I can’t wait to retire SO I CAN DO WOODWORKING FULL TIME

Posted on March 14, 2019 by EdwardsDirect.net

Congratulations, Dave Steinard, Woodmaster Woodworker of the Month!

I’ve put literally miles of wood through my Woodmasters

“I have two 18” Woodmaster Molder Planers. The older one – the dark grey one – I’ve put literally miles of wood through it — I’m talking 1,200 to 1,300 lineal feet a week. On just one job, I made over 5,000 lineal feet of 1800’s-style Dutch lap poplar siding.

Dave’s son (left) gives dad a hand running molding through Dave’s 1980’s era Woodmaster Molder/Planer

I started with 1 x 6 boards and ran each piece through the Woodmaster to shape the front and back and make the tongue and groove. I had Woodmaster make me the molding knives. I kept them and used them on other jobs.

Dave’s in the “value added” business. If he sold standing timber to a logger, he’d get only 10 cents a board foot. He sells finished molding for $2 a board foot.

The town I live in has a lot of historic homes and old mansions. I’ve been duplicating a lot of 14” and 15” baseboard. I make it using three pieces of molding. This is something people cannot find anywhere else. Woodmaster made me the cutters.

I build cabinets, mantles, and every other wood product imaginable, all part time.

Full-time once retirement kicks in

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I started in carpentry when I was 18 or 19. Now I’m 62 and I’ve been a finish carpenter for years. I do work with my Woodmaster just part time and I work part time at a maintenance job in order to get medical benefits. Once I get to retirement age, I’ll take this business full time.

I cut trees on the farm my family’s owned since the 1930’s. Poplar, red and white oak, cherry, white pine, sassafras, ash, hickory, walnut, maple, and more. I haul the logs home, run them through my sawmill, kiln dry them, and put them all through the Woodmaster. Everything we sell is 98% clear. Each process adds value. If I sold standing poplar trees to a logger, I’d get ten cents a board foot. When I do the sawing, drying, and planing, I can sell for $2 a board foot. My big thing is to not give our farm’s trees away; to get the most we can from them.

Dave’s built “just about any imaginable wood project,” he says. Here’s a very handsome double mantlepiece with matching book shelves he built. Painted poplar.

Right now, I have 20,000 board feet of lumber sawn, dried, standing vertically in my pole barn, ready for retail. People come in and sort through and choose the boards they want. If they want something specially planed or edged, I do it and charge extra.

Dave made a big batch of turkey calls one winter and sold them for a pretty penny.

One Woodmaster for planing, another for molding

I started this work in the 1980’s with a Foley-Belsaw planer. That’s a very complicated machine to operate, with too many mechanisms. And I needed something wider than 12”. A friend put me onto Woodmaster. I have two 18” Woodmasters. I got my grey one then and started planing and selling boards. Later, I got my newer, tan colored one. I have the grey one set up for molding. 18” wide, I can set it up to run three types of molding at the same time. I have the new, 18″ tan one set up for planing. These machines are awesome, easy to work on, and I have no complaints whatsoever. And any time I’ve every called Woodmaster, you’ve always given me prompt service and a lot of help.

I’ve never replaced much on my machines – only feed rollers and maybe belts a time of two. Performance? I’ve never run out of power, never had an issue. I sharpen the blades, turn the machine on, and put wood through it.

Dave's family harvests trees from a farm they've owned since the 1930's. Everybody gets in the act. Left to right, Dave's son Doug; Dave; Noel (Dave's 90-year old dad), and brother Donald.

Dave’s family harvests trees from the farm they’ve owned since the 1930’s. Here, they’ve just felled a 154-year old red oak. Left to right, Dave’s son Doug, Dave, Noel (Dave’s 90-year old dad), and brother Donald.

Run 2 boards at a time

If someone’s thinking of getting a Woodmaster and think they need the 12” model, I’d say get a bigger one. Wider is better and the work goes quicker. With 18” width, you can run 7” boards two at a time. I make tabletops on my 18” Woodmaster. I glue boards into two panels up to 18” wide, run the panels through, and glue them together. Then you have only one glue joint to worry about.

This is all part time for me. I’d do it full time except for health care costs. I look forward to retirement age when I can do this full time. I’m backed up with special orders, I can’t do all the work I have! But I have a lot to look forward to. I’ll stay busy, and Woodmaster makes it easy.”

— Dave Steinard, Steinard Hardwoods, Woodmaster Owner, Connersville IN

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Do YOU want to be our next Woodmaster Woodworker of the Month? Email editor@woodmastertools.com photos of you, your woodworking, and your Woodmaster!

“My 30-year old Woodmaster is THE JEWEL OF MY WORKSHOP”

Posted on January 12, 2019 by EdwardsDirect.net

Back in the 1980's, we painted Woodmaster Molder/Planers dark blue. That's when Robert Lewis got his machine. 30 years later, Robert's machine still runs like a top. In the photo, Robert points to our "Made in USA" sticker. That's a big reason many people choose Woodmaster.

Back in the 1980’s, Woodmaster Molder/Planers were painted dark blue. That’s when Robert Lewis got his machine. 30 years later, it still runs like a top. In the photo, Robert points to our “Made in USA” sticker. That’s a big reason many people choose Woodmaster.

“I bought my Woodmaster planer 25 or 30 years ago, whenever it was that Woodmaster was painting them dark blue. The new ones, of course, are painted a tan color now.

I use it for my woodworking projects. I never intended to use it to make money – woodworking is more of a hobby for me. I make gifts and things I give away to family and friends – furniture, wine racks, those sorts of things.

But I know I could make money with it. It’s capable of making wood molding I could sell but I was never interested in doing that.

