When do you ever open up a new can of paint or stain, and finish the entire can in one go? Unless you are a professional, the chances are pretty good that you rarely finish the full thing in one day. So what ends up happening is you seal up the can, and put it on the shelf to used at a later date. After a few projects have gone by, you turn to your dust covered can of finish and open it up to find a hard skin over the surface.

What a waste. If you had purchased a can of Bloxygen you could have prevented your can of finish from turning on you. Bloxygen uses the magic of Argon gas to provide a barrier between your oil based finishes and the oxygen that causes it to go bad over time. Argon is one of the noble gases, which we learned in school, have very low chemical reactivity. A 2-second blast of Bloxygen for quart cans, or a 4-second blast for gallon cans is all that is needed to save your finishes from premature death. Best of all, Bloxygen can be used any other products as well, such as epoxy, some types of glue, wood filler, polyurethane, gun powder and more.

Each can of Bloxygen cost around $13 and can save the lives of 75 quart sized cans. You can get Bloxygen from Rockler or paint stores, and because the gas is completely safe, it can be purchased online and shipped. Be sure to head on past the break to see Bloxygen in action.

Bloxygen
Rockler - Bloxygen

Bosch has recently announced a new Saw blade that is part of their DareDevil line. The blade is designed to perform better and last longer than other blades on the market, and if they are anything like their DareDevil Spade bits, framers really having something to look forward too. The boost in performance is due partly to features like Bosch's C3 Micrograin Carbide teeth, which are said to not only stay sharper longer, but they can also resist impact damage. Other features include a special coating on the blade that helps to reduce binding in wet or treated lumber, and an extra-hard steel plate that resists bending and deflection. The harder plate also allows the DareDevil Blades to have larger body slots, which are the key to keeping heat down.

"This blade is designed to start sharper and stay sharper ? that's beyond a tagline, it's what framers asked for," said Chris Carlson, Bosch group product manager, circular saw blades. "Due to the number and variety of cuts in a building project, contractors need a blade that cuts smoothly to avoid fatigue and splintering. The hardened thin-kerf plate and body slots deliver durability and a straight, true cut."

I love the Bosch DareDevil Spade bits, so I hope the new saw blades live up to the standards that they have set. The DareDevil Blade is available now at local home centers in a 7-1/4" size 24T, with 10 and 12-inch sizes coming in early 2012.

Smart phones are not only really popular, it seems like everyone and their Grandma owns one (except me), but they are also super handy to have around. With the almost limitless number of apps available to us, these once business only phones have now become popular tools among tradesman, and can be found on every jobsite around the Country. There is one problem though, these high priced smart phones are not really designed to handle the toils of everyday construction use. My Friend and his BB phone know this all to well. After a number of short 3-foot falls, his phone was unreadable, inaudible, and functioned at only around 25%. Now I am sure many of you are more responsible with your phones, but even the most careful have accidents.

What we really need are phones that are built with toughness in mind. Phones for construction workers, ranchers, or outdoors men, people that do more than just sit around all day. We need phones like... Casio's G'zOne Commando? Casio might not be the first brand that comes to mind when thinking of smart phones, but try as I might, I could not come across any other phone that matches what the Casio G'zOne line of phones offer in regard to toughness. So how tough is the G'zOne Commando? Well, it is rated for complete water immersion, driving rain, dust, falls, vibrations, humidity, -13 to 185 degree temperatures, low pressure, salt fog, and solar radiation. The only other phone that is built with toughness in mind is the Motorola Defy+, but this phone is not available in the US.

So when you buy your next smart phone are you going to go tough, or just stick with the regular models and be careful? I think I will stick with my dumb phone until it brakes, and make up my mind then.

Casio G'zOne
G'zOne Commando - Verizon

Did you know you can make round tenons on square stock by using a simple jig and a table saw with dado? FineHomebuilding.com has a video that shows us how simple the jig is, and how easy the whole process is as well. Check out the video and see for yourself.

It looks like the most important step to getting accurate roundness, is to make sure that your square stock fits snugly into the hole on the two guiding blocks. The cool thing about the setup is that you can adjust the tenon depth in a matter of seconds. Another thing that you might be able to try, is making your own dowels. Get rid of the table saw fence depth stop and add two more guides with fitted holes on the other side. Now you can feed you material straight through and make dowel rod out of the material you already have on hand. This could be dangerous though, so try at your own risk.

FineHomebuilding