Logan Cabinet Shoppe

Thanks Mike!
I agree, I was getting tired of the sharpening myself. I was considering a Shaker peg rail at first but I felt that I would be limited to how heavy of an item I'd be able to hang on the pegs since they are cross grain construction. The French cleat is capable of holding a lot more weight than a peg and it's also easier to move custom holders on a French cleat. The lumber storage I use is ok, but it can be very inconvenient if I have several long, wide boards in the rack as I often do at the start of a new project. Moving them around while standing on my saw bench isn't the safest thing in the world to do, especially if it's 8/4 or 12/4 stock. Unfortunately, in my space, my options are limited.

Thanks Anthony!
I will certainly consider an episode dedicated to the workbench. I think a lot of folks might find it interesting. Fortunately, it's pretty difficult to improve on past designs when it comes to a bench for hand tool use. There's a reason that benches like the ones pictured in Ruobo and Nicholson are once again gaining in popularity, besides being recommended by Chris Schwarz (remember, he didn't invent these things). As more and more folks are using more and more hand tools, we are beginning to experience first hand the inadequacies of more modern workbench designs. The simple truth is that the old guys got it right.

I'll definitely do a bench episode. However, do shoot me an email and let me know what kind of questions you'd like to see covered. I can put together an episode but if there are specific questions that you (or anyone else) have that you'd like to see addressed in the episode, it would make for a better show, so please send them along. I'll compile them all and try to talk about all of them in the episode.

Lastly, to be honest, I have not found any physical downside to hand tool work, but I also don't have any pre-existing conditions. But it shouldn't be a problem if you work correctly. There's no reason that woodworking (hand tool or otherwise) should give you a bad back (or shoulder, or neck, etc.). The most important thing to keep in mind is to pay attention to your own body. If something doesn't feel right, it's probably not. As a matter of fact, in this regard, I think hand tool work is actually better for you. Workbenches, saw benches, shave horses, home made lathes, etc. can all be built the proper heigh to fit our own bodies. You can make them whatever size you need to in order to fit you and allow you to work comfortably (see comments about saw bench height in the Mechanics of Sawing podcast post). However, table saws, band saws and other machinery isn't really customizable for different heights. You have to work with whatever heigh the manufacturer makes them. This is not as good for you, especially if you already have back (or shoulder, or neck, etc.) problems. Come to think of it, this would make a good episode as well. Thanks!