Robert's favorite use for his Woodmaster is as a drum sander. Here he's removed the cover to show the drum sander head he's installed.

Robert’s favorite way to use his Woodmaster is to set it up as a drum sander. Here he’s removed the hood to show the drum sander head he’s installed.

Today’s Woodmasters are painted a light tan color. The Woodmaster Molder/Planer (left) can be set up as a planer, molder, drum sander or saw. The Woodmaster Drum Sander (right) is a dedicated sanding machine.

Flawless as a planer

I told Woodmaster recently, ‘My Woodmaster is the jewel of my workshop!’ I got it to use as a planer and used it that way for years. I planed a lot of rough wood and I loved the job it did. It’s never broken down and I’ve never had to do any repair on it. 30 years and it’s worked flawlessly for me.

Fantastic as a drum sander

When I first got my Woodmaster, I also got its ProPack accessory that lets you set up the machine as a planer, a molder, a saw, or a drum sander. I eventually set it up as a drum sander and that’s how I use it today. It’s really fantastic.

It works great as drum sander, and that’s my favorite function. It sands perfectly. I use it to reclaim and repurpose old wood people give me. For example, a friend gave me old oak loading ramps that were maybe 40 or 50 years old. I sanded the wood down and turned it into four or five nice oak wine racks.

It’s amazing but people just give me wood — old oak and other wood they’d otherwise just throw away. That’s a huge money-saver because even rough cut oak, hickory and other woods of any dimension are really expensive.

I’m very pleased with my Woodmaster. 30 years and I’ve never been disappointed!”

— Robert Lewis, Woodmaster Owner, Roseville MN

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Jim HATED his old planer…LOVES his new Woodmaster. Says, “AIN’T NO TOY!”

Posted on October 12, 2018 by EdwardsDirect.net

Editor’s Note: Here’s an email we received recently from new Woodmaster owner, Jim Medeiros. With a big dose of tongue-in-cheek humor, Jim told us what was WRONG with his old 12″ planer and what’s RIGHT about his brand new, 25″ Woodmaster Molder/Planer. We at Woodmaster had quite a chuckle. Hope you do, too.

From: Jim Medeiros
Sent: Tuesday
To: Woodmaster Tools
Subject: I watched the DVD – found my tables!!

Dear Woodmaster,

Well, I just got my brand new Woodmaster 725 Molder/Planer delivered. My first impression when I un-crated the machine was, ‘Look at the size of that motor!’

So that night, 11:00 PM, there I was watching the Woodmaster DVD that came with the machine. (Talk about an exciting life!) Well, it was time well spent — the video showed me where I could find my machine’s infeed and outfeed tables, tucked away neatly under the planer bed, right where the video said they would be!

Near midnight, I dashed out to my shop…

My wife wanted to know what was so important and exciting that I was getting dressed to dash out to the mill building in the rain at that hour!! Back inside, I turned on the video again and watched the next part of the video — ‘Using your Woodmaster Planer’…..

Today, I got the planer all hooked up and ran a few boards through it this evening.

My old planer went, “grind, hammer, churn, burn, whine”

My old planer was suitcase-sized — maybe 12″ wide. When you put a piece of wood into it, well, you knew it was working: she would grind, hammer, churn, burn, whine, and dance all around. My wife would be in the house 100 yards away and she was comforted by the sounds knowing that work was getting done! So after removing an 8″ wide piece of lumber from my old 12″ planer, and lowering the head 1/64,” the fun would start all over again.

My Woodmaster just goes, “pufft,” and out pops the finished board

Now, with the Woodmaster 725, I put the board in the infeed, the machine basically goes, “pufft” — and the board comes out outfeed at the back of the machine. I see a flurry of shavings exiting the dust collector pipe. No excitement, no hammer, hammer, clang, clang, buzzz, just “pufft” — and out pops the board, all finished. Honestly, where is the fun in that? It will be a lot of exercise trying to keep up with this beast; I am probably going to have to buy a faster sawmill just to keep this animal fed. You should put on your literature that the 725 “Ain’t no toy”…

Thanks, Jim

— Jim Medeiros, Woodmaster 725 owner, White Oak Meadows, Wilsons VA

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ONE DOOR CLOSES AND ANOTHER DOOR OPENS — He lost his job and became a full time pro woodworker

Posted on August 15, 2018 by EdwardsDirect.net

Jeff Derosia lost his full time job. That gave him the time (and motivation!) to up his game from hobbyist woodworker to full time pro. Things have worked out great, and he’s plenty busy.

They say when one door closes, another one opens. That’s Jeff Derosia’s story — his full-time job gave him the boot. That spurred Jeff to up his game from hobbyist to full-time woodworker. Today, business is strong and growing….and Jeff’s doing work he loves.

“I’m a hobbist-turned-pro woodworker. I started out doing woodworking as a hobby and making things for my family and friends — furniture, shelving, mantles, and more, and it just took off. I had only a few basic tools but I got a ‘kick-butt’ setup when I bought my uncle’s entire, fully-equipped shop. I got his lifetime supply of tools and equipment.

Jeff’s gotten work by making connections with local builders. Here’s one recent project he built, a seamless cypress mantle.

Just about then I lost my full-time job as a Mechanical Engineering Technologist! Turns out that was the best thing that’s happened to me. Sure, I had a slurry of emotions but I wouldn’t change it for the world. I started my woodworking business in earnest. Today, I’m doing what I love and I’m at the pivot point where my business foundation is built and I know I can increase production and generate more income. It’s very gratifying work and I enjoy seeing my clients’ reaction to what I’ve built for them.

