How to glue up boards for a tabletop, and how long to leave the clamps on
Picking and arranging boards, glue, clamps and clamp times from Titebond, two Argentine PVA glues, Fine Woodworking and Popular Woodworking. I have not glued up a panel.
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How to stain pine without blotching
Pine soaks up stain unevenly. Conditioner, a thin washcoat or gel stain: what Bob Flexner, Fine Woodworking, Minwax and General Finishes say, and where they contradict each other. I have not stained pine.
Why wooden tabletops crack, and how to attach one so it doesn't
Wood swells and shrinks across its width with the humidity. Screw or glue a top down rigidly and it splits. What the Wood Handbook, Fine Woodworking and Woodcraft say. I have not built a table.
Beginner woodworking tools: what five teachers buy first, round by round
Kate Swann, Wood and Shop, The English Woodworker and two Popular Woodworking editors, side by side. I have not bought this kit.
Clamps for a first shop: which ones, and how many
Bar, pipe, parallel, one-handed and spring clamps, from Fine Woodworking, Woodsmith and Popular Woodworking. I have not glued up a panel with any of them.
Diamond plate or water stone: a first sharpening setup, from what I read
Diamond plates, water stones, and a word on oil stones and sandpaper, from three Fine Woodworking pieces and two working woodworkers. I have not sharpened on any of them.
How to choose a marking gauge: pin, wheel or cutting gauge
One Fine Woodworking test and four other write-ups on a first gauge. I have not scribed a line with any of them.
Pilot hole and clearance hole, before you drive the screw
Two Fine Woodworking articles on why the top board and the bottom board are not the same hole. I have not driven the screw.
What wood to buy for a first project
Eastern white pine and yellow poplar, from The Wood Database. I have not built with either.
How to choose a first hand saw
Rip, crosscut, and the one-blade pull saw, from maker geometry. I have not sawn a board with any of them.
How to sharpen a chisel, from two published methods
A 30° bevel from Lie-Nielsen, and Paul Sellers’ freehand camber. I have not honed a chisel.
Measuring and marking, before you cut
A knife line that a saw can feel, from Popular Woodworking. I have not marked out a joint.
Sanding grits, without inventing a scratch depth
P means FEPA. A Fine Woodworking test stopped most bare wood at P150 or P220. I have not sanded a panel to check.
Wood glue types, from the maker sheets
Original, II and III, as Titebond prints the water ratings. I have not glued a joint with any of them.
When a pocket-hole jig is worth buying: one evaluation, and a real split
Kreg’s three jigs from shop blogs, plus a model I will not recommend because I found no review I read. I have not drilled a pocket.
A first cutting board: an edge-grain plan I have not built
A starting size you change to your lumber, and clamps from one guide that did not lab-test them. I have not glued this up.
A cutting-board finish: where the sources disagree
Mineral oil, a non-drying brand oil, Osmo, and a bowl finish the maker may not intend for knives. I have not oiled a board.
A first bench: what to decide before the vise catalog
Height is your wrist. The portable benches in the notes are one magazine’s picks. I have not built or bought one.
Card scraper or sandpaper: whose advice is a test, and whose is a shop
Sellers on cards, one video on mesh discs. I have not turned a hook or sanded a top.
Japanese pull saw or Western handsaw: what one comparison measured
Pull versus push, from TechGearLab and two joinery-saw write-ups. I have not sawn with them. The photo is a kugihiki, not a ryoba.
How to choose a first chisel set: what the tests actually compared
Narex, Stanley Sweetheart, Marples and Lie-Nielsen, from published tests. I have not pared a hinge with any of them.
Wood glue for furniture: what the bottles and the editors say
PVA, liquid hide and where the waterproof claim actually comes from. I have not glued a joint.
How to choose a random orbit sander: what the tests measured
Dust, noise and speed from published sander tests. I have not sanded with these machines. A US corded tool is the wrong voltage in much of the world.
How to choose a first hand plane: what the research says
Block plane or bench plane, from maker geometry and published tests. I have not planed a board with either.