A shorter show this week with a lot packed in: the double table saw setup is officially happening, Marc and Greg tag-team card scraper sharpening, and we spend some real time on what to do when you just do not feel like going into the shop.
Two table saws, one bridge
If you watched the flaming table saw video, it ended on a cliffhanger. Here is the spoiler: Marc is trying the double saw setup. Enough of you made sound arguments that he is giving it a shot. The two saws will be bridged with about a 12-inch section of the old outfeed table, which gives any miter gauge the room it needs and gives him the outfeed surface he needs. The trade-off is that any time he needs outfeed support, the blade and fence on the other saw have to be out of the way. The space between the saws stays open for dust collection and will probably hold sleds and accessories.
The maker space side of the shop also got a glow-up: the 3D printing area, the laser area, and the wood storage are all much improved after a couple of weeks of work. The reward for all that effort was supposed to be printing a few things. The printer had other ideas.
We also followed up on the flame detector a listener recommended on the podcast. It visually detects flame rather than smoke, so it will not catch smoldering on its own, but alongside smoke detection it could be a very effective addition in a dusty shop.
What did Marc just order?
A Chris Schwarz article about a completely different product sent Marc down a rabbit hole, and he came out the other side with what he is calling his final set of Allen wrenches: Wera color coded, ball end Allen wrenches. The colors are goofy, but that is the point. When every hex key looks the same they get lost and mixed between sets. These you can spot from across the shop.
Card scraper sharpening, tag team style
A burr is only as good as the edge you start with, so Marc prepped a scraper on camera before handing it off to Greg. File the edge square first (a block with a kerf cut in it holds the file perfectly square), then hone the faces and edge, starting around 1000 grit on Shapton water stones and going up to about 5000 if you want to get fancy. You do not need the whole face dead flat, just the area right at the edge. The full process is in Marc’s older video, How to Sharpen a Card Scraper.
Then in “The Long View,” Greg Batt showed how he turns the burr with the Accu-Burr, a carbide rod with grooves at 5, 10, and 15 degrees that sets the angle for you and draws and turns the hook in a single step. His point is a good one: sometimes the best improvement is not a new capability; it is a tool that makes you do the thing you already know how to do more often. Follow Greg at instagram.com/ghbatt.
As for scraper brands, Marc likes DFM scrapers, and Lie-Nielsen and the Crown scrapers on Amazon are also perfectly fine. The Accu-Burr and the rest of the tools from the show are in the Morning Show category of our Amazon shop.
Stuck in a woodworking slump
A Patreon supporter who just finished school, started a new career, and a new business asked how to get the get-up-and-go back. Marc’s suggestions: pick small, quick-win projects. Organize something in the shop, even something tiny. Go back and watch or read what inspired you when you started, whether that is old episodes of Norm or David Marks, or Greg’s Watch Along Wednesdays in the Guild. Shrink the scope to 30 minutes, or set a timer for five or ten minutes and see what happens (usually you ignore the timer and keep going).
And the big one: unless woodworking is your job, it is okay to take a break. It is not exercise, where you push through whether you like it or not. It is something you do for pleasure, and forcing it can make you resent the craft. Recharge, and the love will come back.
PVC trim over wood, and other questions
Wrapping a pressure-treated deck handrail in PVC trim with Dominos? Dominos are fine for alignment, but use the outdoor Sipo tenons, not beech. Remember that PVC moves with temperature while wood moves with humidity, so allow for movement. Stainless fasteners are the right call, and screws may be a better option than 16-gauge nails. Greg added: use the wider Domino setting, epoxy or polyurethane glue in the mortises, and 5×30 Dominos in thinner stock so they do not telegraph.
- Festool TS 55 or TS 60? The TS 55 is fine for 3/4 inch plywood. If you cut a lot of 8/4 solid stock, the extra power is worth a couple extra bucks.
- HDPE on tote rack runners? Great idea. Adhesive-backed, low-friction tape protects the wear edge far better than paint.
- Rabbet block plane? Marc hasn’t used the Big Horn version, but a rabbeting block plane makes a great all-in-one tool if you don’t have other block planes.
- Buying lumber around St. Louis: St. Charles Hardwoods, You Pick Hardwoods, Schaller Hardwoods, and a few local mills.
Announcements and links
- Next Friday, October 2, there is no regular Morning Show. Instead it is a Woodworkers for a Cause all day live stream, roughly 10 until 3 Central. Bid now at 32auctions.com/wfc2026, bidding ends October 3, and everything benefits the Purple Heart Project. Past events and totals are at thewoodwhisperer.com/wfc.
- The new Mid Century Modern Table course is coming to the Guild, with a preview night Thursday. Grab the pre-order price before it goes up.
- We will be at Woodcraft St. Louis on Saturday, September 26, from 9 until 1.
- Get the Friday reminder email and send us mail through the show page at thewoodwhisperer.com/wms.
- Giveaway winners: BF Thorl, Thomas Mahoney, Robert Price, and James Kellerman, and each of you also gets a Guild course. Email nicole@thewoodwhisperer.com with your name, address and top two picks. US only.