I wanted to get into spray painting for a longtime. The technique produces flat surfaces; the kind that areimpossible to create with a paintbrush. The complexity of having toset up a gun and mixing the paint kept me from taking theplunge.

After months of research I finally pulled the trigger andpurchased a system. Looking back it, I made an elephant out of amouse. Spraying latex paint is easier than it looks. I hope thefollowing guide will help you get started much faster than I did.Perfect surfaces are within the reach of even a fir

A few months ago I found myself angrily shoppingfor an inline air regulator. The one that came with my spray gunlasted all but 2 hours. The glass of pressure gauge split in half.Apparently it was too cold in my shop (not really). Browsing theweb I found that it is littered with cheap sub-par pressureregulators. I had no confidence that any one of them would last anylonger than the one that just broke. Where are the good ones? Aftersome research I settled on the

Here in Seattle the nights are long. It's darkby the time I get home from work. The outdoor lights on my home areoff, unless I leave them on all day.

A friend turned me on to the

Measuring flooring layouts is not an easy task.It's very easy to lose accuracy because of the distances involved.If you are not careful, it's possible to be 0.5-1" off on the otherend of that 25ft hallway. Naturally I tried to find a better way.Enter the

Laser intensity falloff

If you plan on setting the level on the floor and seeingcontinuous beams for 20ft+ you will be disappointed. Not because ofthe Stanley S2, but because of your floor and walls. In most casesthe laser beam will be interrupted by unevenness in your floor

The digital revolution is upon us woodworkers.Our tried and true tools are becoming smart. Everything seems tohave a chip inside these days. After having great success with theWixey digital table saw fence, I decided to try out Bosch's newdigital tape measure, the

Modes

The Bosch DLR130K was made for construction and finishcarpentry. Measuring a wall is snap. I get accurate measurements inseconds. On walls longer than 4ft I have no doubt that the resultis more accurate than what I produce with my tape measure. The easewith w

Built-in closets are large and heavy things.Building face frames for closets is significantly harder than it isto build a frame for a cabinet. There are lots of places errors canhappen. Let's take a look at what our options are.

The Anatomy of a Face-Frame

The face frame is a built from individual pieces of stock joinedwith pocket screws and glue. It is imperative that all pieces arestraight, have a uniform width, and square ends. Imperfections willresult in an uneven reveal around the closet's opening, out ofsquare c

Crown molding is one of the cheapest and fastestways to improve the look and feel of a room. Installation is withinthe reach of the homeowner. Things can, however, get tricky. Aftercompleting a large project myself I can offer some insight thatwill make your project go faster.

Build a cutting jig

Unless you plan on flat-cutting crown molding, the molding mustbe cut at an angle and upside down. I have found that it isimpossible the accurately position the molding on the miter sawwithout the help of a jig. Aligning the

Assembling the closet takes three separateoperations: installing the base frame, assembling the individualunits, and installing the units.

Installing the Base

The platform frame the closet units rest on is built fromdimensional lumber. The joints are reinforced with glue and screws.Since there is little dynamic load on the frame, simple joints areall that's needed.

The separate frame is an essential part during assembly. Floorsin residential homes are never truly flat and level. A separateframe i

Ceiling fans are an excellent addition to anyhome. In the summer the wind chill the fans produce can often timeseliminate the need for air conditioning. During the heating seasonthe fan helps push warm air that collects at the ceiling down intothe living space. I installed a

Installing a fan speed controller

Some ceiling fans can be used in conjunction with a

So you have watched a few episodes of the 'NewYankee Workshop' and want to get into woodworking. You moved thecar out of the garage and are ready to to buy tools. At this pointthe Hingmy machine database looks both daunting and exciting. Sowhat machine should you buy first?

The answer depends on what you want to build. I am going toassert that most beginners want to build medium to large sizepieces of furniture: tables, bookcases, cabinets, and maybe a bed.Built from hardwood and plywood. Most structural pieces are arestraight. Detail