Once again, there are lots of exciting new tools coming out and I've got information on some of them here in this newsletter. Companies that you have come to trust like Lee Valley, Ryobi, Forrest, and Bessey have got some great new products for you to check out. As well, a neat book from Fox Chapel on making wonderful decorative objects right from the tree.
Also there are some exciting events coming up for the hand tool lovers out there that you are not going to want to miss. Check it out.

Work safe ... Work proud.

Vic Tesolin

Lee Valley Tools Introduces Tool for Square Holes

These tools simplify making a square hole up to 3/8" deep in softwood or hardwood, typically used to accommodate square plugs in decorative applications such as in Greene & Greene style furniture. Just drill a hole slightly undersize (3/64" smaller than the size of the punch) and position the punch over the hole; with a few hammer taps, it cuts the hole square, with smooth walls and 90° corners. Punch tips are machined and ground from hardened O1 tool steel (Rc48-50) and combined with shanks of softer steel for shock absorption. Shanks have a blackoxide finish to resist rust and are grooved for grip. The 3/16", 1/4" and 5/16" sizes measure 2 3/4"
long overall; 3/8", 7/16" and 1/2" sizes are 3 1/16" long. The punches are available individually or as a set of all six. For more information and pricing, visit leevalley.com.

Easy Projects For Giving Your Home Eco-Chic Style

 In the past few years the trend toward green living has grown exponentially. More than ever, people are conscious of their impact on the environment and finding opportunities to reunite with nature. Discovering creative ways to recycle and reuse are hot topics, and for the crafty homeowner, living off the land is easier than you might think.

With Tree Craft (Fox Chapel Publishing. September 2010), the eco-friendly can give their homes a touch of rustic elegance by bringing the outdoors in. Using found wood, twigs and branches, readers can create a wide range of easy-to-make projects, like taper candlestick holders, knotty wood photo frames, attractive table lamps, and one-of-a-kind decor, like curtain rods, clocks and planters. There’s also practical items that add beauty to the dining room and kitchen, such as spoon holders, napkin rings and salt & pepper shakers.

With nothing more than a few basic tools, and the step-by-step instructions inside Tree Craft, readers can make 35 fresh projects that will bring the natural warmth of wood indoors. There’s even a project for outdoor seating and a game of checkers. Also included is a gallery of contemporary rooms showcasing ideas for decorating a modern home with natural wood accents. Readers will find unfinished pine can provide a soothing, spa-like quality in the home.

The many examples of how to reuse and preserve maple, oak and nature’s other towering beauties, makes Tree Craft the perfect gift for thrifty and eco-friendly crafters, woodworkers, decorators and home-owners.

RYOBI Power Tools Launches NEW Compact 18V One+ Lithium-Ion Drill and Impact Driver

Serious DIYers and Pros who are looking for a lighter weight drill will crave the new Ryobi  Lithium-Ion 18V Compact Drill Kit.  Fifteen percent more compact and 20 percent lighter weight, this drill gets the job done while reducing user fatigue.  The 18V battery’s smaller size allows use in tight areas, and it offers 20 percent more performance than NiCd batteries.

Ryobi’s new 18V One+ lithium-ion battery produces maximum performance for a much lower price than the competition.  It powers every Ryobi 18V tool, making Ryobi One+ the most affordable and versatile 18V lithium-ion tool system in the world.

This kit includes the P202 compact drill, two P103 Lithium-ion batteries, P113 dual chemistry charger, tool bag and operator’s manual.

