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Few workshop tools are as simple as a leather strop, yet few are surrounded by as much misunderstanding. Some woodworkers swear by them, while others avoid them altogether. Some claim a strop “aligns the edge,” while others argue it merely rounds over a flat bevel.

Like many traditional tools, the truth lies somewhere between the extremes. A leather strop is neither a miracle tool nor a useless accessory. Used correctly, it is a refinement tool. It removes the last traces of a burr, polishes the very apex of the cutting edge and leaves a tool feeling smoother and more refined in use. Used carelessly, particularly with excessive pressure, it can gradually round over the edge you worked so hard to create.

Understanding the strop begins with the history of edged tools themselves.

Unlike the Bailey plane, the leather strop cannot be credited to a single inventor. It appears to have developed naturally wherever craftsmen worked with sharp edges.

Leather has been used for thousands of years for countless purposes because of its durability and flexibility. Although there is no archaeological evidence proving that prehistoric craftsmen deliberately stropped stone tools, leather was widely available and would have been familiar to early tool users. Those same qualities that made it useful for clothing, containers and equipment also made it well suited to refining cutting edges.

By the Roman period, whetstones were well established for sharpening iron tools and weapons. Surviving Roman writings discuss sharpening stones, but they do not provide clear evidence of dedicated leather strops. If leather was used for refining edges, it may simply have been considered an ordinary workshop practice rather than something requiring detailed explanation.

By the Middle Ages, stropping had become strongly associated with barbers, surgeons and cutlers. Straight razors required an extremely refined edge, and leather proved ideal for removing the final traces of a burr and producing a highly polished cutting edge.

Woodworkers likely adopted similar practices. Joiners, cabinetmakers, turners and other craftsmen depended on sharp edged tools that benefited from regular maintenance. However, surviving woodworking manuals mention sharpening stones far more often than they mention stropping, suggesting that stropping was probably a practical workshop habit rather than a formally documented procedure. The repeated use of the word probably is deliberate because the historical evidence is limited.

During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, leather strops became increasingly common. Cabinetmakers and joiners used leather attached to wooden boards, while barbers often preferred hanging strops. Polishing compounds such as jeweller’s rouge were introduced to increase the polishing ability of the leather and produce an even finer edge.

The nineteenth century saw the mass production of strops. Manufacturers offered hanging strops, paddle strops, bench strops and combination strops with leather and canvas surfaces. Advertising often claimed that strops would renew, refresh or align an edge, marketing that continues to influence how people describe them today.

Modern craftsmen have expanded the idea further. Leather has been joined by materials such as MDF, hardwood, denim and cardboard, often charged with modern abrasives such as diamond paste or the familiar green polishing compound, commonly called green rouge. Some craftsmen even use the palm of their hand as a strop. I know I still do on occasion. Whatever method is used, the principle remains the same. A strop is a finishing tool, not a replacement for proper sharpening.

To understand what a strop does, we first need to understand what happens during sharpening.

Even after working through progressively finer stones, a cutting edge is rarely perfect. Under magnification several features may still be present. There may be a microscopic burr, a thin flap of steel created as the abrasive removes material at the edge. Although extremely small, it can affect cutting performance. The very apex of the edge also contains microscopic scratches left by the abrasive. Even the finest stones leave a surface pattern, although those marks may be almost invisible. Finally, the steel at the very tip has experienced considerable stress during sharpening. The last few microns of steel are the most delicate part of the tool.

A leather strop works almost exclusively on this tiny region.

When charged with an abrasive compound, a strop removes the remaining burr, reduces microscopic irregularities and polishes the apex of the edge. The result is not a dramatic change in the bevel geometry but a refinement of the final cutting surface.

This explains why a properly sharpened plane iron can feel noticeably sharper after just a few light strokes on a strop. The edge has become cleaner and more consistent, allowing it to pass through the wood with less resistance.

Woodworkers who polish beyond the finest bench stones, whether with sub micron abrasives or leather strops, are not correcting a defective edge. They are simply refining the microscopic scratches left by the stone in an effort to maximise keenness and prolong the life of the apex before it begins to wear.

One of the most misunderstood descriptions of stropping is the phrase “aligning the edge.”

If a cutting edge has rolled during use, the steel has undergone plastic deformation. A strop cannot restore the original strength of that steel. At best, it may temporarily improve how the edge feels, but it has not repaired the damage.

A more accurate explanation is that stropping removes weak material at the apex, reduces microscopic irregularities and refines the cutting edge.

If an edge has genuinely rolled, chipped or become damaged, the only correct solution is to return to the sharpening stones and remove enough material to reach sound steel once again. A strop is the final stage of sharpening. It is not a substitute for sharpening. This is where many woodworkers become confused.

A plane iron can be carefully sharpened on a fine stone, followed by just a few light strokes on a strop, and immediately feel noticeably better. It may slice more easily, glide through the wood with less resistance and appear sharper in simple cutting tests.

The reason is that cutting performance depends heavily on the condition of the very apex of the edge. A freshly sharpened edge may still contain tiny remnants of burr material, microscopic irregularities, a slightly uneven apex and a thin layer of weakened steel created during sharpening. A strop refines this final region. The abrasive removes and polishes the weakest material at the apex, leaving a cleaner, more uniform cutting edge that feels noticeably keener. However, that does not necessarily mean the edge is stronger.

A heavily stropped edge may feel exceptionally sharp because the apex has been highly refined. Yet excessive pressure can also round the edge slightly and remove support behind the cutting edge. The result may be an edge that feels incredibly keen but loses that initial performance more quickly.

This is the difference between initial keenness and long term durability. One edge may feel sharper immediately but lose that sensation sooner. Another may feel slightly less impressive at first, yet maintain its cutting performance for considerably longer.

A carefully finished stone edge may feel slightly less razor-like, but it retains a crisp, well supported apex that generally lasts longer in use. An aggressively stropped edge may feel extraordinarily sharp at first, yet lose that refined feeling sooner. Neither edge is necessarily sharper than the other. The difference lies in how the final few microns of steel have been prepared.

