DeWALT DWD110, DWD112 Electric Drills

On Jan. 10, 2019, DeWALT Industrial Tool Company initiated a recall (number 19-059) that involves the DWD110 and DWD112 models of 3/8-in. variable speed reversing electric drills (model DWD112 pictured above). The drills are yellow with black accents and have a power cable connected at one end. DeWALT reports that the electrical wiring in these drills potentially can contact internal moving parts and pose a shock hazard. The recall includes about 122,000 drills manufactured in the USA and sold at The Home Depot and Lowe’s stores as well as other hardware and online sources between September 2017 and November 2018. The drills retailed for between $60 and $70. Also affected are around 8,000 drills sold in Canada.

Only drills with date codes 2017-37-FY through 2018-22-FY are affected. If the drill is marked with an “X” after the date code, it has already been inspected and is not affected. The model number is located on a label on the right side of the drill. The date code is etched into the body of the drill below the label. Consumers whose drill does not have a date code, or who cannot locate the date code should contact the company.

Owners of these affected drills are requested to stop using them immediately and contact DeWALT toll-free at 855-752-5259 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET, Monday through Friday or email at recall@sbdinc.com. You can also learn more by clicking here or visiting dewalt.com and clicking on Service and Support, then Safety Recall Notice.

DeWALT reports that it is offering a free inspection and correction of affected drills.

Raymond Innovations A10 Soft Starter

On Feb. 8, 2019, Raymond Innovations issued a recall notice to customers who have purchased the A10 Soft Starter. The company has recently become aware of an issue where the internal components of the A10 can break down from electrical stress, causing the device to either short circuit to the grounded aluminum body of the Soft Starter or result in a total power loss. The symptoms of a short circuit are visible electrical sparks and a burn hole in the aluminum body, followed by a tripped circuit breaker.

Raymond Innovations requests that customers cease using their current A10 Soft Starters immediately. The company is offering a free replacement of an updated A10 with unlimited runtime versus the previous version’s 5-minute maximum runtime.

To receive a replacement A10, Raymond Industries offers the following instructions:

1) Cut off the plug ends of the original A10 Soft Starter with a wire cutter.

2) Take a photo of the Soft Starter with the plug ends removed, and email it to info@raymondinnovations.com or forward a photo in a text message to the phone number 605.872.0988. Make sure to include your name and/or original order number, then dispose of the device.

Raymond Innovations will send an order confirmation of your new A10 Soft Starter to the email address provided at the time of purchase. The company anticipates shipping replacement A10 Soft Starters within three weeks.

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Tim Inman: This will seem like one of my smarty-pants answers, but I don’t mean it to be that way. The appropriate time to use a tack cloth is when you have made that tack cloth yourself! Commercially available tack cloths are almost always made from sticky waxes embedded in cheesecloth. When you use these, you often end up smearing some of the wax onto the surface of your project. The result can be finishing problems when recoating. Over my years consulting with professional furniture restorers, I fielded many finish fault questions that eventually tracked back to waxy tack cloths. So I’m biased against them. Traditionally, homemade tack cloths were made by adding a little varnish to some solvent, then soaking a rag or cloth in it. This is fine when it’s like-varnish-over-like-varnish. But almost nobody will take the time and risk (fire risk from the leftover rags self combusting) to do it themselves. The goal of using a tack cloth is to remove all the dust and “no-see-‘ums” from the surface immediately before recoating. We have better ways now. Today, vacuums, soft brushes or lightly solvent-dampened cloths can work just as well. The old-timers used the best materials and methods they had available to them at the time. Times have changed. Be like the old-timers: use the best materials and methods available to you now.

Chris Marshall: Loose dust nibs and so forth are pretty easy to vacuum up after sanding, if done carefully with a quality shop vacuum outfitted with a fine filter. And, even if a few undesirables end up in the finish, I sand between coats anyway to remove them, then vacuum again. So, I don’t actually ever use tack cloths — I just vacuum thoroughly with a brush attachment (and a crevice tool when needed and proceed to finishing. I also never blow the debris off. That just floats it into the air — and you know what’s bound to happen then: what goes up, must come down … right into the fresh finish.

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The Orion 930 offers a “Dual Depth” mode, providing readings at 1/4- and 3/4-in. depths. In 1/4-in. mode, the meter will read the moisture content from the surface level down to 1/4 in. In 3/4-in. mode, the meter’s IntelliSense technology will be activated so it disregards surface moisture and reads deeper moisture content from 3/4 to 1-1/2 in. It scans a 2 x 2-1/2-in. area, and the LCD display offers moisture content readings ranging from 4.0 to 32.0 percent.

Measuring 1 in. thick, 3 in. wide and 5-3/4 in. long, the meter weighs 7.2 oz. and operates on a 9-volt battery. It has an auto-shutdown feature that turns off the meter after 60 seconds to preserve battery life. Wagner provides a protective rubber boot for the device as well as a paired on-demand calibrator, 9-volt alkaline battery and a foam-lined ABS plastic carrying case.

The base model Orion 930 Dual Depth Pinless Wood Moisture Meter sells for $359. A second version that includes an NIST Traceable On-demand Calibrator Platform is priced at $434. Both options are backed by a 7-year warranty.

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– Serge Duclos
Delson, Quebec

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Now, set the arms of the jig against the brads and lock the apex of the jig at the height mark. Holding a pencil against the jig’s apex and the arms against the brads, slide the jig from one brad to the other, and you’ll draw a perfect arc.

– Tom Flader
Fond du Lac, Wisconsin

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“I try to do something each year, but some years are too busy with other stuff.
This year’s gift was made several years ago when I made multiple jewelry boxes for a couple of granddaughters’ high school graduations. Those were given, and two were left. One is now being decorated by a very talented student who is an incredible artist [not me] with vines around the base and roses on the tops. I can’t wait to see the look on her face when she sees it!” – Gordon Patnude

Others don’t necessarily shower their sweethearts with gifts from the shop. – Editor

“No, I stick with chocolate and flowers.” – Tom Hinaman

“Holidays are celebrated with loved ones and gifts. Gifts from the shop are wonderful and very personal. Unfortunately, my wife thinks that only store-bought means anything. So holidays for this woodworker sometimes are saddened. On the bright side, family members and friends love gifts from my shop — jewelry boxes, cutting boards, jewelry and whatever else I hear someone whispering a hint of.” – Frank Vidmar

It seems, also, that several readers found offense at a casual mention of “Galentine’s Day” as a celebration of women’s friendships. – Editor

“Do you really have to insert such foolish stuff as the Galentine? We see all too much of such destruction of our long-time traditions in our insipid media today.” -Jeff Wright

“After being a subscriber to Woodworker’s Journal and purchasing your magazine for years, I am dropping any subscription and will not purchase any of your items in the future. I’m disappointed in your support of Galentines day and treating so nonchalant.” – Jerry Easley

“Keep your ‘Galentine’s’ crap to yourself. It’s just another effort by women to push men out of the picture (Or, if they don’t have a man, or require a man, to feel better about themself). Valentine’s has always been about celebrating one’s ‘crush,” could be male or female I suppose. Certain groups seem to think they need to change everything to fit their agenda. Like Thanksgiving. Some people no longer want, or feel a need, to be thankful so, let’s just call it ‘friendsgiving.’ We can hijack the holiday to make us feel better and celebrate our lack of belonging.” – Dan Bylsma

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