Not a hand tool snob, BUT

[Bob Glenn]

I'm sitting here in Colonial Williamsburg at the "Working Wood in the Eighteenth Century" conference, and all is going well until the last presenter. Interesting presentation on how he is reproducing a period piece with bell flower inlay on the legs, when all of a sudden, out comes a Dremel and laminate trimmer. Low voices can be heard in the audience and "router plane" can be heard several times.

No biggie, I'm just glad the guy showed up to make the presentation.

[Bruce Page]

What, you don't think Thomas Chippendale had a Dremel?

[Frederick Skelly]

Things that make you go hmmmmm.

Wonder what Mr. Wilson will think of that, after spending most of his career there?

[Al Weber]

Be grateful it wasn't a CNC. I'm not much of a purist and I would bet that the original workers might have used a Dremel if they were available. It was still about productivity.

[Bob Glenn]

Be grateful it wasn't a CNC. I'm not much of a purist and I would bet that the original workers might have used a Dremel if they were available. It was still about productivity.

You are correct, however, THIS, is about the eighteenth century.

[Malcolm Schweizer]

I am quite surprised by this. The whole idea of Colonial Williamsburg is to go back to simpler times and show how it was done then. I wonder if the organizers knew he was going to do that.

I will punctuate this by saying that I occasionally use a dremel for very fine inlay work, but in this case it would be like giving a seminar on Monet's artistic style and whipping out an airbrush.

[glenn bradley]

The only reasons to not use tailed tools to do things is personal choice or if you are "going authentic". I believe the presenter's choice was inappropriate for the venue ;-) I would imagine there was someone there doing it 'period correct' so we'll let the guy off easy.

[Winton Applegate]

I would imagine there was someone there doing it 'period correct' so we'll let the guy off easy.

I to prefer my imagination to . . . what ever that silliness was. It's like going to Disney world and seeing Mickey Mouse on his break smoking a sig and target practicing with his A-K. Kind of messes with the ambiance.

I say let him off easy with a quick flogging.
The second time though it is the rack.

[Ryan Baker]

I don't have any issue if this guy wants to use a Dremel for his work (though a Dremel is particularly awful to use even in the corded world), but his choice of using it in this particular venue seems extremely inappropriate. It does seem like Williamsburg is more interested in the result these days than the process of getting there though.

[Winton Applegate]

Dremel and the corded world

It must have been a "sign" !?
Here ya go . . .
I had one of the old, nice, pretty heavy duty, as Dremels go, ones from the seventies.
I had the nice plug in speed control for it with the red pilot light on it.
I babied it and prized it.
One day though I got stuck in an "emergency" situation where I had to mount something to the bumper of a car, needed a couple of little slots in the botom edge of the bumper and the only tool I had with me was poor old dremel.
Yah, I go back that far . . . when cars not only had metal bumpers, they had steel bumpers and not only that they had chrome on them.

Well we gotter done but Dremmy was hot to hold and I recall seeing some smoke.
I let'er run and cool down.
I used that dremel for normal work for years and years after that . . . pampering, lubing the ball bearing cartridges, keeping an eye on the brushes . . . trying to repent for my transgression.
Then I took up real wood working. I bought the cute little router base for the Dremel. I used it once very lightly to be sure I had what I needed and knew how to use it.

Then one day I had a little project just right for that setup.
I bussssed 'er out and we started in with one of the little straight sided milling cutters (not even the round over bit) . . . and . . . pop !

That was it. She was dead.

I ordered a Varitas router plane and extra bits to grind extra narow.
and . . .
. . . . I been a Neander ever since.

[Bob Glenn]

[QUOTE=Malcolm Schweizer;2363671] I wonder if the organizers knew he was going to do that.

I hope not, however, it's not the first time I've seen an "out of period" demonstration by a guest presenter. That being said, the conference, and Colonial Williamsburg is well worth the time and money expended. They all do good things and deserve out support.

[Mark Maleski]

Drexel is an excellent tool for removing the meat under a bellflower inlay (I use a Bosch Colt); the results are indistinguishable from an unpowered method (unless the inlay falls out). I guess I agree with you that demonstrators at the CW event should use only period methods even if it's not their usual method back home in their shops...but it's more a matter of decorum than of propriety. At least you have Kaare and the gang to give the period-only approach.

I'm envious that you are there...family commitments kept me at home.

Mark

[Dave Anderson NH]

I'll be looking for the Dremel Bob. I'm sitting in my hotel room in Williamsburg right now getting ready to deliver 2 "in the white" Windsor chairs to Chris Swan at the conservation labs for painting and finishing. They are reproductions of a Kentucky made chair from 1822 made in the Lexington area. The second session of the 18th Century conference begins this afternoon.

[glenn bradley]

I to prefer my imagination to . . . what ever that silliness was. It's like going to Disney world and seeing Mickey Mouse on his break smoking a sig and target practicing with his A-K. Kind of messes with the ambiance.

I say let him off easy with a quick flogging.
The second time though it is the rack.

Darn it Winton; now I've got coffee all over my monitor again.

[Bob Glenn]

Enjoy, Dave. Kaare seems to be heading up things at the conference now. Does a great job and several times has requested more audience participation in the sessions. Bob