Excessive stropping removes support behind the cutting edge because the flexible leather compresses and conforms around the apex, abrading the steel at the very tip and effectively steepening the final cutting angle.

Mechanically, the process is straightforward. Unlike a rigid sharpening stone, leather compresses under pressure. As the blade is drawn across the surface, the leather rises around the edge, allowing the abrasive to contact not only the bevel but also the very apex. Repeated stropping gradually produces a slight convex shape at the tip of the bevel. As this happens, steel is removed from the area immediately behind the cutting edge, reducing the amount of material supporting the apex.

The result is a microscopically thin cutting edge with less structural support. In light work it can feel exceptionally keen, but when driven into hard timber or subjected to impact, the unsupported apex is more likely to roll, chip or collapse. The edge may excel in a paper slicing test while proving less durable in demanding woodworking.

For this reason, a strop works best when mounted on a hard, flat backing, such as leather glued to a wooden block, and used with the lightest possible pressure. The goal is simply to remove the remaining burr and polish the apex without allowing the leather to deform around the edge.

The ideal sharpening method ultimately depends on the tool and the work it performs. Carving tools generally benefit from regular stropping because they are used with light cutting forces where maximum keenness is often more important than durability. Paring chisels can also benefit from occasional stropping because they are designed for controlled slicing cuts.

Chopping chisels and heavy bench chisels, however, are subjected to repeated impact. For these tools, a strong, well supported apex is often more valuable than pursuing the highest possible polish.

Plane irons occupy a similar position. Many experienced woodworkers prefer finishing on a very fine stone with little or no stropping because the edge is expected to work continuously against the timber. A crisp, durable apex often proves more valuable than the additional refinement produced by excessive stropping.

A leather strop is neither magic nor unnecessary. It is simply a finishing tool.

Used correctly, it removes the last traces of a burr, polishes the cutting edge and produces a noticeable improvement in how a tool feels and performs. Used incorrectly, it can gradually reduce the strength of the very edge it is intended to refine.

The best results come from understanding exactly what the strop is doing. It is refining the final few microns of an already sharp edge. Those few microscopic microns may seem insignificant, but they are exactly where every cut begins.

I know this is a lot to take in, so I’m going to explain it one more time in plain English.

The reason I’m spending so much time on this is that there is so much rubbish written about stropping. People copy one another without understanding what is actually happening at the cutting edge. Then someone turns it into a YouTube video or a blog article, and before long everyone is repeating the same misinformation as though it were fact.

So forget what you’ve heard for a moment and let’s look at what is actually happening. Imagine sharpening a pencil with a knife. At first, the pencil has a strong, well-supported point. The wood behind the graphite holds everything together.

Now imagine you keep shaving away the wood around the very tip while leaving the graphite sticking out further and further. The point becomes incredibly sharp, but it also becomes fragile because there isn’t enough wood supporting it.

A leather strop can do something similar to a steel edge. When you press a blade onto leather, the leather isn’t perfectly rigid. It compresses and wraps slightly around the very tip of the edge. Instead of polishing only the flat bevel, it also polishes the steel immediately behind the cutting edge. With very light pressure this isn’t a problem. It simply removes the last traces of the burr and polishes the edge. But if you press too hard or strop for too long, the leather keeps removing tiny amounts of steel from behind the edge. The edge becomes extremely thin and feels frighteningly sharp, but it also loses some of the steel that was supporting it. Like the sharpened point of a pencil with too much wood removed, it becomes more fragile. The edge can be incredibly thin, but because there’s so little material behind it, it bends or wears much more quickly.

So there is a trade-off:

a) A lightly stropped edge is polished while still retaining plenty of steel behind it, making it both sharp and durable.

b) An aggressively stropped edge may feel even sharper at first, but because some of its support has been removed, it can dull, roll or chip sooner.

That’s why many experienced woodworkers say, “Use the strop sparingly.” The goal isn’t to keep polishing forever. It’s simply to remove the burr, refine the edge and then stop before you begin weakening it.

In the next article, I’ll look at which types of leather make the best strops and what adhesive is best for attaching them to a backing. I’ve already covered the type of wood I recommend.

If you don’t have a leather strop, don’t let that stop you. The palm of your hand can work surprisingly well as a quick strop. I’ve used it for years and still do. Four or five light strokes are often enough to remove the last traces of the burr and leave the edge feeling noticeably keener.

not last night

After dinner when I checked this it was still tacky. Got the 2nd (and final) coat on it this AM. I tried to sand it with 320 grit and that didn't go well.  It wasn't tacky to the touch but the sandpaper grabbed and stuttered like it was. I'll have to let this set up for while before I try that again.

found the MIA center punch

I spent almost an hour sifting through the shitcan trying to find it. Got this sent out this AM. I still don't think it is worth to try and fix it but he is willing to try doing it.

a protector

Drilled a scrap of cherry for the pointed business end of the punch. I mailed this in a padded mailed and I didn't want it poking out during transit.

new box

This is for my eyeglasses. The black framed ones that will call this home are as long as these are.

they fit

I made the box longer for extra wiggle room. Thinking of putting some felt on the bottom. I have some red felt somewhere in the shop but ........

hmm.......

The box the eyeglasses are in now was for something else that I forgot what I had made it for. The glasses fit diagonally but there is little wiggle room. New eyeglass box is wider and longer than it.

prepping the box

I let the box cook for a couple of hours before planing and sanding it smooth.

still viable?????

This shellac is almost a year old. I stirred it with the stick, wiped the excess off and it set up and dried within a few minutes. I wasn't expecting it to be good but based on this I'll slap 4-5 coats on the two boxes.

stopped working

I can't reset the breaker on this plug. I tried it in 4 outlets, all with the same result. Nada.

WTF??????????

