Month: August 2026

Late August brings peak humidity to Minnesota workshops. Wood swells, tool drawers stick, and carefully organized scraps no longer fit. Learn why humidity peaks between mid-August and early September, and discover practical techniques to manage wood movement in your shop.

September transforms the woodshop. Humidity drops, finishes flash off faster, and daylight shifts earlier. Understanding these seasonal changes helps you adjust glue times, finishing techniques, and work schedules before autumn fully arrives.

Every September, Minnesota woodworkers face the same problem: benches rock, drawers stick, doors won’t close. It’s not poor craftsmanship—it’s humidity dropping 23% in three weeks, causing every piece of wood in your shop to respond naturally.

Most woodworkers view fall as prime building season. But David Ohnstad warns that Minnesota’s seasonal humidity swings make autumn the worst time to construct furniture that must survive winter. Understanding wood movement prevents costly failures.

Pocket-hole jigs are everywhere in beginner content, but forum debates split predictably: half say use it for everything, half reject it entirely. Neither is right. The real answer depends on understanding when pocket holes actually work and when they’ll fail your project.

After six months in the shop, Tom’s router bit didn’t cut—it burned. That scorch mark on poplar revealed everything about tool maintenance, rust prevention, and why your first cut after a long break is a diagnostic moment, not just work.

A gym bag under the desk revealed more than camping gear—it held the working woodworker’s essential toolkit. David Ohnstad unpacks the hand planes, Japanese saws, chisels, and leather rolls that serious makers actually carry to every project.

Nick Offerman’s five-step woodworking plan inspires but oversimplifies. David Ohnstad exposes the critical gap between good-sounding advice and actionable guidance that actually gets beginners started in the workshop.