observations of woodworkers natures

tod evans

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i`ve noticed myself doing the "if only i had an xyz gizmo my life would be so much easier".....after a few years and many hundred gizmos and untold thousands of dollars i`ve realized that all it takes is some basic tools and lots of desire...
i no longer drool over the latest-n-greatest gizmos that show up in the mailbox all to frequently in glossy ink promising to shave either thought or labor from my endevors......
large equipment is one thing.....but a "gizmo" is anything that claims to be new and improved or a better way to skin the proverbial cat....wood can only be shaved,cut,or scraped in so many different ways.....same with measuring-n-marking...after a fellow assembles his basic arsenal it`s a matter of becoming comfortable with them not getting more "stuff" to be uncomfortable with.....
so those of you who are assembling your arsenals, buy the best you can and become comfortable with "it" before looking for the latest-n-greatest....
hopefully my ramblings will save a few folks some time-n-money.
tod
 
Geeez Tod, couldn't you have posted this, ten years ago!!!!!:rofl::rofl::rofl:
You are right on the money, the amount of tools owned will never replace talent/craftsmanship.
But please don't tell my wife that I said that!!!!!:dunno::dunno:
 
Interesting... an article in my latest WW Journal says pretty much the same thing. And agreed, acquisition is a great thing, but if you don't have or take the time to learn to properly and adequately use the items acquired, the point becomes rather moot. Why? Because in the end these under used items become nothing more than (sometimes high $$$) dust collectors... pun intended.;)
 
nope, haven`t found anything i want and ken has become a better turner than i currently am:eek:.....
just trying to be helpfull.........i got more wiz-bang fliers in the mail and when i catch myself even opening the cover i catch myself thinking of the last bass i caught and i see the catalogues for what they are......bait.
 
Thanks Tod, good advice. I've got a basic shop right now - maybe I need to get my rear in gear and make something with it!:eek:

Thanks for passing along this bit-o-wisdom.

Wes
 
thanks for that tod. i don't necessarily find myself drooling over the gizmos, although i do drool over that slider all the time, even though when i stop and think about how fast i can cut out a set on my cab saw with the help of my aircraft carrier extension table (currently 8' wide x 9' long) i realize i could never justify it. although there are still many machines i need to acquire, my shop is proof that with a little sweat and desire, it can be done, it just might not be as easy or as fast as if i had some better tools, but in time they will come.

thanks again
chris
 
I just caught myself looking at that Hitachi deal... then thinking... you've got a router you've barely ever used, Use that more then outgrow it and you can buy a bigger one.

There's a certain core of tools which I feel I need, and there are two large ones missing from my yet-to-be-completed shop; a Jointer and a Bandsaw and one mid sized tool I am lined up to get... a 10" disc/4" belt sanding station. Those are 'it' for awhile... unless I break down and get a spinny thing... , and a grinder...

see? I"m trying to be firm, but it just isn't working.

You've got a point Todd, but it is so easy to slide down that slope....
 
I have a few "gismos" like almost everyone else but luckly no too many. I think that is where these woodworking forums are very valuable. I usually do not buy anything unless I see a lot of guys saying that they use whatever it is all of time and really like it. It is better to save your money and buy some really top notch tools, at least as top notch as you can afford.
 
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When I remember how naive I was about what I needed to make a living at woodworking it makes me cringe. That does not mean the numer of items but it does mean the quality of the ones at the core.

In the last 6 years there are so many tools which I have purchased because I thought that they would give me extra time, only to discover that they don't, that it makes me weep. One of the problems is that for many items it is impossible to try before you buy. That means that the only way to discover if the $150 tool (gizmo??) will really work is to buy it and try it. Almost all the time it doesn't live up to its promise.

The observation doesn't just apply to small tools either. Whenever I am tempted by a new machine I always subject it to the drum sander test. One of the first big machines that I bought was a 25" twin drum sander. I convinced myself that it would save time and improve the quality of my output. It took me nearly two years to work out that it was a black hole, sucking productivity and money into a vortex from which they were unable to escape the gravitational force. Because it was so poor (and so was I after buying it) I hesitated too long about replacing it with a wide belt.

In truth, the main lesson of the drum sander was about balance. I am sure that half of the problem with it was that I was running it with inadequate extraction. There is no point in having the biggest and best sliding tablesaw on the market if your don't have the space and services to run it. You will probably get better results from a smaller lesser model that matches its surroundings better. Save your money. Wait until you can upgrade the lot.

My other thought in this vein would be "Buy more, better wood". I sometimes laugh when I read a thread on a forum where somebody has spent a lot of money buying kit and is working with second class materials or querying the cost of good timber. You will get more pleasing and impressive results with top quality lumber and fewer tools. You will get better results if you build five things with basic tools than if you can only afford to build one thing because you have spent all you money on the latest "Wiggle Woggle 50000". Practice is the key. I have built about 2000 adirondack chairs in the last five years. I reckon its only gonna take me another couple of years to get really good at it.
 
