Review Of Instructional DVD's & A Discount Offer!

Building Sam Maloof Inspired Furniture

Did you ever dream of building a rocking chair inspired by Sam Maloof?  Or looking to build other furniture that carries the sensual and sculpted designs famously inspired by him?

Scott Morrison, a successful furniture maker and designer in his own right, has released instructional DVD's sharing the knowledge and techniques for making this style of furniture in your own shop. 

Scott Morrison Instruction DVD's

I just finished viewing the instructional DVD's for two pieces of furniture. Scott recently sent me the DVD titles "Building an Elegant Rocking Chair" and "Building a Contemporary Barstool." I also received the templates for the Contemporary Bar Stool.

If his name sounds familiar, perhaps you have seen Scott's work or an article covering him in a woodworking publication. His work has been published in Fine Woodworking, WoodWork, and he appeared in the February 2010 Woodworker's Journal for a butterfly joint that he developed. His work has also appeared in other magazines covering home furnishings and style. To see more you can visit his site Finewoodworker.com.

The Guidelines

As I viewed the DVD's I had to think about what I am really looking for. What makes an instructional DVD good or bad?

The first two things that people notice when watching a video is if the light or sound is bad. I don't believe that the viewer is expecting Hollywood studio quality in these categories, but the light and sound should be reasonably good allowing us to adequately see the demonstration and hear the instruction.

Next, the quality of the content is measured. Does the presenter have good content and is it efficiently shared with the viewer? Or does the presenter ramble off on irrelevant tangents?

Also, is the instruction presented in a logical and comprehensive manner? The information may all be available in the video, but the presentation may be so poorly laid out that it leaves the viewer confused and unable to assemble the blocks of broken information into something sensible.

The Verdict

Elegant Rocking Chair DVD'sThe videos are professionally burned and packaged. This insures quality and compatibility with various DVD players, especially old ones that won't play DVD's burned on the computer (we recently retired one of those.) 

The discs had chapters and I checked them. they all functioned as they should. The chapters were especially important for the rocking chair, a quick look and confidence was immediately instilled by seeing all of the titles. This was a quick outline and indicator of the information held within.

Bar Stool DVD'sI watched all of the videos and I found them to be of good quality and very interesting. The videos captured my attention from beginning to end and they were very comprehensive.

Scott's delivery of the information is very friendly and logical. It feels like he is giving you a personal lesson in his shop and he gives you the confidence to successfully complete these otherwise intimidating projects.

The videos are shot in Scott Morrison's own shop with both tripod and hand held shots. The lighting and sound are good. I could always see the action and hear the instruction.

The quality of the content was great in both videos. Scott lays everything out logically, communicates well, and stays focused. These all add up to a clear delivery for the volumes of information that he shares.

The visual information that he shares is of tremendous importance for projects like these and he was not stingy with it. Ever notice how the TV shows can't give enough detail information because they have a specific amount of time to fill? Scott was not bound by time constraints. That means he was able to take the time to share all of the details, knowledge, and techniques necessary to insure your success. 

The video was rich with visual information. He explains what he is going to do, why he is going to do it, and then he gives plenty of video footage for the viewer to see how it is done. With the grinding process this is important. The viewer gleans much information on how to grind by watching the nuances of Scott's movements and actions. I think this provides a tremendous value to the viewer. 

I think that a great value to add to all of this is Scott's support. I know of one woodworker that purchased the video and templates to "Build A Simple Rocking Chair" and he was very happy with the support that he received from Scott. So rest assured, if you have a question, you will get an answer.

A Word On Templates

Bar Stool TemplatesMy simple suggestion concerning the templates is BUY THEM. Purchasing the templates will make life so much easier. I have designed enough of my own furniture to know the value of buying a template.

The templates are printed to full scale and include printed instructions on the paper. There is also a "bonus" section on each set of the DVD's that gives instruction on making and using the templates. Jig construction and usage are also covered in this section as well.

A Discount Offer

Since I was doing this review I thought that I might see if Scott had an special offers that he could extend to the readers. I shot him an email and he sent one back with an offer of 15% off any videos, templates, and the new butterfly kit that will be ready soon.

March 17 2010 - UPDATE ON DISCOUNT

Scott Morrison informed me that the PayPal discount field was experiencing some problems. To get the 15% discount at this time, the buyer will have to pay the full price upfront, but just email him with the information of the transaction and the “Captain Clippinger” special (it’s because I asked:) and he will refund the discount back to you right away.

I can vouch for Scott answering his emails pretty regularly because whenever I have had a question for him, I received a response within a couple of hours.

I hope that this clears up any confusing situations that may have occurred. It is a great opportunity to get 15% off instruction and support to build some beautiful pieces of furniture.

This offer runs to the end of March 2010. That is just 2 weeks to get a discount of 15% on the video instruction and templates for creating some incredible furniture! 

You can see all that Scott has to offer at Finewoodworker.com.

Your friend in the shop, Todd A. Clippinger

Peace, Love, & WoodWorking Discounts

It's The Little Things...

 Let The Sun Shine In

Backyard March 2010I am so grateful spring is arriving. I am ready for the long hours of sunshine and warmer temps. Here in Billings, MT I have been able to work with the doors open on the sunny side of the shop several days over the last 2 weeks.

I am fortunate that the double doors facing the driveway also happen to face south and I can open them wide to let the sun in. On a sunny day at 50° with little wind, the furnace will never kick on if I open the doors and allow the solar gain to heat the shop. 

The increased daylight and temperatures are leaving only remnants of snow hanging out in the shade. The yards are showing some green and there was a noticeable increase in the robin population the last few days. 