It can get darned hot in Louisiana, so window shutters that keep out the sun while letting in breezes are popular. Jeff built six cypress shutter panels for a long-time customer. Each panel is 6' wide x 3.5' tall.

It can get really hot in Louisiana, so window shutters that keep out the sun while letting in breezes are popular. Jeff built six cypress shutter panels for a long-time customer. Each panel is 6′ wide x 3.5′ tall.

Turnkey furniture shop – concept to installation

I run a turnkey, one-stop furniture shop. I work with customers from brainstorming their kitchen or whatever project, all the way to installation. They don’t have to work with a bunch of people, and I can maintain the quality I want all the way through. Plus, I don’t have to worry about someone coming along and goofing up my work when they paint it, for example!

I have computerized design software so I can do 3-D modeling with high-definition rendering. People are visual and that really helps. Right on the screen, I can change colors, trim style, door styles, and more, like you’re standing in the room.

This is a full-time business for me. Actually, it’s more than full time. Anybody who owns a business knows it doesn’t stop when business hours are over.

Jeff snapped this photo as he dimensioned rough-sawn 2x6 cypress boards to build the louvered shutter panels in the photo above. Note his 25" Woodmaster handles 3, 2x6's in one pass easily.

Jeff snapped this photo as he dimensioned rough-sawn 2×6 cypress boards to build the louvered shutter panels in the photo above. Note his 25″ Woodmaster handles 3, 2×6’s easily, in one pass.

“I had to up my game”

I started with the best 110V equipment I could but soon saw I had to up my game. For example, I got rid of a 12” Delta planer and got a small DeWalt planer instead. It’s supposed to be the best planer in its class but I burned it up the first day I used it!

I visited online forums to learn about heavier-duty equipment and a guy from South Carolina turned me on to Woodmaster. I started seeing that anybody who had a Woodmaster has had it 10, 20, even 30 years. That means it’s really reliable equipment.

Here’s a nice shot of crown molding Jeff makes with his Woodmaster. Crisp and clean!

Nervous…

So I’d burned out my 12” planer and I had a big job to do. I called Woodmaster and, honestly, I was nervous. This was going to be the first really big 220V machine I’d ever bought. I got a quote on a midsize Woodmaster with a Pro Pack. Then I got really thinking about it and the money I was going to put into it and decided I’d better go big or go home. I decided the 25” 725 model with Pro Pack was a better choice. Sure, it’s more money but nobody ever regretted having bigger equipment.

In fact, I knew I’d made the best choice when a client brought me an 18” wide piece of wood for a project and I handled it easily with my 725. Going up a machine size was the right thing.

I got the 725 with a Pro Pack. I had a drum sander already so Woodmaster swapped out the sander part of the Pro Pack for a C2 corrugated molding head. Its corrugations mate with the corrugations on molding knives. It’s indexable so it’s easy to set the knife depth. And it’s very robust — I can set 25” of knives straight across the molding head. Next on my wish list is Woodmaster’s Spiral Cutterhead and your 3-Side Router System.

“Only wish I’d done it sooner”

I do use all the functions of the Pro Pack; planing, molding and gang sawing. My only regret is I didn’t use the gang ripsaw and molding features sooner. I was so backed up I used the Woodmaster just as a planer at first. One day, I told myself, ‘I’m going to hook up the gang rip and molding features.’ I did it and actually prepped all my material for upcoming jobs, made the trim, and created over 110 gallons of sawdust…all before lunchtime!

“I took this shot while checking my rail and stile fitment on a set of cathedral style doors for a cabinet I built to match a customers existing vanity,” says Jeff.

Who’s my customer? Anybody. Anybody from CFOs of large corporations to a friend who wanted a custom wine rack. That was a $100 job — many woodworkers wouldn’t get out of bed for a job like that but I do jobs from $5.00 to $5,000.00 dollars. Consequently, I haven’t had to advertise or go looking for work. Work has found me. Right now, I’m booked out for the next month or two.

Future growth plans

Looking ahead, I want to grow the trim side of the business. I get calls for custom molding and trim already and I’m talking with a builder about supplying all his trim. I’m going to get more molding knives.

Jeff built a 7' tall chair for a local realtor. After assembly, and before painting it, he and his son, Lucas, shared a great photo opportunity.

Jeff built this 7′ tall chair for a local realtor. After assembly, and before painting, he and his son, Lucas, shared a great photo opportunity. Go Bruins!

What I’d really like is a second Woodmaster Molder/Planer. It’s not that changing it from one function to another takes a lot of time but it really would be nice to have one I could leave set up as a planer and the second one as a molder.

The Woodmaster is a well-rounded machine. Everything’s good and I’m very pleased. I’m very mechanically-inclined but this machine is simple enough that I showed a helper how it all worked and he understood it right away. Thinking long term, I’d like to get a sawmill from TimberKing, Woodmaster’s sister company.

Never look back

By the time people are wondering whether they should get a Woodmaster, they’ve already pretty much decided to do it. I’d say stop thinking about it and do it. From my standpoint, it’s one machine, one footprint in my space-restricted shop that gives me all the versatility and quality I need. If you’re willing to take the plunge, you won’t regret it. The first time you turn it on, you’ll never look back.”

— Jeff Derosia, Woodmaster 725 Owner, The Stump Company, Gonzales LA

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JIM’S VERY FIRST ORDER nearly paid for his new 4-HEAD WOODMASTER 4000

Posted on July 16, 2018 by EdwardsDirect.net

Jim Medeiros reaches under the hood to make adjustments to his 4-Head Woodmaster 4000.

“I never expected my business to grow like this”

“You read some testimonials and think, ‘Yeah, right.’ But my situation is, the very first wood order I did with my Woodmaster 4000 Planer/Molder earned me all but $2,000 of the purchase price!

