Saw Burn
How to Eliminate Saw Blade Burns
Bad burning on table saw cuts
What causes burn marks on the table saw
How I Fixed my TS Arbor Flange Runout
Table saw blade burning wood
Freud Fusion vs. Forrest WWII Blades: Which High End Blade is the Best?
Best Table Saw Miter Gauge: Incra vs. Osborne vs. Kreg

If you ask a woodworking forum which contractor saw you should buy at least one guy will tell you: “take your contractor saw money, shop craigslist and buy a used cabinet saw.” This is great advice IF you have the space for one and you NEVER need to move it. It’s also great advice if you’re cutting denser woods and want ZERO vibration. That said, there’s nothing wrong with DIYers and woodworking hobbyists using a contractor saw with a decent fence - you’ll get great, repeatable cuts that are right on the money.

Check out Getting the Most Out of Your Benchtop or Contractor Table Saw for the heartwarming tale of woodworkers who put great fences on POS saws and got great performance from them.

A recent thread at Woodnet caught my attention though, as I’d never really realized what a contender the Rigid contractor saw is. One forum member asked for opinions comparing the Rigid 3650/60 to a Delta 36-979. Rigid came out the winner… by a nose.

Rigid TS3650: 6 Votes

Delta 36-979: 5 Votes

The saws are actually so close in quality (according to WoodNetters) that - if you’re considering one or the other - you should consider seeing them both in person before making your final decision. Here are a few bullet points that could help you decide too, based on what’s most important to you.

>> rigid has built in dust collection
>> delta dust collection is not great - asthmatics beware!
>> the rigid fence is a solid fence but doesn’t play well with other fences
>> delta works with the T2, Unifence and Biesemeyer fences
>> rigid has better built in casters
>> delta may have a higher resale value

Other Contractor Saw Resources:
Delta 36-979 10″ Left Tilt Contractor’s Saw (reviews from LumberJocks)
Ridgid TS3650 Tablesaw (review by Phil Bumbalough)
Getting the Most Out of Your Benchtop or Contractor Table Saw
$600 For New Contractor Saw: Bosch vs. Rigid vs. Grizzly vs. Jet (note that he went with the Rigid after all…)
A Table Saw Buying Guide: Benchtop vs Contractor vs Cabinet vs Hybrid

Moving your woodshop can be a major hassle and a MAJOR expense. There are a number of options out there though, and a wealth of ideas and suggestions from those who have gone before. This write up is more for the home owner/extreme hobbyist woodworker than for the pro, but I think there might be useful stuff for the pro here too.

My inspiration for this post came from WoodNet’s Moving! Any suggestions?

First off, the only answer to the question “how do I move my woodshop?” is “IT DEPENDS.” I found a great list of depends by Allen Bookout over at SawmillCreek’s thread Shop moving question?:

It depends on what you already have.
It depends on who is paying for the move.
It depends on where you are moving to.
It depends on what kind of equipment you have to move.
It depends on how long the move is.
It depends on how physically fit you are.
It depends on your current financial situation.

In order to sort through all of these “depends” I’m going to outline the basic methods that I found listed in forums. Some of these you can mix and match. If you have any more ideas or experiences please include them in the comments!

Pack Your Own Pods
This isn’t intended to be an advertorial for pods, but I did notice more than a couple forum members describe good experiences with using them. Basically they drop of big storage units at your house that you load up and move when you’re ready. Another advantage is that they’re low to the ground and you won’t have to lift your tools. Pods are midway between DIY and pay someone to do it for you.

Some issues noted:
They have a weight limit that people at pods seemed reluctant to state. Plus you have to pack them evenly or they will have difficulty lifting and transporting them. One forum member mentioned laying down 3/4″ plywood on the floor to keep from punching holes with his heavy power tools. Also one guy at WoodNet had an issue with a Pod contractor who tried to load a pod on a truck with a non-standard vehicle. This ended up wrecking some of his stuff though the contractor ended up paying for it. Oh yeah - you’re still doing all the loading yourself here too

Hire a Moving Company
If your company’s paying for you to move then this is probably the best answer. I noted lots of folks offering great common sense advice like taking pictures of all your valuables before you move and talking to your insurance company before moving to make sure that everything is covered. Some folks described supervising the tool loading pretty carefully on both ends. Another note - be sure to tip these guys after they load up and after they unload.

Some issues noted:
This is probably the most expensive method of moving. For long hauls I saw prices as high as $14k to move a house + shop. If your company’s paying for it AND you don’t mind giving up control then this could be a good move for you.

