Sawdust on the Floor

Like a lot of woodworkers, I am always looking for sources for information on one of my favorite subject, Woodworking.  One of those sources of that information is the multitude of woodworking magazines that are published each month.  I don’t subscribe to any of these magazines on monthly basis but instead I tend to purchase the ones that contain articles that are of interest to me.  Just like most things in life, some of these magazines are better then others.  Out of all those published, “Fine Woodworking” has always been on somewhat of a pedestal for me.  The articles in the magazine are normally chocked full of useful information.  Articles that help woodworkers improve their skills as woodworkers.   Articles that inspire woodworkers.   That’s why I was very surprised by an article in the December 2009 issue on” How to Handle Plywood”, by Gregory Paolini. 

I don’t know exactly what I was expecting out of the article, perhaps information on how to safely cut full sheets of plywood in a one man or woman shop.  Or maybe something on how to finish plywood so that it doesn’t end up looking like… well plywood with stain on it.  Instead the article had gems such as “you will need a truck to get full size sheets of plywood home from the store” Or “slide the sheets off of the racks at the store onto sheet rock carts”.  To me this is not information, these things are common sense. The article did contain useful information on using a cross cut sled for cutting plywood on the tablesaw, or using a router and straight edge to produce a clean cut on plywood that has been rough cut with a circular saw. 

Now I don’t blame Mr. Paolini, his article had to meet the requirements of the editorial staff at the magazine.  After all they, not the author set the tone of the articles.  Hopefully, this is not the direction that the magazine is headed. Looking at Mr. Paolini’s other articles and his workmanship I acknowledge that he is a skilled and informed craftsman so the tenure of the article surprised me. 

You know I have been thinking about the article, I do know what I was hoping to see in the article.  There are a couple of newer products on the market such as the EZee-Feed system that helps the one man shops to cut plywood in an accurate and safe manner.  Or the Gorilla Gripper  that is used for hauling plywood from your truck to your shop.  To me those are products that help in handling plywood.