Page 1 of 4 1234 LastLast
Results 1 to 15 of 52

Thread: Is Woodworking "Not for everyone?"

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jan 2005
    Location
    Riverside, CA
    Posts
    228

    Is Woodworking "Not for everyone?"

    Lately, I've been on a woodworking emotional rollercoaster. I've really been frustrated with a project I've been working on for corner shelves. In fact, the last time I had a problem, I posed this about glue. This post also references the first pass at this project - on which I didn't have nearly the kind of problems I've had this time.

    I had a couple more panels to glue up to replace the ones the glue dried too quickly on. I re-realized I'm having a really hard time acheiveing a flat panel. At 14-15 inches, they're too big to go through my planer, and I can't seem to get good results from the LN No. 4 I have. So I wait a couple of weeks and take another pass.

    Taking the advice on the glue post, I bought some Weldwood and attempted a glue-up yesterday. I'm still getting gaps in the middle of the shelf, using virtually every clamp I own, including two strap clamps. Additionally, when I put the Weldwood on the end-grain, the poplar seemed to soak it up like a sponge.

    I was very inspired by Mark's therapy post but I'm begining to think that, as much as I like getting out there and working with my hands (I'm a systems guy by trade), maybe woodworking is just not the right hobby for me.

    I've played guitar since highschool. My best friend back then really, really wanted to play too. He had a nice guitar and amp, and tried and tried and tried. Unfortunately, he didn't have the rythem or dexterity to play well. Eventually he gave it up. He just wasn't mean to play guitar, despite really wanting to.

    Perhaps the same may be true for me and woodworking. I sometimes find that I may not be detail oriented enough, or simply lack the "natural" skills necessary to do what I envision on a project.

    So my question is this; is woodworking just not for everyone?

    - John

  2. #2
    Quote Originally Posted by John Hulett
    So my question is this; is woodworking just not for everyone?

    - John
    Simply put,,, no its not.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Aug 2005
    Location
    Benton Falls, Maine
    Posts
    5,480
    Try the turning aspect of woodworking John.

    I like it because (among other things) there are no "in betweens". It either explodes or succeeds.
    Only the Blue Roads

  4. #4
    Quote Originally Posted by John Hulett
    So my question is this; is woodworking just not for everyone?
    - John
    John,

    I read your post and I have been at the point you are now... where nothing seems to go right, fit right, don't know how to fix it because you lack experience and knowledge...

    I'm a systems guy as well... In my past, I've been known as the least mechanically inclined in my family.. heck there was a point I couldn't even assemble sauder furniture following directions... However, I kept at it, joined a local club, got some 1-on-1 instruction and now I'm mediocre... meaning I can make a particular piece and make it passable.

    I can tell you, if you don't give up... keep practicing, the skills will come.

    Like all good computer geeks, if you want to learn a thing, read about it... then do it until you get it right. There are awesome resources out there. Find a local club... take a class or two (woodcraft has some great classes).

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Sep 2003
    Location
    Grand Marais, MN. A transplant from Minneapolis
    Posts
    5,513
    Hey John!
    I can relate.
    As far as gaps are concerned it is the jointing and not the glue or clamps. Either tools need tuning or technique needs work. Can your saw cut a gluable joint If you really have to muscle a joint to get it to close it will never hold. A #4 is a smoother How about a #5 to flatten it??

    I would agree it is not for everyone. Maybe you haven't found your pile of saw dust yet.
    At a real low spot in WW creativity and progress, I took a neander course. I can't believe the difference it made in my attitude (not necessarily my skill level). I approached the project with new eyes. Paid a lot of attention to the tools and there set up, then went through and cleaned the whole shop. Made a big difference not to mention I found some tools I was looking for.
    I was was at a David Marks seminar and just hanging out with other WW was a real boost.
    Post some of your work, get some help. Don't force it. Put it away for a while and see what happens
    This is suppose to be fun.
    TJH
    Live Like You Mean It.



    http://www.northhouse.org/

  6. Quote Originally Posted by Andy Hoyt
    Try the turning aspect of woodworking John.

    I like it because (among other things) there are no "in betweens". It either explodes or succeeds.
    How true, how true....

    Of course WW is not for everyone, if it was, there would be no other hobbies...........(there are other hobbies............right..?).

    The thing is, you have to want to do it. A long time ago, I started to train in Aikido, a martial art, I like it very much, but I sucked at it, but I kept at it, and I eventually moved to Japan to learn more (looooooong story that).

    Was I as good as the guys who had boat loads on natural talent, no, would I ever be as good as those guy, most likely not, but it was not a competition. Just like WW, it is not a competition, it is a hobby, so what if you cannot make a flat panel, try some other aspect of WW and find one you like. Some guys are really good with hand tools, some are not, some are brilliant with finishing, I SUCK

    We do this for ourselves, you have to find something about it that you like and that you can improve at.

