Not many of us hand tool users have gone completely electron free. So to complement the “essential hand tools” thread, I thought a thread of essential power tools for the “mostly hand tool user” might be in order. For example, I pretty much hand cut all my joints, and do plenty of planing of various sorts, etc., but I wouldn’t be without:
– my table saw for ripping
– my jig saw for resawing
– my sliding compound miter saw for crosscuts
– my makita lunchbox planer for initial thicknessing
Replies
Samson,
My electric lights, which allow me to see my table saw, band saw, drill, press, etc.
Also my air conditioning and heating system, which allow me to use my tools year round.
My portable electric drill is used quite often.
My air purification system ( portable fan with an air filter attached).
My Dremel tool comes in handy a lot.
Of course, my angle grinder which holds my chainsaw blades and carving discs which I use to make bowls.
As the folks in Galveston will tell you, electricity is a very nice thing to have.
Nice question.
Mel
Measure your output in smiles per board foot.
Hi Samson
For about 10 years my major powertool was a tablesaw (12" with sliding table). Before then it was a smaller tablesaw. I have a bunch of routers (my favourite being the big Elu 177e) and a router table in the tablesaw. Even before I packed up the workshop for an addition at home, I had not used the routers in about 2 years. The tablesaw has not been missed over the past 9 months.
Currently, my main powertools are a bandsaw and a drill press. I have just (tonight!) sold my 14" Ridgid as it has been replaced by a Hammer 4400 (what a beauty!). I use a bandsaw for resawing and ripping.
The floor standing drill press is occasionally used for drilling holes (!) but more frequently used to turn deburring wheels for metal work (polishing the tools I build).
I have only just acquired an 8" Delta jointer and a Delta lunchbox thicknesser (planer on your side of the Pond). I have never used a jointer before and a thicknesser only a handful of times. These are to help with some large scale work at home. I have been quite happy to thickness everything with a handplane and a bandsaw in past years. Will this experience change me? :)
Edit: how could I having left out my lovely little Jet mini lathe?!
Regards from Perth
Derek
Edited 9/17/2008 11:23 am ET by derekcohen
Good Day Derek ,
Interesting to me that you have not used a jointer or planer much ever .
Without using a TS the jointer can make great seams for glue ups with little effort once it is tuned up correct .
You may wonder how you ever got along without a planer , the first 10 years or so as a cabinet maker I did not have one either , then acquired an old 15 1/2" Makita model , I use it on every job and would not want to be without it . In fact I just rehabbed the Makita and put a sharp set of knives in along with the new rollers covered with urethane and some new pillow blocks , the wood comes out almost shiny .
Something you said ,,," these are to help with some large scale work at home "
I make a living from the work I put out from my shop , I am a power tool and old iron junkie .I must use machines to do my custom production and earn a living at the same time . I catch flack and sometimes almost am made to feel guilty for not being a total hand tool user . It seems to me all the fine work done by hand tools and skilled makers is typically rather small scale pieces .
I'll use Mr. Krenov's fine works as an example , mostly what I have seen are very small pieces of beautiful furniture , not miles of kitchen cabinets or wall units or any other large scale pieces , that is just his style , or are hand tool users limited on what can be produced ?
regards from Oregon dusty
Dusty,
So are you trying to tell me that Krenov made those rocking chairs without using jointer or a planer?I heard that he used an electric spokeshave, and that regardless of what he put in his books, he actually used a Festool Domino for the joints in those rockers. :-)Congrats on the use of the Jointer and Planer. Those are almost silly to do without, even for a hand tool junkie. Mel
Measure your output in smiles per board foot.
Mel ,
The Krenov pieces are imo not known as mass produced items, rather very beautiful wood work with the look of handmade quality ,( whatever that is )
Also I have utmost respect for Mr. Krenov , he is just over in the Redwoods from here maybe 200 miles from here , love to see up close .
No matter our personal style we recognize true craftsmanship when we see it .
I was using the look of his work as an example , mostly smallish cabinets on stands and such , beautiful tools he has made also .
Krenov seems to be more into the spirit of what he makes then the process.
regards dusty , a boxmaker
Dusty,
As usual, I was just kidding about Krenov and jointers and planers.I love Krenov's approach to furniture design and making, although I am not a big fan of the style he uses. He thinks for himself, which makes him a leader. He thinks things through, his way. THat is what I like to see in a woodworker -- self reliance and personal creativity. Just copying other people's work and techniques causes one to lose one's chance at creativity and self expression. Kintaro Yazawa is a real leader in design and craftsmanship. I am also an admirer of Patrick Edwards.Have fun.
MelMeasure your output in smiles per board foot.
As far as I know, Krenov didn't make rocking chairs--Maloof did (does?).
