tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261993076995357307.post3247290228898019070..comments2023-11-05T06:16:56.961-05:00Comments on the Carpentry Way: BCM Maker Faire (follow up)Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14328401081765407624noreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261993076995357307.post-12484457973777103712016-07-29T14:09:30.141-04:002016-07-29T14:09:30.141-04:00Todd,
some good insights there - much appreciated...Todd,<br /><br />some good insights there - much appreciated! I enjoyed seeing you there as well.<br /><br />~CAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14328401081765407624noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261993076995357307.post-88748274995014361142016-07-29T13:54:29.250-04:002016-07-29T13:54:29.250-04:00Chris -
Thanks for making the time to get out th...Chris - <br /><br />Thanks for making the time to get out there and share what you do with a group of folks who have been largely unexposed. I think it's important for a couple of reasons:<br /><br />1) Design : The concept of actually thinking a problem through and picking (or developing) an appropriate solution is foreign to many people. Japanese joinery offers so many opportunities to discuss solutions for tension, bending, twisting and splicing that people might not intuitively recognize.<br /><br />2) Craftsmanship : As you point out - the mere concept that handwork is not only possible, but can be executed to a standard as high as yours - is equally foreign. In a Maker Faire context, this should be an opportunity not just to display and show off your own talents, but to educate and inspire a whole groups of young people about what is possible. <br /><br />It was great to see you there - I've always enjoyed seeing and hearing what you're up to. The fact that you bring it out and share at events like this is fantastic.<br /><br />Cheers!<br />ToddTodd Harrishttp://www.42designfab.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261993076995357307.post-21520116601635932592016-07-28T20:05:07.487-04:002016-07-28T20:05:07.487-04:00Rob,
thanks for the comment. I wasn't under t...Rob,<br /><br />thanks for the comment. I wasn't under the impression that people at the Faire were wanting to see lasers or CNC - it was more that they assumed that those technologies were the means by which I made the pieces.<br /><br />In respect to your question about replacing a piece of molding by those three methods, it is hard to say which method would be fastest or cheapest. That depends on lots of factors. <br /><br />I could recognize which part was hand-formed using moulding planes and which part was milled by router or shaper in most cases, however I will say that such nuances are completely lost on the vast majority of the consuming public. <br /><br />I was thinking today that the use of dovetailed drawers on so many things, as a signifier of 'quality', is a message largely lost on most of the purchasing public. And even if the buyer of a cabinet is aware of dovetails, differences between machine-cut and hand-cut dovetails are, I suspect, largely an irrelevance to them. The differences between these things are, in fact, only of interest to a certain small subset of people among those who make furniture.<br /><br />I myself do not have objections to CNC equipment and am happy to use whatever method is most convenient and accurate to accomplish a task. So, I wasn't offended by questions about lasers or CNC - it was more the case that I found such questions surprising and led me to new understandings about everyday people and their perceptions of woodwork these days. I'm sure the market research departments of large furniture manufacturers are already well aware of these things.<br /><br />~CAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14328401081765407624noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261993076995357307.post-30828297304475858882016-07-28T19:34:32.324-04:002016-07-28T19:34:32.324-04:00Given the environment, it isn't terribly surpr...Given the environment, it isn't terribly surprising that the people wanted to see lasers and CNC machines. That kind of technology has a place, and in most cases it does surpass the accuracy and speed of hand work. Most cases, but not all.<br />If you have a piece of furniture with some missing moulding, perhaps a two foot section, that is broken or missing, how do you replace it? You could grind a custom profile and then run it in a moulder or shaper. You could try various router set ups to achieve the same end. The more "primitive" option would be to use a set of hollows and rounds.<br />Which method, given that you have a skilled person in each instance, would be faster? Which would be cheaper? Lastly, if laid side by side, could you spot the one made by hand?<br />I'm sure there are other examples of the more traditional methods being better suited for certain tasks. If nothing else, there was probably joinery on that table that would be difficult to get at with a machine due to the geometry.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02166950335093034250noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261993076995357307.post-45001865383702400232016-07-25T18:23:19.847-04:002016-07-25T18:23:19.847-04:00You two gentlemen have some good ideas however I c...You two gentlemen have some good ideas however I can not meet them with my available time anytime soon.