Hey Guys.
I am new to woodworking, I started reading things like Fine woodworking and wood magazine 6 to 7 years ago. Finally got the courage to build a shop 20 x 30 with a small 10 feet square dedicated to garden tools. My question is this; is there a order or berometer to gauge how you are progressing throgh he levels of woodworking. In other words Begginer, Intermediate, advanced. What should you be building to decide what level you are?
Replies
Well, you can get a judgement of whether you are fake, amateur, or professional by submitting pictures of your work to OldTool as per this message:
http://forums.taunton.com/fw-knots/messages?msg=37512.157
More seriously, congratulations on the shop. Why are grades important to you? You are what you are. As for what furniture to make, follow your muse. As that poster's tag line from somewhere around here says: may your next project require tools and skills you don't yet have (or something to that effect) - as in buy the tools you need for the next project and keep challenging yourself.
I LOVED this answer to the post! But then again I love most things. Especially women!My answer would be.. Just try to do a project. Whatever it is and see how it turn out! Did YOU like it? If not you may need help.. If you did like it you may still need help but not as much help!We all have ideas on how things should look or be willing to put in the time to make something. Be it time or money or what wood is available!Just joking with you.. Nobody like everything!I have made many things in my lifetime. Most will tell me it is 'great' But I always wonder were they just being nice? Or did they really like it?At one time I use to make custom doors to fit old houses.. I made a door that 'I' thought was perfect! Well, the old lady had 'other' ideas about it! So we sat and talked (we did before I started and I guess I was not listening well). Anyway I made another expecting to loose ALOT on this project.She looked at my 'NEW' Door.. She said she liked it a lot.. But she thought it would look better on the back door!.. I asked about payment.. She said I looked again at the door I originally made and I think it would be perfect for the front door..Well, You never know.. I got paid for two jobs when I thought I lost one!NO she was not crazy or that I tried to rip her off. I figgured she was a woman and thought differently that I did as a man!
It doesn't matter, you're always a student learning new things or an arrogant stick in the mud. Be proud of what you do but never satisfied.
Jack
I've never really looked for outside opinions on my progress - not that I'm so wonderful - but to me it's an "inside job." Somehow trying to live up to external standards would diminish the fun of it all. For one thing there's always someone better than you.
I've always tried to push the limit of what I think I'm capable of by a little to gradually expand my talents. Tackling something to far beyond my skills would end up in "failure" and frustration. As long as I'm satisfied with my own progress, woodworking will be enjoyable. Seems to me that most people are self-critical enough.
Eventually I had some work accepted by galleries - a milestone that made me happy with my skills. Not that that's what everyone should shoot for, but it was MY goal and that's what made it important.
Boardman,
it was MY goal and that's what made it important
Bravo!
Regards,Bob @ Kidderville Acres
A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!
Thanks Bob....
What's made this journey even sweeter is that I absolutely LOVE woodworking. Getting tired is the only thing that can get me out of the shop - unfortunately that occurrs much faster than it did 20-30 years ago.
I spent most of my working life in steel industry sales. It was OK, a living, but that's about it. I moved to the Twin Cities about 4 years ago and couldn't find a job in the steel industry. I'd worked my way into a pretty arcane niche, and the economy wasn't exactly booming. My sister suggested I do freelance remodeling since I'd always redone my own houses.
My first thought was "You gotta be kidding...how will I make a living at that!?" Fortunately my experience in sales and marketing helped things get off the ground pretty quickly. But I soon found I liked the woodworking that was involved in it and I set my goal on doing it full time. It wasn't the easiest thing. Had to build my shop - broke my ankle in the process - and there were plenty of lean times. I'm probably still a year or so away from where I want to be, but the whole process has been well worth it.
So far I have sheeted and insulated the cieling in my new workshop. Built a workbench and outfeed table for the table saw and looking into a lumber rack. I have had more fun than a candy pullin. Thanks for the insight.
I can sure relate to that - built my own shop too.
Havin' fun is the best part, ain't it?
Boardman,
Man, I have learned about wire amp load, insulation "R" factor and structural componants. I even installed an a/c unit last weekend (with the help of father-in-law). I treated myself to a large table saw and some other goodies, all to help with construction, ha ha so I told my wife. If drugs are this good I understand the addiction. My only problem is I can't get the money to eqaul how fast I am going through material.
I have a lot of questions, for instance what kind of interior wall do you have. I plan on insulation R-13 and pulling wire 12-2 romex. I am leaning toward shop grade t-111. I thought of sheet-roc but to much prep work and also hard to mount anything to it. any suggestions
I dunno....I used drywall. I don't have much on the walls except clock and picture.
But speaking of walls, etc., I did a vaulted type ceiling to 11 feet so I'd have plenty of room and more of an open feel. There was some big empty space above each of the end windows, so on one end above the window I built horizantal racks bolted to the studs. On the other end I built vertical lumber storage racks to save space. Used a 2 x 10 and countersunk some lag bolts into the back that held on 14" pieces of 2 x 8 sticking out perpendicular to the 2 x 10. Then bolted the whole thing to the studs so I ended up with several sections to store lumber. After a couple fell and nearly brained me, I drilled holes in all the 2 x 8's and put dowels thru to prevent that.
