Expand Your Woodworking Skills By Expanding Your Library
By Chris Black
Whether you're a Pro or an Enthusiast, every serious
woodworker hopes to get better with each project. New projects are
opportunities to experiment with different techniques, hone old
methods and expand your skill set. British Design Philosopher David
Pye, in his book
The Nature and Art of
Workmanship
, defines skill as care,
dexterity and judgment. As people interested in well executed craft,
care is probably a given. We want to do a good job or at least be
reasonably satisfied with the results. Dexterity comes simply
through the repetition of doing a certain task over time. Judgment
is a little more elusive. We can talk to other woodworkers, go
on-line to chat groups, experiment in our shops or we can study the
masters and their methods. By studying the methods of proven experts
you reduce the learning curve and save valuable time reinventing the
wheel. The easiest and least expensive way to learn from these
craftsmen is through books and videos.
These resources,
acquired over time, allow you to revisit your woodworking library to
reference information without having to remember every minute detail
of a given task. Compared to the cost of private lessons or classes
at a technical school, print and video media is cheap. Plus the
information is usually close at hand just waiting for you to check
the index or pop a disc or tape into the player.
LEARNING JOINERY
If you really boil it
down, there are just a few basic woodworking joints; the joined
edge, the dovetail joint and the mortise and tenon. Most other
joints are a variation or combination of these classic three. The
problem is that most of us spend our time trying to avoid these
simple joints. Just look at the plethora of jigs, fixtures and
alternative fasteners that come out each year, attempting to replace
the mortise and tenon joint. Not that there's anything wrong with
these products, but they generally remove you from the process,
prevent you from furthering your skills and often rob you of the
mind, body and spirit pleasure that woodworking affords. Isn't that
why we got into woodworking in the first place?
If we do
attempt traditional joinery, we convince ourselves that we need some
expensive equipment or an impossibly complicated production router
jig. When you consider that the electric motor did not exist for
most of human history, and that the great examples of period
furniture were constructed with little more than saws, chisels and
hand planes, then your perspective changes.
The mortise and
tenon joint is arguably the most misunderstood and feared joint. The
question I get most often is what machines or jigs do I need to make
mortise and tenon joints. My answer is: You don't need any. All you
need is a mortise gauge, a mallet, a chisel and a saw. In the video
Mortise and Tenons Made Simple
(220613)
, master of apprentices Jim
Kingshott shows you how to effectively make this joint with just a
few rudimentary tools. If the average table has just eight mortises
and tenons, then it is perfectly reasonable to chop a few square
holes with a chisel and kerf down a handful of tenons. All it might
take for you is to watch Jim Kingshott do it a few times and
practice until you achieve proficiency. It is just like learning to
ride a bike, and soon you'll be riding with no hands and jumping the
curb.
These hand tool skills will put you physically and
emotionally closer to your work. You will grow more intimate with
the processes of woodworking and your "fingerprints" will begin to
appear on your projects, making them uniquely your own.
Dovetails are another source of contention for
woodworkers. We know when, where and why we're supposed to use
dovetails, but we're convinced we don't have time to learn how to
make them. So we resign ourselves to purchasing an expensive router
jig. But by the time you uncrate the thing and read through a
lengthy instruction manual, you could have watched
Dovetail a
Drawer
(220446) with Master Cabinetmaker Frank
Klausz. Frank Klausz explains how he hand cuts dovetails for speed
and accuracy in a production environment. Yes, even in this modern
era, pros like Frank Klausz still cut dovetails by hand. Frank's
engaging approach and encouraging attitude will have you knocking
out through dovetails in just an hour or two of practice.
In
his
Tage Frid Teaches Woodworking book set (with DVD)
(203162), the great Dane
introduces the essential skills of joinery, step by intricate step. The point is that by watching
the work patterns of these masters, you can internalize their
rhythms and begin to develop your own techniques. You can achieve
the same level of proficiency as Frank and Tage. Joinery is just a
skill set, not an art. You are certainly not born with it. Good
joinery has to be learned. Don't be lazy.
