The cheap, plastic hose I use with my bench toppower tools was never my favorite. It was inflexible and hard touse. A month ago I decided to upgrade to a proper small tool hosedesigned for the task. Enter the
...The Hingmy - Power Tools & Woodworking
The cabinet door calculator has been a popularfeature on Hingmy since its creation. While it was undoubtedlyuseful, version 1.0 only supported a single doors with a singlepanel.
Getting ready for my kitchen and bathroom builds I decided toupgrade the cabinet door calculator. The new version is moreversatile and easier to use. The new help system makes it easier tounderstand what the calculator is actually doing.
New features
- Start with the opening: Version 1.0of the
Porter Cable's 557 Plate joiner has built anexcellent reputation with woodworkers in recent years. The tool isseen as the gold standard among plate joiners. Many a woodworkersings praise of this particular plate joiner in the forums.Needless to say, I was very interested in using one in my shop.Let's take a look if the Model 557 Plate joiner is all that it'smade out to be.
The 577 Plate Joiner
The 557 uses the standard push design all plate joiners use. Afence assembly positions a saw blade over the work piece theslo
...The Model 342 Palm Sander
The 342 is a 1/4 sheet palm sander. Two metalspring arm mount a sheet of sanding paper on a padded sandingplate. The sander follows a very traditional design for this typeof machine. There are no innovative features or gizmos to befound.
The motor and oscillation distance of the sander are on thesmaller side. Porter Cable designed this sander to be more of afinish sander than a rapid stock removal tool. Several designdecisions reflect this assertion.
The sander has only
...A cordless drill is probably the most importantpower tool to have in your toolbox. It is indispensable around thehouse. In the shop it forms a natural pair with the impact driver.Since the drill sees so much use it's usually a good choice to buya powerful, capable unit.
DeWalt's DCD940KX cordless drill is the company's flagship modelin the 18V range. With a metal chuck and gearbox the DCD940KX hasbeen built for power and longevity. I use the DCD940KX as the maindrill in my shop. Let's take a look at how well it did in theHingmy w
...Every woodworker has a set of reference materialhe or she turns to when designing a project. Few books are goodenough to stay in this collection for very long. IllustratedCabinetmaking15652336971981[/author]
...Undermount drawer slides are a mark of qualityin kitchens today. They offer an effortless feel of motion whenopening and closing drawers no other system on the market canmatch. Cabinet makers love them for their forgiving nature.Undermount drawer slides are much easier to install than theirtraditional forbearers.
One of the largest, most well-known makers of undermount drawerslides is the Austrian company blum. Over the years their Tandemdrawer system has built a reputation for quality and ease ofinstallation. Let's take a look a
...In the pacific Northwest all outdoors spaces getdirty very fast. All that rain makes moss grows just abouteverywhere. In the springtime a dark brown layer of muck coverseverything. Concrete driveways are particularly susceptible. Everyspring its time to wash all that muck off and restore our drivewaysto last summer's glory. Let's take a look at what it takes to washa driveway.
Pressure washing
The most efficient method for cleaning large outdoor surfaces ispressure washing. A pressure washer uses a high pressure water
...Large grinders are powerful machines. Afterusing one the smaller grinders feel underpowered and fragile.Makita designed the 9557PB to break this pattern.
The 9557PB is a small grinder with a large motor. It can dosmall work with the power and speed provided by a full sizegrinder. Let's take a look at what the 9557PB brings to thetable.
The Design
The Makita 9557PB is a small 4 1/2" angle grinder. Makita wantsthe 9557PB to fill in where larger grinders would be toocumbersome. Following the standar
...There are many options for joining a drawerfront to the sides of the drawer. Let's take a look at all of themand examine their strengths and weaknesses.
Butt Joint
The butt joint is the simplest of all drawer joints. The sideare connected to the front with glue only.Due to the small contactarea and having to glue end grain, the butt joint is the weakest ofall drawer joints.
If nail holes are not an important esthetic consideration, thejoint can be reinforced with brad nails. With screws the butt j
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