Matt's Basement Workshop - Audio

We’re making progress with the 8 drawer tall dresser I’m building for my daughter Madison. In today’s episode we’re moving on to building the drawer frames for the dresser. Drawer frames are a crucial component in the overall body of the dresser, and while most probably won’t notice them in their entirety (other than the edge of the front facing rail) it’s still important to make sure they’re well constructed. There are a number of joinery options to choose from, including non-traditional joinery such as pocket-holes (which is actually what I was originally planning to use.) But the joinery I decided to use in this build was a traditional tongue and groove joint. To insure the mating pieces match up as perfect as possible, I opted to use a tongue and groove router bit set I featured several years ago in an episode of “Router Bit of the Month.” Also featured in this episode is the glue-up process for assembling the drawer frames and a quick discussion of cleaning up the dados from the last episode (something I didn’t plan to do, but it turns out they needed a little assistance.) A full set of detailed plans are available for sale on my website, thanks to Brian Benham of Benham Design Concepts. You can find them by visiting our new "Digital Downloads Store" by clicking here. Help support the show - please visit our advertisers

It’s time to get started with the actual building of Madison’s tall dresser, and the first steps in the process is making the sides for the body. These consist of two wide, solid-wood panels just over 49 inches in length and 19 inches in width. In order for us to attach the drawer frames (which not only support the drawers but are an important part of the overall structural framework of the dresser,) we need to plow out a few dados across the width of the sides and cut rabbets at the top/bottom and also on the back edge to eventually receive the back panel. For the side panels I got really lucky and chose two extra-wide boards (approximately 12+ inches in width each) to make up the majority of the width, and then eventually glued them together with some not so extra-wide 8 inch boards to give me a rough dimension I could start working with. To mill the extra-wide boards I decided against ripping them to widths that would fit on my 8 inch jointer, and instead built a very simple thickness planer sled that would allow me to flatten one face as if I had ran it over the cutter head of a monster-sized jointer. Then after the glue-up was completed it was over to the table saw to crosscut and rip the panels to size, followed by installing my dado blade and getting to work on those dados and rabbets. I’d love to tell you there weren’t any complications along the way…but that would be a lie! So we’ll discuss what happened and how I fixed those mistakes in today’s episode. A full set of detailed plans are available for sale on my website, thanks to Brian Benham of Benham Design Concepts. You can find them by visiting our new "Digital Downloads Store" by clicking here. Help support the show - please visit our advertisers

Now that the design, and dimensions of Madison's Dresser have all been worked out in the planning process it’s time to order the lumber, and sort through the stacks looking for just the right pieces for each component. Given the fact this project is being painted, I’m far less worried about matching colors or grain patterns, but I still need to find stock that can easily accommodate specific sizes for components, and not to mention setting "flawed" pieces aside that might work better for interior pieces. Ordinarily this process might be taken care of at the lumber yard if I were to hand pick the boards myself, but I usually order my lumber through a service like Bell Forest (yes, they are an advertiser, and no they didn't pay me to say that...because I'll continue to use their service long after they stop advertising.) Typically there's not a lot of "flawed" material, the occasional small pin-hole knot or barked waney edge, but that's about it. The real benefit of this task though is that it's a great opportunity to familiarize myself with the stack and it also helps me to pass the time while waiting for the lumber to acclimate to my shop, that is, if it’s necessary. Given it's the middle of winter while I'm building this project...I'm not taking any chances. A couple weeks of patience to be on the safe side is well worth it. A full set of detailed plans are available for sale on my website, thanks to Brian Benham of Benham Design Concepts, you can find them by clicking here to visit our new "Digital Downloads Store." Help support the show - please visit our advertisers

