Planearound

Sorry, but those aren't dovetails!

Marty

I recently completed a fireplace surround for a client whose budget and interest in having the piece painted, called for MDF. The final product met their requirements and it came in, on budget and on time.

The design was exactly the same as if it would have been made from any traditional cabinet woods, solid or veneer. The wood selection and machining process took less time as there was no need to consider grain patterns. The assembly process was as easy as pie, as I used biscuits, glue and 23 gauge pins. Quick & easy. Had it been made of solid wood, I would have still used all of those same items.

Does it constitute fine woodworking? Yes it does... and no, it doesn't. Would it have been "finer" woodworking had it been made of traditional cabinet woods? Most certainly. However, who can argue with a satisfied client and a craftsman who received a decent wage for his work? Win, win.

I, too thought your list didn't touch upon anything that I was interested in. How about covering some hand tools such as smoothing planes or block planes?

Marty from Ottawa, ON, Canada