The screw heads are triangular. I have never seen a triangular screw head before. I tried to use my smallest screwdriver set and a torx set to unscrew it and nothing worked. Rather than trying to fix this, it became dumpster food.

so far, so good

The first is on and appears that all is well is Disneyland. It is dry and rough to the touch which is what I expected the first coat to be. I'm curious to see what happens when I steel wool it after the 2nd coat.

ready to do battle

I had two poor man miter boxes that are toast. The cut across the top is good but the vertical/plumb cut is toast. It tapers and wanders off on towards the bottom final third. I filled in the errant cuts with veneer and soaked it with super glue. Laid out two new miters and sawed them.

crash landing

I gave it free flying lessons courtesy of RJB airlines. I sawed the vertical and the saw wandered off the vertical line on the bottom final 3rd. I tried like crazy twisting the saw blade to track it on the line but it had a mind of its own. It was going out into La La Land and nothing I did would stop it. That earned it a first class ticket trip to the wall.

hmm......

The left miter came out better. I still didn't get a plumb cut, it wandered off into La La Land further down, closer to the bottom. The miter wasn't bad but it wasn't 45 neither. The heel was a few frog hairs high.

this sucks

The front saw cut split the line perfectly but the back threw a hissy fit. I know I can saw better than the results I'm getting. I'm taking my time eyeballing the line and when see it wavers and I try to correct it but no joy trying that yet.

the best one

This is the best miter I have gotten off any of the miter boxes I have made. Not a dead nuts 45 but within a frog hair or two. I always saw the left miter better than the right ones.

It isn't that big of a deal because I sweeten the miters after sawing them on my shooting board. However, there have been times when getting a miter directly off the box would have been easier to deal with. Doing the back frames for the picture frames would be good example of off the miter box.

finding the cause

Used my small Starrett square to saw the vertical. It helped but I couldn't use it to do the entire vertical saw cut. The bottom wandered off of course but in the final 1/8".

better

It is a little less then a frog hair off. This was encouraging and it dawned on me that maybe it isn't me but the saw. Saws will wandered as the dull and I've had this one for a few years.

dozuki saw

The backside of the cut is off the knife line a wee bit. However, Mr Starrett said that this and the off cut was 45°.

2nd saw

This is my LN carcass saw and again, Mr Starrett said both cuts were dead on 45.

another carcass saw

This is the LN tapered carcass saw. I rarely use it and I bought it when my other LN carcass saw was out getting sharpened. Same results according to Mr Starrett.

LN dovetail saw

This was making me feel a lot better. I knifed the top and the front and back vertical and sawed out on them. Mr Starrett says I have a very bright green light on this one too.

Lee Valley rip gents saw

I wasn't expecting this but Mr Starrett said there were zero gaps and no light peeking through. I thought the rip saw would have left a rougher kerf but it didn't. The higher TPI definitely helped with that.

Blue Spruce dovetail saw

All are sawing 45s and no wandering at all with any of the saws so far.

LN rip carcass saw

This was eye opening for me. All this time I thought it was me and having to deal with parallax errors and saws I couldn't saw plumb with.

If I counted right, I used 9 saws. The Lee Valley crosscut gents saw was the only one that failed to saw plumb. The other 8 saws I used all sawed dead nuts 45 miters. I emailed Lee Valley to ask if they sold replacement saw blades for the gents saw. Glad I tried this and I'll be making another poor man's miter box with one of the 8 good saws.

hmm......

2nd coat on and dry within 5 minutes. I'll come to the shop after dinner, steel wool this, and slap on a third coat.

lights out delayed

I was killing the lights when I noticed this corner was misaligned. I had to fix so I planed it and sanded it with 120 grit.

sigh

Two other corners were off a little too. Planed and fixed them and applied another coat of shellac.

came while typing the blog

This is not too bad of a deal for $10 bucks. What are the odds that this has the screw I need. I think these are metric but I'm not 100% sure of this. I don't recognize the sizes printed on the lid of the screw box.

accidental woodworker

last step

120 grit to flush the putty on the back frame. The next batter was picking a paint color.

nope

These are the powdered dyes for milk paint. I thought of mixing up a batch of milk paint but the frame was all I had to paint. Most of it would have been wasted.

the final three

Black was my first thought but I nixed it. Instead I picked green. That had been choice for milk paint too. I picked chrome green and for whatever reason it wasn't the color I expected. It was green but the 'chrome' part didn't materialize. I had expected it to be shiny like an enamel paint but it wasn't.

sifting through the garbage

One of the readers of my keyboard diarrhea offered to fix the center punch that came with the Vix bit set I bought. As usual, I couldn't find it. I look in all the obvious places first and nada. Looked every else and settled on the shop shitcan. I don't remember what I had done with it but I went through the shitcan thinking maybe I had shitcanned it. I transferred from the right shitcan into the left one. I filled that up 4 times to a weight I could pick up without feeling it. So far I hadn't found the MIA center punch. 

no joy

I made sure that I sifted all the shavings through my fingers so the punch wouldn't slip by unnoticed. Clueless as to what had happened to it. I'm sure it will pop up when I'm reaching for something totally unrelated to it.

hmm......

It has been more then 3 hours (closer to 4) since I put the first coat on and it is still tacky. Today was nice, temps in the high 70s F - ~25C with low humidity. The can says recoat in 2-4 hours. I'll check it again after dinner and if it isn't tacky I'll get the 2nd coat on. If not then in the AM. I have the time because another project hasn't grabbed my limited attention span yet.

Grrr..........

The glasses fell off when I put them on. Where the screw is, is a mystery. I had tightened both of the frame arms screw a couple of weeks ago. None of the screws in the eyeglass kit fit. I'm glad that I have spare glasses to use in the shop. I need them for close up work. I ordered a kit of eye glass screws from Amazon and I'll have them tomorrow. 

These are reading glasses and I prefer to use them in the shop. The replacement glasses I'm using in the interim are bifocals which are ok but they are delicate wire framed set. Not something that can withstand the abuse I heap on my eyewear in the shop.

I took it easy today because I was feeling bone, weary tired. Plus I was having coughing fits off/on through out the day. For no reason I could discern, I would cough feeling like I wanted to hack up chunks of my lungs. Makes for doing absolutely nothing a ROYAL PITA.