Tina,
I believe you are correct.
Thank you.
MelMeasure your output in smiles per board foot.
TinaK ,
I thought it odd as well that Mel said that , he was ribbing me and , it gets pretty deep around here sometimes .At least we all agree that our own way is the best .
dusty
it gets pretty deep around here sometimes.. YEP.. And I'm standing on someone's shoulders so I can breathe!
Something you said ,,," these are to help with some large scale work at home "
.... It seems to me all the fine work done by hand tools and skilled makers is typically rather small scale pieces .. are hand tool users limited on what can be produced ?
Hi Dusty
Interesting question. I am sure that Adam will have something to add.
Personally, the scale of work is not a defining factor in choosing between hand and power tools. "Large scale" means that I need to convert much salvage hardwood into dressed hardwood. The building of the cabinets from these boards will still largely be done with handplanes and a bandsaw to speed up dimensioning.
Power tools are just my "apprentices", and I suspect that this method has been part of workshops in one manner or another over the centuries.
Regards from Perth
Derek
Hmm - Well, for a reformed power tool user like me, my excursion into hand tools and methods taught me that there was no such thing as an "essential" power tool. They're just conveniences and in some cases, labor savers (and in some cases, labor-makers!).
I would say I have no electric powered tool that is essential to me to complete a project, but I do have a few electric tools essential to my mental well-being (ain't that a crock) as a woodworking hobbyist!
#1 is my wood lathe
#2 is my ?????????????? jeez, can't think of anyother that I really like! I use a table saw for some ripping and a bandsaw for a few things, but I wouldn't say either would be missed.
T.Z.
>no such thing as an "essential" power tool.Oh yah? Tell that to my partner. She was helping me on a two person frame saw to resaw my bubinga and purple heart.Before that when I would mention how nice it would be to have a bandsaw she would look at me with a look that only a person who had helped move a machine shop/wood shop four or five times can have. The look that says " if you buy another five hundred pound power tool I may kill you".I don't make her lift I just use my auto engine cherry picker but it drives her nuts to see all that expensive heavy stuff dangling in the air ready to break the tool, break the concrete of the rental and piss me off. Drives her up the wall to watch but she won't leave cause she thinks I may be trapped underneath. Now that is loyalty. Ha Ha !After helping me resaw by hand she was all about a bandsaw. Come to think of it I believe she called Laguna for me to get prices and availability the first time. They were out of the one I (we) wanted for at least a month and she was as sad as I was . . . but for different reasons!Ha ha he he
Edited 9/18/2008 2:35 am by roc
Roc - well of course! Those of us with hand tool addictions have learned what the 18th century cabinet makers did - stick with woods that are easy to work. Bubinga and purple heart wouldn't have made the list if they had been available back then, I think. ;-) Funny thing is that on the antique market, colonial pieces made with maple aren't all that common. I'm betting that might have something to do with the fact that working cherry, walnut, and especially, mahogany, are a whole lot easier.
Those of us with hand tool addictions have learned what the 18th century cabinet makers did - stick with woods that are easy to work. Bubinga and purple heart wouldn't have made the list if they had been available back then, I think. ;-)
I would suggest to any worker who seeks to emulate 17th through 19th century furniture to pick upa copy of The Directory of the Historic Cabinet Woods by F. Lewis Hinckley. The book covers the period of the mid 1400s until 1900 fairly well. It is an oft referenced work in books on 18th and 19th century furniture.
I think you'll find that once South America was discovered, it added to the pallet of woods already in use from Africa and beyond. An incredibly array of woods were used, including Purple Heart and Bubinga.
Doesn't make it any easier for the hand tool user having the book--but it is pretty cool despite the B&W photographic furniture examples. Most often, the harder exotics were veneers ut there are plenty of dimished lumber work represented as well. From some of the periods involved, they were cut by hand.
Take care, Mike
Hi mwenz,
Hi dkellernc,I would suggest to any worker who seeks to emulate 17th through 19th century furniture to pick up a gaggle of young apprentices who are indentured, get a subsistence living and have to do what you tell 'em or else they go to jail or worse. But this is the twenty first century, young people do not appreciate how good it is (or how hard it was). Yah; good luck with finding the gaggle. : )Hinckley . . . I put it on my book list thank you !
Mike - Interesting book. I'll see if I can pick up a copy from the library. That said, I'd disagree on bubinga and purpleheart, at least for colonial cabinetmakers. I've got several hundred books and museum catalogues, and to my knowledge there are no examples that contain these woods, either as primary or secondary woods, nor as veneer components. In the 19th century, I'd agree - I've a picture of a sideboard made about 1830 that's ENTIRELY of ebony. Though it's probable that the planks were sawn out by water-powered mill, I still can't imagine making all of the joinery cuts in that stuff by hand!