I never would have expected my business to grow like this. The usual situation is small lumber producers like me can never get the opportunity to get into the market. Now, all of a sudden, I can make products that people desire. And they can’t get it at the store.

I run a small wood operation that’s grown and morphed in the last couple years. I started making rough sawn lumber but I soon saw that value-added is where the opportunity is. That started me down the path of adding the Woodmaster 4000 Planer/Molder.

Now I’m making siding, flooring, lumber, reclaimed lumber, shiplap interior paneling, and more for remodeling and new construction.

Everything we make is on a custom basis, we’re not in the commodity market. We recently made some quarter-sawn sycamore. We had a 3,200 board feet flooring order for a contractor — southern yellow pine. Last week, we made oak flooring from reclaimed beams.

Diversification is key

It’s a good time to be in the lumber business. Now that the economy’s coming back, people are starting to do home improvements again. And they want wood products.

Plane and mold 4 sides in 1 pass

Lift the hood to swap out pattern knives quickly and easily

We have a good, varied base of customers. Some are retail stores, some are contractors, and some are D-I-Y homeowners who want wood with character; wood they can’t get at home improvement stores. One of my customers is a contractor who builds 100 homes a year. That’s a great opportunity for me. I try to keep the work varied, not just one product. Diversification is key. If one of our products or one customer is off, other parts will keep us going.

Shopping for production machinery

When I started looking at different 4-head planer/molder machines, I looked first at older, industrial ones like Weinig molders but I had two concerns: first, if something fails on an old, vintage machine, parts are hard to find. Second, the capacity of older machines is not big enough. Some handle 8” wide workpieces but some people want 10” flooring. That turned me away from older, ‘heritage’ machinery.

Then I looked at imports like Baker and Logosol. I leaned toward Baker because of their capacity but neither one’s made in the USA.

Woodmaster rumor

I heard a rumor that Woodmaster was building a new machine – a 4-head planer/molder. So, after I ruled out vintage and imported machines, I took a good look at the Woodmaster 4000. I contacted Woodmaster and talked to the tech guys. I learned all about the ins and outs of the machine’s design theory, its physical design, maintenance, and more. I got a really good understanding of how it works, how it’s built, how the components all function. I saw that good sense went into it.

Raise the hood and you can mount 2, 18" cutterheads with planer knives. And mount 2, 2" side cutterheads with molding knives.

Shape 4 sides in 1 pass. Raise the hood and you can mount 2, 18″ cutterheads with planer knives to plane a board’s top and bottom sides.. And mount 2, 2″ side cutterheads with molding knives.

Good design sense

I decided the 4000 was one to go with. Now that I have it, I can see it’s built with good design sense. For example, you can get your hands right in there when you change the planer and shaper blades.

(You know how frustrating it is when a machine isn’t user friendly? For example, I have a feller buncher that’s really hard to work on. I just about had to rig a harness to get at a 10mm bolt to take the starter out. And I had to use a 15” socket extension! Whoever designed that machine obviously never had to change its starter…)

Gobbles wood

In the value-added market, you need speed and efficiency in labor and output. I wanted a machine that gobbles wood and I can run the 4000 at 22 linear feet a minute. That’s more than 1,200 linear feet an hour. In a typical day, we run 3,000 feet even with a couple of dimensional changes.

Here’s a closeup look at one of the two, 2″ sidecutters. At the upper right of the photo you can just see the 18″ top planer knife. The other two cutterheads are not shown here.

OK, I was nervous about the 4000 because it’s new. But I know guys who have other Woodmaster machines and they have a good reputation. I told Woodmaster I was really going to work it hard, and that I had a customer coming to me with 100,000 board feet of lumber to turn into flooring. But the 60-day money back trial was comforting. They’d take it back if it didn’t satisfy me. It comes with a 5-year warranty too. A company that’s willing to give all that is showing how confident they are. And, believe me, if there had been a problem, I wouldn’t have been shy about returning it!

This 4000 delivers. Construction is solid and I‘m very happy. I run some flooring at half speed. Not because the machine couldn’t handle it but because it’s capable of running wood faster than you can keep up with. It’s nice to have someone at the output side to catch the boards!

Opportunity for the little guy

Woodmaster’s people listen and take suggestions. They send you updates and give great customer service. And they delivered on time!

This machine really does create opportunity for the little guy. You can offer the consumer what they want with confidence. You know there’ll be no problems for you or your customers. You’ll want to feed the machine what it’s set up for to produce an excellent finished product. A 4-head planer/molder like this has precision tolerances on the feed end. You’ll want to feed it consistent quality dry wood with tolerances to fit. Do that and you’ll make phenomenal products.”

— Jim Medeiros, Woodmaster 4000 owner, White Oak Meadows, Wilsons VA

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BUILD YOUR OWN LOG HOME with a Woodmaster Molder/Planer

Posted on June 15, 2018 by EdwardsDirect.net

Over a period of just seven months, TJ McCain built his own log home using logs he milled into flooring, ceilings, countertops, and trim with his Woodmaster.

“Working full time over a period of seven months in 2009 and 2010, a friend and I built my log home in here in Kaufman County, Texas. Here’s how I did it.

I used my 25″ Woodmaster planer with molder, drum sander, and tongue and groove attachments to make my own flooring and ceiling boards; mold all of the trim and kitchen cabinets; plane all our kitchen counter tops; and make a 6” thick slab island bar out of black walnut.

Take a look at the ceiling detail. Live edge boards, planed on the Woodmaster, make a distinctive and handsome rustic statement.

