Tool Review

These tool reviews are submitted by members of the Northwest Indiana Woodworkers Association. They are meant to be a guide to other woodworkers as to what tools our members have found to be useful or not. NIWA is not responsible for these comments.

Drill Doctor 400
I recently tested the Drill Doctor 400 drill bit sharpening machine. It is great. It sharpens bits from 3/32 inch to ½ inch diameter. A larger ½ inch to ¾ inch chuck is available. It was easy to learn how to use the Drill Doctor because of the good instructional video and well-written manual. It takes only a couple of minutes to sharpen a drill bit. This model will sharpen High-Speed Steel, Carbide, Cobalt, TiN-Coated and Carbide-Tipped Masonry bits as well as split point bits. In fact you can easily convert a standard bit to a split point bit.

So now instead of doing a poor job of hand sharpening my dull bits or throwing them away and buying new ones, I am able to do a good job of sharpening them myself.

There are several models available. For more information, go to www.drilldoctor.com or to Home Depot, Lowe’s, Menards or Sears.

Drill Doctor donated a model 400 to our club. It is available for loan to our members.

Japanese-style handsaws
If you have never used a Japanese style handsaw you really need to give one a try. These saws cut on the pull stroke vs. Western saws, which cut on the push stroke. You get a lot of control of the cut, especially for fine work such as trim work, dovetails, or other fine work. A saw with 20-28 teeth per inch is best for this type work.

These saws are very handy for a quick cut such as cutting some pieces of dowel or any general cutting. The blades hold their sharpness for quite a few cuts and are replaceable. Re-sharpening is possible but a bit tricky, so I would recommend a new blade when the time comes.

I’m sure that after you have used one a few times you will be buying two or three with different tooth patterns and lengths. Not to forget the flush trim version that has no tooth set for cutting off dowels, etc. nearly flush to the surface without doing any damage to the surface.

Ridgid 5” Random Orbital Sander
I recently purchased one of the Ridgid 5” sanders from Home Depot. I had a Ryobi 5” orbital sander but decided a new, more powerful one would be helpful. It was a very good investment of around $60.00. The tool has variable speed, which is handy with some course papers or to get a bit less aggressive. The tool has a very comfortable grip, which helps to reduce hand fatigue. One very nice thing is a LONG power cord, meaning no need to use an extension cord. The sander uses the 8-hole type paper and has good dust pick-up in the on-board bag. Remove the bag and you can plug a shop vacuum hose into the tool, which almost eliminates all air-borne dust.

If you are need of a 5” random orbital sander, this one is worth consideration.

Grizzly Dial Protractor
Following the advice of Rudy Scherer I purchased a dial protractor (G9900) from Grizzly.com.

This is a great set up tool. It is accurate within 5 minutes, which is 1/12 of a degree. I do not have a jointer so I have to joint boards on my table saw. I had set my blade to be perpendicular to the table using an engineers square, but I found out I was off by 1/2 degree. This protractor is invaluable when setting your saw to cut other angles.

Rudy uses it when cutting segments of wood for his segmented bowls. These segments have to be cut right on.

The tool was rated "Best New Tool" by Popular Woodworking magazine and for $39.95, it is a bargain. When ordering, be sure to tell them to send the instructions. The catalog says instructions included, but they did not send them to Rudy or myself until requested to do so.

Kreg Pocket Hole Jig
After watching the demonstration of the Kreg Pocket Hole Jigs at our club meeting last year, I purchased the K2000 ProPack Pocket Hole system from Menards. I love this system. It is a quick and easy way to build very strong cabinets, drawers, tables and many other projects.

Your table saw should be tuned to cut straight perpendicular edges. You then glue, clamp and screw the parts together. You do not have to wait for the glue to dry before moving on because the screws hold the parts together.

I had hesitated building furniture because of the thought of making dove tails or mortise and tenon joints put me off. Now, with my pocket hole system, I do not hesitate to build furniture.

I suggest that you get a copy of The Pocket Hole Drilling Jig Project Book by Danny Proulx.