It is an interesting book.
Colonial times isn't the main subject of your, my or the OP's main working period.
What I was originally responding to was your statement:
Those of us with hand tool addictions have learned what the 18th century cabinet makers did - stick with woods that are easy to work. Bubinga and purple heart wouldn't have made the list if they had been available back then, I think. ;-)
Hickory is listed. Not an entirely easy wood to work. But, most US domestic woods on the East coast are fairly tame woods. I think the big shift in materials came well after the Colonial period in the US. Tastes became more "refined," sophisticated. More in-tune with European tastes through out the 1700s as more people of means immigrated and brought influence with them as to furniture styles.
I also think the average cabinet maker (and probably most cabinet makers fall into this category) sought to bring these designs to the masses using less expensive and easier to work species. I also think most of the extremely dense "exotics" were used in Europe, though not limited to there.
The book isn't confined to only American examples. So there are many references/illustrations of English and Continental furniture. So for example, the entries on Purple Heart (or, Purple Wood / Amaranth) are mainly of French and some English examples from the late 1700s and early 1800s. The entry which shouldn't have come as a surprise, but did to me, was for Courbaril (commonly called Jatoba and Brazillian Cherry here). Both PH and Jatoba are mentioned in The Cabinet Maker's Assistant. Among others.
Interesting tidbits on the use of Maple as well. For instance, there is the statement that "American craftsmen selected Maple as one of the principle materials employed during the colonial period."
Anyway, I could go on. I read in this book every once in a while simply because the wide range of woods used during the 1700s and later are fascinating to me. The example pieces aren't too shabby either.
Take care, Mike
"Colonial times isn't the main subject of your, my or the OP's main working period."
Well - true enough. Last time I checked the date was 2008, not 1722. ;-) That said, colonial times are the main focus of what I do, both in style, species selection and methods - not sure about the OP or your work.
And I would suggest that simply listing a particular species as found in colonial furniture doesn't give a complete picture. Almost all of the Windsors with wood id info in "Windsor Style in America" have hickory spindles. But, hickory isn't too difficult to split when it's green, and can be worked prett easily with drawknives and spokeshaves, particularly in small dimensions. But... to my knowledge their aren't any large case pieces whose primary, or even seconday, wood is hickory.
And with regards to maple, same deal - the book's quote is right as far as it being used, and maybe even "extensively" would be an accurate description. But by far maple is not very common in high-style furniture as the primary or secondary wood in comparison to walnut, cherry, and mahogany. I'm betting that not only had to do with the tastes of the time, but also a balance of the difficulty of working it. One example of the relative scarcity of maple as a primary cabinet wood is a comparison of the materials of construction of the spice boxes in "The Pennsylvania Spice Box: Paneled Doors and Secret Drawers". I didn't do an exact count, but walnut is by far the most common, followed by cherry and mahogany. There is only one that I remeber that used curly maple as the primary wood, and maple is pretty dang common in Pennsylvania.
Well, I'll drop this after this post. You write:
That said, colonial times are the main focus of what I do, both in style, species selection and methods - not sure about the OP or your work.
Once again, your words were:
Those of us with hand tool addictions have learned what the 18th century cabinet makers did - stick with woods that are easy to work. Bubinga and purple heart wouldn't have made the list if they had been available back then, I think. ;-)
I don't consider the 18th century the colonial period, or times. So please excuse me if I was/am a bit confused as to what your point was as regards the use of Bubinga or Purple Heart in the 18th century. Even so, there was the transitional era at the beginning, I suppose. But tastes/styles changed very rapidly during the early part of the 18th century.
And the point I was attempting to make was that in the second quote above, cabinet makers didn't necessarily "...stick with woods that are easy to work. Bubinga and purple heart wouldn't have made the list if they had been available back then..." Because, well, they were both available and used back then. In the 18th and following 19th century, that is.
That you do, however, is completely understood.
fwiw, when I actually got paid to make things, I was pretty stuck in early 20th century Modern. Scandanavian Modern in the main, with a few A&C / Deco work thrown in. Never got opportunity to make furniture for others that were from other periods. Now that I am a hobbyist, I get to choose.
Take care, Mike
Well, OK, but I don't understand why you don't think the 18th century was the colonial period in this country. While true that we weren't a colony of Great Britain either after the declaration of independence in 1776 or after the treaty of Paris in 1783, depending on how you look at it, we were most definitely a collection of colonies of the crown until that time, which would be the majority of the 18th century.
