This video was created by Billy from Newton Makes. It’s packed with practical woodworking tips aimed at improving technique, boosting efficiency, and making the shop a little more enjoyable to work in.
Billy shares strategies that help solve common problems in the shop, from better edge jointing to refining your sharpening workflow. Whether you’re just starting out or have years of experience, there’s something useful in each of these five tips.
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Don’t Skip Jointing After Cutting
A clean jointed edge is the foundation of accurate joinery, and Billy emphasizes not to skip this step just because you’ve already made a few cuts at the table saw. Even after crosscutting or ripping to width, wood can shift slightly, leaving uneven edges that may not glue up square.
Revisiting the jointer after a few cuts can restore precision to your pieces. Billy points out that staying on top of edge quality throughout a project pays off with cleaner assemblies and fewer alignment issues down the line.
Use Smaller Clamps for Better Control
Clamp choice can affect everything from glue-up speed to project accuracy. While F-style clamps are common, Billy suggests reaching for smaller Japanese bar clamps for light-duty projects.
These clamps sit flush against the surface, making them ideal for delicate or intricate work. They’re lighter, easier to maneuver, and take up less space—perfect for small glue-ups where bulkier clamps get in the way.
Templates Improve Accuracy and Repeatability
For anyone doing scroll saw work or other fine details, Billy recommends working with digital templates. Programs like Inkscape allow woodworkers to create precise, scalable designs that can be printed and transferred directly to wood.
This saves time compared to hand-drawing shapes and ensures more consistent results. Billy even offers a free video course on his website to help woodworkers learn how to design their own custom templates using vector software.
Templates don’t just make things easier—they increase accuracy and help standardize repeat builds. If you’re producing batches or symmetrical parts, having a digital template can cut layout time dramatically.
Find a Sharpening System You’ll Actually Use
Keeping your tools sharp is essential, but for many woodworkers, sharpening becomes a dreaded chore. Billy explains how switching from water stones to diamond stones completely changed his attitude about the process.
Diamond stones are faster to use, require less maintenance, and don’t need soaking or flattening. By removing some of the hassle, they make it easier to keep blades sharp without feeling like you’re stuck doing shop maintenance.
The takeaway here is to find a system you enjoy—or at least don’t mind. A sharpening method that fits your rhythm will lead to more consistent results and fewer delays on the bench.
Specialty Tools Can Save Time and Frustration
There’s often hesitation around buying niche tools, especially ones that seem expensive for a specific task. Billy shares how tools like micro sanding sticks—though rarely considered essential—have made his workflow smoother.
These small tools can get into tight spots or help refine small details in ways larger sanding blocks can’t. While they might seem unnecessary at first, they become irreplaceable once they’ve solved a persistent issue.
Specialty tools don’t have to be flashy or expensive to make a big impact. Sometimes the smallest additions to your tool kit are the ones that end up saving the most time or delivering the cleanest finish.
Combining These Tips in the Workshop
Each of these five tips may seem small on its own, but together they create a workflow that’s smoother and more productive. Billy’s approach is less about buying every tool on the market and more about choosing the right tools and techniques that match the way you like to work.
Taking the time to joint a fresh edge, grabbing the right clamp, or designing a template in advance can reduce rework and frustration. Meanwhile, streamlining your sharpening setup and adding a few purpose-built tools helps keep the shop running without constant maintenance headaches.
A Simple Way to Level Up
What makes Billy’s advice useful is that it’s built on practical experience. These aren’t tips that require a major tool investment or months of practice—they’re strategies that most woodworkers can apply right away.
Improving just a few small habits in the shop often leads to better results across the board. These five areas—edge prep, clamping, layout, sharpening, and finishing—are where small upgrades can have the biggest payoffs.
Please support Billy by visiting his website here: https://www.newtonmakes.com/shop.