Other then the coughing fits, I still have the blister, blob, bump, or whatever it is still on my left chest. It doesn't look or feel like it is getting any smaller nor wants to. But on a brighter note, my left boob/nipple isn't as tender/sore/achy. There were a few weeks that my shirt brushing on it could make me almost cry. Healing is taking a longer time than I thought it would. 

accidental woodworker 

 The forecast for today was partly sunny and cloudy with thunder boomers possible in the PM. The morning was overcast giving way to some sun with no rain before lunch. I could have made a run to Gurneys Sawmill. This is one time when have a cargo van would have been worth its weight in gold. Fingers crossed that next saturday will be sunny - I need project wood.

my A2 iron set up

I've had this red bin for over 40 years. It was one of the first things I bought from Lee Valley. The water stone holder for it is rusted and unusable so I made a wooden one that I brushed on penetrating epoxy from Total Boat. The bin to the right has the water stones soaking - 220, 1000, 4000, and 8000.

5 1/2 done

Got RML shavings on the first try. Barring the bevel chipping again soon I'll be good for a while. 

I am not a fan of A2 irons. It is a PITA setting the stones to sharpen them although it isn't any more difficult to use them vice other sharpening mediums. However, and this is just my opinion, I find the bevels on A2 irons to be more fragile than O1. They fracture and chip easily. 

Lie Nielsen doesn't make 01 irons anymore. I'm lucky that I have O1 irons for my 4 1/2 and my 51 shooting board iron. The big difference between A2 and O1 irons is A2 tends to stay sharper longer. O1 sharpens better and to a finer edge and it is what I prefer.

clean up

This one thing about water stones that I dislike a lot. I have to flatten all the stones after I'm done. And depending upon how much I use them while sharpening, I have had to flatten while in use.

a wee bit short

One side of the back frame was short by about a 1/8". I didn't want to use the one long pine board I had so I used some scraps. This is the back and won't be readily visible but it was making my OCD go into hyper drive.

fixed

Used my 5/8" shoulder plane to flatten the proud side flush with the other ends.

almost done

Set the nails and filled in the set nails with putty. All that is left to call this done is to paint it. 

oops

Forgot the nails on the outside banding. I used pin nails that are supposedly invisible. Well boys and girls, I have zero problems seeing them. Set and putted them too.

accidental woodworker 

So many tricks and tips for dovetailing your corner joints, but seldom do you hear, "Get it straight off the saw," as it was said to me. This has been my way for six decades to date, ever since I heard George, my apprenticing mentor, say the same words. This mantra stayed with me, and the only time a pare cut action from a chisel edge comes is when I did indeed miscut slightly with the saw; a very great rarity and not normal at all. And as it was with George, don't put off establishing skill and ability as early as possible in your work. You do not get there by procrastination. Overcoming white-paper syndrome (WPS)* is critical to fine woodworking.

Saw-cut dovetails should be or become your default position; that's positioning of hand-eye-body cooperation and coordination. Anything else is just a poor substitute. Other wise gurus will say, "Use blue masking tape" or, as in a Fine Woodworking article some years back, "Pare cut in increments until you reach the final fit," and then, "Creep up on the line and always use a knife and never a pencil." I say go for the cut line with the saw and only touch the surface with a chisel if you did mistakenly miss the exact angle and slightly miscut accidentally somewhere in the mix. Creeping around tails and pins, creating a super-smooth surface with a chisel generally creates other problems, including a poorer fit. Can mating surfaces be just too smooth for a good glue key of mating faces? Well, of course they can. Many times have I seen glass-smooth meeting surfaces in other situations, edge-gluing, for instance, part with a surprising 'pop' because of smoothness, and then too wood itself can be the keying problem.

My current two projects are to be samplers, examples of different dovetailing. Each corner of the project and each side to the box is a different wood type; common, half-lap, and hounds-tooth will fix the corners in permanence. The challenges vary by the number of tails, so what am I hoping to achieve? Well, the box is of secondary importance. It's the carrier through which we will learn differences in a single project with multiple considerations and challenges. Which wood compresses, and by how much? Will it swell back in the glue-up, or is it fixed for eternity? These things are experienced only through handwork and hand cutting into the wood. A machinist never learns of such things by machining their stock, and reading of compressibility never conveys the sentient value of handwork. At the end of the course, I will own two boxes, and so will you if you follow the exemplar.

So the video series intentionally and realistically bridges the gaps we encounter when considering one dovetail type over another and encourages the work of trialing you might never find in regular furniture making. You must intentionally defy the norms we know as equal and balanced. It's stickily abnormal. Defying that which would normally be a composition and complementarity. At this point, we should see that the purpose is not the finished box nor the appearance of it and in it, but the experience of making differently for the gain of knowing. There's a vision in it, an outcome resulting in relational knowing, and by the knowing comes the experiential understanding of deep knowledge you can attain no other way. The corners of my boxes, in their dynamism, come from making the different dovetails of each type in very different woods and quite readily in a single simple project. Not everyone can experience this the way I have through six decades of near daily making so many dovetails. Who do you know that has made over a hundred thousand dovetails since they made their first one?

And the wonderful thing about such mechanical joints, a dovetail joint is a mechanical joint, is the holding power they have to stay together before the third component and swelling power of glue, which ultimately expands the surface fibres into the joint via every married surface. Water-based glues enter the surface fibres on contact, swelling the fibres on adjacent pieces into one another. These fibrous surfaces occur more distinctly and profusely with sawn surfaces, whereas pare cut surfaces leave almost no fibre.

I drew out my dovetails full size in my workbench notebook. This is always important to me. It makes me think, and thereby consider possible mistakes by reaching into a future yet to be. Drawing also makes you look and see. This key to planning should never be skipped. It becomes an anchor point for every designer and crafting artisan to return to at pivotal junctions in the progress of work.

Anyway, including all of the trade secrets I know of in this series of upcoming videos has made it a good day and week for me. Hopefully you can join me on the journey towards future craftsmanship.