I'm only a few years behind finally building a dresser for my daughter, but it’s just in time for her to graduate from High School in a couple of years and head off to college. In this first episode of a multi-part build series we talk about my own design process, starting from the rough idea in my head then taking it to the finished plans and drawings. For many, inspiration comes from a variety of places, but for myself it's mostly a result of the family identifying a need and letting me know we need to fill it. While it’s a far cry from being inspired by a mythological muse it’s still very effective and has resulted in some great projects that fill our house. A full set of detailed plans are available for sale on my website, thanks to Brian Benham of Benham Design Concepts, you can find them by clicking here to visit our new Downloadable Plans page. Help support the show - please visit our advertisers

During the long, cold winter nights I like to cozy up with a hot cup of cider and sit down to watch a movie or read a good book, and to help set the mood (because who DOESN'T take the time to set a mood?) I'll turn on a nice accent light and let it bath me in its warm glow. On today's episode we're making a wood veneer lampshade for just the kind of accent lighting that I like to use. The project is super simple, and you can batch a whole bunch of them out to be placed wherever you think a little light needs to be cast. The veneer I’m using for this particular project came from the folks at Oakwood Veneer at www.oakwoodveneer.com. It’s a paperback cherry veneer that’s easily bendable and cuts clean with very little splintering. It comes in a variety of species, and we already have some amazing Douglas Fir veneer waiting for another project or set of lights. It’s not only the species of veneer you can experiment with, but also the design of the seam where the two ends meet. In this video I’ll demonstrate how to create a zigzag pattern that looks pretty sharp when the light is turned on, but there are so many options to play with, the choice is completely yours. Help support the show - please visit our advertisers

Mornings can be rough for me, but a good cup of coffee can make all the difference. Over the years we’ve tried several different coffee makers, including the K-cups, but in the end we always come back to our good old Mr. Coffee coffee maker. As a result it's important to make sure I get the right amount of coffee grounds in the filter every time for the perfect cup. This doesn’t sound like it should be a big deal, but when I’m doing it with one eye open (and that one eye is unfocused and sleepy) it can be a challenge. For years we've used an old measuring scoop that I've never been convinced was giving us the right measurements (or at least for me it hasn’t,) so I decided to do something about it. And that something is to make my own coffee scoop from scrap maple I have laying around. Okay, that’s not completely true, part of the reason I want to make the new coffee scoop is that I want an excuse to keep honing my woodturning skills and this seemed like the perfect project. So on today’s episode, we’re turning a maple bodied coffee scoop on the lathe. It’s surprisingly simple, and can be knocked out in less than an hour (if you’re not filming it to share with friends.) Perhaps the hardest part about the project is deciding how big of a scoop you'll need, or even what species of wood to use. This one ended up being just deep enough to equal one cup of coffee per scoop, which is perfect for me, because the only math I have to do when I’m waking up is adding up the number of cups I think I’ll need to figure out which pair of pants to wear. Non website footer Help support the show - please visit our advertisers

The end of Movember is rapidly approaching, and that means soon there's going to be a run on razor blades as some men return to their clean shaven ways. I'm not quite sure why anyone would want to do that, but to each their own I guess? So in today's episode we're making a stylish, and custom razor from a turning kit that's readily available at woodworking retailers such as Woodcraft.com. It's a fun and easy project that once again let's you use up some of those scraps you have laying around, or maybe you found something in the exotics bin that looks just too good to pass up. Whether it's for yourself, or maybe for a loved one or close friend, these turned razor kits are a quick and easy project that you could batch out in a single day, and have ready for gift-giving in no time (so quick in fact, you could probably excuse yourself at the next family event to sneak out to your shop and finish just in case you forgot someone!) As promised in the video, here's a link to the kit available at Woodcraft.com. And to go along with it, here's a link to an optional razor stand and shaving brush kit, also available at Woodcraft.com (and featured as the bonus footage and extra episode for some of the Patrons of Matt's Basement Workshop, which you can learn more about by clicking here.) Help support the show - please visit our advertisers