Heatlock - an iron-on veneer adhesive.
I have done a few minor veneer projects and the options that veneers open up is something every woodworker should consider. Many exotic woods and burls are best when applied to a solid substrate and would be cost prohibitive as solid boards. If you have never attempted to do any veneer work because of all the concern of not having a vacuum bag or making of culls to clamp the piece flat, this product will simplify the process and allow you to get some good results.

I bought a pint bottle of the product, so I would minimize the waste if I did not use the glue within the shelf life period (one year if stored at normal-room temperature). The product is applied to both the veneer and substrate and allowed to dry. Then the veneer is put in place and ironed on with a cotton cloth between the veneer and iron to prevent scorching. A hard-rubber veneer roller can be used while the veneer is still hot to help get a good bond. Supposedly you can apply the veneer to curved surfaces with this method, though I have not yet tried this procedure.

After the veneer cools and is allowed to cure for a few hours your piece can be trimmed to final size.

All in all it’s a very good, low-tech method for applying veneer, which will add some new looks to your projects.

Freud SBOX8 Box Joint Cutter Set
Box Joints are a very strong, yet decorative corner joint for boxes of all sizes. You can cut them in a number of ways from a single saw blade, a router bit, or a dado to name a few. Freud has come up with a specialized mini-dado set called the SBOX8, which is two 8" blades that when used together can cut an exact 1/4 or 3/8" wide flat bottomed slot. Once you build the jig for spacing your work piece over after each cut, you can crank out very accurate joints in very little time. I cut some 1/4 veneered plywood with this set and had very minor tear-out especially when compared to the brand-new 1/4 spiral cut router bit I first tried using to cut the joints. This is a quality tool you should consider if you plan to cut more than one set of box joints.

Submitted November 1, 2005 by Lou Takacs

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Freud LU91R010 10" saw blade for Radial Arm and Sliding Miter Saws
If you ever have used a radial arm or sliding miter saw, you know that you have to hold back the saw from trying to "pull/walk" itself through the work piece. This is a potentially dangerous situation and though I like to use my radial arm saw for final dimensioning it's a concern. Well, at the program/presentation at the club meeting this last summer, by the Freud Representatives, they mentioned a blade that was designed to overcome that problem. I went to Von Tobels, a local Freud reseller, and had them order me one of the LU91R010 blades for my saw.

It works as advertised. The first time I turned on the saw I noticed it ran quieter with the new blade and when I cut through a 4" x 3/4" piece of oak -- I was amazed. I didn't have to brace myself to hold the saw back, as a matter of fact there was hardly any "pull/walk" feel while making the cut. The cut was very smooth with no burning.

If you have a radial arm saw or sliding miter saw this blade will make your tool a joy to use.

I'll explain how to use it on the table saw. First place the unit on the saw table. Press the button to turn it on, then after it settles down press the zero button. This makes it so that your table saw does not have to be level to start with. Once it is zeroed, place it on the face of the blade and read the readout. Then make your adjustments. My blade was 2/10's of a degree off. Just enough to cause trouble in making segmented bowls.

It will also help in setting angles on many different machines, jointer, scroll saw, and band saw to name a few. It also helped when I set the angle on the jig I made for cutting segments.

It has been easy to use and understand. I looked at many places and only found it a Woodcraft for $39.99. Other stores that I talked to had never heard of it.

If you have any questions, I will be glad to answer them to the best of my ability.

Submitted August 27, 2007 by Phil Malavolta

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You may ask “Why write a tool report about screwdrivers?” Well the reason why is that these screwdrivers are not like the standard mechanics screwdrivers that you would use on your car. The design is totally different and designed for driving and getting screws into and out of holes in the stock. Holes that you plan to plug or want the woodscrew deep beneath the surface. With these screwdrivers you do not have to drill oversize diameter hole that you would need to have just to insert that regular wide flared tip mechanics screwdriver into the hole. The hole that these screwdrivers need is no bigger than the diameter of the head of the woodscrew, or any type of screw or the width of the tip of the cabinet screwdriver.

These cabinet screwdrivers are the classic style traditional design for English cabinetmakers. In fact these cabinet screwdrivers are manufactured in England by Sheffield . If you just said, “Ouch they are going to be expensive.” Your right, good tools are not cheap.

