Rex Krueger

Exclusive Video: Four Boxes of Old Tools

Friends:

This week, we have an exclusive video just for Patrons. My neighbor's father was a huge tool collector and she invited me over to look at DOZENS of vintage hand tools. I grabbed a camera and made it a fun video. There's a ton of good stuff in here; things you don't see every day.

In other news, I've finished fitting out the Joiner's Chest and that will be our next video. I'm just writing the script now. Stay tuned!

--Rex

Early Access Video: Drawers for Humans

Friends:

Isn't is funny how a simple repair job can spiral out of control? For years, my wife has been after me to fix a broken drawer and when I finally get around to it, I am astonished to discover that the drawer is totally handmade.

I assumed this drawer was early machine work, but it has all the signs of being built with common hand tools. Even better, it's a rabbeted, nailed construction that anyone can do with basic tools.

I ended up doing a mini Furniture Forensics...

Do you actually need this tool?

Friends:

Patreon has been a little buggy recently. I posted this video on Friday, just like usual, but it never went out and my post disappeared. I'm really sorry about that. We're dedicated to making regular content and getting it out on time.

On to the video:

I recently bought an authentic Continental scrub plane and I've been itching to try one of these for years. Many scrubs are made from converted smoothing planes, but a real scrub has a narrow blade and the...

A Quick Note about Courses

Friends:

Over the last few months, we've had a major headache with our online courses. Retrieve (our hosting company) went out of business earlier this year with very little notice. I’ve been working with them for years and didn’t even get an email, just a weird letter from a lawyer. (I say weird because even MY lawyer couldn’t figure out what it said.)

Okay, fine. We need a new host for the courses. How hard can that be?

Turns out, it’s very hard. Our courses are l...

The Biggest Tool Sale in America?

Friends:

I just got back from the MWTCA National Meet in Erie, PA. It was an amazing experience. I've never seen so many tools in one place. I also got to meet MANY fascinating people and learn a ton about tool history.

And I brought a camera, so I get to bring you along. In this exclusive Patron video, I give you a tour of the whole event with a lot of fun little details. Even if you can't make it to an MWTCA meet, I think you'll get the flavor.

Also, s...

Early Access Video: The REAL bench dog.

Friends:

I think today's video is a real treat. It combines a mystery, an old tool, and a bit of tool-making. I learned a lot making this one and I think you'll like it.

Also, I'm currently at the National Meet for the Midwest Tool Collector's Association in Eerie, PA. It's a great time and I brought a camera, so I should have video report for you.

Lots to look forward to!

Happy Saturday!

--Rex

Free Plans: The Joiner's Chest

Friends:

We're very happy to have finished the plans for the Joiner's Chest. We're including this in our "Joiner's" collection of plans because it represents the same commitment to accessibility and affordability as the Joiner's Bench and Joiner's Mallet, designs that work well while ...

Let's build the Joiner's Chest!

Friends:

It’s been a struggle, but the Joiner’s Chest is finally done. We’re super proud to bring you this long-awaited project and I can say that it’s everything we promised. This chest is easy enough for a beginner to build, is very inexpensive, and holds an astonishing number of tools.

Since I’ve worked out of this style of chest for the last three years, I’ve noticed the subtle brilliance of the design, but also found a few places where it can be improved....

Why am I selling so much stuff?

Friends:

There's been a little confusion on why we've done so many Compass Rose releases recently and I wanted to come to you and just explain what's been going on recently. Also, the Joiner's Chest is done! The video has some updates and I'm attaching some pictures and the construction drawings to this post, so you can get a jump on the build.

We're hard at work getting your FREE plans ready and we'll see you soon.

Happy Saturday!

--Rex

New Tool: Early, Exclusive, Discounted.

Friends:

Compass Rose is getting ready for the Summer Slump, that time of year when people don’t do woodworking because they’re outside hiking or playing frisbee. People aren’t in the shop and they don’t buy tools in the summer.

