Woodworker’s Hand Tools
Hand tool reviews
This guide by Rick Peters is an exceptionally fantastic review of great hand tools, particularly those for working with wood. Here I discovered cool hand tools I didn’t know about (after all these years!), and I learned a lot of useful tricks for tools I did know about. Peter’s aims his advice at just the right level of intelligence and detail, telling you exactly what is most useful, and nothing more.
This is smartly illustrated book is really a bunch of cool reviews of woodworking hand tools.
Sample excerpts:
A flexible curve is basically a lead rod that’s covered with a vinyl sheath. This clever lay-out tool can be bent into small, graceful curves and is especially useful for reproducing a curve from an existing part, such as pressing it around a cabriole leg that you want to reproduce. Flexible curves can be found in most woodworking catalogs and at most any art store.
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For large saws (like a crosscut or rip saw), the easiest way to protect the teeth is to cover them with a short length of garden hose. You can buy this by the foot at most home centers. Make a slit the full length of the hose with a utility knife, and slip it over the teeth. You may need to temporarily attach the hose to the saw blade with duct tape until the hose straightens out.
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Sandvik files (and other abrasive tools, like their sanding block), are all faced with a special steel plate that has a series of holes punched in the surface to replicate a variety of abrasive grits. What makes this work is that the holes are punched in the metal with great accuracy. And unlike sandpaper, which wears quickly, the sanding plates last considerably longer. When they do wear out, you can purchase a replacement plate.
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Woodworker's Hand Tool Rick Peters 2001, 192 pages $15 Technically out of print, but used copies available from Amazon
