Hello Fellow Woodworkers,

A quick reminder that the Sydney Timber and Working with wood show is very close, being held from the 23rd - 25th June 2017. We will be exhibiting with our full range of hand planes and tools, which will give you the opportunity to watch demonstrations and try the tools out for yourself. Colen Clenton will also be on the stand with his range of marking out tools.  

Terry Will also be doing a seminar at the show called "From Sharp to Blunt"   which looks at what really happens to your edge as it starts to dull.   You may be surprised to find out that you may be re-sharpening before your blade is blunt.   You will find this a very interesting topic if you are into edge tools.   Bring your questions along, they will only make the discussion more interesting.

We have recently  finished a prototype front vice made from high grade aluminium, which was displayed at the Brisbane wood show for the first time.  There was great enthusiasm for the vice and we have started a list of interested customers to take delivery of the first batch. We will be doing the same at the Sydney show.

We have also been workshop testing for the last three years a pattern makers vice that swings to various heights and also tilts  in our own workshop .    This vice will also be on display at the Sydney show.    These vices will be in production in the next few months, however the release date is not confirmed. You can view a small clip of the vice on our Instagram account 'hntgordon' or on our Facebook page 'HNT Gordon & Co classic plane makers'. If you would like to put your name down on the waiting list please email us at planemaker@hntgordon.com.au.

Tip for Vice use:   After many years of tool making and doing woodwork we have come to the conclusion that precision in a vice will always win out over power.   If you find yourself having to use a lot of force to close your vice to hold an object it is most likely that the two faces of the vice are not precise enough to hold the object properly.   This is also the case with tail vices.

We have been asked why we don't put larger handles on our tail vice and it is simply because we don't believe it is required to hold the work piece.   The design of our dogs will hold the wood with minimal force and as a consequence the piece of wood will not be bent out of shape as you go about your work planing, chiseling etc.   We have taken the same approach with the new vices we are making so please come along to the Sydney wood show and take a look for yourself.

Regards,
Terry Gordon -
Plane maker.