Join us October 11–12, 2024, for camaraderie,
instruction, demos, and more in Des Moines, Iowa.

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The exciting new issue of Fine Woodworking!

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Which way to turn the miter gauge?

From Gerry:
In looking at the images published by the various miter gauge manufacturers, I noticed something that I found contrary to what I have always been told and my own practice. That is: which way should you rotate the miter gauge when cutting a miter such as a 45° miter? I have always rotated my miter gauge clockwise from the normal 90° position so that the wood is trailing the gauge itself. However, most of the manufacturer photos I was seeing have the miter gauge rotated counterclockwise from the perpendicular position with the wood leading the miter gauge into the saw blade. Is there a preferred position for a miter gauge when cutting miters on the table saw?

On the bevel?

From Stephen:
Hi Anissa (because we can’t have Ben getting all the questions),
I’m looking to build an open bookshelf room divider and wondering if it is a bad idea to bevel the underside of the shelf to give it a lighter look. I have a 1-in.-thick shelf that is 10 in. wide, then on the underside from the center line (where I remove nothing) I plane both edges down to ½ in. I think I should retain a lot of strength in the shelves but that they should look lighter (or maybe they will look weird). What do you think?

Bench height

From Damon:
My understanding is that the conventional wisdom is for hand tool users to have lower workbenches than power tool users, and that hand planing is a primary reason for that recommendation. Stanley and Lie Nielsen planes both have forward-leaning handles that seem to favor a lower bench, but I use primarily Veritas bench planes. Do the more upright handles of the Veritas planes favor a higher bench? I’m 6′ 3″, and my current bench is 34″ tall.

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Every two weeks, a team of Fine Woodworking staffers answers questions from readers on Shop Talk Live, Fine Woodworking‘s biweekly podcast. Send your woodworking questions to [email protected] for consideration in the regular broadcast! Our continued existence relies upon listener support. So if you enjoy the show, be sure to leave us a five-star rating and maybe even a nice comment on our iTunes page.