*White paper syndrome occurs mainly at the opening of a blank page where text or drawing intimidates our placing of lines and words for fear of 'messing up.' This psychological block is characterized by a paralyzing anxiety when facing an empty workspace, canvas, or document. Often stemming from perfectionism, fear of failure, and an overwhelming self-doubt in our ability to start something of value from scratch. Symptoms include procrastination, staring blankly, and avoidant behavior leading to deepening levels of stress and pronounced agitation. It frequently flares up during periods of high stress, fatigue or when high-stakes deadlines are looming.

I wrote about this on my substack blog the other day but realized I should put it here too, just in case. I got news last week that Vimeo on Demand is going to shut down. I have several videos posted there – so if you have bought any of those – first of all – thanks, those videos were/are a lot of work, but also a lot of fun. And I appreciate the support I got from readers who bought them…helped me keep my head above water. Once they disappear from Vimeo, I’ll still have them – and I’ll try to find a new way to make them available. BUT – this part’s important – IF you did buy them (or if you do before Sept 21, 2026)- download them before they vanish. That deadline is Nov 20th. Here’s what their email said:

Starting on September 21, 2026:

• Customers won’t be able to make new purchases or start subscriptions

Between September 21, 2026 and November 20, 2026:

• Your existing VOD content will remain available to customers who already purchased it
• Your seller account will remain accessible

On November 20, 2026:

• Vimeo On Demand will be phased out completely
• All VOD listings will be removed
• Customers will no longer be able to access previously purchased content

This link is to a page on my website pointing to a number of the videos – https://www.peterfollansbee-joiner.com/videosondemand

That page links to several videos – two on carving – one about strapwork patterns and the other about S-scrolls that come from Dedham, Massachusetts

strapwork pattern

There’s also furniture projects; the joined chest with a drawer and two chairs – one the Jennie Alexander chair and the other an Alpine/German/Swiss, etc “brettstuhl”.

Braintree chest w drawer, 2022

There’s two videos that came after that page was created – one about carving this pattern:

Here’s the link to that one – https://vimeo.com/ondemand/honeychurchpattern

And most recently, a work-in-progress, about the cupboard that’s the subject of my newest book from Lost Art Press – The Essex County Cupboard

I have at least one more video to add to that set – but the collection isn’t so much a how-to of every step of building that cupboard, but a view into many of the individual steps – right now, there’s 10 “chapters” totaling almost 5 hours of video.

https://vimeo.com/ondemand/504407

All right. Just a heads-up. Nothing lasts forever…

sigh

There are two miters that slipped by each other. This corner is the worse and the one I had noticed yesterday. It would seem that using my fingers to keep the bottom flush didn't work worth diddly squat.

almost perfect

This scrap of pine was left over after making the bandings. It is one frog hair below the lowest misaligned corner. I used it to to plane the height of the inside bandings down to it.

outside bandings dry fitted

No hiccups this time - got all four bandings on and fitted the first time. I didn't have to make another one as an oops. 

glued and cooking

I did the outside bandings a different way this time. Usually I take all the bandings off and glue (nail or clamp) them back on one at a time. This time I left the first 3 bandings still clamped and I glued/nailed the last one I fitted. I then unclamped the 3rd banding I dry fitted and glued and nailed that one. Washed, rinsed, and repeated it for the last two. I will do bandings like this the next time. No surprises with open miters or one banding (usually the last one) being short.

#3 iron

The 3 planes I use the most needed some love. The #3 and #4 had chips on the bevel edge that I had to fix. I started with the #3 because it had several small and one large chip. I had to break out my water stones because these 3 Lie Nielsen planes have A2 irons. Diamond stones will sharpen A2 irons but nowhere as well as water stones do. I am no longer a fan of water stones - they are messy and water gets all over everything. 

#3 is done

This one took a while to do. The large chip was being a PITA trying to remove. The 220 water stones will hog a lot of metal off but not as fast as 100 grit sandpaper does.
 

#4 done

Got the RML shavings out of the #4 on the first try. Got RML shavings on the first try with the #3 also. It was 1516 when I got the #4 done. The 5 1/2 will get done in the AM.

I ordered the wood for the LAP welsh stick chair. I picked cherry because next to pine it is my favorite wood. Don't know when I'll get but the S/H was $62 - can we say ouch together?

accidental woodworker

 I have been finishing carving this lion, while the exhibition has been on.

He's going to be polychromed. The exhibition finishes tomorrow, so I have given him a coat of gesso, and I'll leave the rest until I am back in the workshop.

Today, I was planing up a panel, so visitors got to see a bit of joiner's work. It hotted up by noon, so I switched to laying out the panel. There were so many visitors, that I spent most of the afternoon talking. A view from behind the bench.

It has worked well, having this cage up. It means people and children have been able to get up close to see what's happening, but still be safe from edge tools. Also, something to hang stuff on.

two of three

Forgot that I had these. Made 3 jigs for holding stock to plane the end grain flat and square. The 3rd one I tossed because the stop had warped and flattening it would not have been worth the effort and calories.

hmm.....

Almost clear and empty. It had been a long time since so much real estate had been laid bare on my workbench. At the far end I had to glue my sandpaper tearing thing back together.

wow

No before pic but this corner is finally cleared out. I've been dumping all kinds of crappola here for months. I can open the bottom drawer of the dresser now without having to spend 20 minutes clearing away the crappola in front of it.

practice frame

I made this frame to test using dowels to secure the miters. I find a pic last night that I am going to put in it. I am going to band the outside and inside edges. One miter corner has a blown out dowel hole that it will hide.

dry fitted

Gluing the inside first because it is the easier one of the two to do. Got a good snug fit and gluing and cooking is next.

cooking

One of the bandings shifted when I clamped it and I didn't notice until I had all the clamps on. It was too late to fix as the glue had seized already. I'll will plane the inside banding all around down to the lowest point. 