Let me describe the differences between these cabinet screwdrivers and the standard mechanics screwdriver. First the handle is made from beech wood. The handles are oval (cross sectional view) and NOT round. The handle is not straight up and down but curved to fit the hand. The first time I held one in my hand, many years ago, I fell in love with them. I never could find a set or who manufactured them. Last year the only place I found to get them was from Garret Wade.

The next thing you will notice is that where the handle ends and the shank begins, the shank is flat, extremely wide (about as wide as the wood that they are insert into) and not as thick as the round shaft that it abruptly tapers down to. This design is functional. These cabinet screwdrivers look weird and distinctively different from the standard mechanics screwdriver you are used to. This design allows you to put a crescent wrench on it to turn the screwdriver while pushing down on the screwdriver handle with the other hand. This feature could save you from having to destroy a piece of stock to get the screw out when the slot in the head of the screw is damaged and when needed it is a stock (life) saver.

The next feature is that the round shaft is narrower then the end of the flared tip. The round shaft then flattens out to a flared tip and does not widen out like mechanics screwdrivers. I fact, the very end of the tip that is inserted into the slot in the screw head is flared out a bit and wider then the round taper shaft.

I have found that these flared tips are easier to keep centered in the slot and the oval beech handles are easier to hold and turn than round handled screwdrivers, and the wood handles feel great and natural to my hand. It is my personal opinion that because the handles are oval you get better twisting leverage then with standard round or square handle screwdrivers.

There are two sets: a set of 6 includes the 3", 4", 5", 6", 8" & 10" sizes. The Set of 5 is the same, less the 10".

The price, as of this writing is regularly $113.70 for the set of 6 and $83.75 for the set of 5 but they are on sale for $99.95 and $76.80 respectfully. I did warn you about the price.

However, Woodcraft just recently got similar screwdrivers made in China with what appears to be hardwood handles. They sell for $39.99 for a 4 piece set in blade lengths of 4”, 5”, 6”, and 8”. The handles are oval in shape. There is the old adage you get what you pay for.

You may find that grinding down a set of mechanics screwdrivers to fit in the holes for wood screws far cheaper then these quality Oval Handled Cabinet Screwdrivers.

Submitted February 26, 2008 by Bob Philpot

I bought the General International 50-220CL M1 cabinet table saw based on a article written on a higher grade table saw in the Workbench magazine Vol. 62 No 3 Issue 295 June 2006 on the model General International 50-260. This is the first table saw I have owned or used. The difference between this model and the models 50-220 and 50-220C M1 is basically the length and type of fence system. This saw, in my opinion, is a Taiwan saw by the way of Canada . It does not come with a saw blade. I have been told, but have not checked it out that the “General” (no International after the name) brand is made in Canada by the same company that sells the General International cabinet table saw.

The author of the article did not find out and therefore did not report about the motors rating. The rating of a motor goes from A to F and F is the best, A is the worst. Any article that does not give this rating is doing a big disservice to its customer, the company’s product and to the reputation of the reporting company (magazine) and its author. I am aware that the products company does, in most cases, advertise in the magazine doing the reporting. I would not put much weight in the evaluation of any article reporting on a piece of woodworking equipment without giving that equipments motor rating. The motor of the cabinet saw I bought has no tag on the motor (or anywhere else that I can see) that gives information about the motor. I called the factory tech people in Canada and ask what the class rating of the motor is. The response I got was “I think it is an ‘E’ if my memory serves me correctly.” A red flag went up. Everything I have read informs me that Asia motors are rated at “B” at best.

The manual is written very, very badly. It does not completely cover the table saw and all its features. I guess they assume the purchaser will have some experience for there was nothing included about the steps required to fine tune the table saw. For instance: the saw blade was not set at 90 in relation to the table top and the manual did not explain how to adjust it. In investigating I found that there is a set screw in the table top that is the tilting mechanism stop angle or stop block. Below the table there is a red swivel handle, above the wheel that raises or lowers the saw blade, which locks the blade tilt angle when you set it at the angle you want. This is not covered in the manual explaining this. There is no lock on the blade to prevent the lowering of the blade, on its own accord, as you are working.

