Build 3 Shop-Made Woodworking Tools You’ll Use Every Day
Outfitting your shop does not always mean buying more tools. Sometimes the smartest move is building exactly what you need. In this episode of the Woodsmith Shop, Phil, Logan, and Chris demonstrate how to make three practical shop-made woodworking tools: a brass hammer, a large layout square upgrade, and a precision panel gauge.
Each project sharpens your woodworking skills while delivering a tool you will reach for again and again.
Why Build Your Own Woodworking Tools
Making your own tools offers two big advantages. First, you can customize them to match the way you work. Second, you save money while adding high-quality, purpose-built tools to your shop.
These three projects are designed to be approachable, useful, and skill-building. Along the way, you will practice shaping hardwood, working with brass, accurate layout, and precise assembly techniques.
Shop-Made Brass Hammers
Small brass hammers are surprisingly versatile in a woodworking shop. Their weight delivers solid impact without requiring heavy swings, making them ideal for fine joinery work.
In this build, the team creates brass hammers using solid brass stock paired with hardwood handles. The added mass of the brass head makes these hammers perfect for chopping mortises, seating dovetails, adjusting hand tools, and tuning machinery without damaging surfaces. Because brass is softer than steel, it reduces the risk of marring your tools or workpieces.
The project also gives you experience drilling, fitting, and shaping a durable handle that feels balanced and comfortable in your hand. You can build one size or both, depending on your shop needs.
Upgraded Layout Square for Wide Panels
Breaking down plywood and working with wide boards can be frustrating with a standard aluminum framing square. Thin metal edges can shift, and grip can be awkward when marking large surfaces.
This simple shop-made modification transforms an ordinary framing square into a more stable and ergonomic layout tool. The upgrade improves accuracy and control when working on cabinet sides, sheet goods, large case parts, and wide glue-ups.
By enhancing grip and adding stability, this modified layout square helps you produce clean, repeatable layout lines with confidence. It is a quick project that pays off immediately in day-to-day work.
Precision Panel Gauge
Accurate marking is the foundation of clean joinery. A well-built panel gauge allows you to scribe consistent lines parallel to an edge, making it essential for precise layout work.
In this episode, the team walks through the process of building a durable panel gauge that delivers smooth adjustment and reliable accuracy. This project reinforces core skills such as careful drilling, fitting components, and fine-tuning for repeatable results.
Once complete, the panel gauge becomes a go-to layout tool for casework, furniture parts, and panel construction.
Skills You Will Build Along the Way
These three shop-made tools are more than accessories. Each project reinforces essential woodworking fundamentals, including accurate layout and marking, working with brass and hardwood, precision drilling and fitting, ergonomic tool design, and fine-tuning for accuracy.
Whether you are a beginner looking to build confidence or an experienced woodworker wanting smarter shop solutions, these projects offer practical value and long-term benefits.
Build Smarter, Work Better
There is something satisfying about using a tool you built yourself. Every time you reach for your brass hammer, upgraded layout square, or panel gauge, you will be reminded that woodworking skills can improve not only your projects but also the tools you use to create them.
Download the complete plans, gather your materials, and start upgrading your shop with tools designed by you, for you.