Veritas Introduces the Skew Block Plane

The Skew Block Plane excels at trimming rabbets, working end grain, or making final jointing cuts on boards, plus you can use it in all the ways you would a regular block plane. The blade is skewed at a 15° angle, which makes cutting easier, either with or across the grain, and helps pull the fence tight against the work. Because the blade sits flush with the side of the body, corner cuts are clean and accurate. A Norris-style adjuster combines feed and lateral positioning for easy, precise blade setting. Set screws on either side of the blade prevent the blade from shifting in use. A scoring spur ahead of the blade reduces tear-out on cross-grain work; it is adjustable for depth and projection and can be recessed when working with the grain. Machined and surface ground, the contoured ductile cast iron body has a 12° bed angle and a movable toe fully enclosed by the body casting. A bubinga locking knob sets the toe to control the mouth opening, while an unobtrusive set screw in the throat allows repeatable mouth positioning and prevents contact between the blade and toe. Held by a large brass locking knob, a sliding collet allows adjustment of the 3 1/2" wide, 5/16" thick hardwood fence. The fence base is tapped to substitute a user-made fence extension such as a wooden wedge for cutting controlled bevels. The plane is available in left- and right-hand models (neither is for left- or right-handed use only, but having both lets you handle any grain direction). It comes with a lapped blade 1/8"(0.125") thick, 1 1/2" wide, with a 25° bevel, made of either A2 (Rc60-62) or O1 (Rc58-60) tool steel. Available separately, an optional 3 1/2" stainless-steel fence rod (1 1/8" longer than the 2 3/8" rod supplied) lets you add a thicker fence extension (e.g., a tapered spacer for angled cuts) without restricting cutting width. Visit leevalley.com for pricing and more information.

Forrest Announces New Thin-Kerf Saw

Cost-conscious woodworkers looking to minimize materials waste, while achieving precise cuts, now have a blade that meets their needs.  Forrest Manufacturing’s Ultra Thin 080 Woodworker II saw blade has only a .080-inch (5/64) kerf and provides little resistance when cutting. The Ultra Thin 080 Woodworker II is a version of the high-performance Custom Woodworker II blade but on a thinner scale.  While the custom blade has a .125-inch (1/8) kerf and a .095 body, the Ultra Thin has a .080-inch (5/64) kerf and a .060 body. It also features an alternate top bevel grind, or ATB, where the points of the carbide-tipped teeth on the blade alternate from one side to the other.  The thinness of the blade coupled with the grind allows the teeth to cut with a scoring action, minimizing resistance and tearout, while improving cutting precision.
“We initially created the Ultra Thin as a custom blade, more than a decade ago,” explains Jay Forrest, vice president, Forrest Manufacturing.  Among the first customers were guitar makers, using exotic woods for their instruments, and manufacturers of balsa wood airplanes, seeking to reduce waste.  Growing demand from architectural millworkers, fine furniture makers and hobbyists convinced the New Jersey-based company to offer the blade as a standard item.
“The Ultra Thin works with lighter duty saws and feeds easily, producing a polished cut in exotic hardwoods, such as cocobolo, Bolivian rosewood, and yellow heart.” notes Forrest.  “It can also be used for other hard and soft woods, as well as plywoods,” says Forrest.  However, depending on use, he recommends a dampener-stiffener to hold the blade rigid and reduce cutting noise and vibration.   
The Ultra Thin has a 10-inch diameter, 5/8-inch-bore, 40 teeth and a 20-degree positive hook.  Custom-size bores are also available.
Made in the United States, the Ultra Thin comes with a 30-day, money-back guarantee.  To ensure continued precision performance, Forrest also offers state-of-the-art factory sharpening at reasonable cost.

Bessey Introduces the NewEZS One Hand Clamp

Bessey Tools’ tradition of innovation and quality continues with the introduction of the Bessey EZS One Hand Clamp. This clamp has been designed from the very beginning to offer high-end clamping force in a user-friendly construction and, to do so at standard clamp prices.
The EZS One Hand Clamp by Bessey offers a revitalized approach to the one hand clamp market. What makes it so new and fresh is that it has been engineered from the start to offer clean design lines, comfortable handles, 445 lbs of clamp force, the ability to transition smoothly from clamping to spreading and … at strength-to-weight ratio that is arguably the best in the market.

As well, Bessey introduces DKX DuoKlamp Extender. This clamp was envisioned to fill the need in the marketplace for clamping over very wide spans but, without a big price tag. The Bessey DKX DuoKlamp Extender is an accessory for the Bessey DuoKlamp (6” – 24” lengths, 260 lbs clamping force, large jaws). The jaws of the DuoKlamp fit over a pair of jaw faces on the DKX unit and, in effect, extend the reach of even a 6” clamp to well over 5 feet while still achieving 260 lbs of clamping force. Attaching the DKX unit is done without tools and only takes a few seconds.
For more info visit their website.