I got a chance to play on my wife’s new Powermatic lathe.  Wow, I can see how this is addictive …

Anyhow, I ended up generating a ton of shavings.  I’m in the process of installing a floor sweep right by the lathe for just this situation, but it’s not done.  So I stuck on a length of aluminum flex hose with an elbow on the end to set on the floor.

This worked great until I got the broom a little too close and the hose attached itself to the broom.  No problem, I’ll just push it off with my foot, right?  So then the hose sucks in my entire foot!  I’m struggling to get this stupid thing off my foot and failing because a 3HP cyclone generates a heck of an airflow.  So finally I end up sitting on the floor with my foot jammed into the elbow, laughing so hard I can’t do anything.

Needless to say, I did eventually get my foot out.

I bought a new Powermatic 3520b wood lathe for my wife for Christmas.  Wow, what a nice machine!  I’m not a turner, but I’ve played a bit and worked with several other lathes.  Grizzly and Jet make several nice machines and the new Delta midi seems nice, but nothing is in the 3520b’s class in terms of quality feel and constructions.  Of course, it’s about double the price of the Jet/Grizzly and six times the Delta.

My review of six li-ion drills was a result of my search for a new cordless drill.  As I noted in the review, I wasn’t totally pleased with any of them and didn’t know which I’d keep.

Well, the answer was none.  I’ve had the opportunity to try out Festool’s T-15+3 drill and I’ve been very impressed.  This is a high-quality, well-built tool.  Is it worth $450?  Absolutely, but only you can determine if there’s enough value to you personally to justify the cost.

A full review will be coming soon.

I just finished checking out a small LED light from WoodCraft.  Very useful, I’m going to be keeping this one!  Check out the review!

Just finished up a review of seven lithium-ion drills: Ryobi, Makita, Milwaukee, Porter-Cable, Dewalt, Rigid, and Bosch. Check it out!