What I've Been Up To

Well, it has been a long time since I've blogged. For anyone who's wondering where I've gone, I have a one-word answer: Instagram. Just as Video Killed the Radio Star, Instagram has been killing blogs right and left.

OK, perhaps I exaggerate just a bit. But there's no doubt that it is a lot easier to snap a quick picture and post it to Instagram with a caption, than it is to write a lengthy blog post. Which is too bad, because there's definitely a place for the longer-form, in-depth treatment that a blog can provide. And after I get past the next couple weeks of craziness, I'll try to crank out some more posts that I've been mulling over.

In the meantime, if you're interested in seeing the stuff I've posted on Instagram, just click on the "view on Instagram" badge in the upper-right corner of this page. Be sure to read the comments for some great conversations with a number of the leading planemakers of today, such as Caleb James, Oliver Sparks, Dan Schwank, Larry Williams, and more.

Meanwhile, here are some snapshots of what I've been up to.

I renovated my drill press:

Then I drove to Indiana and packed the car full of quartersawn beech.

Breakfast there requires two plates!

I made some smoothing planes:

And I'm finishing up some jack planes. Here are 3 mortises I chiseled out in one day. A recipe for sore muscles.

Next week I'm headed to the Lie-Nielsen/Lost Art Press event in Covington, KY. More details soon.