Drywalls the cheapest way to go for good looking walls - you could always screw a piece of 1/2 or 3/4 ply to it to make a spot for hanging stuff.
Senor Hulio,
Sounds like we had similiar beginnings although I converted a wreck of a garage into a dedicated workshop. I used fiberglass insulation with an R factor of 19 and then covered that with7/16 OSB board and then finished it with beadboard and framed the windows and put up cheap blinds on the windows intruders might peer into. I haven't insulated the ceiling yet so heat loss is a problem during cold northern Indiana winters...haven't decided between the spray foam stuff or just putting up more fiberglass rolls....
As to the question of levels, one day I was musing over my progress and wondering at what point I might want to change my Knots moniker (journeymanneil, experiencedneil, accomplishedneil, etc) and then thought, Aw hell, I'm always gonna be a beginner compared to someone...as others have said, it's not the level it's the pleasure of seeing the progress, looking back at stuff you made a year or two ago (or longer) and thinking Wow, look how far I've come.
I think it would be a sad day when we reach a point at which we couldn't get any better.
Enjoy the heck out of woodworking, I know I do.
Neil
Hola hulio:
Like you, I recently took the plunge to build and equip a workshop. My first project is to build a complete kitchen. So far, I am almost through the first run of base cabinets. Most people think it's good work, OTOH maybe they are just being polite! :-)
In addition to woodworking, my wife and I enjoy sea kayaking. I take it seriously and have a instructor certification. It is very easy to get into the mindset of ladder climbing, by that I mean if I have a BCU 3 star rating, then I need to get to a 4 star and so on and so forth. Fortunately, I have avoided that trap because it turns life into a series of destinations. Life is about the journey, not the destination (you never see a Brinks truck at a funeral).
Could you imagine if there was a star rating for woodworking? Some might like the extrinsic approval, but I think it would ruin the journey.
Like Manuel in Fawlty Towers, "I know nothing".
Enjoy your journey and make something useful to you, don't worry about where you stand in the pecking order!
Regards,
Hastings – Lower than whale sh#t in the woodworking pecking order.
I'll give you one - build a flawless Ruhlmann reproduction and I think that you will have arrived as far as your technical skill are concerned.
I actually knew a guy who did a very complicated Ruhlmann piece as his first real furniture project. He built some shop furnishings and a few simple jigs for hand held power tools. Then he picked a Ruhlmann piece that he wanted to build, practiced the skills necessary to build it (about two months), and then knocked it out in about four months. Pretty incredible stuff.
Edited 9/19/2007 11:41 am ET by PanBroil
Master Hulio,
Welcome to woodworking.
You sound like you are trying to climb the "levels of competence" as defined by someone else. I recommend that you drop that idea like a hot potato (or is it "potatoe?).
Instead, YOU should progress in the directions you set for yourself, at a pace that you are comfortable with.
We had a "thread" here in Knots a few months ago, in which we decided that all of us are Masters of something or other. So already, you have been called "Master Hulio". As such, you have the powers that have been granted to the Guild of Masters (although none of us has ever been able to find out what those powers are).
My second piece of advice to you is to see if there are any woodworking clubs near you. If so, then JOIN IT.
If you don't have a club near you, try to find a woodworker near you. Look in the Yellow Pages, and go visit his shop. He may be helpful to you, or he may not. Give it a try.
If none of the above are possible, then go to the library and get some books on woodworking. Read them.
It is important to BE CAREFUL. With time, you will learn what that means.
MOST IMPORTANTLY - have fun in your woodworking.
Make mistakes - they are the fastest way to competence. The more you do, the more mistakes you will make, and the faster you will learn.
Don't worry about getting the "best" tools. Get tools that you can afford. Many people make grand furniture with tools they bought second hand.
Focus on doing lots of woodwork and on enjoying it.
Everything else will come naturally.
Watch out for advice on Knots. Everyone wants to help, but some of us have a hard time remembering what it was like to learn, so you may get advice that you find confusing. If that happens, thank the person who confused you, and move on to the next message. Please realize that the average age of people on Knots is 106, and most started woodworking when they were 18, so you can forgive them if they have forgotten what it is like to be a newbie.
I recommend that before you post a question on Knots, that you do what most of the rest of us do -- do some research in the library and on the internet. It is obvious if I ask a question that I haven't done homework on. I feel like I am insulting others if I ask them for their help before I tried to help myself.
The above statements are my ideas and recommendations.
They are not facts.
Others will disagree.
IT IS UP TO YOU to determine what to do. I hope that you find that some of my ideas are useful to you.
Enjoy,
Mel
Measure your output in smiles per board foot.
Master hulio,
As Mel said, "My second piece of advice to you is to see if there are any woodworking clubs near you. If so, then JOIN IT."
I'm going out on a limb here by offering you some advice, which is against the rules of The Masters Guild: please don't attempt to this with anything less than a 24" Jointer.
These planes are extremely difficult to master. I can never get a square edge with mine!
Regards,Bob @ Kidderville Acres
A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!
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