Take a look at the rustic ceiling detail. Live edge boards, planed on the Woodmaster, make a distinctive and handsome statement.

Through the kindness of friends

Through the kindness of friends, all of the wood for our home came out of more than 200 hardwood and cedar logs I logged and milled off two different ranches.

Besides our home, I’ve built our outbuildings including a 40′ x 50’ wood shop. I’ve made so many wood projects over the years that I couldn’t have made without my Woodmaster. I continue to enjoy it today. Thank you Woodmaster for building a quality machine, made in the USA.

Here’s a 7″-thick beam being run through TJ’s Woodmaster. It takes a big planer to handle building materials this big!

I’m a Marine Corps vet and a stone mason by trade. I worked in construction until I had a back injury. Now I’m an X-ray technician at a big hospital in Dallas. We bought property in 1988 and a Woodmaster in 1999. I bought it with the intention of building our home.

I build a lot of rustic projects like an 8’ x 4’ slab table of red oak with turquoise inlay. I’ve done timber framing, built porches, greenhouses, and more. I’ve done scribe work, built fireplace mantles, picture frames, furniture; a lot of work with mortise and tenon or dowel joinery.

TJ displays his masonry and woodworking skills in this kitchen island. The thick live edge countertop sets off the brickwork nicely. And you can’t beat the one-of-a-kind stone map of Texas!

I like working with my hands

I got involved with woodworking because I like the outdoors and working with my hands. And I just like chain saws! I took a timber framing workshop and it’s grown from there. I’m basically self-taught; I learn a lot about woodworking by watching videos on YouTube.

A couple of the guys I work with have large ranches here in Texas. They cleared a lot of mesquite trees and were going to burn them but I skidded them out instead. I took 100 trees from one ranch and another 100 from the other.

Deep in the heart of Texas, TJ built himself a striking country-style kitchen.

Deep in the heart of Texas, TJ built himself a cozy country-style kitchen.

Way before construction started…

Way before construction of my house started, I knew I’d need a molder/planer. I’d planned the building for 20 years. When I got the logs, they were at 13% moisture, and that’s incredibly dry. Still, in log construction, you have to make accommodation for expansion and contraction of the logs.

I made double tongue-and-grooves in each log so each log would fit tightly into the log below it. I glued between logs and used 11” lag bolts every two feet.

The sun is so strong around here that UV light and exposure can really weather logs. So I built a wraparound porch 8’ wide so the house’s walls are always protected. It’s eight years now and the logs look like new.

I made the ceilings, floors, trim, molding, and countertops using red oak, cedar, black walnut, and more. I planed a lot of wood!

I use every bit of this machine

When you make your own building materials like this handsome flooring, you slash your building costs dramatically. Looks great, too.

I chose Woodmaster for the flexibility it offers. I can set it up as a planer, a molder, a drum sander, and a rip saw. And it’s affordable. Other machines are flexible but they’re so expensive! I use every bit of this machine and it just fits the bill for me. It’s been invaluable.

The 725 model? I liked the 25” width of it. It fit my needs, allows me to plane wider pieces. My countertops wouldn’t have fit thorough a regular sized planer. For example, I made a 25” wide mantle, a 6” thick x 13” wide island, a 4” thick x 13-to-14” live edge L-shaped island top. I like the way the height adjustment works, too.

Next: retirement business

I’m hoping to retire in a few years and will do woodworking in retirement. This machine’s well designed, well built, and I’m very happy with the quality of it. It works very well.”

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“YOU BETTER HAVE SOMEONE ON THE OUTPUT SIDE WHO’S READY TO CATCH” — Woodmaster’s new 4-Head Planer/Molder

Posted on May 23, 2018 by EdwardsDirect.net

We spoke recently with Jim Martin, one of the first production woodworkers to operate one of Woodmaster’s new WM4000 4-Head Planer/Molder. Here’s his experience with this revolutionary new machine.

“I’m a master millwright and I’ve worked in every trade there is. Electrical, plumbing, pipe fitting, pipe welding, any kind of welding or fabrication work, I’ve done it. I’ve run cranes and heavy equipment my whole life. Now I’m a Shop Manager, turning reclaimed barn wood into flooring with the Woodmaster 4000 Planer/Molder .

4-head planer/shaper — shape 4 sides in 1 pass

This machine has 4 cutterheads. There’s a cutter on the top, a cutter on the bottom, one on the left and one on the right. The top and bottom cutterheads hold 18” planer knives. The two side cutterheads are 2” shapers, one on either side. It’s extremely flexible. You can plane with the bottom cutter by itself. Or you can plane with the top cutter by itself.

You can shape with one side cutter by itself, or with the other side cutter by itself. Or you can run all 4 operations at the same time. You can cut 1 side, 2 sides, 3 sides, or all 4, all in one pass. All depending on what you want to do.

You can change any of the knives easily, whatever pattern you want. Each cutterhead has its own motor. So that’s 4 motors, plus one that drives the variable feed rate. Everything’s all tied together on one panel. You can choose from several motor sizes – we chose a 230 3-phase unit because it’s efficient electrically.

And its adjustable feed rate is a wonderful feature. It’s standard, not an option. It really helps when we’re running a big stack of different kinds of wood. I can speed up or slow down as needed without changing anything besides the feed rate.

“Best reclaimed barn lumber in the USA”

Mike Hudson opened this business about 6 years ago. He saw there was a market for reclaimed barn wood and took down probably 40 barns board-by-board. The business has grown and now we’re buying barn lumber from others. We take it all: sheet metal, rafters, rafter nailer boards, wall boards, beams, columns, everything.