Of course, one could consider the 17th century "colonial" as well, of course, since charters for the various colonies were largely written in the middle 1600's. But I generally don't think of "colonial period" and the 18th century in America as contradictory, and that seems to be the convention of most of the books on the furniture of the time that I own - for example, The Furniture of Charleston, where the volume "Colonial Furniture" refers to furniture made prior to 1780 (or, for that matter, the history books in my collection).
I always thought there was a lot of maple furniture in 18th C America? Often painted, or always painted by some accounts, but plenty of maple furniture. One of Townsend's early chests is maple, and shows evidence of being painted.I do find soft maple harder to work than other common 18th C stock, but I think cherry is every bit as difficult as maple if not more so.Dean
Edited 9/18/2008 12:33 pm ET by deanj
"I always thought there was a lot of maple furniture in 18th C America? Often painted, or always painted by some accounts, but plenty of maple furniture. One of Townsend's early chests is maple, and shows evidence of being painted.I do find soft maple harder to work than other common 18th C stock, but I think cherry is every bit as difficult as maple if not more so."Dean - "Common" is a relative term. In high-style furniture, maple certainly exists, but it is not the predominant cabinet wood for high-style furniture in colonial times by far, with the exception of the Dunlap cabinet makers of Connecticut. Maple is far more common as "ordinary" furniture such as tavern tables, ladder-back chairs, etc..., But even these forms are typically made of softer woods, and often completely of "secondary" woods like white and yellow pine, chesnut, poplar, cypress, etc...Maple found favor with early American woodworkers as a turning wood, though. It's capable of taking quite a lot of detail in a small space, and it's comparitively easier to split turning billets out of a log than it is to saw a big plank.
>stick with woods that are easy to work. Bubinga and purple heart wouldn't have made the list Ahhhh heck ! NOW you tell me !The following is just one reason why I love my local woodcraft store as much as I do ; No kidding; the owner I saw once in my life. He was walking through the store and I was exchanging a Lie Nielson T-shirt that was too small or some such. He asked what LN planes I had or some thing along those lines. And I had two at that point. I was a real novice but very enthusiastic to find real wood working going on and a source for real tools.He asked what I was working and I said I was trying to learn to plane purple heart but was having trouble because it was such hard wood. He corrected me and said purple heart wasn't very hard and that people in the country(s) it comes from use it for everything including building their houses and decks (yah if it is still wet maybe ), no big deal kid. You know real condescending and insulting my intelligence. After all I was working the stuff and had read the charts of strengths and uses etc.First time I ever met him, haven't seen him since. He could have introduced me to a bevel up plane, shone me how to sharpen to a steeper angle, sold me some sharpening equip. Heck I was game. Instead he chose to be a big d**k.So you see purple heart is just like pine to work. I got the info from the "top".
Ok since I am hogging this discussion rather than go to the shop where a real wood worker would be this time of day:A real eye opener for me was the first time I ripped an eight quarter plank of oak using a western type hand saw. It was a new 7 T rip the best I could find at the time. I just now looked at it to see what brand it is. I cleaned off all the clear coat and painted on branding with lacquer thinner long ago. All that is left is the bolt through the handle that says . . . are your ready . . . "Master Mechanic". Any way still looks like a decent saw to me now, twenty years later.Seemed fairly sharp from the factory. I was standing on that little plank (only about three feet long) sweating and sawing away with a two hand grip for what seemed like off and on for an hour. I swear the oak is harder to saw than the bubinga and purple heart !Then I see all this footage and pics of the cabinets in England that have oak for the secondary wood in the drawers !I have learned to sharpen my saws since then and have a bit better time of it but you can have my band saw when you pry it from my cold dead hands.
Two essentials that I am currently missing is a planner and a jointer. Would help to keep the cost of my projects down if I could buy rough cut lumber and mill it myself.
Other essentials: Table Saw, Miter saw (just to make the project go by quicker), and my PC router (love this tool.) Oh the air compressor and nail guns are great for moldings. The bandsaw is also a hard one to give up.
Table saw for any straight sawing or joinery
Router for profiles and joinery
Corded drill, because you always need a hole somewhere
Random orbit sander. I don't hate sanding but don't want to do it all by hand.
Jointer-planer combo. Releases you from the 3/4" thick everything.
Jig saw or band saw for the occasional curved cut
Further down the list:
Biscuit joiner
Circular saw for cutting up sheet goods and offsite work.
Dust collector & shop vac
Belt-disk sander
Drill press
Lathe, last only because I don't do much turning.
Samson,
Jointer and planer to save labour.
Bandsaw.
Compound miter saw.
Chris @ www.flairwoodwork.spaces.live.com
- Success is not the key to happines. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful. - Albert Schweitzer
1 ) My table mounted routers...
2 ) My table saw...
3 ) Sharp chisels ...
4 ) A long straight edge AND a good ruler!
5 ) All of the above..
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