I slept good last night in spite waking up 3 times. I was able to fall back asleep each time and rolled out of the rack before 0600. It took me about 3 1/2 hours to finish cleaning up and organizing the shop. I took my time but I didn't get winded this time and I didn't have to take any rest stops. Some days are good this way and others I struggle to work at a steady pace.

Other then the frame project on the bench, still haven't come up with something new to make. Or for that matter, something old to make again. Maybe I'll dream up something tonight.

accidental woodworker

 The sky looked weird here in my part of the universe. They are a sickly grayish color with a yellow tint. I thought there were some thunder boomers coming or maybe even something stupid like a tornado. Turns out there are wild fires in Canada and the smoke is drifting south. I had seen it a few days ago in a couple of Canadian blogs I read. Didn't think it would wander down and shake hands with me.

ta da

Found them by mistake. I wasn't looking for them where I was working at the time. Everything was there along with instructions. I have a a couple of vids on making this, both of them from LAP. I'll be reviewing them again and again. 

needed a box

Still haven't finished cleaning up and organizing the shop. It was while doing it that I needed this box to stow some things I found cleaning up. Quick and easy box to whack out. 

While this was cooking I went to the Frame it Shop and dropped off two more frames for Maria. The one I had left was ready for pick up.

for the son in law

My son in law raises orchids and flesh eating plants. He also likes to dig out/reveal fossils from rocks. And I forgot that he has an aquarium with strange things - colorful creatures and worth the the time to watch. He had told me that he did woodworking as kid mostly making bird houses.

how long......

I threw away a lot of scraps yesterday and today. This spot had a ton and half of scraps that I fought my OCD to shitcan. I tossed a lot that I have had here for a couple years now. Difficult for me to do but I haven't used them so it was time to go.

done

This and arranging the piles in the above pic are what I got done today. I left it on the workbench because I couldn't remember what I wanted to put in it.

I didn't sleep well last night. I woke up before 0400 and couldn't fall back to sleep. I watched You Tube until 0600 when I finally rolled out of the rack. I felt blah - ish all day long. I nodded out at my desk after lunch for a while and I only went back to the shop in the PM to get my camera. Maybe tomorrow I'll finish the clean up/organization. 

Been trying to think of something to make but I keep drawing a blank. My wood supply is a bit on the sparse side too. I was thinking of making a Gurney's sawmill run on saturday but this saturday ain't looking too good weather wise. I think I can work around the weight limit by handling one board at a time.

accidental woodworker 

So the exhibition is going well. There have been lots of appreciative comments. 3-4 "the best exhibition I have ever seen in Totnes". Lots of positive feedback. Lots of interesting conversations. Not one stupid question or negative comments. Happy days!

Lots of explaining about the influences that fed into East Devon carved joined furniture/Exeter strapwork. Talked to people from Totnes Museum and St. Mary's church about getting this knowledge out to the community.

Put on show the furniture, boxes, spoons and carved bowls. My paintings and Bethany's (my daughter's on the mantelpiece. Bethany's reed-woven turned stool and milking stool! All in 16th century Birdwood House.

Sold one of my favourite spoons; it's gone to be a green tea scoop, so I am sure it will be well loved.

The lion I am carving is almost done and ready to start painting tomorrow. Lots more fun to be had before close at 4pm on Saturday, so come on down if you're in the area. But here's a photo dump for those who can't.

No new project on the horizon but I have one hanging out in the back of the brain bucket. It is a stick chair - I have the patterns for a LAP stick chair. I don't have the stock for it but it is looking like the #1 project. When I was looking for the patterns/plan that I decided to clean up and organize the shop. At the end of the day I still hadn't found the plans and hadn't cleaned up and organized the shop.

hmm.....

It has been a long time since my workbench was clear. I've been working on one small area around the face vise for over a month. It would be nice to have this down to bare wood before I start new project.

my first half blinds

This is one box of two that I did that day. One box had 1 in 6 dovetails and the other 1 in 8. Not too bad for my first attempt at half blinds.

the other end

I couldn't find the other box and I spent 20 minutes searching for it.

1 in 6 box

!4 years old and it is still together. I don't use this box to stow anything, it is just so I can look back and compare this to what I'm doing now.

working from the left to right side of the shop

I remember being able to walk by this end of the tablesaw. It took me over an hour to clear out all the scraps of wood I had piled up here. 

It was tough working in the shop today. We are in another heat wave but that was manageable. I had problems with all the dust I was kicking up. Even with a mask it difficult for me to work. I was getting short of breath and winded too easily. I spent almost as much time resting and catching my breath as I did cleaning things up.

After a couple of hours I said No Mas. I'm post surgery 6 weeks now but my stamina still isn't 100%. I'm probably only hitting around 70-75%. My wife says my breathing is shit (her words) so I know its serious for her to say it that way. But she also said that yesterday it sounded much better. Not sure if it is the lung surgery or the ILD, which the doctors haven't figured out yet. I'll get back to it tomorrow and do what I can.

the wife's work

This is the reading nook that my wife wanted in the boneyard. I thought it would have taken up half of it but it only took about a 1/4. I'll tackle arranging the other 3/4 once the medical team clears my weight lifting restrictions.

accidental woodworker 

For years I have looked at my website statistics and wondered how many of those numbers represented real people. Like many content creators, I have questioned whether the visitors were genuine readers or simply numbers generated by search engines, bots or people simply passing through. The recent poll has given me my first real glimpse behind those statistics.

The participation was very low and, at first glance, that might seem disappointing. But after reading the responses, I came away with a very different conclusion. The people who took the time to vote were not random visitors. They were genuine readers who have followed my work for years. Some told me they would rather hear my own voice than have AI narrate my articles. One reader even said they loved my work so much that they would never unsubscribe, but they would rather hear me than AI. Comments like that mean far more to me than hundreds of anonymous page views ever could.

What surprised me even more was that one of those readers had never left a comment before. That single fact speaks volumes. It confirms what I have suspected for a long time. Many people are reading, watching and following my work without ever interacting. They do not leave comments. They do not click Like. They do not send emails. They simply follow my work discreetly and move on.