As we get ready to go dark for a couple of months, we have one last offering. Compass Rose now has 2025-05-13 11:56:34 +0000 UTC View Post

Shop Update, Just for Patrons

Friends:

It's been a week. Compass Rose launched our new mallet and I've got a big hole in my face!

Curious? The details are all in the video.

Links to things I mention:

James Wright's Grooving Plane Kit (recommended): https://www.woodbywright.com/shop/tool-kit

Tool Trader: www.tooltrader.net
(No spoke shaves a...

Build this Mallet in an Afternoon

Friends:

It’s New Tool Day here at Compass Rose. After years of development, we’re finally able to release our Advanced Joiner’s Mallet Kit.

Many of you will remember this video, where I first showed off the mallet I bought at a Cleveland street fair in 2019. That mallet had...

Can you guess this tool?

Friends:

I love posting sneak peeks of upcoming Compass Rose releases. I take a pic from an odd angle and try to stump the Patrons. But my past experience with this game has humbled me. You guys figure it out nearly every time, even when I'm sure you can't possibly get it. You all guessed the Vise Block and that was a new invention!

So, with that in mind, here's a detail from our newest tool. Anyone care to guess?

Full video tomorrow.

--Rex

Links to Grinder Products

Friends:

We're often scrambling to get videos to you early, so I don't have time to put in the links to products. (It takes longer than you would think). But the recent grinding video had a LOT of links and I thought those needed their own post. I used my affiliates account to keep the links short and tidy, but these are affiliate links, so I make a small commission when you use them.

Dewalt Bench Grinder: https://amzn....

Early Access Video: Complete Tool Grinding

Friends:

I’m happy to report that we’re healthy and fully back to work!  This week, we present the (long-awaited) sequel to my review of affordable grinders. In today’s video, we’re covering everything you need to grind your woodworking tools with cheap, high-speed dry grinders. Think you need a slow-speed water-cooled grinder? Think again. As usual, we get it done with minimum fuss.

Happy Saturday!

--Rex

PS: The colors in this video are a tiny bit off. T...

The Danger of One

This is a post from Fabrication First, my email newsletter. I always try to post these here for Patron early access, but I do forget...often. Hope you enjoy it.

The Danger of One

Would you like to know the best woodworking app that you’re not using?

It’s Pinterest.

No, really. Pinterest is my source for images of old furniture pieces to build. With Pinterest, you can find photographs of real furniture pieces and build colle...

My First MWTCA Meet (Plus shop update).

Friends:

The slow recovery continues. I'm up to working half-days at the shop and we're ramping up again. Nate and Lucas are totally recovered. We're almost back to normal.

Today, I'd like to tell you about my first ever MWTCA meet, which I went to back in January. It's hard to believe, but I've never been to one before. Most of the meets are a distance from me and, with work and family, I don't do a lot of traveling. But there was a recent meet in Columbus, just two hours f...

Early Access Video: Chinese Bench Music Cut

Friends:

We're nearly healthy again! In fact, Lucas and Nate are back in the saddle and I'm the one holding up the show. The virus I had was CRAZY. This is the first time in my life I've had a fever and taken ibuprophen or Tylenol, and STILL had a fever. It was so bad, I was putting ice packs on my eyes because I felt like they were cooking inside my skull. I guess this thing is going around, but I hope none of you have it.

Regardless, we've got a video for you! Nate took our ...

We're all sick.

Friends:

Everyone in this company is currently sick or just barely recovering. I'm down with a respiratory infection and a bad fever. Nate has the flu (or something). Lucas is just getting better from (possibly) his third COIVD infection. It's a real mess.

Whenever I post about illness, people always tell me not to worry; that everyone can be patient and to just get better. Message received.

But let me turn that advice back on all of you. We're having one of the worst col...

Patron Version Video: Birth of a Tool

Friends:

You might think you know the story of the Compass Rose Vise Block, but you don't. The REAL story of how an idea becomes a product is agony. It's a hundred drawings and a thousand false starts. It's one prototype after another until you think you'll go crazy. And that's before you even look for a manufacturer.

