"In coatings, we preach the need to get the coating onto the wood as soon after the final sanding is completed as is absolutely possible. Obviously, as wood is a material that is susceptible to humidity and temperature change, one can see the logic in that concept."

I’ve been blessed in my career to have seen literally thousands of sanding processes. This has taught me humility when I first approach a new customer because you never really know what inspired them to do things that, on the outset, seem rather silly and counterproductive.

There’s been a fair amount of press lately about how difficult it is to pass the craft of woodworking down to a younger generation. High school woodworking programs are being cut in the interest of saving money, and our high-tech society doesn’t lend itself to crafts like woodworking.

Of all the hardwoods, I think poplar is the most misunderstood. It has traditionally been used on insignificant internal components of furniture as a secondary wood. A lot of folks get turned off by the green and brown streaks sometimes evident in the wood. But this can be overcome.

I received a phone call the other day from a gentleman in his 70’s. He went into a lengthy discussion about how technology has replaced craftsmanship. To paraphrase his comments, “When I was working in the shop, we cut to fit. We didn’t need a measuring tape.”

In my previous post, I promised to provide an update on how my plan worked for using a threaded rod to anchor a newel post. Overall, my plan worked, but not without some minor nuisances that always seem to happen in a home improvement project.

I got a call from a family that needed to know how to fix a loose newel post on their stairway. This is the post at the bottom of the stairway that anchors the handrail. It’s a pretty important structural component in the handrail and baluster assembly.

I remember the day like it was yesterday. I took those first few swipes on a piece of scrap wood and discovered the magic. I was able to get thin, whispy shavings. That day changed my woodworking forever.

I’m in the middle of repairing an antique table. There’s nothing really broken, but most of the joints are loose. So I’m carefully prying apart the old doweled joints and removing the old glue, then reassembling the joint with Titebond wood glue.

I remember when I first started woodworking my dad would come up behind me as I was gluing up a project. “Got enough glue on that?,” he’d say. Glue was everywhere. I guess I was afraid of starving the joints of glue. I needn’t have worried with the amount of glue I was using.