Derek deservedly does have his own followers. And certainly not just because of this thread.
Kees, I have seen work done by some which looked like it was done according to your first sentences in the above post!!
The take away from these threads (which come up with nauseating regularity) is that everyone should spend their time at their own benches figuring this stuff out for themselves. This is woodworking after all, there are no secrets just not yet practised skills.
People who write and teach want people who read and attend, they are always selling something...
Yes,they ARE,Chris!!(always selling something!)
If you want guru status,do a lot of writing,maybe start a TV show,and many will believe everything that comes out of your mouth.
As long as its predimensioned. Working from large, rough sawn boards with just a Stanley #4 with a straight blade, a backsaw and 4 chisels is going to be a challenge. Just like adding some mouldings or building a wardrobe.
Schwarz, Underhill, Sellers, et al are teachers, mostly producing content for beginners. Easing the entry to to woodworking, sure, and also piquing interest. Keeping things simple and direct is a reasonable part of this.
I am a high school teacher. If I tell students, "Here's a way to go about [whatever process], but here's this other way, and a third way, and then there's this unusual circumstance that doesn't fit, oh and then here's something else cool, and..." those students are lost in a mire of information. It might be accurate and applicable information, but it's too much. If they master the simple material first, they have some context and experience to master the nuance.
I'm sure a few of my kids get to college and argue with a professor - "That's not how I learned it!" That's frustrating, but at least they are invested in and confident with the material. Hopefully their eyes get opened along the way. I'd way rather students do that than meet new ideas with a shrug.
When Schwarz and Sellers say "Do it this way" they are keeping it digestible. If some people to take a particularly effective teacher's lessons as the whole Truth, I don't think faulting the teachers is really fair.
It's always tempting to roll our eyes when a newbie starts preaching things they just learned, but mostly it's the joy of discovery they are trying to share. To some grizzled vets it's old news, to others it's simply wrong. But I've been that new guy, and nothing turns me off more than the masters who scoff. An offer to show a different way, some encouraging advice goes a long way to helping us take a little broader view.
Also, I agree what this forum is generally blessed free of that attitude. It's why I keep coming here.
I think that I have a nice "set" of planes.
Vintage Stanley Bench Planes: #40 Scrub Plane, #3, #4, #4 1/2, #5, #5 1/4, #5 1/2, #6, #7, and #8.
I also have a LN Rabbeting Block Plane, LV Low Angle Block Plane w/knob & tote, LV BU Smoother, LV Large Shoulder Plane, LV Skew Rabbet Plane, LV Router Plane, ECE Jointer Plane, ECE Mortise Plane, ECE Jack Plane, ECE Rabbet Plane, ECE Block Plane, ECE Primus 711 Smoother (for sale if anyone is interested), and a several miscellaneous Vintage Planes.
I consider myself a Hybrid Woodworker, but I believe that I tend to use most of my handplanes more regularly than many do.
"I've cut the dang thing three times and it's STILL too darn short"
Name withheld to protect the guilty
Stew Hagerty
Interesting that on Chris' blog, he only has eleven (11) responses whereas here the post count in this thread is now close to sixty (60).
We even were mentioned on Twitter!
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Good to discuss this stuff.
"If you have all your fingers, you can convert to Metric"
This may not add anything to the discussion, but (in an effort to lighten the mood) reading all these comments puts me in mind of every Kung Fu movie I've ever seen. "My Master's British Style is superior to your Master's Kentucky style." (over-dubbed in English of course.) "Very well, let us plane shavings!" "Ha Ha Ha, my convex bevels shall defeat your ruler trick". . . . .
Sometimes my thoughts turn toward my being on the verge of having too many planes. They are taking over all the space in my shop. I start to run from them, I stop to catch my breath... Then I wakeup and brew my morning coffee.I think that I have a nice "set" of planes.
jtk
"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
- Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)
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A little fuzzy......
As someone who is in the process of retiring, I have been moving to using hand tools in the last couple of years I figure I will have plenty of time ( god willing) to hone my skills. I think I would call myself a "fanboy" of just about all of the teachers and enjoy sorting thru the various viewpoints. Eventually I settle on what works best for me, but it is beneficial to know of alternate ways to complete a task.