    I guess the long and the short of it is, are you enjoying yourself (forget the recent panel thing) if the answer is "Yes" keep at it, it will come, if the answer is "No" well, then I suggest you find something else to do.

    Sometimes a change is as good as a rest, try something else for a while.

    Hope this helps.

    Cheers!

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Aug 2005
    Location
    Glenmoore, PA
    Posts
    2,194
    I think Stu hits it dead on. I am a software guy and so (by extension) I can appreciate the frustration you go through on a regular basis at work. Who needs that at home when you should be relaxing. We have all had projects that just won't seem to end (currently working on one myself) or nothing seems to go right but if there is not even a glimmer of joy or relaxation in you even during those trying times then it just might not be the hobby for you. It may even turn out to be an unsafe one if you push things or let your anger and frustration get the best of you - only takes a split second loss of focus.

    Stu's suggestion of taking a rest is also a good one - allows you to reconnect with what got you into it in the first place. If after a month you don't miss it, then perhaps it is not for you.

    BTW: I am in the same boat as your friend. I love music and have tried to play on numerous ocassions and just seem genetically incapable of getting it. Same goes for foreign languages.

  8. #8
    Quote Originally Posted by John Hulett
    So my question is this; is woodworking just not for everyone?
    I feel it's only for the ones that stick with it.

    If for some reason you or anyone decides this craft was not for them, it must not have been!
    --
    Life is about what your doing today, not what you did yesterday! Seize the day before it sneaks up and seizes you!

    Alan - http://www.traditionaltoolworks.com:8080/roller/aland/

  9. #9
    Have you tried taking a class, read a few good books, watched a DVD or video? Any woodworkers in the area that you could visit with? Ive gained most of my woodworking knowledge from reading magazines. What has your woodworking experience been up to now, and what tools do you have? I think you can learn it if you want to. I would be glad to help you out if there was any way that I could.
    Scott

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
    Location
    Placitas, NM in the foothills of the Sandia Mountain.
    Posts
    527

    Some ideas (longish)

    Hey John,
    I've been there - things screw up that shouldn't or just everything in general screws up. And I'll probably be there again. In the old systems days I would look for a root cause, probably a poorly understood requirement or a bad assumption that grows worse as code is built around it.

    My woodworking has gotten a lot better over the years, but I still make mistakes, and I don't know anyone who doesn't.

    Here's a few rules of thumb I use to try to stay out of trouble:
    - Don't try too many new things in one project, one new technique mastered is reward enough.
    - Focus on the work. Turn off the radio. Don't think about what else you have to do. Get everything that isn't related to this little task out of the way. If you can't do that, put it down and come back when you can.
    - Learn what matters and what doesn't. Your square has to be absolutely dead on. Put it on something straight, draw a line, flip it over, draw the line again. If you see two lines anywhere or the line starts to get thick, take the square back and get another one. I had to do this 3 times. Big squares aren't. You have pretty good odds with a 3 or 4 inch machinist square, but when you go to 6 inches or a foot - gooood luck.
    Get the best 6 inch ruler you can find - it needs to have separate scales for 1/8, 1/6, 1/32, and 1/64. Your milling equipment - tablesaw, jointer, planer - needs to be dead accurate, if its not, keep trying until it is.
    Things that are not important in most cases - brand of glue - they are all good; brand of sawblade (as long as you are using the right type for the job); getting a 'good deal' on a tool (you will probably pay later).
    - Take a class. Not the short class at the local tool seller where they set everything up for you. I took a class at the local community college and was dumbfounded: I was doing almost everything the hard way and leaving myself open for errors. Before the class, I thought I knew what I was doing...

    I hope this helps. Go for some small satisfying victories. If its still not fun a year from now, try something else.

    Hope I haven't offended anyone too badly. I know some great woodworkers who do things differently, but this works for me, who like John, is not a natural at this.

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Jan 2005
    Location
    Harrisburg, NC
    Posts
    2,255
    John, it makes me sad to read your post. You seem to have the desire and vision to work with wood but lack the skills.
    I don't know what your back ground with tools is, but I suspect it is lacking. Part of the problem is the school systems today, which were most likely in transistion when you were in school, but that doesn't help you now.
    I find most new woodworkers, or even in other hobbies, are way to ambitious and set themselves up for failure. Pick smaller projects to get instant gradification. Break larger projects into smaller ones. One of the most important things you can do, is start with quality materials too. You are setting yourself up if you are not using straight boards to begin with. Processing materials, making lumber straight and square, is sometimes the toughest part of woodworking and mediocre results leads to mediocre projects which will be disappointing to you.
    Find some help, even the grumpyest old woodworker will most likely offer his assistance to help a fellow woodman.