Now, with all this talk about hand tool woodworking,
don't get me wrong. I'm certainly not a hand tool purist. If Thomas
Chippendale had had a table saw and thickness planer, he most
definitely would have employed them. What I'm advocating is for you
to get out of your comfort zone, expand your woodworking vocabulary
and further your enjoyment of the craft. Once again, woodworking is
supposed to be fun. Fun might not always include hearing protection,
dust masks and a death grip on a noisy power tool.
FINISHING
The second most asked question
or group of questions I get is about Finishing. What products should
I use? How do I apply it? What's the best….? Whoa! Finishing is a
complex subject. You could spend a lifetime just mastering coloring
wood or top coating. Fortunately, there's Bob Flexner's
Understanding Wood
Finishing
(203621). It's one of my favorite finishing books and I
highly recommend it. Bob's no nonsense voice is a welcome relief to
the information fog on wood finishing. Bob gives you the kind of
practical advice you need to make good judgments about product
selection and application procedures. Of course, a book won't
guarantee success. As with any skill you must practice. If it were
easy there would be no reward and your level of satisfaction would
be diminished.
If I had to pick a favorite finish, it would
have to be French polishing with shellac. I'm not talking about the
shelf stabilized shellac that comes in a can, but shellac flakes
freshly dissolved in alcohol and applied with a pad. Although
premixed, canned shellac does have its place, it doesn't have the
same properties as fresh shellac. In fact, for most furniture and
cabinets, I can't imagine why you'd use anything else. Fresh shellac
dries instantly, builds quick, it's easy to repair, lasts for
centuries, and it is inexpensive. If mixed fresh and used within a
couple of weeks, shellac is tough and durable in spite of what you
may have read. So why doesn't everyone use shellac if it's so
wonderful? The answer is because shellac requires skill to use and
skill takes care, dexterity and judgment, not to mention practice.
Practice doesn't conform with our microwave, instant gratification
world. The practice is worth it because there is no more beautiful
finish than a French polished shellac finish.
So how do you start? Vijay Velji's video
French Polish Like a Pro
(221999) will give you the foundation for learning this
ancient art. As with all hand skills, French Polishing with shellac
will add to your woodworking repertoire, giving you options in your
projects and making you a better woodworker.
WOODWORKING APPROACHES
Not all woodworking
skills are tangible techniques. Some skills are attitudes,
principles and general philosophies that guide our approach to our
work. Sometimes we just need a new outlook, a refreshing of the mind
or a renewal of the spirit. As mentioned earlier, David Pye has two
excellent books
The Nature and Art of
Workmanship
and
The Nature and Aesthetics
of Design
.
Although Pye does not cover the 'how-to' of woodworking, he does
elegantly discuss the why and what for of craft and design. Pye
confronts our presumptions about the way things should be. James
Krenov's
A Cabinetmaker's Notebook
(200504) expands on Pye's ideas and creates an inspiring
philosophy towards woodworking. Krenov transforms the theoretical
into the practical. Along these lines is
The Woodwright's
Shop
(200511) by Roy Underhill. Not only will Roy
Underhill teach you new skills, but he will confront your notions of
surface quality and texture. Roy tackles the question: Does woodwork
have to be glass smooth and highly polished to be considered good
craft? The book
A Reverence For
Wood
(202694) by Eric Sloane is a personal
favorite of mine. It's more than an essay about wood as a raw
material. It is a treatise on the awe and mystique that make wood
such a joyous part of our lives.
Finally, Toshio Odate's
Japanese Woodworking Tools:
Their Tradition, Spirit and Use
(290426) will transport you into the rich and fascinating
world of traditional woodworking in Japan. Steeped in culture and
spirit, Toshio Odate will open many doors and paths you might not
have considered before.
Our sincere hope at Highland Hardware is to help you
become better at your craft and for you to enjoy your precious time
in the shop. We believe the resources listed here will challenge
your thinking and inspire you to expand your woodworking skills.