It is a good thing that the days are getting warmer, we won't have the need to burn wood. Last night we had a chimney fire at it gave us a good scare. We clean the chimney every year and avoid burning pine, but as we discovered last night, that makes no guarantees. The fire stayed contained in the chimney pipe so there was no damage except to our nerves.

On To The Shop

ML Campbell handy pour spout

I was picking up some ML Campbell Microton dye this morning and was given a couple of handy little pour spouts along with my purchase. ML Campbell started providing little pour spouts that screw onto the 1 gallon cans. 

I used it as soon as I got back to the shop and I love these things! Products like this make me wonder how we could put a man on the moon in 1969 but we couldn't come up with this sooner? I am sure that they have been out there for a while, but where have they been hiding them? 

Using Pour Spout

Well it is true, it's the little things that make a big difference. This spout makes pouring from a standard 1 gallon can a dream. I am sure that you are familiar with the difficulty in pouring from them and the amount of product lost every time you try to pour. This little spout puts an end to that.

The spout also has been sized for good control of the volume that you are dispensing. This is not a gas can pouring fuel into a mower. This is mixing dyes and pouring solvents in a controlled manner. It's perfect.

That's all for now, time to head back to the shop.

Your friend in the shop, Todd A. Clippinger

Share the Love~Share the Knowledge 

Festool HL850 Planer

A New Tool For The Project

Festool HL850 and hand hewn cutter head. On my rustic office project I had to create a hand hewn effect. I was faced with the choice of purchasing some hand tools like an adze and draw knife or the Festool HL850 planer. It is obvious by now that I chose the planer.

The HL850 comes with a single knife that is mounted at an angle on the cutter head. It would not be my first guess that a single knife cutter head could do such a nice job, but this skewed knife makes an amazing cut. I was able to plow a clean cut 90° across the grain of the doug fir desk top. I couldn't believe that it cut just as clean as if I was cutting with the grain.HL850 straight knife and curved knife for creating a hand hewn look.

However impressive as that was, I did not make the purchase of this planer for the straight knife. I had other plans for this planer to be used to create a hand hewn effect in my rustic office project. The HL 850 accepts a variety of cutter heads and one of them does just that, it creates a hand hewn effect.

The HK82RW cutter head is sold separately. It is a machined aluminum cutter head, as all of them are, and has a considerable amount of weight to it. As with the straight knife cutter, this one mounts at a skewed angle which produces an impressively clean cut.

Removing the cutter head on the HL850.

The removal of the cutter heads is quite simple. There is a single button arbor lock to keep the head from moving while it is unscrewed. The cutter head guard pivots easily out of the way exposing the allen head screw which keeps things secure. The screw removes proper as one would expect and the cutter head slides off the machine to be replaced with an optional one.Bed and cutter of HL850.

The HK82RW cutter head has a bow in it which produces a bellied cut. When this is run randomly over a surface it produces a rustic hand hewn appearance, this is just what I needed.

Hey - That's Cheating!

Hand tool purists may cry foul and charge me with cheating, but I am getting paid to create the look, not actually perform the act of hand hewing. I am a big fan of Tom Fidgen's work, but as a contractor I grew up on power tools and so I lean more towards using them. Don't get me wrong, I use hand tools when needed as well, but I see more potential use in my business from this tool than I do an adze or draw knife. (It is at this point I beg Tom's forgiveness and ask that I am not barred from visiting The Unplugged Workshop.)

One of the great features of the HL850 is the dust collection that Festool is so famous for, and if you recall, I also purchased a Dust Deputy recently. This is a match made in heaven because the planer produces copious amounts of cuttings and it is all captured in the Dust Deputy. The Festool hose even connects right to the inlet on the DD. The chip ejection is controlled with a baffle to direct it out either side of the tool. 

Although the dust collection works well, my one complaint so far is with the hose connecting to the planer. It does not seem to make a firm connection as it does with the circular saw or Domino tools that I own. A conscious effort has to be made to insure the hose stays well connected to the planer while in use. It is not a big deal, but the fit is just a bit sloppy and this is a surprise considering it is a Festool product.

Using the HL850Using the Festool HL850 planer to create a hand hewn look is as easy. The planer is just run over the surface as normal. I like to stop and start it randomly on the surface instead of starting at one end and running it a clean shot to the other. A straight run down the lumber with the HK82RW knife just produces a curved trough. The random starts and stops will produce an authentic hand worked look. "Hand hewn" desk leg.

As I have heard from the local shop talk, most contractors building rustic and log homes around here (Billings, Montana) are using the HL850 with the same cutter head to produce a hand hewn look quickly. So you can beat me up for creating fraudulent "hand work" with this machine, but I like the results. Take a look at the desk leg that I produced and see what you think.

The HL850 has plenty of power. It's single knife, skewed cutter head produces a super clean cut at 10,000 rpm (no load.) I should mention that the knives are all carbide so they are sharp and tough. The chip extraction works well but the hose needs a bit of assistance to stay in place. The depth setting is very accurate and the cord is a nice long, workable length.

The cost is typical of Festool, it is higher than for most other brands but the quality and features are commensurate with the price. The HL850 planer cost me $490 alone. The undulating cutter head HK82RW costs $144 and the carbide replacement knives are $33.50. 

I have to admit that I have only run a few test cuts with the straight knife. I have only been using the planer for creating the hand hewn look to date. I will have to cover it as a regular planer at a later date since this is how most shops and woodworkers will be using it. I also did not cover all of the features and characteristics in this entry. That's just one more reason to visit this tool again in the future.

That is all for now.

Your friend in the shop, Todd A. Clippinger

Peace, Love, & Woodworking