In today’s episode we’re making a fun little project from more scrap wood lying around my shop, specifically we’re building a beard comb. Why a beard comb? Given it’s the beginning of November, that means it’s also the beginning of “Movember.” So I thought it would be a fun little project for some of my full-bearded woodworking friends, and an unique way to draw attention to the Movember cause. The comb is very easy to make, only requiring a simple bridle joint and a little time shaping the handle to your hand. It’s a fun experiment in becoming more acquainted with hand tools such as spokeshaves and rasps and can even be made entirely with hand tools by cutting the curves with a coping or fret saw. But for mine, I’ll use a combination of power and hand tools to get it built. Is it cheating? I don't think so, it's just a lot of fun. So what exactly is Movember? It’s a yearly event to raise awareness about men’s health issues, specifically Prostate & Testicular cancers and mental health. According to the website www.movember.com "The Movember Foundation is the leading global organization committed to changing the face of men’s health. The Movember community has raised $559 million to date and funded over 800 programs in 21 countries. This work is saving and improving the lives of men affected by prostate cancer, testicular cancer and mental health problems. The Movember Foundation challenges men to grow moustaches during Movember (formerly known as November), to spark conversation and raise vital funds for its men’s health programs. To date, 4 million moustaches have been grown worldwide, but we won't stop growing as long as serious men’s health issues exist.” I don’t know about you, but that sounds like a good cause to me! So have some fun with the project and consider giving to raise awareness to these important health issues. If you end up making a beard comb, I’d love to see some pictures. Please share them either on the Matt’s Basement Workshop Facebook Page or by emailing them to me by clicking here. Help support the show - please visit our advertisers

The H.O. Studley Tool Chest is considered by many to be THE "Iconic Tool Chest," the very tool chest that all others are compared to, and the envy of every woodworker who set their eyes upon it. [caption id="attachment_12920" align="aligncenter" width="400"] Image courtesy Don's Barn blog[/caption] On the outside it's constructed of a gorgeous Cuban Mahogany, but it’s the meticulousness of the organization on the inside that sets it apart from everything. When opened, it reveals the breathtaking layout and arrangement of the 240+ tools contained within. All of which add to the beauty and awe-inspiring effect the tool chest has on those who’ve seen it. But who was H.O. Studley? Truthfully, we know more about the chest than the man who built it. And what about the lesser known Studley workbench? Have you ever seen it up close or even knew it existed ("Chortle"-level Patrons of Matt's Basement Workshop will get a look at it in the bonus footage accompanying this video, join today by clicking here?) Those, and many more questions were what Don Williams set out to answer in his upcoming book about H.O. Studley and his tool chest, due out in early 2015. Don, along with photographer Narayan Nayar, and Christopher Schwarz of Lost Art Press are painstakingly documenting the man, his tools, and of course his tool chest, so the rest of us can understand who he was and what’s so amazing about this iconic piece of woodworking history. Along the journey to write the book and document the tool chest, Don made arrangements with the current owner to set up an exhibit for the general public to come in and see it up close. The H.O. Studley Tool Chest and Workbench Exhibit is happening May 15-17, 2015 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. It’s occurring the same weekend as Handworks in nearby Amana, Iowa and will be offering visitors a full 360º view of the tool chest and workbench. Tickets are currently on sale, but there is a limited number available. So don’t miss out on the opportunity to see the Studley Tool Chest in person. For more information visit www.studleytoolchest.com. Help support the show - please visit our advertisers

No one will ever be able to say the Vanderlist family vinyl collection is overwhelming. It's diverse to say the least, but that has more to do with them being picked up solely for use in a photo shoot by my wife versus played. Actually, we don't even own a turntable, so even if we wanted to listen we'd have to take them to a friend's house. Regardless, the lack of a full collection (or a player) is no reason they can't be displayed well. And that's what we're doing in today's episode, creating a display to make them look amazing. Because in the words of Fernando Lamas "It is better to look good than to feel good!" (or in the case of a few of these records..."sound good.") I first saw this project on Pintrest, so it's not an original design, but it was a lot of fun to make. It's easy to customize and add your own little twists too. Whether it's varying the species of wood used, the length of the base, or the height and shape of the supports it's easy to make it uniquely your own. Help support the show - please visit our advertisers