Whether it’s a bookcase, chair or puzzle, Roy knows how to make it out of wood. Full of tips and different techniques, “Woodwright’s Shop” also features guest craftsmen for unique projects, all using classic hand tools.
Roy teaches a number of foot-powered woodworking machines, including a folding spring-pole lathe and a foot-treadle flywheel lathe. He also builds a hickory hay rake, one of his favorite woodworking projects.
The Workbench
The workbench is one of the most important pieces of equipment in a woodwright shop. It’s where planning and layout, cutting and shaping, assembling and finishing are carried out, as well as the occasional hand operation.
A common design of the workbench has a flat top with a tool well set in at the rear. A tool well allows you to keep your tools and other parts in a safe place, where they won’t get lost or damaged.
There are different types of workbenches, depending on the type of activity they are designed to handle. For example, a heavy-duty bench has legs and supports that are made with materials like steel or stainless steel that have high load-bearing capacities.
In contrast, a lightweight workbench usually has solid wood supports, and they are made with materials that are designed for lighter applications. Typically, they have a sturdy base that’s easy to clean and maintain, and it has space for all kinds of operations.
The Tools
The woodwright shop uses hand tools and human powered machines to create furniture and household items. Host Roy Underhill teaches viewers the intricacies of using these tools to create a variety of projects including tables, desks, shelves, and more.
One of the most popular and longest running shows on public television, The Woodwright’s Shop is produced by the University of North Carolina Center for Public Television. It has aired over thirty-five thirteen-episode seasons and demonstrates the latest techniques in traditional woodworking.
The show highlights the basics of woodworking, from identifying and laying out your project to determining which tool is best for which job. The show also highlights the newest and most interesting machines such as a treadle lathe and a gouge for shaping large pieces of wood into curved shapes. Other notable tool types include a wood mallet, bow saw, drawknife, and chisel.
The Materials
A woodwrights shop is a place to share the intimate relationship between craftsman and material. It’s also a way to share traditions and folklore.
Roy Underhill combines historical background, alternative technology, and humor in The Woodwright’s Guide to Traditional Crafts. It is an essential toolbox filled with insight, technique and wisdom for the artisan in all of us.
In this season, Roy travels to Colonial Williamsburg and takes a look at 18th-century craftsmanship. He visits a wheelwright, a cooper and a blacksmith, and has a tour of the Anthony Hay Cabinet Shop.
Freshly cut wood chops, splits and bends much easier than dry lumber. This is one of the many things that a traditional woodworker learned from his grandfather and father, and it’s a principle that will continue to inspire the next generation of artisan woodworkers.
The Projects
Roy Underhill, America’s leading authority on traditional hand-tool woodworking, demonstrates the skills of the trade in his long-running PBS series “Woodwright’s Shop.” Each episode includes projects from woodworking fundamentals and advanced techniques to puzzles and toys.
In this fifth volume, Roy continues to explore the inner workings of the woodwright’s shop. From frame construction to dovetailing to turning to steam-bending to carving, each project builds on the skills developed in the previous episode.
In addition to Roy’s own projects, the show also features guest craftsmen for unique woodworking projects. From African chairs to a hickory hay rake, these fascinating projects all demonstrate how to use old-fashioned tools to create useful objects from the heart of nature. The Woodwright’s Shop is the longest-running American traditional woodworking show on television, demonstrating all aspects of old-time hand-tool woodworking in a style that inspires and teaches. For more than twenty-five years, this series has helped millions learn to enjoy the art of woodworking.
