watch: Making the Kanóa "Roman" Workbench

Last summer I decided to transform my workshop into a fluid setup that truly prioritizes hand tools and makes their use feel more organic. I don't love calling these surprisingly versatile benches "Roman" because, although the Romans used them, they did not invent them. And so I have named my bench "Kanóa." Planing on the bench feels akin to rowing, and like a canoe, the bench serves as a place of transportation and transformation. The solid Ash bench features built in side stops, an iron planing stop, a custom extra wide woodscrew vise, and a custom configuration of dog holes meant for edge planing and bowl carving. The symbols on the vise handles come from my Taíno ancestors, representing birds, wind, hurricanes—the chaos that is needed in the action of transformation. I hope you'll enjoy seeing some of my process of making it, and can't wait to share more of how it's being used in the shop.