I've only been home a short while from the WIA Conference and my thoughts are still in the marketplace.
As per usual, I spent a lot of time chatting with tool makers and other woodwork
ers.Here are some of the new products that were on display and some of the people that I met for the first time.
I don't need to tell you that all of these toolmakers are top notch. Every single tool that was offered by them was finely-crafted and works exceptionally well.
When making a decision between which toolmaker to choose for chisels, planes, saws, etc., it often comes down to personal preference.
That's where having the opportunity to try the tools in person makes all the difference in your decision-making.
These are marvelous toolmakers
. You simply cannot go wrong with any of them.----------
List of Companies
(in no particular order):
Tools For Working Wood
Greener Lumber LLC
Bad Axe Toolworks
Brese Planes
Garbardi & Son
Vogt Toolworks
Noden Inlay Razor
Daed Toolworks
Knew Concepts
Blue Spruce Toolworks
Elkhead Tools
M.S. Bickford
I actually had to consciously avoid Konrad Sauer's booth in the latter half of the show because of the danger that I would touch another one of his planes again and buy it.
ReplyDeleteKari, looks like you spent much more precious time in the marketplace than I did. Hope you came home on budget.
ReplyDeleteLOVE my Blue Spruce Fishtail chisels and marking knives!!! Absolutely beautiful and a joy to use!!
ReplyDeleteThat shooting board with a ramp is a brilliant idea.
ReplyDeleteI betcha the Knew fretsaws handle will stay attached. :)
Nice overview of the good stuff.
ReplyDeleteGreat meeting you and Nancy.
I hope the introduction of power tools
does not overwhelm the hand tool vendors
in the future. Someone's gotta mind the
entry doorway.
Well done, Kari.
Hi, great pictures Kari, thank you for posting. I will write Santa at christmas for an awl and new marking knife from blue spruce
ReplyDeleteI wish to ask you if you attended a saw-sharpening lesson with bad axe and if so, do you know something about sloping gullets ?
Have a nice day, Ciao !
Hi Kari - good stuff. The Vogt shooting board looks almost identical to the one I developed in August 09:
ReplyDeletehttp://woodbloker.blogspot.com/2009/08/global-warming.html
Looks to me that the BlokeBog is more widely read than I thought!..or it's remarkable coincidence - Rob
gchpaco, I know what you mean. Did you see that enormous ebony jointer? *wold whistle*
ReplyDeleteDyami, I only bought one thing--an antique backsaw. Can you believe it? I get overwhelmed with all these tools and can't make a decision. I usually wind up buying from them online after I've been home a while.
Vic, he makes such lovely things for us woodworkers, doesn't he? ; )
Darnell, I'm keeping an eye on the fret saws and will probably buy one once they're offered on their website. They're pretty expensive, but it will be worth it to have the handle stay on and the blade stay taut.
Tom, it was great to meet you! I'd like to see the hand tools and power tools in separate areas.
Julio, I took saw sharpening classes with Ron Herman and plan to write a couple posts about it. I forgot to ask Mark about sloping gullets, but I think I'll have an answer for you when I write about Ron's classes.
Rob, I'm not sure who came up with the idea originally, but Derek Cohen (Australia) also developed a sloped ramp shooting boards. Brilliant minds think alike!
Kari... The wood body planes by MS Brickford look very interesting, did you get a chance to try them out?
ReplyDeleteCharles
Charles, I wish I had. I watched and filmed Matt using them, though, and they worked great. He had a stack of moulding that he had shaped with his planes, and they all had a very smooth finish. To look at them, they are identical to Clark & Williams.
ReplyDeleteIf you’re interested in the Titanium fret saws, you can go the link below and read Glen Huey’s blog on using this fret saw and what he thought of it. He says that their editor had one of the saws so Glen borrowed it and tried it. Glen does say that he doesn’t use coping and fret saws very much, but with that in mind he does have some interesting observations. I noticed he never refers to the New Concept saw as a fret saw, but this is mentioned in a number of the comments posted.
ReplyDeletehttp://blogs.popularwoodworking.com/editorsblog/Follow+Ones+Own+Advice+A+Knew+Concept.aspx
Dean
Kari, Great meeting you and Nancy!! I just saw that Mike Siemsen posted the Olympics results. You did great, and I need to practice up a bit. I did pretty well though.
ReplyDeleteCheck it out: http://www.schoolofwood.com/node/54
take care,
Corey
Dean, thanks for the link. I'm keeping an eye on these saws once they're made available. I'd really like to replace the cheapie one I use that can't hold an angle.
ReplyDeleteCorey, it was great to meet you, too!! Thanks for the link. The Handtool Olympics is always one of the highlights for me. Even Nancy tried her hand at sawing and planing. :o)
Hi Kari, I'm soo jealous! There is no such nice woodworking tools exhibition in my country.. (Thailand) *gossip* but I have already put an order for the mighty fretsaw, and I'm waiting for it to get delivered now. :D
ReplyDelete