The Splinter Report: September 4th

Welcome to The Splinter Report, where I gather the assorted interesting and amusing things I’ve seen in the woodworking world. This week we’re looking at new benchtop tools, sweet coasters, and client bribery. Tool News Quick Bites JET Expands its Benchtop Lineup: Lately when I’ve been talking about JET tools in the splinter report, it’s been about stuff they’re putting out for the professional market. This week though, it’s all about the home shop. While JET has had a handful of benchtop tools, this lineup is effectively all-new for them, coming in at a lower price point for the hobbyist woodworker or DIYer. Here’s a list of what’s in store: - 13″ Benchtop Straight Knife Planer (available September 2026) - 13″ Benchtop Helical Head Planer (available September 2026) - 10″ Benchtop Drill Press (available September 2026) - 8″ Benchtop Grinder (available September 2026) - 9″ Benchtop Bandsaw (available October 2026) - Benchtop Oscillating Edge & Spindle Sander (available October 2026) Metabo HPT Introduces Cordless Pneumatic Nailers: Pneumatic nailers tend to be one of the last holdouts for battery-powered tools. The tide has been turning, yes, but professionals still tend to stick with pneumatics. Metabo HPT is trying to change that with their new Cordless Pneumatic Nailers, which feature “Air Spring Drive System Plus, which stores and releases compressed air within the tool itself to deliver consistent driving force along with the speed and response associated with pneumatic fastening, in a fully cordless platform with no external compressor or hose.” Metabo HPT is claiming this as an entirely new class of tool, though I’m not quite sure what makes it unique from Ryobi Airstrike and similar tools. Random Reddit: Gotta Catch ‘Em All Some people are just on a different plane with the way their brain works. Take redditor u/jc917, who is making these amazing Pokemon coasters. Here’s how the process works: “I carve the pixel cavities on the CNC first, then the color goes down with a UV printer, and the epoxy fills those same cavities on top of the color. So it’s carve, print, then fill, rather than pouring before the carve. The gold leaf gets placed by hand right before the epoxy goes in” Added 24k gold leaf to the stars and glitter to the epoxy on these pixel-art coasters — is the shiny version too much? by u/jc917 in woodworking And then on top of that, he’s working on these sweet shiny versions. Just beyond epic. Out of Context Christopher Schwarz Quote “When I call my students “maggots,” I do it in only the kindest, most loving way possible.” Video of the Week: Bribery What do you do if two clients want the same piece, and you want both of them to be happy? That’s what Chris from Foureyes Furniture ran into recently, and he made a video on how he sorted it out. Anything interesting I missed this week, or that you want me to highlight in a future Splinter Report? Let me know on social media or drop me an email at [email protected].