Hand Tool Injustice #1: What I don't want to admit about hand tools.

That sweet moment of woodworking nirvana.

-- Todd A. Clippinger, Montana, http://amcraftsman.com

Doug, I could not agree with you more. Like you I am a power tool aficionado. I will admit that I have long neglected development of my hand skills (maybe that is why I still cannot hand cut a dovetail to this day). I greatly admire those woodworkers who have taken the time and put in the effort to develop these traditional skills.

-- With God's help all things are possible- even woodworking. Woodworking is not just a hobby, it is an (expletive deleted) expensive hobby.

Thanks for the interesting blog Doug. In the old days carpenters apprentices did most of the drudge work like rough planing, rough sawing and the like. Nowadays, instead of apprentices we use machines. Of course the machines of today often do quite good finish work as well. At my age, I really appreciate my machines. They help my arthritic bones get the job done with minimal work. However, I also love to work with hand tools when and where I can to avoid the dust and noise reducers and even noisier dust removers and of course the screaming machines that actually do the work for you.

One mistake I think we all make at times is that we think first about using a power tool, even for tasks which could be done easier and better with a hand tool. For example, the other day I was trying to figure out how to cut some segment rings in two with the tablesaw or bandsaw. The best I could come up with still required something to hold the ring, keep my fingers away from the blade and get a smooth result. In the end I realized I could do the job better and faster with my Japanese hand saw without safety issues and noisy machines.

Maybe we just need to form better tool choosing habits and then we can bring a better balance between the different types of tools we use.

-- Mike, American in Norway

Welcome to the club Doug ;o)

I used to think that I needed every power tool under the sun to be able to work wood. I always wanted to do hand cut dovetails so I gave that a try and was hooked on hand tools every since. I now reach for my hand tools before I ever think of firing up any power tools. Yesterday I was doing trim work in my kitchen remodel and never used any power tools to cut or trim the wood. Today I will use the router on a trim piece though, since I don’t have any moulding planes yet.

Good luck on your new found skill.

-- "You get what you inspect, not what you expect"

I own almost every power tool from a cordless drill to a CNC Router, a Wide Belt Sander and pretty much everything in between. Even with all that, I have found that using hand tools gives me much more satisfaction than anything else. All of the sudden, it becomes a hobby that is very enjoyable (Not to mention Quieter)
I even discovered that many times hand tools are faster, and in some cases do a better job.

I am now a firm believer that it is not *Either Or, but Both!*

-- Kent Shepherd * The goal is-----More Tools!

I find myself also “slowing down” in the shop more and more. I’d rather do it in a way where I become part of the work than an impersonal manner quickly…

-- Steven

A 13 inch thickness planer costs 1 and a half decent hand planes…what we all need is unlimited funds for hand tools and power tools…because they all must have their place.

-- /\/\/\ BarryW /\/\/\ Stay so busy you don't have time to die.

In bicycling, there’s sort of a movement toward “fixed gear bikes” and away from bikes with complex derailleur mechanisms.

The theory being: return to the simplicity that IS cycling.

Clearly, this is the WW equivalent. As a total newbie, I’m trying to figure out where I might draw that line. It sounds like that line is never really drawn, and—if it is—it’s really in pencil, anyway.

But … 4am? Egads! Up that LATE or up that EARLY??

-- -- Neil

I’m with ya’, brother.

Once you get the hang of it hand tools are often FASTER than machines for one-off operations. For instance, breaking or chamfering edges, flushing edges, fitting joints… If you take advantage of the individual strong points of both power and hand tools, it’s really not a case of slowing down at all.

I think of my machines as apprentices. I let them do the repetitive, mind-numbing work that they do so well.

Your next revelation might be that parts for one-off items simply need to fit well to each other, not some stated interchangeable parts standard that a mass-produced item needs to match. This is where hand tools absolutely sing in the choir, right next to machines… ;^)

-- - Please help keep Lumberjocks an enjoyable escape by refusing to participate in political discussions. Simply spit out the bait and ignore the thread...

I, too, previoulsy felt the possesion of every possible power tool to be a minimum requirement. However, recently I started using a small plane for easing corners of joinered lumber. And then, all of a sudden, using hand tools became more fun. I keep adding another small tool or on each project.

Of course, having purchased a ‘slow-speed wet sharpening system’ [Jet] now allows me to get a good crisp, sharp edge on most any hand tool. Once I started using sharp tools, I found their use became significantly easier and much more accurate. [Not to mention rewarding]

-- Rustfever, Central California

yep.

-- Check out my new website! http://www.blakeweberwoodworking.com

It seems that no matter how early I entend to start working on a project, by the time I get through with all those pesky things ya gotta get at before “they close” it’s 8:30 and you’re are just trying to round up all the tools and set everyting up. I was up till 6:30 this morning working in the workshop. This morning my mother chided me for talking to the rabbits too loud that I woke everyone up who were sleeping in the bedrooms directly above the workshop. Hummmmmmmmmm, Could it be that my banging on a board against a piece I just glued up wrong and wanted to get apart before the glue dried woke them up not my whispering to the rabbits?
Wishing all the relatives would go home and work out their problems there instead of camping out here.
Or short of that wishing I could win the lottery and buy a piece of property big enough so I could work in the shop when ever I wanted. Just can’t help the upside down sleep cycle.