Buy Heavy Duty Trailer and Sell It Afterwards
If you already have a truck as your primary vehicle you could consider purchasing a heavy duty trailer and selling it or even storing it afterwards. Many folks find such trailers HIGHLY useful for hauling wood, power tools and other assorted heavy items.

Some issues noted:
Reselling the trailer could be a hassle, as could storing it depending on where you live. Also, if you don’t have a truck then you should have already skipped to a different suggestion.

Sell Non-Essential Tools, Move the Shop Core and Purchase New Tools
I saw this suggestion a number of times… it seems that many woodworkers use moves as an opportunity to upgrade their woodshops. Basically, don’t move what you would soon upgrade or replace anyway. Sell what you want to replace before you move and tuck that money aside for upgrades once you’re settled.

Some issues noted:
This can add expense + sometimes you don’t really need to upgrade. If you’re not moving very far then it’s not quite as much of an issue.

Rental Truck with Lift Gate/Rental Truck + Rental Fork Lift
For the more DIY folks out there who like to have a little more control over the process consider renting a truck with a lift. Or a truck without a lift and a fork lift. OR a truck plus movers working on the side for extra cash. This method will probably be the cheapest all the way around because you’re taking more responsibility.

Some issues noted:
You’re doing all the work yourself - some lifting included. You will have to find, hire and manage the help yourself (if you hire people). Definitely check up with your insurance company on how to best cover your stuff during the move. And remember to tip well if you hire people - these are heavy tools we’re talking about here.

Have Your Tools Moved by Freight
I saw this mentioned only once by someone from Canada. He did it about 10 years ago. I’d say look into it, but I don’t have many details about it… Here’s a company that ships freight style (you crate it, we freight it).

Prepping Your Tools for the Move
Prep your tools for moving. Remember they may jostle some and those heavy motors could break off. I read of some folks crating tools with home-made crates and then attaching the crates to the truck bed. Others simply removed the add-ons and added a coat of wax. I read about one guy who simply rolled his power tools onto the moving truck last and hit the road.

Layout Your New Shop Before You Move In
Think hard about shop layout before you start unloading your tools. You might even consider packing your tools with your new shop layout in mind. Why? That way you can pack so that you unload with your tools and equipment in the order you want to put them in your new shop. Pay careful attention to your dust collection duct work!

Woodshop Tool Moving Resources:
Moving! Any suggestions? (WoodNet)
Shop moving question? (Sawmill Creek)
Question about moving vans (Sawmill Creek)

(oops - for some newsletter readers I meant to send you to the wooden machine video that’s HERE)

We’re going to the mail bag today to field a question regarding brick removal. Not our normal woodworking stuff I know, but bear with me - we’ve got people in need

Question: looking to tear down a brick fireplace in which I need to save and reuse the brick, also plan on tearing out some on floor tile. which tool do I use, an rotary air hammer…which model do you recommend…would like to keep below $350. Please Help. Thanks

If you already have an air compressor then an air hammer will be your best bet. They are relatively inexpensive…

Check out the Porter Cable Pneumatic Hammer for example:

$42.05 shipped.

There are models as low as 14$.

I think the Fein Multimaster would work well for you too, though it’s getting well out of your price range if you get one with “all the fixins”. I wrote about it first here: Ceramic Tile Removal Tools. A FMM with a more basic set up falls below your target price.

Fein MultiMaster FMM 250Q

$309.00 shipped.

I think a rotary hammer may be a bit more tool than you need, though I suppose that depends on the quality and age of the mortar. I’ve never done this kind of work, but I’d say that if you’re set on a rotary hammer that you first consider renting one because it’s not going to be as versatile a tool as the Fein MultiMaster.

It’s sort of like the old router vs. shaper debate - if you were tearing out brick every day I’d suggest something a little more industrial. In your case I think you’ll be fine with a tool with less muscle and more versatility.