Tod you are a Master at stepping on toes and not hurting them. :bow: I only wish I had your skills of tack. Could it be the two finger typing gives you time to think about what you are saying. :D

I couldn't agree more though. I read through places like Woodnet and here to some degree and all I see is another charge on the old Credit card and as Billy said another dust collector. I have done that too be honest. But I learn quick!

Like you I look through the catalogs and very little temps me. What does is is mainly a couple of planes that the equivalent old one is now a collectors item and I want it to use. It's a case where the new is cheaper than the old used ones. But I am waiting till I can pay cash for it. Mean time I make do.

Nearly all my tools or old and I reconditioned them. I have built up a selection of hand planes (that I use most all of them). I scrounged up old chisels and have a decent mismatched set. I make my own jigs rather than go buy the newest wiz-bang gizmo. I found someone that trades in handsaws and sharpens them. Bought a couple of older dovetail saws for much less than any new one.

Very few modern tools in my shop. Most of you have seem my restored rust buckest. Router, bits, drills, things like that are new. Like you I have found that there some basic tools you need. Then you develop the skill to use them (still working on that one) and you don't have to go buy a new tool to do every new job that comes along. Last night I did some work with the chisel and mallet rather than buying some power tool to do it.

A lot of the stuff they sell can be shop made from the scraps and save the money. While it really gets under my skin seeing the waste, at least is not my money or my CC bill! :wave:
 
i`ve noticed myself doing the "if only i had an xyz gizmo my life would be so much easier".....after a few years and many hundred gizmos and untold thousands of dollars i`ve realized that all it takes is some basic tools and lots of desire...
i no longer drool over the latest-n-greatest gizmos that show up in the mailbox all to frequently in glossy ink promising to shave either thought or labor from my endevors......
large equipment is one thing.....but a "gizmo" is anything that claims to be new and improved or a better way to skin the proverbial cat....wood can only be shaved,cut,or scraped in so many different ways.....same with measuring-n-marking...after a fellow assembles his basic arsenal it`s a matter of becoming comfortable with them not getting more "stuff" to be uncomfortable with.....
so those of you who are assembling your arsenals, buy the best you can and become comfortable with "it" before looking for the latest-n-greatest....
hopefully my ramblings will save a few folks some time-n-money.
tod
I'm just an hobbyist but I found the same thing. I went through a period where I had a whole bunch of things I wanted to purchase but when I finally bought most of it, I discovered that I didn't need a lot to do what I wanted to do.

But trying different things was part of the learning experience that maybe we all have to go through.

I've bought a lot, but also sold a lot. When something didn't work for me, or if I didn't use it much, out it went.

My main objective right now is to better organize my shop, but that's stuff I can build, not tools I have to buy.

Mike
 
I found this thread very interesting in that I just came from a another, more local forum, where one of our top knuckledraggers (some would say chief) had just finished extolling the virtures of the Domino to the extent that he built a second of a table he had built a few months ago but used the Domino and claimed it cut 75% off his construction time.:eek:

But then maybe you don't count a Domino as a 'gizmo' given it's price tag.:rolleyes:
 
Hey, neat thread! :thumb:

I would say, that I've been fairly immune to the whole "Gizmo" thing, as shipping is a killer! :D

I agree that most of the new gizmos are just that, but every now and then, something does come along that is simple, and effective, I'll give you two examples, the pocket hole jig, and the "Bow Clamp". Both of these do something simple, very well, without a lot of fuss.

My lovely wife wanted, OK NEEDED a bit more storage space in the kitchen, she wanted a shelf/cabinet thing that contained the garbage can, with a shelf over top of it. She did not need or want anything too fancy, after all it would just hold a garbage can, and have some storage over it, and she wanted it like yesterday :rolleyes:

I got some melamine shelving boards, made a few cuts, and used the pocket jig to zap it all together in about 3 hours. It looks good, was quick and cheap, and she loves it.

Not too many other "Gizmos" work as well.

Cheers!
 
..... used the Domino and claimed it cut 75% off his construction time.

But then maybe you don't count a Domino as a 'gizmo' given it's price tag.:rolleyes:

It is a Gizmo! It might be a good gizmo but I have no desire for one. But I did read a review of it and sort of changed my mind. It might have a place in a commercial shop but I just see all the wood I could buy for the cost of it.

As for the 75% savings. If it had a lot of Mortise and tennons and he was chiseling them, maybe. Otherwise. I have my doubts. But to save 75% of his time that means he had to be spending at least 80% of his time making joints on the original table! :dunno:
 
I got some melamine shelving boards, made a few cuts, and used the pocket jig to zap it all together in about 3 hours. It looks good, was quick and cheap, and she loves it.

Not too many other "Gizmos" work as well.

Cheers!

You got that right Stuart. Now there is a gizmo that really works. The pocket hole jig might have to be moved up from the gizmo status.
 
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