Benedicti

I would love to see someone sharpen a pencil in weightless conditions…

Did the old masters of the 17th – 19th century ”cheat”? Did they use jigs or even machines?

I am totally convinced you will be truly amazed when you learn what they were capable of. Unfortunately it is not possible to post pictures here. They used jigs for drilling straight so complex you could call it a manual drill press. They used foot powered saw jigs to saw straight. Both these from 1816.

I have fantastic pictures of foot and hand powered lathes used for wood and ivory capable of work not possible on a modern wood lathe. They were so complex you did not think it possible at that time – 1670-ies!

Oval turning – no problem. Turning cross sections more complex and irregular than a gear wheel – no problem. Apparatus for cutting threads on the lathe – no problem. Today’s furniture makers stand on the shoulders of these fantastic guys now long gone.

Manually driven planes capable of fantastic irregular profiles looking like waves. I have never seen such work even in Fine Woodworking, All done during the same time period (1600-hundreds) and possibly earlier than that. Not seen in the woodworking of today. Could the technique be used today and give it a modern twist? Possibly.

I am no skilled wood-worker but love using hand tools and machines when that makes sense. A true armature in every sense of the word. Trough my professional work I have come in contact with these fantastic jigs and machines. Today we can see the pieces produced with these jigs and machines in museums and we admire them and think they were only made with simple hand tools. Much of the work was of cause but it is amazing to see the jigs and machines used for some details.

It must be possible to do woodworking just the way you personally enjoy and respect and admire the work of others no matter what road they took.