We pride ourselves on having the best reclaimed barn lumber in the country! We cut barn material into all kinds of products. Veneers, 2” material for bar tops and counters, 1 to 3/4” thick for flooring, and even 1/2” for wainscoting.

We have lots of different kinds of customers. Retired folks fixing their homes, to young people remodeling older homes. One customer’s a flooring installer who does restoration on 1850 to 1880’s homes. Then we have contractors and do-it-yourself homeowners who need reclaimed Douglas fir flooring to match their home’s original flooring.

We even sell to a contractor who’s working for the National Park System, doing restoration work on the state park buildings. I just made him flooring for a hunter’s cabin in a state park in Wyoming.

“This machine does what you tell it to – does what Woodmaster says it will”

We enjoy the 4000; it does just what you tell it to do and what Woodmaster says it will. As far as we know, we’re one of the only businesses in America running reclaimed barn wood through this machine. We’re really putting this machine through its paces.

Best Woodmaster for tough, high-production manufacturing

There’s very little setup with the WM4000. And it’s a fully commercial duty machine. That’s important because the barn wood we’re putting through it is very hard, very difficult. After all, barns were put up with green wood 100 or 150 years ago. Over the years, as barns sat in the weather, the wood got harder and denser. Some material we cut, you can’t drive a nail through it.

World’s first American-made 4-head planer/molder

This was our best choice for the kind of work we do. And the fact that this machine is made in Kansas City, USA is a big deal. Parts are easy to get. Other 4-side machines like Logosol are made overseas so getting parts for others can take a long time. If I need parts for this 4000, they’re here the next day.

Quality output, easy to run, fast

Once the machine is set and you start cutting, the cut stays where you put it from first cut to last. I just cut 2,150 square feet of Douglas fir and the first and last pieces came out just the same. I started with 4,805 linear feet of Douglas fir and turned into 2,150 square feet of individual Douglas fir boards.

Once you get the machine set up, you run a sample. Get it where you want it, push start button, and go. You better have somebody on the other end who’s ready to run. It’ll eat Douglas fir at 36 to 42 linear feet a minute. It’ll run one man’s tail completely off. If you run white oak, it’ll run 15 to 20 feet per minute. I can run red oak at 18 to 32 feet per minute, depending on density and how many knots are in it.

Running it is easy, all from just one control panel. There’s a start button and a stop switch that shuts everything down. It has safety features built in to protect the machine and the operator. There are 2 safety switches. There’s an over-thickness gate on the front. If the board hits it because it’s too thick, that’ll stop the machine. If you open the lid it shuts down.

You learn to run it by ear, not by eye. You can hear the lumber as it goes into each cutterhead. It hits the bottom cutterhead first, then the right cutter, then the left. Then the top cutter kicks in. Each cutterhead makes a different sound. Then they all tune in. Even with ear protection, learn to listen. You can hear if the heads slow down – that’s where variable feed comes in. You listen and dial the right feed rate for each individual board.

Woodmaster makes big promises – are they true?

Yes, it’s everything they say it is. We’re feeding the most difficult wood in the world — rough, dense, hard, knotty woods like elm, walnut, sycamore, and more. We’re making it exceed Woodmaster’s promises. This machine was made to work and I really work it.

It does what I expect it to do. As a welder, I push things to the extreme every day. I’ve pushed this machine past my expectations. I’m pushing it harder than everyday woodworkers would. After using it, I wouldn’t give you my 4000 if you gave me 2 Logosols!

Advice for other woodworkers?

We’ve had a very good experience with everybody at Woodmaster. They’ve all been polite, easy to get along with, and helped with any issues. You won’t believe this machine until you see it operate. It will exceed your expectations even if you know what machinery will do. It will surprise you by how well it handles any material you put in it. It’ll surprise you every time you use it.

Are you happy with it?

On a scale of 1 to 10, I’d give it about 9.95. We’ve used it and have zero issues with its mechanical ability. Setup is simple. We keep samples of wood products we’ve made and use them to set up the same cut the same pattern the next time.

It’s easy enough to set up that an accomplished woodworker can set up the machine and have it running production in 15 minutes.

A knife change-out for top and bottom planing knives take the same time it takes a regular planer, 10 or 15 minutes. To change side molding knives, the cutterheads come out. You unbolt them, take them out, and change knives in 5 or 10 minutes. Everything’s really easy to get to.

There are no shafts to change out. You add or remove knives, change knives, but you never have to change shafts. It’s a planer/shaper. Not a gang saw, not a rip saw. It’s a 4-head planer/molder. If that’s what you want it for, it’s great.”

— Jim Martin, Shop Manager, City Limit Antiques and Reclaimed Materials, Higginsville MO

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Tamarack Knees and a Woodmaster Molder/Planer — Josh’s boat shop tricks

Posted on April 18, 2018 by EdwardsDirect.net

Manufacturing “tamarack knees” for boat builders with his Woodmaster Molder/Planer is a big part of Josh Swan’s boat business.

“I was born and raised in Wisconsin. I live on the water, way up in the hinterlands of northern Wisconsin, on the south shore of Lake Superior.

I’ve always been into woodworking. Even when I was a kid in high school I had a workshop set up in our basement with a set of Marples chisels, an old Delta 9” bandsaw, and a drill press.

Yes, you can plane an L-shaped board with a Woodmaster.

Love unexpected

I lived in Rhode Island for a while and took a two-year apprenticeship in boat building and restoration. I did it thinking boatbuilding skills would be transferrable to other kinds of woodworking. But it turns out I fell in love with the rules and techniques of boatbuilding. I find it’s more satisfying to work with curves than to build cabinetry for example. And nothing is as satisfying as building a boat then taking it out on the water.

