Overcoming Woodworking Fear

Don: I looked at your picture of the rocking chair. And, it seemed to me that sitting in an at rest state, the chair seemed to be standing too upright. Almost looking like at regular chair. I guess that is the problem that you are trying to fix.

Good luck in your endeavour.

-- What happens in the workshop stays in the workshop. No wait that doesn't sound right. Karson Southern Delaware karson_morrison@bigfoot.com †

Yes, indeed, that is the problem. Whether I can actually rectify this remains to be seen, but at least I’m no longer afraid to give it a go.

Thanks, Karson.

-- CanuckDon "I just love small wooden boxes!" http://www.hilsbiblechurch.org/

Beautiful Chair…I specialize in uncomfortable chairs! At least you can fix it.

-- http://www.woodsongsfurniture.com

Hi Don;
Ha! Throwing the ‘fear-actor’ to the wind is the finding that all is well and yes I can do all things! Never having built a rocking chair I can still appreciate your sense of anger at completing a piece that failed to meet your standards, some call this a woodworker’s ‘rite of integrity’.

I also have a piece of wood, a rustic table that sits in my office right here beside me, that has never lived up to what I desired it to be. To some who see it, it appears beautiful, but to me it just has not yet arrived as complete. So I continue to think occasionally of what if and how to, as the piece waits silently and my mind screams at me to do something. Someday I answer back and maybe tomorrow.

Don, I liked your writing here, as to me at least I can hear your heart talking, as the spirit of the artist is poured out….keep showing the human side in sense of failure and great gain as this is when we excel. Maybe we should start a section where we post what we call failures and then show how we plan to overcome in spite of what me, myself and I says.

By the way, the French word for how your rocking chair looks is: ‘somptueux’ which can be translated as ‘pulchritudinous’....having great physical beauty and appeal!

Have a very good day!!!!
GODSPEED,
Frank

-- --frank, NH, http://frank.wordpress.com/

Wow, Frank, where do you find these words? And to define somptueux as meaning pulchritudinous doesn’t help this Aussie/Canuck. How about attractive, beauteous, beautiful, comely, fair, good-looking, gorgeous, handsome, lovely, pretty, ravishing, sightly, stunning, or something that is characterized by having great physical beauty and appeal.

Unfortunately, I think all of these words are over the top when describing my rocking chair, because I’ve concluded that in this case you can separate beauty from function. There is something decidedly ugly about an object that fails to live up to its purpose. Her beauty is only skin deep.

I spent a few hours today starting to rectify that – we’ll see.

-- CanuckDon "I just love small wooden boxes!" http://www.hilsbiblechurch.org/

It’s funny what a fraction of an inch, or a few degree’s can affect things. Otherwise I think you did a fine job.
I wish I had the talent for writing like some of you people on this forum . My problem is I lack the vocabulary, or at least how to transfer what I do know onto the page, but I think since I’ve been on this forum, it’s been getting a little easier for me. Some of your skills may accidentally rub off on to me, I hope !

-- -** You are never to old to set another goal or to dream a new dream ****************** Dick, & Barb Cain, Hibbing, MN. http://www.woodcarvingillustrated.com/gallery/member.php?uid=3627&protype=1

Dick, likewise, I wish that some of your skills would ‘rub off’ on me.

-- CanuckDon "I just love small wooden boxes!" http://www.hilsbiblechurch.org/

Hi Don;
The words actually find me as they just come from inside me, all I do is release my fingers to play this keyboard and what comes out often surprises me as well. Ha! Well to me its all about just letting my heart sing, might be the aftershock that comes from staying in the woods too long and listening to the sound of singing birds.

“How about attractive, beauteous, beautiful, comely, fair, good-looking, gorgeous, handsome, lovely, pretty, ravishing, sightly, stunning, or something that is characterized by having great physical beauty and appeal.” Actually that word ‘gorgeous, is the definition of ‘pulchritudinous’ which is then made French by saying ‘somptueux’. But then by saying ‘somptueux’ I said all the above in one word!

Your chair may not rock and roll, but to my eyes her beauty is more then skin deep.
GODSPEED,
Frank

-- --frank, NH, http://frank.wordpress.com/

Don,
I’m sure glad you posted this, as i plan to create a rocker using Bill’s plans, and seeing that if it’s too far front, or too “upright” there will be… problems.
I understand fully the frustration of spending long hours and then having something go wrong just as the finishing touches were applied. I made a DVD cabinet that had wheels on it. Do to the design the wheels had to be about 1 1/2” inches from the back of the project and the weight all sat on the very back edge of the piece, making it back/top heavy. While attempting to place magnets on the piece to keep the doors closed, they (the doors) both fell open causing the entire piece to tople over backwards. Due to the fact that the doors were both 1” larger than the back of it they hit before the rest of it ripping the hinges from the piece. I usually use wooden dowels and glue except on this piece in which I used little nails and no glue. Not only did the hinges rip out but the shelves all fell out and the only thing that kept me from beating it seriously with the nearest hammer I could fine, was the fact that the customer had already paid me $100.00 and I didn’t want to have to give it back, along with the fact that he was still going to pay the remainder of $300 upon completion. I put the doors in the truck and took them back to the shop. Luckily none of the parts were damaged, so I simply cut of the excess inch, glued up everything, clamped it and waited for the glue to drive. Well, o.k. so one of the doors was demolished so I had to make a new door. It’s drying as we speak, with dowels and glue.
I was once told that a carpenter was one who could improvise.
My Slogan “I can fix it!”
Happy Rocking
P.S. You can fix it

