Choosing Woodworking Tools That Work For You
The first thing that you need to do when getting started with woodworking is to get some good woodworking tools. There is a variety of tools out there, depending on what you want to do. If you are interested in doing hobby craft type woodworking then you may be looking for woodworking hand tools or more traditional tool options than someone who is looking at building furniture. There are also power tools that can assist in woodworking, depending on the type of work you are doing. Following is a sampling of some of the woodworking tools available and what to look for when choosing them.
Woodworking jigs help you to keep things in place and repeat the same measurements and dimensions in all your woodworking projects. You can make your own woodworking jigs for these purposes. Jigs allow you to do all sorts of things; with a jig you can start more difficult projects that require very thin wood as you can plane the wood yourself with the right jig. You can even use jigs to invert a belt sander and use it for things that you never dreamed of.
Next up on our list of woodworking tools is the Jet 1014I Mini Lathe. This lathe keeps the solid cast iron foundation of its bigger brother, but houses it in a smaller package for easier home use. It offers an easy to use and control motor for dependable and highly adjustable speeds. Coupled with the solid base, this tool allow for great control and accuracy when working on wood. Also, the Jet has a twenty four position indexing wheel that uses a simple system. The spindle locks in well and the push pull button is located for easy use. This mini lathe is a very solid product for the serious woodworker.
Always purchase a good set of wooden-handled bench chisels (one-quarter, three-quarter and one inch) and a quarter inch mortise chisel. Wooden handles are more comfortable and more visually appealing than plastic and if they ever split or get chipped you can replace them with little effort. Western chisels are preferred to the Japanese chisels, which some say requires too much work, especially if you’re just getting started in woodworking. If you can afford it, buy a two inch wide bench chisel in addition to the four smaller ones. Its extra-wide blade is ideal for paring tenons.
An eight inch dovetail saw with a turned handle and eighteen teeth per inch is used for cutting small pieces. A ten inch brass-backed dovetail saw with fourteen teeth per inch will cut dovetails and tenons. Japanese saws will also do a great job; however, they can require delicate handling and replacement blades are often expensive.
A lot of the forms of woodworking that can be accomplished at home or with a small shop are going to include both hand tools and power tools. This permits for user-friendliness in bigger projects and also for the rough start, detail and finish work. The type of woodworking tools you use will be decided by the type of work you’re doing and the room you have on hand.
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