The wheel handle that raises and lowers the blade, covers some of tilt gauge marker indications at the zero end of the gauge making it difficult to read.

The wrenches that come with this table saw, for loosening and tighten the saw blade arbor nut, are made out of cheap stamped steel and within 6 uses, the U shaped end of the wrench that goes over the slot cut into the arbor shaft, spread and twisted apart making the wrenches totally useless. I had to buy two standard metric wrenches to fit the arbor and the arbor nut (two different sizes). I also had to buy two 10 MM wrenches so I could fine tune the splitter (they do not furnish any wrenches for these adjustment nuts holding it in place) in lining it up with the blade I bought. Everything is in metric measurement.

The table saw blade insert has a screw on the end near the operator that screws into a recessed lip on the table top and a clip under insert on the other end that slips over a recessed lip on the bottom side of the table. If one wants to make their own insert (zero or angled) so it will NOT have a chance to rise up and get caught on the whirling table saw blade is extremely difficult because of the clip design feature to hook under the recessed lip. The manufacture makes a zero clearance table saw insert for $35.99 (at the time of this writing and this does not cover duty import fees which they call shipping fees.) The cost of the “shipping fees” is about $22. There is an after market company that makes solid blank inserts for this saw at Woodcraft. There is a small lip on the far end and under the top surface of the blank that goes around the lip on the recessed table saw edge

The cast iron table top was very flat. I made an unscientific comparison of the depth of the side of the table top to Jets and Deltas cast iron table tops and found it to be about a 1/4” inch shorter. Thus, the screw holes in the fence rails, for attaching a self made wooden table extension to the fence rails, is not very far down from the top of the fence rails and therefore the table top surface. This means that when one makes their own wooden table top right side extension for this model (depending on thickness of the wooden extension table top that is chosen including the laminate), the nuts for the screws going through the fence extensions holes may have to have a recess cut out (or routed out) of the bottom of the wooden table top extension in order for it to be attached to the fence rails and be level with the table saw top. This condition would seem to be especially true if you want to use a washer with the nut in attaching the extension table top to the side rails. (I have yet to make an extension top for it.) This does not seem to be a problem with the other two brands I mentioned.

This condition of the sides being shorter then the aforementioned brands makes me wonder as to the sectional thickness of the cast iron table top in comparison to other brands. I would check this out if I were to do this purchase again.

The miter gauge that comes with it has a very comfortable rubber handle around the shaft that locks the setting by rotating the handle. The problem here is: that when you go to tighten it up by rotating the handle to securely tightening it, the rubber handle will slip turning around the shaft, and not give a very tight setting lock. Because of this, when handling the miter gauge, the setting lock may come loose and the setting can change, possible without one knowing it. I ruined some expensive exotic wood because of this.

There was another cheaper General International cabinet saw that had a better miter gauge included with it. Why they put a cheaper miter gauge with the better and more expensive cabinet saw is a mystery to me. The better miter gauge sells for about $80, and lets not forget the “shipping fee cost”.

On the left side of the table saw, the fence rectangle shaped slide extends beyond the cast iron table. If one wants to install an after market table slide, some of the fence rectangle shaped slide will have to be cut off.

I called to order the legs to support the shop made extension table and the cost in their catalog (and their web site) does not mention an additional cost of about $40 for import duty fees. I original placed the order for the legs with my local Woodcraft store and they finally told me that they had to order an additional $3000 to make it worth while. I cancelled the order and bought the parts to make my own.

The manufactures web page, at the time of this writing, boasts a Workbench magazine award of quality and top value. I have not seen the article in the magazine where this was made, nor was the issue stated on the web site. Therefore I cannot comment about the evaluation that was made for the model(s) on the web site or the model that I have purchased (which is one of the models on the web site with this award).

In summary and retrospect, the fact that I am suspicious of the motor rating, the addition high shipping fees, the swallow depth of the cast iron table top, the cheaper miter gauge, the poor manual and its lack of model features explanations, I would not purchase it again.

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Last update March 4, 2008