-- http://ye-olde-cabinet-shoppe.com/

Also does the chair need to be moved back some or just shorten the back legs. PLEASE, tell us how you overcame the situation.

-- http://ye-olde-cabinet-shoppe.com/

And on the 8th day God created matches so that our mistakes can at least keep us warm for a little while. hahahaha

-- http://ye-olde-cabinet-shoppe.com/

Well, Don I share your delima. I started on a rocking chair, not as elegant as yours, last year. I turned the four post and that is where it ended. You see, the two back post were 42” long and my lathe will only handle 36”, so I had to turn them in sections. I have a 1/2” x 1” tendon on the end and need to drill a socket on the other section to make one long post out of them. The fear factor has kicked in and I have delayed this next step. I know that if I don’t get the socket perfectly centered that the two sections wont line up and if that happens, I have no way to turn it on the lathe to correct it. After reading your story, I will try to overcome this fear and return to building my rocking chair. Thanks!

-- Jesus is Lord!

Don – Function aside, the chair looks great. Move the legs back, shorten the rear legs, put on new rockers or just plain chop them off… let us know what comes of it.

Dick – Don’t worry about the writing… (not that there’s a problem with yours) words just aren’t up to the task of “speaking” our thoughts (especially in the extremes!)

-- I am always doing what I cannot do yet, in order to learn how to do it. - Pablo Picasso -- http://blanchardcreative.etsy.com -- http://snbcreative.wordpress.com/

Some people have the toilet paper with a new word everyday … that’s one way to improve your vocabulary

-- http://ye-olde-cabinet-shoppe.com/

I appreciate the encouraging comments, friends, but I think I will keep head down on this one until I see if I really can fix the problem.

Michael, the essence of the repair is first, to cut the chair free from the rockers, shorten the rear legs by 3/4”, remove the existing ‘standoffs’ and craft new standoffs, then re-attach. The balance is done by trial & error. By increasing the thickness of the front standoffs by degree until the rocker is at the correct incline with the chair seat at about 20 degrees from horizontal.

Bill suggested that I use a contrasting wood for the new standoffs as the mismatch will look intentional rather than a mistake.

-- CanuckDon "I just love small wooden boxes!" http://www.hilsbiblechurch.org/

Hey Don: I don’t know how I missed this one earlier, but I did.

Setting the Maloof-Inspired chair on it’s rockers to get the balance correct took more than a day. I made the legs long, and cut them down a little at a time until all four legs fit on the rockers, and it rocked smoothly forward and backward equally.

Are you trying to fix your chair, or just using it as a lesson?

-- Mark DeCou - American Contemporary Craft Artisan - www.decoustudio.com

Mark, I have started to fix the chair. I received some excellent advice from Bill Kappel. I have already cut the rockers from the legs, shortened the rear legs and fashioned some new rocker blocks to be mounted to the rockers. In order to get the right inclination of the chair, I made the blocks fro the from of the rocker deeper than the ones for the rear. I haven’t started fitting things back together yet, but may be able to do so soon if I get some of my other deadline projects completed first.

And yes, this was a great LO (Learning Opportunity) for me. But then, come to think about it, I guess that is true of every project.

-- CanuckDon "I just love small wooden boxes!" http://www.hilsbiblechurch.org/

How is it coming along?

-- http://ye-olde-cabinet-shoppe.com/

Obi, it’s not. Hope to look at it again this week.

-- CanuckDon "I just love small wooden boxes!" http://www.hilsbiblechurch.org/

”Well, there it sat in our music room for a year and a half. It just sat there, reminding me every time I went into the room that whilst I had created a thing of beauty – it was a failure. Occasionally, it would beckon me t sit in it, and at first I did. But doing so just made me angry – I can’t say who or what was the object of my anger, but I was decidedly angry. This is the antithesis of what a rocking chair is supposed to do. One would expect a rocking chair to drain away the tension and stresses of the day leaving one rested and restored. But no – just just the opposite – anger!” - Don

Don, Let me start off by saying that I loved your story! The fact that you were even willing to share it with us is an indication that you are a humble man – and that’s a good thing. I like being around humble people. That’s one thing I have enjoyed about this forum – when I share a project or make a post, I won’t get pummeled by anybody (which I have experienced elsewhere…).