I’ve operated JW Swan Boatworks since 2004. I build, fix, and restore boats. I don’t do a lot of marketing. I have mostly repeat customers through word of mouth.

Josh harvests tamarack trees with the roots still attached. You can clearly see the root and the trunk form a shape like a bent knee — perfect raw material for boat makers to turn into solid wood boat ribs.

Harvesting wild tamarack knees

A growing part of my business is making and selling TAMARACK KNEES to other boat builders. What are tamarack knees? Tamarack is a tree that grows in swamps and bogs. It’s a deciduous conifer with big, shallow roots that grow parallel to the ground. Together, the root and the trunk form the shape of a bent knee. I cut these ‘knees’ in local bogs and saw them into l-shaped slabs.

Next step, Josh saws them into L-shaped slabs.

Next step, Josh saws the knees into L-shaped slabs.

Boat builders use my tamarack knees to make boat ribs – or ‘frames’ as boat builders call them. Many find it faster, easier, and more satisfying to cut solid wood frames out of tamarack knees than to laminate them with epoxy and strips of wood.

Even prior to planing the surface, you can see how neatly a boat part can be sawn out of one of Josh’s tamarack knees.

Variable feed rate tames wild grain

I plane these knees with my Woodmaster Molder/Planer. Its variable feed rate makes a big quality difference because the knees’ grain runs in every direction. As I plane a knee, I speed up and slow down the feed rate as needed. I can see the wood as it’s progressing through the machine and I tweak it on the fly.

I had a 12” ‘lunchbox’ planer and knew getting something bigger would be a good idea. I needed something wide with decent weight to do the work I do. This Woodmaster just chugs along. And it’s fun to run.

When I buy equipment, I generally get the midrange model, not the biggest and fanciest. So I got an 18” Woodmaster. I have it set up as a planer. I’d like to get another one and set it up with its drum sander attachment. Having two Woodmasters would make sense, especially if I’m doing a volume of work. They’re reasonable and a really good value. I may even be interested in a standalone Woodmaster Drum Sander. And I’d like to get one of Woodmaster’s Spiral Cutterheads.

Josh’s boat shop is big and airy. And his Woodmaster is right in the center of the action.

Skeptical of combination machines but…

I’m naturally skeptical of combination machines. But I read a revue of Woodmaster in an issue of Wooden Boat magazine long ago. It gave good anecdotal evidence on how this machine is handy and versatile in a boat shop. I got Woodmaster’s information packet and ended up buying one.

This is a pretty bulletproof machine. It has a Leeson motor I’ve abused and neglected. It’s all dusty but it works great. Clearly, the Woodmaster is designed well and is structurally fine. I like it. I’d buy it again.

Josh says, “Nothing is as satisfying as building a boat then taking it out on the water.”

Coming up, I’ll be doing repair work and building two new 14’ dory boats. Then I have standing orders for tamarack knees. One order’s for bracing for a timber frame home being built in New Hampshire. Then on to more boatbuilding projects!

— Josh Swan, Woodmaster Owner, JW Swan Boatworks, Washburn WI

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HOUSING AMERICA’S HOMELESS with vision, creativity, and Woodmaster Molder/Planers

Posted on February 15, 2018 by EdwardsDirect.net

I Wood (above left) and C Wood are wood profiles created and patented by woodworker, Chris Scott. These are the basis of his unique building system and his solution to housing the homeless.

The Woodmaster shapes wood profiled quickly and easily

The Woodmaster shapes wood profiles quickly and easily

We at Woodmaster Tools are constantly amazed and thoroughly impressed with what our Owners are making, building, manufacturing, and producing. We recently learned of an outstanding example of our Owners’ vision and creativity — an ingenious Woodmaster Woodworker who’s developed a way he believes he can help solve America’s homeless crisis…..with a Woodmaster.

Manufactured with his Woodmaster, I Wood makes it fast and easy for even unskilled workers to build shelters, sheds, casitas, and small buildings.

Manufactured with his Woodmaster, Chris’s I Wood makes it fast and easy for even unskilled workers to build shelters, sheds, casitas, and small buildings.

Profiled pieces fit together tightly. “Almost without fasteners,” says one woodworker. The interlocking shapes make it fast and easy to build an emergency shelter.

I-Wood buildings are designed so that an entire building fits in a single flat pack. They can be erected in very short order in emergency situations like hurricanes, tsunamis, more.

Woodmaster owner, Chris Scott, has developed a new way to build wooden structures. Rather than use commercial lumber straight from the lumberyard, Mr. Scott uses his Woodmaster to shape lumber into building components with unusual profiles.

By running square-sided lumber through his Woodmaster Molder/Planer equipped with custom molding knives, Scott gives his “I Wood®” an I-beam profile. His “C Wood” has a C-shaped profile. These shapes virtually “clip” together easily and neatly — something like Lincoln Logs or Lego blocks. The net result is a combination of a construction material and a building system that make it simple for minimally-skilled laymen to construct buildings quickly, easily, and inexpensively.

Why Woodmaster? Chris says, “My choice of Woodmaster was probably based on the fact that you have the complete package to help me towards my vision. Your machinery can selectively produce material for making houses, furniture, toys, and other crafts at the local level. This creates local jobs, uses local raw materials, and supports the community both in short and long term.”

Big, big, big vision

And Chris Scott has a much, much, much bigger plan. His goals are to make a significant contribution to sheltering humanity, and to help people produce sustainable wooden products.

Here’s Chris in his workshop creating I Wood with his Woodmaster Molder/Planer

You could call Chris’s goals visionary. What he has in mind is changing the building industry by empowering individuals and communities to have more hands-on control over building materials and construction methods…and far more opportunity to do-it-ourselves. The first step in Scott’s plan is aiding America’s homeless.

