Any traditional woodworkers here?

[ctr]

Are there any traditional woodworkers here? No power tool kinda of fellas?

I am interested in traditional woodworking, mostly to build small jewelry boxes, cigar boxes, bird houses, and the like. What advice do you have for me? Seems like this could get expensive and I don't have a lot of space to work in. Any suggestions on how to get started on a budget, how much am I looking at cost wise, and what is really essential?

 

[jkingrph]

Good tools are expensive. You need a miter box, to make accurate square and angled cuts, some good planes and chisels and probably a coping saw, and top it off with some books to tell how to properly use them. A small workbench will be a definite help, especially one with the means to hold a piece of wood while you work on it. You will also need some sharpening stones of various grits, and probably a guide to hold chisels and plane blades at the proper angle.

Visit here http://www.highlandwoodworking.com/?gclid=COnPlqDy-rgCFQto7AodW2sAdg an excellent brick and mortar shop in Atlanta, that carries some excellent tools, again not cheap.

Lie Nelson makes planes based on old Stanley designs and are almost ready to use out of the box along with some good chisels, but I would spring for some of the British made chisels as they are a little less expensive and very good, a brand such as Marples, or Sorby. I just looked and Highland Woodworking has a set of 8 Stanley Sweetheart chisels on sale for 199, down from 299 . They are excellent, I have a set. Lie Nelson has a set of 5 for $340 to give an example of top of the line vs the very good Stanley's.

Get good tools to start with, and you will not want to replace them. WHATEVER YOU DO STAY AWAY FROM THE STUFF MADE IN CHINA, INDIA OR ASIA IN GENERAL. The US, British, German, and other European is generally good.

 

[ctr]

Thanks Jeff. Are there any sources for a bench. Seems odd a woodworker would need to buy a bench but I can't figure out how to build a good one without a bench.

 

[VerbaVolant]

...Any suggestions on how to get started...

If there is a college nearby that has woodworking classes you are lucky. In my opinion that is the place you should start with. It will save you a lot of time and money, if you never worked with wood before.
That would be my suggestion.

Evening, weekend, relaxed courses. They should start teaching what wood is all about, move to small projects using handtools and expand from there.

 

[musicman1951]

Joinery is going to be interesting without power tools. You can certainly do all the joints with hand tools, but it takes a little more skill.

You're going to need a good hand plane or two - a joiner plane would make it easier to square up stock. You can make a fine bench as long as you have the skill to make fairly large mortise and tenon joints by hand. You would also need a pretty good collection of clamps to glue up the top. Do not hold wood with one hand and chisel it with the other. I won't tell you how I know this, but don't do it.

A woodworking class is an excellent idea if you're starting from scratch. This is absolutely not a cheap hobby.

 

[J. Roger]

Call Lee Valley during business hours and they will send you a free glossy catalog (almost 300 pages).

http://www.leevalley.com/US/Home.aspx

It is great reading for the "throne room" as they include very good descriptions and explanations to go along with the pictures.

They sell medium to high-end stuff and there customer service is absolutely the best.

(they also have a gardening and hardware(i.e. handles, knobs and hinges) catalogs also free for the asking)



I agree with what others have said about taking a class or finding a mentor...having the best tools on earth and not having a clue how to use them correctly will just be an exercise in frustration.

 

[ctr]

Call Lee Valley during business hours and they will send you a free glossy catalog (almost 300 pages).

http://www.leevalley.com/US/Home.aspx

It is great reading for the "throne room" as they include very good descriptions and explanations to go along with the pictures.

They sell medium to high-end stuff and there customer service is absolutely the best.

(they also have a gardening and hardware(i.e. handles, knobs and hinges) catalogs also free for the asking)



I agree with what others have said about taking a class or finding a mentor...having the best tools on earth and not having a clue how to use them correctly will just be an exercise in frustration.

thanks for the catalog tip. I signed up. Can't wait till it comes out in mid-September.

 

[VerbaVolant]

... and what is really essential?

Knowledge is essential.

Tools are secondary. There is second hand market for tools. Excellent tools that is. You can make this hobby as expensive as you want. The less knowledge, the more expensive.

 

[musicman1951]

I am interested in traditional woodworking, mostly to build small jewelry boxes, cigar boxes, bird houses, and the like.