As creators, we often judge the success of our work by visible engagement. We look at comments, likes, shares and subscriptions because those are the only things we can actually see. The silent majority remains invisible. This poll reminded me that the silent majority is very real. It also explains why website statistics and video views often feel disconnected from audience interaction. Thousands of people may read an article, but only a tiny fraction will ever say a word. That does not necessarily mean they did not enjoy it. It simply means they are observers rather than participants.

Would I have liked more people to vote? Absolutely. But the poll still achieved something valuable. It proved there are genuine people behind those numbers, people who have been following my work for years without ever making themselves known. Because of this, I will return to doing what I have always done. I will continue creating content in my own way, writing about the things I am passionate about and letting my work speak for itself rather than chasing engagement numbers.

So perhaps the lesson here is not that I have a small audience. Perhaps it is that I have a large audience that prefers to remain silent.

To everyone who took the time to vote, and especially to those who left thoughtful comments, thank you. Your few minutes of participation answered questions I have had for years and reminded me that even when the comments section is quiet, someone is still reading.

huh?

It is a moot point as the striker will go in but there is no spring pressure to cause it to leave a dimple. I tried adjusting the bottom spring and it did nothing. It isn't big enough to be a paperweight but I can't bring myself to shitcan it neither. Another dust collector for the shop.

hmm......

Yes this was an extra. I don't see the need to have duplicates, I can confuse myself without help from the peanut gallery. Tossed this one and made a new one.

driver caddy

Decided to keep this and rearrange the drivers. The yellow one is a #1 Robertson driver. I have never seen a #1 square drive screw but it came with the set I bought from Lee Valley.

the fix

I filled in some of the hole for the #1 so it was sticking up above the surface. All the drivers on the back row are L to R #1 to #3 for each type of driver. 

Vix block #3

Three times is the charm and this is the proof. Made this longer L/R and spaced the Vix bits apart a wee bit more.

bottom

I drilled all the holes for the drivers straight through. It is a Royal PAIN in the Arse setting the depth stop on my drill press. Gluing a thin piece on the bottom shuts the holes.

back home again

I like these caddys for stowing things like this. Any empty hole tells me something is MIA.

I had a brain MRI today and it took up my entire PM session. It took almost 2 hours to do and the tech said that I didn't move and he didn't have to redo any of the scans. I have had several MRIs to date and this one was the most uncomfortable one I have had. My back was screaming at me for a while before it calmed down. Don't know why the oncology doc ordered it and I'll ask here about in on my first chemo fill up.

accidental woodworker 

There’s no clear water from a muddy well.

-Patrick Rothfuss, The Wise Man’s Fear

Sawdust production is the essence of woodworking, but a little planning early in the process will always result in more efficient work.

In this article we’ll examine the four planning tools and documents critical to efficient woodworking, and which beginners to the craft need to know (whether they decide use them or not): (1) Design drawings; (2) Bill of materials or cutting list; (3) Cost estimate and; (4) Schedule, or programme.

Planning Tool No. 1 – Drawings

A drawing of a 6-panel entry door. It needs dimensions and a cross-section, but as drawings go, it’s a good start. BTW, this style of door is also called a “cross and bible” door because the arrangement of rails and mullions in the top half create a cross, while the two panels in the lower half can be imagined to represent the Old and New Testaments in the Bible, three features that are said to prevent evil from crossing the threshold of such a door. Many say this is totally coincidental, but in light of the superstitions surrounding doors and entrances since ancient times, I think not.

There’s not enough time or space in this humble website to discuss drawings in any detail, but for purposes of solidifying your thoughts into a goal, and determining the objectives necessary to reach that goal, you will need a design, of some sort, recorded in a drawing, of some sort.

Without a drawing, even if it’s just a sketch on a paper napkin using a drinking straw and ketchup, you have no plan. And without a drawing, you lack the most important tool to maintain quality, cost and schedule. Do any of these factors matter to you?

For this purpose you would be wise to own the tools and develop the skills necessary to make simple technical drawings of your project including plan views, elevations (side views of all six sides) and cross sections. Isometric drawings are nice too, but not mandatory for most projects.

A computer with CAD software won’t hurt, but such expensive, complicated tools are not necessary unless you’re required to submit design drawings for review and approval by a paying Client, or perhaps She Who Must Be Obeyed. If a paying client, make sure you allow time in your schedule, and funds in you budget if you are paying a draftsman or CAD monkey, to revise and resubmit drawings. I strongly advise you to never begin making sawdust before your Client has approved (and ideally, signed) the design drawings, even if they’re drawn in Heinz ink.

For simple projects, such as furniture or joinery, dimensioned pencil drawings on plain paper will usually suffice. So you’ll need paper (mylar drafting paper is worth the cost for its durability), a board to tape your drawing paper to while you’re working on it, drafting or masking tape to secure the drawing, a square (a framing square will work fine), a 45˚plastic, steel or aluminum drafting triangle, and a straightedge to guide your lines, a pencil and eraser, a scale (e.g. 1/4″= 1′), a divider or two, and a drafting scale.

Planning Tool No. 2 – Cutting List or Bill of Materials

Once your design drawing is near completion, you can get started on making a Cutting List or Bill of Materials (BoM)

A BoM (AKA Materials List) lists all the pieces, parts, components and supplies required to fabricate the project. You may not need that much detail, but you will absolutely need a Cutting List. The following are the primary reasons for making a cutting list:

• Efficiency: Reduces guesswork and speeds up the build process.
• Accuracy: Ensures each part is laid-out, measured and cut correctly.
• Material Management: Helps you to accurately estimate the quantity of lumber needed, it’s minimum length, width and thickness, as well as its cost.
• Organization: Keeps your workflow structured, so you know what to cut and the most efficient order to cut each part.
• Reproducibility: Acts as a record should you want to recreate the project in the future.

A cutting list is simply a table, often written in MS Excel, Google Sheets, other spreadsheet software or even by hand on a paper notepad in ketchup. Professionals purchase or develop cutting list computer templates for the type of project they typically undertake, but this only make sense in production work.

