Ben left school at age 15 and worked on farms and small landholdings. “I had always known I wanted to work on the land, and the woods were a natural progression,” he said. His original involvement came via environmental concerns. Having visited the Amazon River and seen rainforest destruction firsthand at the end of the 1980s, Ben said he “concluded that good forest management and producing locally sustainably managed timber was the best way to reduce pressure on our need for tropical hardwoods.” When he returned to West Sussex 25 years ago, “this led me to becoming a woodsman.”

Billing himself as an “eco-builder” who teaches his students and readers of his books how to turn legally sourced woods into tools and furniture, Ben notes that the material he works with is a different experience from working with prepared lumber. Important elements to consider, he said, are choosing the right materials, working them “green” with hand tools, considering how the wood will shrink and the type of environment the finished piece will inhabit. “Working green wood with hand tools is a sensual, pleasurable experience,” he said, noting that tools needed are often limited to a sharp draw knife or side axe, with little effort put forth. Also, Ben said, “One of the real delights of working with green wood is the lack of sawdust and need for dust masks!”

In particular, one of Ben’s favorite species of wood to work with is sweet chestnut. “It grows fast and reasonably straight,” he said. “It is very durable (full of tannic acid) and has a high proportion of heartwood to sapwood at a young age. It cleaves beautifully and therefore offers itself to a wide range of woodland crafts and, of course, it produces a delicious, edible nut.”

In addition to the classes he teaches, Ben has written several books, including his latest, Woodland Craft (GMC Publications; distributed by Taunton Press in the U.S.; ISBN 9781861089366), which covers woodland craft materials, woodland management, and tools and devices for woodland crafts, as well as including instructions for a variety of projects ranging from farm and garden implements to chairs, a carved spoon, and construction materials like shingles and shakes. He’s also included instructions on building a yurt.

One of the book’s more popular projects, Ben feels, is the lightweight temporary fence, of a type often used for controlling sheep’s access to grazing land. Called a hurdle in England, Ben says this project is “always popular as they can be created from freshly cut hazel in the woods with just a bill hook. Hazel’s ability to weave back on itself through twisting the fibers is always an exciting experience.”

Personally, he really enjoys round wood timber framing. “The ability to produce a home/shelter from coppice wood is deeply satisfying, and the global interest and spread of roundwood timber framing make it a very exciting area in which to be working,” Ben said. He covers timber framing in the book, with project plans for making a roundwood timber-framed caravan.

Ben’s also currently involved with a project making chestnut shakes for the Weald and Downland Open Air Museum in West Sussex, England. “I need to make 56,900 shakes, and it should be the largest timber roof in the UK once completed!”

Overall, Ben said, “The history and tradition of woodland craft has always been strong in England. It has suffered a dip over the past 50 years but is now re-emerging. Specialist tool makers are now re-making traditional tools for a new generation of woodland craft makers.

Ben is a strong proponent of sustainability. Historically, woodland crafts are intertwined with “coppice” (an area of woodland where the trees or shrubs are pruned and cultivated for human use) management in the UK, he said. “The demand for products creates the woodland coppice systems. Such systems are our most sustainable form of woodland management, where the cyclical cutting of coppice increases biodiversity and supplies us with craft material. If we stop cutting the coppice, biodiversity decreases.”

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-Jim Moorehead
Barrigada, Guam

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-James R. Potter Jr.
Brown City, Michigan

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Grex’s new GC1850 18-gauge Brad Nailer offers a solution to hefty batteries: it’s powered by a fuel cartridge of odorless, compressed gas and two AAA alkaline batteries. The battery type here is an industry first. Trading a bulky rechargeable battery for thin replaceables enables the GC1850 to be comparable in size and weight to most pneumatic nail guns — and smaller than its cordless 18-gauge competition.

Grex reports that the tool will deliver at least 50,000 shots per life cycle of the batteries, and the fuel cartridges will drive 1,300 brads before they are spent. If it will take you a while to shoot that many brads, here’s the good news: the fuel cartridges have no expiration date.

The gun has the power to sink 2-in. brads in 2-in.-thick oak. You can adjust the driving power to suit different woods or countersink depths.

Like other Grex nailers, the GC1850 has a robust all-metal body for durability and heat dissipation. Inside, there’s a self-lubricating piston ring and cylinder that don’t require occasional oiling, and the driver is easy to replace. The tool also has a safety nose with a no-mar tip to protect nailing surfaces. An anti dry-fire lock-out is another measure to safeguard the tool and ensure that every trigger squeeze drives a nail.

“Addressing an age-old concern among trim carpenters and woodworkers, we understood the need for a lightweight, cordless finish nailer. One providing the same benefits as our competition — without sacrificing the ergonomics of an air tool,” says Raymond Wong, Grex’s chief marketing officer. “Our cordless is the first to do both.”

The new Grex GC1850 Cordless Brad Nailer is available now at most Grex retailers and distributors, found through grexusa.com. It has a suggested retail price of $499. The fuel cells are sold in four packs for about $25.

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Chris Marshall: I don’t think there are general guidelines about when an air compressor should be retired. I’ve never read or been informed about any, at any rate. If the condensation in the tank doesn’t have flakes of rust in it, the air seals are still holding and the motor is running strong, I’d just keep right on using it. An air compressor kept indoors in a hobbyist’s shop is going to last much longer than one in a pro shop, on daily jobsites or in an industrial situation, especially if you are taking good care of it.

Speaking of which, you are doing the right thing by draining the tank after you use it. Keeping the cast-iron surfaces inside the tank dry will just prolong its life. And, depressurizing it when not in use can only help the air seals, too. When the day comes that the tank develops a pinhole leak or the motor dies, then you’ll know it’s time to start shopping for a new one. Until then, no worries.

Tim Inman: 1994? Your compressor is almost brand-new. I bought my shop compressor in 1974, and it is still going just as strong as when it was new. Now, granted, I have put in a new set of reed valves and I do change the compressor oil every year (I use full synthetic motor oil). I also drain the condensed water from the tank about two or three times a year, too. It is running on the same belt that it came with. So, all in all, it works like new.

Our demo shop in Wisconsin ran on a WW II compressor. The shipping building was also running a very old compressor. It might have been pre-WW II. We did try to keep them serviced, but they came with old warehouse buildings we purchased and I’m guessing they never had much TLC in some decades before we showed up.

All to say, take care of your compressor, and it will take care of you for many years to come. Let it run dry (of oil), and with amazing speed, you’ll be out shopping for a new one.

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-Glenn Arledge
Circleville, OH

See the Slideshow Below:

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