The Cost of Woodworking, Tools, Etc.

[mike mcilroy]

They really stick you Cannucks with high sales tax.

Not very good selection, if anything at all, at a much higher price for the most part too. Thankfully I'm 5 minutes from Detroit.( Not too many people say that anymore) My big machine purchases are from USA with the Ontario taxes added at the border I still usually end up saving 15%-30%.

This also applies to lots of other hobby stuff. I bought a Gibson Les Paul at Guitar Center for over $1000 less than the before taxes price up here. My wife's different hobbies its the same story for selection and price.

Rod may get better selection in TO but I bet the price issue is the same.

[Rich Riddle]

Not very good selection, if anything at all, at a much higher price for the most part too. Thankfully I'm 5 minutes from Detroit.( Not too many people say that anymore) My big machine purchases are from USA with the Ontario taxes added at the border I still usually end up saving 15%-30%.

This also applies to lots of other hobby stuff. I bought a Gibson Les Paul at Guitar Center for over $1000 less than the before taxes price up here. My wife's different hobbies its the same story for selection and price.

Rod may get better selection in TO but I bet the price issue is the same.

You mean that you purchase the items in the USA, pay USA taxes and then must pay Canadian taxes when crossing the border?

[Jim Andrew]

Think I have saved the most money by purchasing a small bandmill. I have every old outbuilding on the farm crammed with lumber. Now I am starting to move into one of the sheds I store farm equipment. 2 old metal grainerys are full of wood, which is good because hot summers kill bugs in there. Had to move a stack of walnut into the shop as I was out of room to stack more lumber in the old grainery. The nice days this month have allowed me catch up a little on my log pile.

[mike mcilroy]

You mean that you purchase the items in the USA, pay USA taxes and then must pay Canadian taxes when crossing the border?

Rich,
That's right and it still saves in that percentage range because the prices up here are so high.

[Rich Riddle]

Rich,
That's right and it still saves in that percentage range because the prices up here are so high.

I just developed a deeper respect for Cannucks commitment to the hobby which is hard considering you have Rod and he merits a lot of respect anyway. Sorry to hear about the additional expenses. Combined with your horrific winters, you folks are a hardy lot.

[mike mcilroy]

Your NE coast and a few OH, NY lake effect areas get it way worse than I do. Rod probably gets more snow than I do too. Even more painful than the tools is the wood. The selection in my area is poor because there are very few mills. Up north of me by 4 hours the options are greater but the prices are too. I can shop for wood on line from the US but there are restrictions about wood coming across the border. I have talked to 4 different people at Canadian Customs using their on line directory and have gotten 4 different answers about what I need to do. I have yet to try because I don't want to drop good money on what ends up in a Customs burn barrel.
There are some things we pay less for it does work both ways, just not the stuff I want.
I consider myself lucky to be so close to the border and with Grizzly shipping to Canada now it is getting better.
Not sure about the hardy tag most of the people I'm around whine if we get 2" of snow. Istill love the winter but am in the minority.

[Bill Clifton]

I am more of a home repair/project man than a woodworker. I have built furniture, done plumbing, hard surfaces in the yard, etc. My shop has mostly been at least half and sometimes all of a two car garage. I have a 35 year old Sears RAS ($250?), a second hand contractors table saw ($250), my Dad band saw ($250 to the estate), a big box store planer and jointer at $300 each and some small power tools. My biggest satistfaction is being able to do what needs to be done. I am not quick, I do real decent work, but not perfect, but I get it done.


The answer is $3000 over 25+ years. And if I can get the big bills paid off in the next 20 months and I am still working there may be a new cabinet saw in my future.


Seriously, the feeling of doing it myself with the minimal tools I have is my reward.

[mike mcilroy]

I am more of a home repair/project man than a woodworker.

My biggest satistfaction is being able to do what needs to be done. I am not quick, I do real decent work, but not perfect, but I get it done.

Thats how I started then caught the woodworking bug. Then the "investment" started.

[Rich Riddle]

I am more of a home repair/project man than a woodworker. I have built furniture, done plumbing, hard surfaces in the yard, etc. My shop has mostly been at least half and sometimes all of a two car garage. My biggest satisfaction is being able to do what needs to be done. I am not quick, I do real decent work, but not perfect, but I get it done.

That more-or-less describes me with additional woodworking as needed. Those of us who lack skills purchase tools to make up for that deficit, so my shop has too many expensive tools so decent-quality work gets produced. Consequently, the real decent work you complete at a modest price costs me thousands in higher-quality tools so that mistakes can be avoided or concealed.

[Frederick Skelly]

Wow. Some of you are into this for (far) more than my car is worth! I stand in here gaping in awe (and envy). And to think that a few weeks ago, I felt guilty buying a brand new jack plane from Lee Valley. Clearly, Im not thinking big enough.

[Rich Riddle]

Wow. Some of you are into this for (far) more than my car is worth! I stand in here gaping in awe (and envy). And to think that a few weeks ago, I felt guilty buying a brand new jack plane from Lee Valley. Clearly, Im not thinking big enough.

No picture, didn't happen.

[Frederick Skelly]

No picture, didn't happen.

Honest. It did Rich. I promise. The dog ate my camera - I mean my camera cable. Its the Neanders' fault. For 2 years they've been taunting me to buy that tool and I couldn't fight them off any more. And it is a LOVELY tool to use.

[John Sanford]

Wow. Some of you are into this for (far) more than my car is worth! I stand in here gaping in awe (and envy). And to think that a few weeks ago, I felt guilty buying a brand new jack plane from Lee Valley. Clearly, Im not thinking big enough.

Well, some folks generate income from it, either on the side or professionally. Also, very few of these tools are going to wear out in our lifetimes, whereas your car probably will. Few hobbies can be cheap, all can be expensive. I had a friend who was a runner. How expensive can that be?? He was buying a new pair of running shoes every month... and that didn't count what going to events cost him.

And yes, you aren't thinking big enough. Or perhaps you are. It simply depends on how you want to approach this... Some people make a hobby out of doing the mostest with the leastest, even if, sometimes especially if, that's the hardest approach.