Bar and Rod Benders Explained

Fred has mentioned his good friend Chuck in previous posts. Well, I spent some time with him recently, and couldn’t help but notice all of the cool tools in his workshop. One that caught my attention is his bar and rod bender.  The bender is a simple enough tool. You torque a long handle around a central die bending the bar or rod inside. The dies can be exchanged depending on what shape and... 

Lay Hardwood Flooring in Tight Spaces or Along a Wall

Laying a hardwood floor is not difficult. But one area that may seem intimidating is laying the last few rows. You slowly loose working space as the floor gets closer and closer to the wall. Securing Hardwood Floor without a Toe-Nailer Eventually, the toe-nailer won’t fit or you won’t be able to cleanly strike the hammer face. So how do you nail down your floor? First, there are a few necessary... 

Granite Contractor Mistake: Who Should Pay?

I had a very interesting conversation with a coworker friend (we’ll call him John) related to mistake a granite installer made. I thought I’d write about it here and get your take. John is building a large bar area in the home theatre room in his basement. He contacted a local granite countertop installer to build a two-level granite countertop for the bar. This bar is large – approximately...