There is a rather large difference between building bird houses and building jewelry boxes.
For a bird house you'd need a saw to cut the stock to width and length. Maybe a tenon saw for width as it would come in handy later. http://www.woodcraft.com/Product/2083661/35765/Veritas-Crosscut-Carcass-Saw-14-tpi.aspx
Perhaps a bow saw would be a better choice for someone with no power tools.
You could probably get by for a while with just a jack plane as it's large enough to handle jointer work and small enough to handle smoothing work - but it's really not perfect for either. You'd be better off with a long jointer plane and a smoothing plane. There are lots of old planes for sale.
A shoulder plane, some glue and a handful of clamps, sharpening system and you're ready for birdhouses.

For jewelry boxes I would add:
A set of chisels
Dovetail saw
marking gauge
marking knife
dovetail marking gauge
Sharpening set up: either sandpaper on a dead flat surface (plate glass works), water stones or oil stones.

 

[Recluse]

It is great that you are considering traditional wood working. It is not only therapeutic, but also very satisfying knowing you built something with traditional tools. I purchased many of my finer joinery tools from Japan Woodworker. They offer some of the finest hand saws, chisels and planes. Like all quality tools, they are priced on the medium / higher end. http://www.japanwoodworker.com/category/12631/woodworking-tools.aspx

Be sure to request a catalog. Best of luck!!

 

[ctr]

There is a rather large difference between building bird houses and building jewelry boxes.
For a bird house you'd need a saw to cut the stock to width and length. Maybe a tenon saw for width as it would come in handy later. http://www.woodcraft.com/Product/2083661/35765/Veritas-Crosscut-Carcass-Saw-14-tpi.aspx
Perhaps a bow saw would be a better choice for someone with no power tools.
You could probably get by for a while with just a jack plane as it's large enough to handle jointer work and small enough to handle smoothing work - but it's really not perfect for either. You'd be better off with a long jointer plane and a smoothing plane. There are lots of old planes for sale.
A shoulder plane, some glue and a handful of clamps, sharpening system and you're ready for birdhouses.

For jewelry boxes I would add:
A set of chisels
Dovetail saw
marking gauge
marking knife
dovetail marking gauge
Sharpening set up: either sandpaper on a dead flat surface (plate glass works), water stones or oil stones.

thank you, this is the type of information I need. I have read a few books on traditional tools. I figured birdhouse s a good place to start. I can work my way up to boxes from there.

 

[jkingrph]

Joinery is going to be interesting without power tools. You can certainly do all the joints with hand tools, but it takes a little more skill.

You're going to need a good hand plane or two - a joiner plane would make it easier to square up stock. You can make a fine bench as long as you have the skill to make fairly large mortise and tenon joints by hand. You would also need a pretty good collection of clamps to glue up the top. Do not hold wood with one hand and chisel it with the other. I won't tell you how I know this, but don't do it.

A woodworking class is an excellent idea if you're starting from scratch. This is absolutely not a cheap hobby.

I actually have a bench I made nearly 40 years ago. I used 4x4 for legs and 2x6 and 2x4 stock for for end, front and back stringers, I used lap joints secured with glue and 5/16 carriage bolts of the proper length to secure and add strength. It's still as strong and rigid as the day it was finished.

For Christmas of 1977 I made for my then 15 month old son a wooden train set, 12 pieces I think, My father did the wood turning for the boiler, smokestack, sand hopper and a couple of other pieces as I was in the USAF a the time and the lathe was back home. I made wheels with a hole saw in a hand held electric drill. Everything else was done with hand powered tools, a miter box, a block plane, chisels and an old Stanley router plane. Most joints were a box joint, interlocking and glued with no nails or screws used. Last year I refinished it for my grandson who was about the same age at which his father received it. Cutting and fitting all those joints which are tight and close took a lot of time.
I spent about four months of fairly hard work, many late hours after my regular work, and often long full days on weekends working on it. Power tools would have made it much faster, and certainly more noisy , but I got the job done.

 

[ctr]

I received the Lee Valley catalog today. Already working on the Christmas list.

 

[J. Roger]

I received the Lee Valley catalog today. Already working on the Christmas list.

Pretty nice, right

Did you get the 300 page one or the 20 page mid-season flyer?

As far as your wish list goes, they have a system setup where you can create a list online and your loved-ones can easily access to see exactly what you desire... no more "I thought this is what you meant..."


They also have free shipping periods 4-5 times a year. There should be one coming up in September/October and another just after Christmas.


Now watch you paycheck disappear.

 

[ctr]

They sent me the Sept 2012 catalog, the full one. I'll need to make smart choices to not go bankrupt.

I'm already thinking about cutting boards, and oh my, the list goes on. I will have to work my way up to boxes.