List all the major wooden components in this table, including the name of each part, its location in the assembly, all its dimensions (length, width, thickness) and species of wood, if more than one is used, and its designation. If special surfaces treatments (e.g. roughsawn, hewn, adze, paint, stain, pink candy apple glitter with rhinestones, etc.)

Regarding the term “designation,” this is simply a non-permanent marking convention you employ at your discretion. Whatever method you choose, you need to be able to place this mark quickly, legibly and directly on each part, in pencil or lumber crayon. Indelible marking pen, for instance, is not good because it’s permanent and can bleed through the finish months after the project is finished.

A glance at any mark you’ve made should tell you exactly where it belongs within the assembly in an instant.

I use a version of the cabinetmaker’s triangle. Include these marks in the cutting table to describe each individual part. Please also mark this designation directly on the wood so there is absolutely no confusion.

Consistency is mandatory and care must be taken to avoid confusion. If you do a good job developing your marking convention it will serve you well for many years and many projects turning cursing and confusion to deep satisfaction. This is a big step in developing professional-level skills.

Dictum: Popwoodwork: FineWoodwork

Can you get by without a cutting list? Sure you can. But you save nothing by not preparing one, not even time, and can loose much. Moreover the process is excellent training that will give you confidence moving forward. It may improve your overall analytical capabilities too.

Planning Tool No. 3 – Cost Estimate

If Gentle Reader’s has bottomless pockets, such that the quantity and quality of wood available to you are unlimited, then a cost estimate may be unnecessary. But even then, I encourage you to prepare a cost estimate because, as a wise construction estimator named Warren (RIP) once told me, you can never truly understand a project until you’ve made a cost estimate. Why? Because to make a cost estimate you need to analyze the project in detail and list (1) all the materials and (2) the dimensions and quantity of the parts, calculate anticipated waste, estimate the time to make and assemble all the parts, and then multiply the quantity of materials (perform a quantity takeoff) required by the cost of those materials, and add the labor cost.

As you can see, a cost estimate is the natural expansion of a cutting list, which is a natural extension of a design drawing.

This may not be an easy job, but if you aspire to professional-grade skills, then the exercise is worthwhile even if the resulting accuracy the first few times is not stellar. Two steps forward one step back is still progress!

Planning Tool No. 4 – Schedule

Part of creating a final cost estimate, as in a commercial bid, is to breakdown the work required to accomplish the project into pieces and assign a time value and unit price to each, analyze the best workflow combining all the tasks, and then to insert this information into a document called a “schedule” in countries influenced by USA where the CPM (critical path method) schedule was first formally developed for planning and managing factory shutdowns and shipbuilding, or a “Programme” in the UK, or a kouteihyou （工程表) in Japan.

A schedule is the actual step-by-step plan for the build. Is it absolutely necessary to write one? No, of course not, but until you can write a simple schedule, you don’t have a real plan, just a SWAG (scientific wild-ass guess).

Computer programs are commonly used to write and manage schedules nowadays, MS Project, SureTrak (now defunct) and Primavera P6 are some your humble servant has used over the years. Such software is extremely convenient and even useful, at least they were until Oracle got involved. That said, I learned to write and manage schedules by hand long before commercial computer software was available, and continue to make rough schedules for even complicated construction projects by hand, so fancy software is not necessary, especially for hobby woodworking projects.

The key points to pin down when writing a schedule are to first plan the the project with drawings and cutting lists, and to then identify the various task or jobs it will take to get the job done, and time it will take to complete each. Then figure out which of those tasks can only be done one after the other, and if they can be worked on consecutively, what the timing of the work progression will be.

For instance, when making a door, the parts must be cut to size before the joints can be cut, which in turn can only begun after the wood has been procured, thickness planed and jointed. On the other hand, you can procure the wood, hinges and begin thickness planing before, or even at the same time some of the joints are being cut.

For example, your breakdown might include the following tasks, some of which you may perform directly, or you may subcontract out to others, finishing for example.:

1. Produce drawings: 4hr
2. Procure materials: 16 hrs
3. Mark materials: 1hr
4. Saw materials to approximate length and width: 8hrs
5. Thickness plane and joint one edge of materials: 3hrs
6. Layout: 1hr
7. Cut joints: 8hr
8. Test-ft & Glue-up: 1hr
9. Cleanup: 0.5hr
10. Finish sand/plane: 2hr
11. Apply finish: 3hr
12. Install hardware: 1hr
13. Deliver/install final product: 6hr
14. Invoice Final Payment: 1hr

In the case of hobby woodworking, a detailed schedule may be psychologically onerous, taking all the joy out of the project. On the other hand, it can help prevent simple projects and small cash investments from morphing into complicated, expensive projects. But you never know until you give it a try.

Conclusion

Gentle Reader may be off-put by these steps and document-prep because they seem like actual work, contrary to the spirit of woodworking as an excuse to drink beer hidden away from the flaming eye of She Who Must Be Obeyed. But please keep two absolute truths in mind: First, regardless of how or when or to what degree of detail you perform the tasks I’ve described in this humble article, none of them are busywork. Indeed, documents have been found (on papyrus, no less) that evidence that Pharoh’s project manager for the pyramids did the same.

Second, whether you realize it or not, in one way or another you will do every single one of these jobs before the project is complete, you just won’t realize you’ve done them until after the fact. And if you proceed without a plan, you will have done them in a disorganized manner, out-of-sequence, on the fly, inefficiently, and perhaps with haphazard results. Such is human nature.

While the planning and documents these steps require may seem like they will make the job take longer, the truth is it will go quicker, with better results, and with better quality at less cost. I promise.

Until we meet again to gather herbs and posies in the troll woods, I have the honor to remain,

YMHOS

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During his recent impromptu visit my brother took a whimsical double-barn-portrait selfie.  I was amused.  Some folks think we resemble each other (our wives say we even walk exactly the same) but we don’t see it. ;-)