    Richard

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Oct 2003
    Location
    Seattle WA
    Posts
    437
    I dont think the hobby can be for everyone. Its takes an extremely high amount of patience to do this hobby. With that said, i get frustrated at some point on every thing I build. You just have to hang in there. I find it really helps to get in contact with a local guy that knows a lot!

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Apr 2006
    Location
    Phoenix AZ Area
    Posts
    2,505
    John, it sounds like you are embarking on the hand tools approach to woodworking. I've been an avid machine approach to woodworking for 30 years. I've dabled in hand tools a little, and man is that frustrating. I can imagine a day (when I'm retired) where I will learn and master hand tools, but for now I'm too impatient.

    To get nice flat glueups, each piece needs to be flat (no twist per winding sticks) and the edges need to be flat (checked with a straight edge), and the edges need to be a perfect 90 degrees to the sides (check with a square). Doing all three with hand tools has eluded me thus far. I will say that when I got my own planer, and switched to only buying rough sawn wood, the quality of my work improved, and it was easier to get flat panels. I was 14 when I started this hobby. My father and I would have local wood sawn, we would air dry for a couple of years, and then we had an old giant planer to surface it. I still don't know why, but my father would plane each board until it was smooth, but he didn't surface the wood to a uniform thickness. Plus, the old planer ran on a 30HP gas engine that was really hard to start, and the planer wasn't well adjusted and some adjustments were rusted frozen. (heck, he got a 5000 lb planer from a farmer for $100). Anyway, back then we would find boards that were about the same thickness for glueups, and then we used belt sanders to smooth them out (this really sucked as it took a long time and the results were not great).

  14. #14
    Join Date
    May 2006
    Location
    Greenville, South Carolina
    Posts
    756
    Quote Originally Posted by Stu Ablett in Tokyo Japan
    I guess the long and the short of it is, are you enjoying yourself (forget the recent panel thing) if the answer is "Yes" keep at it, it will come, if the answer is "No" well, then I suggest you find something else to do.
    It can't be any plainer than that. And so true. If I had a nickel for every cock-up I made on a project, I could hire someone else to do it.

    Some of us are process-oriented (patient, methodical, and enjoy the act of building) while others of us are result-oriented (derive our greatest enjoyment from the finished project). I'm one of the latter and that leads to more mistakes than the first group makes. But I enjoy it, so I keep doing it and keep learning. If you're not having any fun, if it's not relaxing, do someting else. But if you enjoy it and are just tired of the frustration, take the time to read a book, take a class, heck, watch NYW re-runs.

    We all have limitations in WW (well, with some notable exceptions on this forum) but our goal is to slowly but surely extend our talents and get some satisfaction in the process.

    I admit that my approach to WW is simple-minded: I study, observe, try, fail; study, observe, try, fail; study, observe, try and succeed or not. The third time I fail, I simply agree with myself that that technique is not for me and look for alternatives (usually involving buying a new tool ).

    WW may not be for everyone--but there is a place in WW for everyone who enjoys it. Best of luck.
    Cheers,
    Bob

    I measure three times and still mess it up.

  15. #15
    Join Date
    May 2006
    Location
    Poland
    Posts
    637
    Hi John

    When I was in the army (very long time ago) we were saying: There is no ‘I can not’, there is ‘I don’t want’.

    I’m an amateur like you and I’m shy to tell, but my first coffee table was glued with CA (yes, Supper glue) but NOT Mortise & Tenon or kind of. The legs glued to the table apron face to face, without any mechanical connection (even not screws), and to make it “stronger”, I glued the table top to the apron. That much I knew about WW.

    Please don’t be discouraged by one or two failures, I believe that it happened to everybody including me, don’t give up, check where you did wrong and correct it.

    My hand working skills are very close to zero, so I made jigs and fixtures for the electric tools, to make the work for me.

    About your gluing problem please have a look at this post to see my method, it never failed for me.
    http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=37335

    I’m using the Polyurethane glue with 30 minutes open time.

    Oh yes, I made the mentioned above coffee table 12 years ago in Japan and left it to a friend (he wanted it), 4 months ago I visited him. The table is still in one piece to my surprise…

    Regards
    niki

Similar Threads

  1. Netflix/ woodworking
    By Doug Jones in forum General Woodworking and Power Tools
    Replies: 17
    Last Post: 01-04-2007, 2:53 PM
  2. List Of Acronyms - Updated 12/1/05
    By Joseph N. Myers in forum Off Topic Forum
    Replies: 12
    Last Post: 12-09-2006, 11:04 PM
  3. Anybody Checked Out Woodworking Magazine?
    By Tom LaRussa in forum General Woodworking and Power Tools
    Replies: 3
    Last Post: 10-04-2004, 5:31 PM
  4. Woodworking in Paradise
    By Jack Hogoboom in forum General Woodworking and Power Tools
    Replies: 1
    Last Post: 06-06-2004, 11:17 PM

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •