Rex Krueger

Early Access Video: Import Tool Madness 3

Friends: 

If there's one thing everyone can agree on, it's that they want me to find cheap tools and review them. So, here's my review of an insane and hilarious plastic hand plane. 

It was a fun video to make and I hope you like it. 

Also, I'd be happy to take suggestions for tools you'd like me to review. Feel free to leave your ideas in the comments below or send me...

Process Notes: Coffee Shop Sign

So, it's time to polish off these last fabrication jobs. A few weeks ago, I shared pictures of my progress on a sign for a local coffee shop. (And then last week, I complained about how I couldn't even do the install since the old sign was glued to the wall.) 

Anyway, the owners finally got the old sign down and painted the wall, so I did the install. 

I have to ...

Early Access Video: Do You Need a Drill Press?

Friends: 

It's a big day for me. I've recently quit client work. I'm installing one of my last jobs tomorrow. I may take a job here or there to make ends meet, but I now consider myself a full-time content producer. 

Weeks ago, I asked you what video I should do and you overwhelmingly voted for a video on drill press basics. It's been in the back of my head since then, but I just...

Custom Work: I QUIT.

Can I tell you a story? 

Last week, I was fitting the glass into some cabinet doors. I got the glass mostly secured in a door and then realized I had only stained one side of the trim. I thought "Hmm, maybe you can see the unstained wood from the front. Better check." So I lifted up one side of the door to look around the front..and the glass fell right out and shattered on the bench. ...

Early Access Video: Import Tool Madness #2

Friends: 

It's time for Import Tool Madness again. This time, I have a try-square that goes for $1.61 with free shipping. Is it any good? Only one way to find out. 

Also, I know I haven't done a ton of content recently, but there are big changes coming to the channel in the weeks ahead, so stick with me. I've got some good stuff in the works. 

--Rex

Early Access Video: Extreme Color Matching

Friends: 

Sorry to be gone so long. I took my daughter up to Connecticut to visit my parents and I've got client work coming out my ears. (Client work that I don't want to do, by the way).

I'd rather be making videos. 

Anyway, I'm really proud of this one. I had to match Spanish Cedar to White Ash and I'm not one to get crazy making my own stains, so I did it all with off-t...

Process Notes: Coffee Shop Sign

If you live in Cleveland, you know Phoenix Coffee. They're a major local brand with five locations around the city, generally in the hippest neighborhoods. So, when I got an opportunity to make them an interior sign for the store near me, I was excited. 

The company has just completed a major re-brand with a new logo and different aesthetics for EACH location. It's ambitious and a good oppo...

Early Access Video: Five Minute Chisel Handle

Friends: 

I'm still going to do that drill-press video you all voted on, but this week is crazy-busy and I'm taking my daughter on a trip to see my folks next week, so time is short. 

In this interest of getting some content out, I did this quick tip on getting a socket chisel handle fitted VERY quickly and easily. 

Necessity was the mother of invention on this one. My...

Socket Chisels: I just don't get it.

Look at a premium tool catalog and you inevitably see a selection of pricey socket chisels for sale, usually based on the collectible Stanley 750 series. These chisels are touted for their robust design and the user's ability to change the handle or make a new one quickly and easily.

Who cares?

In this photo, there are two chisels: a vintage Stanley Sweetheart 750 series and a new Narex ta...

Give me your drill-press tips!

The people have spoken! 

In my recent poll, I asked which video I should do next and the results were clear: make an introduction to the drill press. 

No problem. I have a lot to say on this subject. 

I think I'll do a multi-part series on the basics. Here's what I ...

Which video should I do next?

Friends: 

I have so many ideas for videos, that I just can't decide what to do. Maybe you can help. 

I've listed the ideas that I'm most interested in doing right now. If you have a moment, please pick the one you'd most like to see. Or, pick the one that fills a need in the community. 

Of course, if one of these gives you an idea for a video you'd like to see, let me ...

Early Access Video: $2 Wood Rasp

Good Morning!

So, I just posted a video a few days ago, but I've already got another for you. This is the first in my new series: "Import Tool Madness!" I'm reviewing crazy-cheap tools imported from overseas. 

And when I say cheap, I mean it. The rasp featured in this video is $2 with FREE SHIPPING. I've paid more than that for shoelaces. 

And here's the really amazing thin...

Early Access Video: One Minute Root Bowl

Friends:

I'm trying something a bit new this week. I had so much fun with the plywood River Bowl, I decided to do another bowl with a chunk of apple root. 

As much as I love turning, I find a lot of turning videos pretty dull. I mean, how long can you watch a lathe spin? 

So, I gave myself the challenge of editing the whole build into one minute of screen time. I think the ...

Have I thought this through?

So, I've been thinking about teaching woodworking classes for a long time. I like building stuff, but it's a hard way to make a living. It seems like the steady income in this game comes from information and content (thus, I have a YouTube channel, Instagram, Patreon, etc). But in-person classes seem like another good way to share what I know, have some social-interaction, and make a little more m...

Final Cut: Plywood River Bowl

Friends: 

It was a scramble to get it all done yesterday, but the River Bowl video is done and published. I know the deadline isn't until tonight, but I have my daughter all day today and I actually think being a dad is more important than my YouTube channel. 

You were all very encouraging and helpful throughout the whole process, and I appreciate it very much. I hope you enjoy t...

