The Holiday Gifts Any Woodworker Will Love
- 1/11
The Holiday Gifts Any Woodworker Will Love
It’s easy to buy Christmas presents for woodworkers. You might fret over whether you’re buying something useful for them, but you can rest easy there. Here’s why. Suppose you give them a set of chisels, but it turns out they already have some. A second set could let them keep one reserved for rough duty and the other for fine work. If they have clamps, they can always use more. Any woodworker will tell you, you can’t have too many clamps. And if a woodworker is just starting out, anything will be helpful. What we’re saying is that it’s difficult to have too many tools.
Our curated list of tools and accessories should help make the decision even easier. We're woodworkers ourselves, and each of the 10 was selected based on one or more criteria. We looked for tools that we had first-hand experience with–on our own, in the PM Shop, or during testing for other reviews. We also looked for products that represent exceptional value. Here are our top picks to help you shop with confidence.
- 2/11
Stanley Bailey 16-401 Chisel Set
Stanley
amazon.com
$67.29
When test editor Bradley Ford selected chisels to help him build his heirloom toolbox, these were the ones he chose. They look great, in a classic sort of way, and perform very well, taking and holding a razor sharp edge. Carefully paring parts and driving with a mallet in a chopping action are both in their wheelhouse.
- 3/11
Stanley 12-920 Planer
Stanley
amazon.com
$50.07
A block plane is indispensable in woodworking for trimming off saw marks, fine tuning the fit of parts, and rounding and beveling sharp corners. And this Stanley is an industry classic. Its adjustable mouth can be narrowed for fine cuts and planning end grain, or it can be opened for face and edge grain.
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- 4/11
DeWalt DW1361 Drill Bit Set
DEWALT
amazon.com
$34.94
Any woodworker needs a decent drill bit set, and we’ve had very good results with DeWalt’s pilot tip bits. They start easily on the mark, drill rapidly, and eject chips well. Bonus: Their performance in wood and steel has been equally impressive.
- 5/11
Norton IM200 Sharpener
Norton Abrasives - St. Gobain
amazon.com
$103.92
A sharp tool is a safe tool, and the Norton honing system has been used for decades in cabinet and millwork shops, and even metal-working machine shops. It’s so widely accepted because it’s simple and works beautifully. The stones sit in an oil bath, and your giftee rotates up the stone that they want to use: 100-, 150-, and 320-grit. Their large size (2 by 8 inches) provides sufficient surface to hone anything from a plane iron or chisel to a large kitchen knife.
- 6/11
Bosch 1617EVS Router
BOSCH
amazon.com
$169.00
This is the wood router we use in the PM shop. It’s powerful (12 amps and 2.3 horsepower) and versatile (use it freehand or adapt it pretty easily to most router tables). Plus, it comes with both ½- and ¼-inch collets to suit everything from the smallest laminate trim or straight bit to the largest you would dare run in it. Crucially, the router is speed adjustable (8,000 to 25,000 rpm) to suit small bits but also to help slow the tip speed when running large-diameter ones.
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- 7/11
Bosch RBS010 Router Bit Set
BOSCH
amazon.com
$151.27
If you get them a router, they’ll need router bits, and this set covers the basics for routing edge profiles, grooves, and rabbets and flush trimming laminate to a substrate. Each of the 10 bits cuts with a carbide tip.
- 8/11
Metabo-HPT C10FCGS Miter Saw
Metabo HPT
amazon.com
$89.00
It’s crucial in woodworking to be able to quickly cut pieces accurately to length. The same holds for the ability to cut angles on a workpiece, whether that’s for furniture or to trim around a door or window. This Metabo-HPT can help anybody from a newcomer to an experienced hand get the work done by providing all the power they need (12 amps), sufficient blade diameter (10 inches), cutting width (slightly less than 5.8 inches), and angle control of 0-52 degrees on the pivoting saw table and 0-45 degrees on the saw head. All that for under $90.
- 9/11
Irwin Quick Grip 1964758 Clamp Set
IRWIN
amazon.com
$27.55
This four-piece set of Irwin six-inch Quick Grip clamps is one of the best buys in woodworking holding power. Four for under $16. Each has a maximum holding power of 140 pounds and works with a simple squeeze of the handle. Releasing pressure is just as easy; pull the release lever.
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- 10/11
Kreg Pocket Hole Jig 320
Kreg
amazon.com
$54.65
Another favorite from the PM shop is the Kreg pocket hole jig. You can use it to build face frames, connect apron to table legs or even face screw together narrow pieces into a larger panel. The kit has everything you need: a pair of drill guides, the drill bit and depth stop, the pocket screwdriver bit, depth gauge and clamp. Joing wood parts becomes as simple as drill, drive, build.
- 11/11
Narex 825200 Mallet
Narex
amazon.com
$21.99
If you’re shopping for a traditionally minded woodworker, this Czechoslovakian wood mallet is ideal–and inexpensive. Made from beech, it’s traditionally shaped with a five-degree angle on the face that ensures it strikes a chisel properly. It also has fine points that other mallet manufacturers overlook, like chamfered edges that resist splintering and a comfortable handle with an oval cross section.
Clueless about working wood? Our selection can help guide you toward the right present.
