Wood blocks are a foundation tool for framebuilding. I like mine well made because they are frequently used. An excellent wood choice is hard maple. It is a close grained wood unlike oak where the open pores keep your flux drippings. Oak also chips more easily when dropped on a corner. Many years ago I made a bunch out of oak (and ash too, I think) for my framebuilding classes and they are still going okay but have missing edges. Of course students are pretty hard on tools.

You want to end up with blocks in the vicinity of 3" square. This is somewhat arbitrary and you can make the ones with bigger holes larger so you can tell at a glance which is the one you want out of a group. You start with a plank that is approximately 3" wide and around 1 3/8" thick (I think this is called 5 thirds? - a carpenter can correct me. It is a common thickness). Of course you cut them into pieces that are 3 inches long. Place them together with a thin piece of cardboard in between (if you didn't create come separation between sides they wouldn't be able to have clamping force). I used C clamps to hold them together and a hole saw to bore them out with. It is important to drill the hole perpendicular to the grain and not parallel (because if you did they will be much more likely to crack along the grain). I use some masking tape on the other end of the hole to help prevent the wood from chipping around the hole as the cutter pushes through.

It is useful to have leather (or something similar) to hold the blocks together and work as a hinge. Belts from Goodwill are an option. I attach them with small stainless steel #4 or #6 sheet metal screws (because they are flat under the head) about 3/4" long. I hold the leather in place with masking tape and drill small holes as pilot holes for the screws. This helps prevent cracking of the hard wood and makes screwing in the screws easier. Be sure and keep the cardboard spacer between the 2 pieces when attaching the leather hinge.

Or as Live Wire suggests, you can buy them already nicely made from Dave Bohm. If I remember right a set of 5 costs $100. The nicest part of his set is the stay blocks. The outside of one side of the block is curved so a tapered tube can be clamped along its entire length. There are 2 sizes of "V"s in the block that accommodate different sizes of blades or stays.

Doug Fattic
Niles, Michigan