If you’re still set on getting a rotary hammer then these look like good models:
Bosch 11255VSR BULLDOG Xtreme 1-Inch SDS-plus D-Handle Rotary Hammer

$228.98 shipped

Makita HR2455X2 1-Inch D-Handle SDS Rotary Hammer 4-1/2-Inch Angle Grinder Combo Kit

$249.25 shipped

Here are some resources for removing bricks and keeping them salvageable:
how do I remove brick I want to reuse?
My son and I removed about 350 sq ft of brick off the house when I put on the kitchen addition. We used a compressor and a pneumatic hammer on most of it. Just put the hammer on the mortar joints and pulled the trigger. The bricks popped off, intack. When we got close to the edge we used a grinder to make the transition as you need to take out a weave pattern to tie in the new section. One person did the removal, the other cleaned off any mortar left on the brick and stacked them. We saved at least 95% of them.
read more (from the GardeWeb.com)

How do you remove mortar off of brick?
We use Muriatic Acid mixed with water 1:10. Thats 1 part muriatic acid to 10 parts water… (this is a very dangerous chemical! research thoroughly before using it).
read more

Demolition Best Practices
“When demolishing brick structures, work along the mortar joints and ease the bricks apart cleanly.”
read more

Chipping tile mortar an excellent forum thread.

I hope this helps, and if you have more questions or if anyone else has insight please let me know in the comments.
-G

The question of a shaper vs. a router and good table is an evergreen question in the forums and magazines. Every few months someone comes by and asks about the advantages and disadvantages of a shaper over a good router and router table. It’s a good question - by the time you’ve purchased a solid router, lift, table, fence and dust collection you’re potentially up into the low-level shaper price range.

Here’s the question as it appeared recently in WoodNet:

Looking long range I would like to know what the advantages or disadvantages are between a router in a table with a lift and a shaper. I see the prices of router table components plus routers like the PC 7518 and can’t help but wonder if it would not be better to just save up for a shaper instead of trying to make a router into a shaper.

My objective would be to build kitchen doors and drawer fronts and what ever other hobby projects come down the line.

As in all “what tool should I buy” questions it comes back to usage. In this case - kitchen doors, drawer fronts and other hobby projects. The short and sweet answer is he should get a router - it’s ultimately more versatile than a shaper could ever be. The long answer is, of course, it depends

Routermeister Pat Warner describes shapers this way:
“They are designed for all-day door, drawer or molding operations. Duty cycles are measured in “shifts” not minutes. They are production animals. Their cutters are big (way over 2″ in diameter), expensive and last for hours. The set ups are not particularly difficult but once in “spec” they are not touched for the length of run. Although capable of experimental work, shapers are usually set up for routine big jobs of long duration.”

Warner says this about routers:
“Router tables give up production for versatility. Router tables are easy to fixture, and they fill an important need for a wide range of cabinet and furniture responsibilities. They are great for short run solutions but don’t expect shaper performance from one.”

from ROUTER OR SHAPER? by Pat Warner

Here are some thoughts from various woodworking forums:
“If your building cabinet doors or doing anything in volume, the shaper is the way to go. For building furniture, a router table is perfect.”
-Jokerbird (WN)

“If you are going to spend more than $600 on a router setup for shaper work, I say get a shaper.”
-AZ Engineer (WN)

“I have a small pro shop and I could not live without either one. I accomplish many things on my shaper: tenoning up to 1-1/2″ long, rabbits, crown (up to 5″), coves (up to 5″), styles and rails, curved stock, pattern shaping, every kind of profile you can think of plus use of ALL of my router bits (1/2″).”
-Paul B. Cresti (SMC)

“After years of building the “perfect router table,” I finally discovered that a router collet on the shaper outperformed anything I could build. Vibration is eliminated with a cast iron machine, and adjustments come quick and easy.”
from WoodWeb

“There’s very little a shaper can do that you can’t duplicate with a router table. Shapers are used more often in industrial woodworking shops, and I do almost all my machining of wood with a really good, well-built router table. The one thing a shaper has going for it is that it comes with a split fence, but you can build that into your router table design without much hassle.”
Rick White (woodworking.com)

“The best part is that at around $1100 the Steel City shaper is half the price of the delta and not much more than the little jet. In fact, what finally pushed me into the purchase is that when I realized that after spending the same amount of money to get the ultimate router table setup then it would still not be as good as the shaper.”
Tom Jones III (SMC)

Be watching for a guide to buying shapers… the more I learn about them the more interested I get!

Shaper vs. Router Resources:
Shaper Which One? (SMC)
Router table vs shaper (SMC)
Router Table Versus Shaper
Shaper versus router? (woodweb)
Shaper versus router?
Router Table vs. Shaper. Is a 1.5HP shaper enough?

Our Router Resources
Best Router for Beginning Woodworker?
ToolCrib.com’s Ultimate Guide to Free Router Table Plans
Best Router Bits: Whiteside vs. Freud vs. Eagle America and MORE
Making the Router Decision: Horsepower vs. Rated Amperage
A Router Buying Guide for the First Time Router Buyer