Who are your favorite woodworkers of all time?

[junyer green]

Personally, for me its my 2 Grandfathers. I know the guys mentioned by others previously are far more talented and well known, but none of them inspired me to begin the craft and got me going in it. I remember going out with them to their workshops and "helping" them by putting tacks in this board, or sanding that one down for them on scrap pieces. Then as i got older being able to use more tools and then power tools and them teaching me simple projects I could do on my own. The majority of my power tools I use today were theirs and older than I am craftsman ones. As far as their "design and style", it was simple things usually, like a 3/8" plywood kitchen set, with a fridge that opened, painted on stove eyes and knobs. Wooden toys, like a climbing bear, cars, trucks, trains, and the like. It means more than anything to me now that my son likes to go work with me in my makeshift shop and use the same tack hammer I did when I was his age to drive nails and "work" with me.

Since i have gotten older and back into the craft , i have looked into other designers and woodworkers, and appreciate and admire their work. One I keep going to would be Frank Strazza and his marquetry and other traditional style, hand tool craftsmanship. I also enjoy other newer people on youtube, like sawyer design. While i enjoy their work and skill, I am also realistic in knowing that will never be me. I simply don't have the natural talent, skill level, or the time and resources to attain that level of craftsmanship. With that said though, it has not deterred me from trying though and working to improve my skills and craft. Even when I all I can afford to do is make a simple shoe basket out of used pallet wood because my son wanted to play tee ball, and needed gear, or practicing dovetails on scrap pieces i brought home from work. For me now, woodworking is my escape to destress and clear my mind. I can put my apron on, and clap up a scrap piece of oak and practice hand cutting a dovetail that requires me to focus only on that and forget abut the stresses of work. Its one of my only hobbies i enjoy like that I can do at home. So I am ever so thankful for my Pappy and Pawpaw for instilling this love of the craft in me at a young age.

[Rob Luter]

Christian Becksvoort
Darrel Peart
Greg Paolini
Nancy Hiller (RIP)

And countless others who are evangelicals for the shaker and arts and crafts styles.

[jerry cousins]

james krenov

[Phil Gaudio]

Let's not forget Norm Abram: he is arguably the reason why so many of us got into WW.

[Jim Becker]

Let's not forget Norm Abram: he is arguably the reason why so many of us got into WW.

That's true, but my admiration for Norm is mostly about getting me interested. The folks I mentioned previously were because of their influence on my actual work or the kinds of work I aspired to try.

[John Kananis]

Ok so this may be a cop-out answer but I appreciate all of them. They each add something special to our world, whether it's our style or not. Maybe one day I'll achieve a fraction of their excellence and I'll be in a better position to judge.

[Maurice Mcmurry]

My favorites are not known so much as wood workers as they are for the things they made out of wood.
Antonio Stradivarius, Lloyd Loar, C.F. Martin, Les Paul, Leo Fender, John Gardner, …

[Phil Gaudio]

That's true, but my admiration for Norm is mostly about getting me interested. The folks I mentioned previously were because of their influence on my actual work or the kinds of work I aspired to try.

Favorite Woodworker of All Time: I have to stick with Norm. I doubt I'd be a woodworker without his ability to convince people who had no particular skill at WW that it could be done: that it was possible to accomplish these seemingly unobtainable goals. Most influential woodworker: I'd go with Christian Becksvoort.

[Curt Harms]

That's true, but my admiration for Norm is mostly about getting me interested. The folks I mentioned previously were because of their influence on my actual work or the kinds of work I aspired to try.

There's no question that Norm is not a peer of most of those mentioned above. None of those mentioned though did as much as Norm in getting the number of people interested in basic woodworking. Those who take an interest beyond the basics then learn about the skilled artisans. Would there be a demand for a PBS show featuring how to build the work of the above mentioned artisans that would run for 20 years? I doubt it.

[Derek Cohen]

Personally, i am a big fan of Dr. Derek Cohen and Professor Michael Allen. Both are attentive to detail, willing to share and genuinely nice people. Honorable mention to Glenn Bradley too.

There is also Mark Yundt, a carver who used to post great projects here, but i have not seen him post for 2 years. Very talented.

Thank you Patrick. You are very kind … quite deranged and possibly suffering a perceptual disorder … but very kind.

I must point to Norm Abrams and The New Yankee Workshop for getting me started on building furniture more seriously for home. He kindled an interest in machinery and how to use them. This was around 1990. Up until then I was just a carpenter renovating the homes we purchased. Then I read Jim Krenov and he taught me to look at wood grain and balance. I grew up with a love of wood inherited from my father, a architect, who designed our house, which used timbers from around the world … a wall of Canadian Redwood, for example. Japanese woodworking inspired a love of hand tools, but it was traditional British woodworkers, especially Jim Kingshott, who emphasised the importance of traditional Western joinery.

I recognise that there were many to influence design, and really what they did was reinforce my existing preferences. For example, I like subtle curves and lines that flow (like a Porsche 356a I restored, and the 22 year old Porsche I now drive), and the work of Sam Maloof and Wharton Esherick come to mind. I have made Esherick stools. I made Hans Wegner’s The Chair.

My taste in design is simple lines, essentially reduced to minimalism, rather than simple. This sounds contradictory, but it is harder work and misleadingly so. Jim Krenov, especially, Shaker designs have been important, and for some years I have been entranced by Garrett Hack. I wish it was possible to complete a course with Garrett. Financially and geographically I remain distanced from teachers, and learn by examining their work, and feedback from forums like SMC. Thank you.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Mel Fulks]

“ Now , I’m’ just gonna use my “ row -tuh “ ,to trim my toe - nails” ! . “ BE Careful , use goggles to protect your eyes !”

[Wes Grass]

Personally, i am a big fan of Dr. Derek Cohen and Professor Michael Allen. Both are attentive to detail, willing to share and genuinely nice people. Honorable mention to Glenn Bradley too.

There is also Mark Yundt, a carver who used to post great projects here, but i have not seen him post for 2 years. Very talented.

I'll throw Jim B in with a couple of those. I check Derek's site on a fairly regular basis.

One of the 'big names' was doing a 'presentation' at one of the big shows, maybe Atlanta. How to hand cut dovetails...

I got bored of him blowing plane shavings at an attractive woman and walked away ...

[Mel Fulks]

Always liked Mike Angelo’s work. Good wood was not easy to get ,back in the old days. He used marble , it’s a lot like concrete ….only
harder to use . And again …. I remind us that when he finished he used his mallet to tap Mose’s knee , and told Moses , “ NOW SPEAK!

[James Pallas]

My favorites are. Phil Lowe, Roy Underhill, George Wilson, and Jack Plane. All for the same reasons, relaxed do the task with few special tools using normal furniture maker skills. I like others also and the list can get rather lengthy.
Jim

[Wes Grass]

Roy Underhill... PBS ...

Awesome...