Mortise and tenon joints are commonly used in fine furniture building to attach two boards at right-angles to one another. Traditionally, this work was done with a backsaw and a chisel, but in modern woodworking shops, a hollow-chisel mortiser can cut mortises precisely and extremely quickly.

On the hierarchy of power tools for most woodworkers, a dedicated mortiser would rank pretty low on the totem pole of required tools. Fortunately, there may be a less-expensive option. If you have a floor-standing drill press, you may be able to purchase a mortiser attachment that will fit on your drill press so you can use the same hollow-chisel mortiser bits that as mortiser. Check out this article on a Mortiser Attachment for Your Drill Press to learn more.

Photo Courtesy of Delta Machinery

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Just like a light switch in your house, with regular use the on/off switch on a power tool can eventually wear out and need to be replaced. For instance, on a plunge or stationary router, most of the time, a rocker switch is used to turn the unit on or off. The process of changing the rocker switch is typically quick and easy.

In this woodworking tool tip, learn How to Replace a Router Power Switch. While the steps outlined are specifically suited to a router, one could easily adapt the steps for nearly any other power tool's switch.

(c) 2012 Chris Baylor licensed to About.com, Inc.

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Polyurethane is one of the most common modern topcoats, applied over stains and other finishes to protect the color and finish. Polyurethanes are available with water-based and oil-based formulas, each with their own techniques for application.

How can you know if polyurethane is the best choice for protecting your woodworking project's finish? How should you apply the polyurethane? How many coats should you apply?

Learn all about this topcoat in Perfecting a Polyurethane Topcoat. After reading all about polyurethane, you'll see just how versatile this topcoat can be.

(c) 2012 Chris Baylor licensed to About.com, Inc.

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Through Dovetail joints are commonly used for basic drawer construction and in building cases such as a cedar chest. This joint is sturdy and has a classic look. However, dovetails aren't the easiest of joints to make consistently unless you have a lot of experience building them by hand, or unless you use a specially-designed dovetail jig and a router.

There likely will be times, though, that a dovetail joint may not be the best option. For those times, a similar, but not quite as attractive (or strong) of a joint, called a box joint may be a better choice.

Box joints are easy to make on your table saw with a stacked dado blade and a Box Joint Jig. This jig is simple to build, and even easier to use, and it produces perfect box joints every time.

(c)2012 Chris Baylor licensed to About.com, Inc.

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