The fact is, we are not God. When God made everything, He could say that “it was very good,” (Gen. 1:31). When I make something, I can almost (probably always) always say, “Well, if I had it to do over, I would have done this or that differently.” Or, worse than that, I know where there are mistakes (even if nobody but me knows where they are…).

Woodworking is enjoyable, but it is also humbling, especially when you see what others have made. But, for many of us, it’s only a hobby and our livelihood doesn’t depend on our perfect projects.

Your chair is beautiful, and maybe you can correct the geometry of it, so that is will be functionally beautiful too. And, if you do, this chair will be more than just a testimonial of your woodworking ability, it will be a project that taught you many things, and it will have a great story behind it that will bless others.

I have already been blessed by your candor in sharing with us the story of your rocking chair.

-- Tom, Surfside Beach, SC - Romans 8:28

Tom, perhaps it’s humility, but I just need to be honest to myself and with others.

You are correct when you say, ”I know where there are mistakes (even if nobody but me knows where they are…)” and of course this is even more true in a format such as this when the closest one gets to my projects are the pictures I that take that show my work in its best possible light.

No LumberJock can sit in my rocking chair, so none but me will know that it fails in its design intent. But that’s not the point – I do know where it fails.

However, as you and others have correctly pointed out, if I can correct this significant shortcoming, then ”...it will be a project that taught you (me) many things, and it will have a great story behind it…”

I came in from my shop this afternoon after working on a repair with a fairly high level of confidence that I will fix it.

But if I don’t, there’s an important lesson to learn in that also. I will have done my best, and should I attempt another rocking chair, I would know what potential pitfalls to avoid. The best learned lessons are the ones that are hardest learned.

And, Tom, you are right to point out that ”...it’s only a hobby…”

Thanks for your thoughtful words of encouragement, they mean a lot to me.

-- CanuckDon "I just love small wooden boxes!" http://www.hilsbiblechurch.org/

”The best learned lessons are the ones that are hardest learned”. – That is pure gold, Don.

Here’s a quote from someone else that says almost the same thing.

“I do not know whether my experience is that of all God’s people; but I am afraid that all the grace that I have got out of my comfortable and easy times and happy hours, might almost lie on a penny. But the good that I have received from my sorrows, and pains, and griefs, is altogether incalculable.” – Charles Haddon Spurgeon

-- Tom, Surfside Beach, SC - Romans 8:28

Don, it’s nice to see this old thread come back to life again. I enjoyed reading it again.

-- -** You are never to old to set another goal or to dream a new dream ****************** Dick, & Barb Cain, Hibbing, MN. http://www.woodcarvingillustrated.com/gallery/member.php?uid=3627&protype=1

Hello Don;

I’m VERY glad you resisted the temptation of throwing it away. We’ve all had disapointments in our projects, but there’s an old saying.

“Woodworking is the fine art of fixing boo boo’s.” There’s more truth to that saying than most pro’s would ever admit to.

Adjustments, mistakes, repairs, are the things you learn the most from. Things that go very well, teach you very little!

Throwing it away would be admitting; “you’re off your rocker”. LOL

Nice job Don!

Lee

-- by Lee A. Jesberger http://www.prowoodworkingtips.com http://www.ezee-feed.com

Wow, Tom, I never expected to come to LumberJocks and be given a C.H. Spurgeon quote , one of my heroes. Thanks!

Thanks, Dick & Lee.

-- CanuckDon "I just love small wooden boxes!" http://www.hilsbiblechurch.org/

“Woodworking is the fine art of fixing boo boo’s.” - Lee Jesberger

I’ll add a hearty “Amen” to that! As much as I’d like to not admit that, I would have to say that that was a profound truth.

-- Tom, Surfside Beach, SC - Romans 8:28

Don,
I have the complete works of C.H. Spurgeon in my e-library – it is pure gold. I have learned a lot from him and look forward to meeting him in the future ;^D

-- Tom, Surfside Beach, SC - Romans 8:28

Me too, Brother!

-- CanuckDon "I just love small wooden boxes!" http://www.hilsbiblechurch.org/

Don, thanks for sharing your challenge with the rocker. I wont repeat what everyone else has said. It makes for good reading.

I am waiting to hone my skills a bit more before I try to build a rocking chair. Where did you get your plans from? What sites did you find most useful, if you did any research on line?

I almost bought two rockers for my front porch yesterday but could not give in to the easy way out <grin>. I really want to build them. The idea of failure keeps me from starting many projects. But I have to be resonable there is a skill level that I need to have before attempting something very complicated. Reaching to far above my level is just a recipe for failure. :) It is an off set balancing act, reaching just 20% or so above my skill so that I can learn something new. If only my uncles where still alive, both good crafts men. Stumbling across Lunmberjocks was a gift find.

Thank you all.

-- "so much to learn and so little time"..