Delta 14 Inch Band Saw Review – Model 28-400

By Todd Fratzel on Workshop

Delta Model 28-400, 14 Inch, 1 HP Band Saw Delta recently introduced an all new band saw in their model 28-400 which replaces an older 28-280. 14 inch band saws are probably the most popular size and certainly a great all around size for small and medium size wood shops like ours. Delta was kind…

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Rockler 9″ Quick Release Bench Vise Review

By Todd Fratzel on Workshop

Rockler 9″ Quick Release Workbench Vise Every workshop and woodshop must have a good workbench vise! As part of my continued outfitting of the new woodshop I built a large workbench/outfeed table. The new workbench was also the obvious place for a large bench vise. The folks at Rockler sent me their 9″ Quick Release…

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How To Remove Rust from Cast Iron Table Tops

By Todd Fratzel on Tools & Products

Removing Rust from Cast Iron Table Tops Like Table Saws, Router Tables and Other Woodworking Equipment Anyone that owns woodworking equipment for their shop knows that rust is inevitable on the cast iron table tops. Let me show you how I like to remove rust from cast iron table tops and apply paste wax to…

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Farmers Porch On Colonial Style House

By Todd Fratzel on Curb Appeal, Decks & Porches, House Plans

Farmers Porch When I designed our new house my wife only had a couple of must haves. The biggest wish on her list was a full length farmers porch. I was skeptical at first because I wasn’t exactly sure how our large colonial style home would look with such a large porch on it. As…

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Radiant Heat – Options and Alternatives for Remodeling

By Todd Fratzel on Heating

Radiant Heat – Not Just For New Construction I’ve written about Radiant Heat many times on this site. While most of my past focus has been on new construction I wanted to share some great examples of how Radiant Heat can also be incorporated into remodeling projects. Before I get into that topic I first…

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Outfeed Table for Delta Unisaw

By Todd Fratzel on Benches

Custom Outfeed Table Built To Match Unisaw Outfeed tables are one of the most useful companions of a table saw. They making cutting large sheet stock easier, safer, and more accurate. In addition, they often serve as an assembly table and storage cabinet. In this article I’d like to share a design that I created…

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Building Material Costs Outpacing Inflation

By Todd Fratzel on Construction Costs

Bad News for New Home Construction Market January 2013 – A recent article from the LA Times is painting a bad picture for builders this year. The cost of essential building materials are rising significantly and blowing past the cost of inflation. Combine this with the low appraisals that lenders are handing out and we’ve…

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Is Building To Code Enough?

By Todd Fratzel on Design & Planning

Building To Code = Building To Bare Minimum Specifications Somewhere along the line the general public has mistakenly been made to believe that building a home to meet code means that it’s built to some great standard. I hear it all the time; “this house was built to the latest code”, followed by a question…

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