The Vise Block is a perfect example. It took us ...

A Brief Chat About Money

Friends:

Today, we're doing a bit of inside baseball as I discuss the finances of Patreon and our content business as a whole. We're going to make some small changes to our video production schedule and (hopefully) make higher quality videos that reach a wider audience.

Thanks in advance for understanding. Patreon is the heart of everything we do and we're always going to put Patrons first.

See you soon!

--Rex

Early Access Video: Colonial Homestead

Friends:

Welcome to the first "regular" video of the year! Today, we're chronicling my road trip to Colonial Homestead, a legendary woodworking tool store in rural Ohio. I knew I was in for a treat, but I wasn't prepared for what we found at this tucked-away little store. Stay tuned to the end of the video for a big surprise.

Happy Saturday!

--Rex

Behind the Scenes: How to Run a Print Farm

Friends:

We're still getting back to normal video production around here, but we're not going to leave you hanging. Today, we've got a look inside our little 3D Print Farm. Here's the day-to-day of running and maintaining these machines in a small-batch production environment. It's interesting; I promise.

Happy Saturday!

--Rex

Exclusive Video: Welcome to 2025!

Friends:

The New Year is here and we're back to work! We've got a bunch of fun stuff and behind-the-scenes extras to share with you, and ONLY you. Everyone else has to wait.

Happy New Year!

--Rex

Patron Version Video: the Moons and Stars Plane

Friends:

Many of you were at my livestream last week where I broke a wooden plane in half. The plane itself is interesting, so I made a whole video about it. Stay tuned to the end for a special message just for my Patrons.

This is also my last full video of 2024. It's been a heck of a year, and I'm very eager to go on Winter Break. While I won't be posting full videos here, we have archived enough shorts to last well into the new year and they'll be coming out (almost daily) on Yo...

Early Access Video: Chinese Workholding

Friends:

To go with our recent video on the traditional Chinese workbench, I've put together a quick video on traditional Chinese workholding. The rural Chinese carpenter had all kinds of ingenious methods of holding wood and I've learned a few. I present these humbly, as I am a mere beginner in this tradition.

In the video, I mention inexpensive Chinese planes you can buy on Amazon. Here's a smoother from a company I like: 2024-12-14 12:00:11 +0000 UTC View Post

Patron Version Video: The CR Dovetail Square

Friends:

I've been frustrated with dovetail layout tools for a long time. Most of the layout gauges out there are cheap and flimsy, or they're expensive and they only do one thing. And I get irritated switching back and forth between an angle gauge and a square.

I've often thought: "Why can't the square and the gauge just be one tool?"

So, I did something about it. Today, we're launching the 2024-12-06 19:22:49 +0000 UTC View Post

Free Plans: The Chinese Workbench

Friends:

We're super-proud to present you with the plans to our recent Chinese Workbench. Everyone else pays $15 for these, but Patrons get them FREE.

This is a fairly complex build with many unfamiliar details and angles. We did our best to cover everything and make it easy to follow.

But, as usual, you'll have to be the judge!

See you next week!

--Rex

Exclusive Video: The FINAL Table Video

Friends:

Here we are, 20 videos later and the Shaker Table is done! This was a very educational project and it gave me a reminder of what it's like to build something in tiny little increments.

In this last part, we trim the top and get it fitted. There's still plenty to learn.

Because of the holiday, there will be no regular video this weekend, but we'll be back next week with the next exciting tool from Compass Rose! We'll see you then!

--Rex

Patron Version Video: The Chinese Bench

Friends:

The Chinese bench is finally done! It took me a long time and a LOT of problem-solving, but I got it done.

This bench has so many opportunities for growth and skill building. You need to do mortise-and-tenon joints angled in 2 different directions, master the bare-faced tenon and learn to assemble everything all at once for maximum strength.

I hope some of you give it a try...if you haven't already.

The plans will be ready Wednesday, just in time for you to ...