New Member

[Randy Coggin]

I have been checking out this and several other forums for the last month or so, and this is the first one where I have registered. I found Badger Pond just as it was closing, and saw that many of the regulars there were moving here.
I am very new to woodworking. I have good friends who have been involved for years, and I have helped with some projects, and I have a younger brother who has been doing it for years, and has made some very nice furniture. I want to get started, but at present I have no tools, which is good, because I have nowhere to put them. I hope to remedy that in the near future.
I plan to attend the Woodworking show in Atlanta this weekend and have looked at some of the seminars offered. I hate to pay for some that are probably too advanced for me, and some of the free demos may be too basic. I guess I'm looking for suggestions as to which of the seminars you would recommend for someone with very limited experience. Thanks.

[Ted Shrader]

Randy -

Welcome to the Saw Mill. It appears positioned to extend the hospitable tmmosphere if the Pond.

Suggestion for the WW show. Take in the free demos. You can ask lots of questions there. Wander around the show and get an idea of which woodworking direction(s) you would like to explore first. Lots info to be had w/o attending any seminars. But, if one catches your eye though .....

Have fun,
Ted

[John Sanford]

hand tools.

Attend and peruse any and all of the hand tool demos and seminars that you can. Especially sharpening.

If you plan on getting tools, if you're just jonesing to buy some tools, then get some chisels, a decent block plane, a scary sharp setup (i.e., some plate glass and wet/dry sandpaper) and a couple of inexpensive japanese saws. For power tools, if you don't already have one, get a quality 12-15.6v cordless drill.

Also, if you have the opportunity, get a fine English made Record vise while you still can. You may not have a bench for it for a while, but this is one of those "gettin' while the gettin's good."

It is strongly recommended that you avoid (for the time being) any products that are being sold by "barkers." They're generally either too sophisticated for a newbie to extract their value, so specialized that a newbie frequently doesn't even understand the problem its solving, or just plain gimmick/gadget, i.e., high cost/low value.

enjoy the show, and try to either hook up with some others from this site or go with some of the folks you already know who are woodworking.

[Ken Salisbury]

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DIVE RIGHT IN THE WATER'S FINE
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[Lee Schierer]

Hey jump on ithe water is fine. Glad to have another member. We look forward to helping you as you progress into woodworking.

[Ken Wright]

Last time I saw you .... you were probably 10-12 years old. I know your Mom well and also knew your Dad.....

Welcome to the "Crick" ... anything I can do to be of help to you just let me know. Don't let my brother get you started on bird houses.

[Bob Lasley]

Plop down on one of those big rocks and soak your feet. One thing about woodworking, it is a never ending learning process. No matter how good you are, there is always more to learn. So you'll fit right in here because were all learning!

Bob

[John Miliunas]

...and stay a while. As some others have stated, lots to learn for all of at all kinds of levels, so don't feel like the "Lone Ranger". You already have one of the most important elements in this pursuit: The desire. The tools and methods will come with time. Enjoy and again, welcome to the Creek!

[John Sanford]

Randy,

Most of these other folks may be aware, but my suggestion regarding handtools isn't because I'm a Galoot. (Galoot = Neander = hard core hand tool afficiando). I have a fairly well equipped shop with the usual suspects, table saw, bandsaw, drill press, planer, jointer, router, etc.

Starting out with the handtools will accomplish several things. First, you can keep your costs down. Second, less noise and less mess. Third, less risk of severe injury. Fourth, you develop more of a sense of the inherent variability of wood. This is important because most people today coming into woodworking don't really understand that, conditioned as we are to working with/assemblying etc materials that are remarkably stable. Fifth, you will need these tools if you decide to seriously pursue woodworking, even if you go the Normite route. Sixth, AFTER doing things with handtools, you'll have a better sense of confidence in tackling tasks with power tools. The confidence factor doesn't work nearly as well going the other way, perhaps because one is frequently merely an operator when using power tools, as opposed to a manipulator.

Enjoy the Creek, and remember, dull tools (except for hammers ) cause more accidents than sharp ones.

[Randy Coggin]

Thanks for all the advice and welcome! I'll be at the WW show in Atlanta this weekend, so maybe I'll run into some of you. BTW, I read a post somewhere that said the crowds at this show are huge...that it might take an hour to get in? Is there a best time to go? I could go Friday afternoon, but it looks like most folks are going to be there Saturday. What do you think? Maybe just go both days...