Scott’s Woodmaster-profiled lumber is just the start of his big vision for I Wood. I Wood has plenty of advantages: profiled lumber makes construction simple. I Wood reduces manufacturing waste — you get more boards from less wood; from younger trees; and from smaller diameter logs.

This increases the lumber yield from forests and aids carbon sequestering efforts. I Wood is lighter than commercial lumber so it packs tighter for delivery to a building site — a truck can carry 30% more I Wood than standard lumber in a single load. And I Wood’s I-beam profile relieves the stress in a board, reducing warping.

I Wood framing goes up quickly and easily...

Framing with I Wood is fast, simple, and strong.

It's remarkably fast and easy to build a small structure...

The finished tiny house is neat and comfortable.

In broad stroke, Chris Scott and his Woodmaster have created a wood product and a construction system that make it practical and affordable for ordinary folks to successfully build small buildings.

Helping the homeless

Created and licensed by Treecycling®, Inc, a San Diego non-profit, Chris Scott’s I Wood is being used to construct neat, tidy, small shelters for homeless people. Local schools are getting involved — see the recent article and video posted by Channel 7, a San Diego NBC affiliate.

An energetic startup, Treecycling’s immediate focus is to inspire communities and individuals to start producing I Wood and building shelters for the homeless. Robert Bird, a self-described “passionate advocate” of I Wood and a Treecycling volunteer told us, “We’re concentrating on sheltering homeless people in I Wood structures. Volunteers like me, the community at large, and the homeless themselves can easily build them. Instead of purchasing pre-manufactured shelters, I Wood structures can create solutions locally and affordably.”

How affordably? Bird says, “The material cost to build an 8’ x 12’ I Wood shelter is about $1,000 without labor. And the structural components are so modular, they can be used to build any size structure from 4’ x 8′ to 16’ x 24’.”

“As someone with 30 years of carpentry experience,” says Robert, “what impresses me is that the Woodmaster is safe and straightforward enough that a layperson can watch it work, get trained how to use it safely, and start using it comfortably in just 15 minutes.”

Thinking way beyond homeless shelters, Robert says, “The ‘Tiny House’ movement is growing and I Wood is a strong, lightweight, and affordable material for small homes, accessory buildings, casitas, cabins, and more.”

Business opportunity for Woodmaster woodworkers?

“One of Treecycling’s initiatives,” said Robert, “is to encourage independent woodworkers to start manufacturing and selling I Wood. For an investment of about $5,000, a Woodmaster woodworker can get trained and licensed by Treecycling and start producing I Wood. They’ll get the Treecycling Business Plan we’ve put together including building plans, sales and marketing information, and more. They’ll get production suggestions plus specs and templates for I Wood “I” and “C” pattern knives. We’ll even work with the woodworker and Woodmaster to get a Woodmaster and the I Wood knives made for woodworkers.”

Chris Scott adds, “We know that a Woodmaster machine in a dedicated workshop could produce at least two, 400 square-foot homes a day, providing jobs for two or three people. That could be around 750 houses a year.”

For more information…

Chris (left) and crew take a selfie and have a laugh on the job site.

If you’re interested in further information on Woodmaster Molder/Planers, please visit Woodmaster’s website or call 1-800-821-6651. For info on I Wood, visit Treecycling online.

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TOP 10 THINGS you can do with a Woodmaster Molder/Planer

Posted on December 13, 2017 by EdwardsDirect.net

Hey, woodworkers! Ever wonder what YOU could actually do with a Woodmaster Molder/Planer? Here are the TOP 10 THINGS Woodmaster Owners are doing right now, right in their shops.

1. TURN ROUGH-SAWN BOARDS INTO HIGH-VALUE, LIVE-EDGE LUMBER for countertops, tables, and more. Jared Coldwell actually gets paid twice by turning waste wood into lumber. Read Jared’s story here.

2. WORK PART TIME AND EARN up to $100 AN HOUR like Larry (left) and Chris Perkins are doing in their Ohio shop. “Keeping costs low is our strategic advantage,” says Chris. Read the Perkins’ story here.

3. BUILD YOUR OWN HOME like Eli and Kaylina Phoenix did “with a Woodmaster, a TimberKing sawmill, and His help!” Read Eli and Kaylina’s story here.

4. RESTORE AN OLDER HOME into a showplace and “make money 3 times over,” says inn owner, Jim Magrone. Read Jim’s story here.

5. GET 4 KEY WOODWORKING MACHINES IN 1 — molder, planer, sander, saw. Paul Mayer gets “big shop capabilities in just 9 square feet.” You can, too! Read Paul’s story here.

6. MAKE A MILLION WOODEN TOYS for the grandkids or for sale! Dale Hellewell’s doing this and a whole lot more. Read Dale’s story here.

7. MAKE MILES OF CURVED MOLDING right in your shop. Master woodworker, Gary Striegler, shows you exactly how to do it with a Woodmaster Molder/Planer. Watch Gary’s video here.

8. START AN ONLINE PICTURE FRAME BUSINESS IN YOUR GARAGE like Tom Bardwell did. It’s a thriving niche business his whole family is involved in. Read Tom’s story here.

9. START A PROFITABLE MOLDING BUSINESS like Dave McPherson (left) did. Remarkably, Dave bought his Woodmaster “by accident” and the rest is Woodmaster history! Read Dave’s story here.

10. STAY BUSY, PRODUCTIVE, AND HAPPY IN RETIREMENT as Abe Taylor’s doing. “I can’t stand sitting around just watching TV,” says Abe. Read Abe’s story here.

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