Thanks for all the nice words guys.
Chris,
Woodworking here in the UK is very different from what goes on on your side of the pond. Until some ten years ago woodworking here was something that was mainly carried out by men in sheds using a few hand tools. Although I had a circle of friends that were 'woodworkers' we were thin on the ground. Power tools were limited and specialist shops were almost non existent.
Then Norm and his NYW show came to our TV's Via the emerging cable and satellite networks. He made it look like all you needed was a workshop full of tools and you could make anything. At that time most of the tools Norm was using were not readily available in the UK. Nail guns were something that were only used by tradesmen and nobody had a compressor. Routers were available but there were very few places to buy them and even less places to buy router bits.
All of a sudden, within a few years of the American WW remodelling shows being broadcast here in the UK, the market was being flooded with power tools and small machines, mostly of poor quality. The have-a-go woodworker was born. Needless to say this has lead to a lot of disillusionment… it is not just a case of buying a few machines. The end result is a surplus of imported tools, a loss of interest and a selection of magazines that now have circulation figures in freefall and the advertising revenue going the same way.
Wood is another problem. Most people here will be using poor grade softwoods purchased from the DIY stores. Hardwoods are not readily available and have to be sources from specialist suppliers. I try to tell people that working with hardwood will make a better job and that cutting joints is easier but it is hard work.
For me I am from the old school. I had a formal training in woodwork that started at the age of 11 years. I went to a school that had woodwork as a compulsory lesson for the first two years of my ‘secondary’ schooling. 40 years on and I have never stopped learning and, in turn, trying to pass on ‘good practice’.
I have nothing against the Norm school of woodworking, in fact I like to see it. The problem is that it was unleashed on a UK public that had little or no knowledge of basic woodworking principles. Formal training in woodwork is non existent in schools these days and has been absent for years. A lot of this is due to Health and Safety regulations that have gone mad. I heard a chap talking on the radio a few weeks ago saying that he was intending to teach young kids the basics of woodworking. My ears pricked up and I thought that something was happening at last… then he said “Of course we will not be using chisels or anything the children can hurt themselves with” The age of the kids? 14 - 16 year olds! It is that attitude that is killing woodworking in the UK and why people like me are writing for American publishers and spending time on forums like this one.
Sorry for the long post but some things set me off and I get my soap box out
Ralph