Process Notes: Shattered Plywood River Bowl

Friends: 

I'm just about to dash off to an install, but first, I wanted to share the progress shots of my river bowl. I finished the turning and the sanding yesterday and today, I painted on two thick coats of West System clear epoxy. 

This plywood is SO porous and the alternating long a...

Exclusive Video: Shattered Plywood River Bowl. Early, rough cut.

Friends: 

I'm madly at work on my entry in the Rockler Plywood Challenge. I'm making a plywood bowl that looks like it's been shattered and had the crack filled with blue resin. The contest ends this Thursday at midnight and there's no way I'm going to get the video done in time for early access. 

But you guys pay for this content and you get special privileges. So, I've uploaded...

Early Access Video: What can you do with a Stanley No. 6?

Happy Monday morning, y'all!

Yeah, I'm not really that chipper either, but I'm faking it for my own mental health. I've got client-work coming out my ears, deadlines looming, and a ton of home-owner stuff that absolutely MUST get done. 

It's going to be a week. 

Anyway, the content must go on and so I give you my discussion of the Stanley No. 6 plane. Lot's of people don't ...

Sneak Peek: Shattered Plywood River Bowl

Friends:

Did you have a good week? 

Ever since I got the Monster Display Case out of my life, things have been a lot easier in the shop. I've learned that I'm much better off doing 2-4 little projects each month rather than one huge project for several months. 

I get bored. 

Now that I'm free of that beast, I'm also on to more content creation. For instance, I've...

Book Review: The Seven Essentials of Woodworking

Anthony Guidice’s The Seven Essentials of Woodworking (Sterling, 2001) stands out among woodworking books. For one thing, it’s short. At a slender 114 pages, it’s more compact and direct than any other book I’ve read about general woodworking (and I’ve read a few). Guidice divides his book into seven logical chapters where he covers bread-and-butter topics like to...

Moving and completing the Monster Display Case

One of the tricky things about making a big and complicated piece of furniture is that the design will probably change as you work. Most of the challenges of the Monster Display Case involved engineering much more than wood work. For instance, it was obvious from the start that I could never make the whole cabinet in a single piece (the damn thing is 11 feet long and 7 feet high). I...

Early Access Video: Table Saw Tenons; NO JIG

Friends:

I'm happy to report that I delivered the monster display case to the client this week. He was happy, I got paid, and the biggest, most stressful project of my professional life is done. 

Thank god. 

You can look forward to a couple of exclusive posts about the finishing and installation process in the next few days. 

Now that this thing is out of my life...

Process Notes: Monster Display Case

Friends:

Well, it's been a week of 10 hour days, but I'm getting there. From its humble beginnings as a pile of plywood boxes in my basement, I've cobbled together a piece that is square and looks pretty damn good. 

 Here's what it looked like a week ago:

Aaaaaannnnd...<...

A very brief intermission

Friends:

My fabrication business has gotten a bit crazy. I've been working on a monster piece for several months now. Here's the sketchup: 

This thing is 11 feet long and seven feet high. It has 6 raised panel doors, built-in shelves, and 2 custom-made file drawers. It comes apart into six se...

Early Access Video: Fixing a BIG mortise and tenon mistake

Friends: 

People often like it when video creators show their mistakes. Well, this WHOLE video is just me showing a mistake and fixing it. Messing up a bunch of components is stressful enough, but this is client work and that adds a whole different level of stress. 

I think I came up with a good fix, but I'll let you be the judge. 

As always, my heart-felt thanks for m...

Early Access Video: Perfect crosscuts, every time.

Friends:

I had a really unexpected response to my last video about straightening boards. I thought basic videos like this were played-out, but that video has 20k views and no sign of slowing down. 

So, I made this video to share one of my techniques for batch-cutting perfect crosscuts. I think there are some good tips in here, but I'll let you be the judge.

Also this video featu...

Early Access Video: Straighten boards without a jointer

So, after my high-tech miter-plane build, I got a bit burned out. I have orders for custom work piling up and time is so short. But I love making content and I couldn't let too much time go by without a video. 

Then, just the other day, I was milling up lumber for some cabinet doors and I realized that I still don't own a jointer. 

Even more amazing, I don't really want one. I've...

My First Patreon-Exclusive Video: What do YOU want to see?

Friends:

I'm gearing up for my first Patreon-exclusive video. You've all been amazing with your support and community and that's allowed me to step up my game on the production front. 

You should have some video content that's just for you. 

James Boatwright as suggested a video on basic box making and I think that's a great idea, but I'm open to others. Let me know in the ...

Early Access Video: Low Angle Miter Plane

Friends:

This one just about killed me. Turns out that making a fancy, specialty plane out of exotic materials is a lot harder and more time-consuming than it looks. 

Nevertheless, here is my build-off with James from Wood By Wright. I don't know many of the details of his build, except that he's designing it in Sketch-up and it's all wood. 

I'm proud of the finished produc...

What sells vs. what's fun

Before I did this full-time, I used to spend a lot of time watching Jimmy Diresta's videos. I loved his content, but I heard him say a few times that most of what he made wasn't interesting enough for video, so he'd make things just for his videos and then just give those things away. He had to invent projects to film. 

I didn't get that. How could it be dull to watch Jimmy do ANYTHING?