<br /><br />~CAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14328401081765407624noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261993076995357307.post-13920970809963503872016-07-25T17:51:45.804-04:002016-07-25T17:51:45.804-04:00This might be a bit excessive, but if you can make...This might be a bit excessive, but if you can make a frame with a pair of sliding shoji it may offer much needed grounding for those looking at the joinery. Plus the kids can slide the doors back and forth, which is bound to offer the younger ones some enjoyment.<br /><br />Also it is bound to have some usefulness around the house.<br /><br />Kids seem to take-away a lot without seemingly showing much interest sometimes. Brian Hhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06207345071092915936noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261993076995357307.post-75011051037803115432016-07-25T14:12:07.539-04:002016-07-25T14:12:07.539-04:00Would it be an idea to take multiple examples of t...Would it be an idea to take multiple examples of the same joint in different phases of construction? From say a drawing to sketches on the wood to rough cut to finished joint.<br /><br />Given the amount of photos you already have on your blog you could certainly make a poster or presentation of something like that. Of course some physical examples would be nicer to look at but time consuming.Roland Smithhttp://rsmith.home.xs4all.nl/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261993076995357307.post-50681166333457653392016-07-25T09:26:10.098-04:002016-07-25T09:26:10.098-04:00Paul,
thanks for sharing that.Paul,<br /><br />thanks for sharing that.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14328401081765407624noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261993076995357307.post-28525992160496131672016-07-25T09:25:58.477-04:002016-07-25T09:25:58.477-04:00Roland,
I appreciate your comment. I hope I conn...Roland, <br /><br />I appreciate your comment. I hope I connected in some small way with some members of those future generations and that it may influence their path in life positively.<br /><br />~CAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14328401081765407624noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261993076995357307.post-91892556055519923502016-07-25T09:24:22.112-04:002016-07-25T09:24:22.112-04:00It's a curious world at times when you are the...It's a curious world at times when you are the maker of things and most people have no real idea what it entails or how it is done.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14328401081765407624noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261993076995357307.post-19741256107910709562016-07-25T09:22:00.180-04:002016-07-25T09:22:00.180-04:00Matt,
thanks for the comment. Your thought that i...Matt,<br /><br />thanks for the comment. Your thought that it might be a lack of context which is confusing people certainly carries merit. I did bring both a drawer and a sliding door to show how some of the joinery models related to joinery in parts of furniture, along with a set of drawer parts with joinery cut, and there was some interest in that. Of course, joinery when separated looks quite different than when together, and the finished constructions were less captivating to many people than the joints themselves. <br /><br />Next year, if I'm invited, I was thinking to do a larger architectural model of some sort to bring along, the construction of which would be, of course, time-permitting. It would take weeks and months to build anything significant.<br /><br />For this year, I scraped together what I had on hand, preparing only the four additional joinery models as part of a separate arrangement with the Japanese house within the museum.<br /><br />There's also the aspect of demonstrating actual carpentry techniques which I left off doing this time. I did that sort of thing last time I presented at the BCM (for Japanese New Years'), and it was far less interactive with people stopping by to look. Alas, I fear most people have neither the time nor the attention span for such demos to be entirely meaningful as a presentation.<br /><br />~CAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14328401081765407624noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261993076995357307.post-13536635334151775162016-07-25T09:04:56.900-04:002016-07-25T09:04:56.900-04:00Perhaps the joinery models are a bit abstract when...Perhaps the joinery models are a bit abstract when viewed alone and out of context. Would it be possible to bring some pictures, models, or full scale furniture to demonstrate the applications of joinery?<br /><br /><br />-Matt JAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261993076995357307.post-11084204436782110952016-07-24T19:40:05.959-04:002016-07-24T19:40:05.959-04:00Hard to believe that man pulled his (interested) d...Hard to believe that man pulled his (interested) daughter away from your table. It's great you showed people something they didn't know about, but sad all the same. I have a small store where I sell my wares and had a visitor the other day who said "you must have some sort of tool to do the painting on your wood signs". I held up my hand and said, "yes, this is my tool"!Julie @ followyourheartwoodworkinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12186806888262891917noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261993076995357307.post-7557342292690021282016-07-24T17:27:06.428-04:002016-07-24T17:27:06.428-04:00I've worked in animation for 30 years and for ...I've worked in animation for 30 years and for the last 15 years at least, people have been asking, "don't they have computers to do that now?".Paul Bouchardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02932534546505831256noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261993076995357307.post-29265846182859810372016-07-24T17:07:55.848-04:002016-07-24T17:07:55.848-04:00For most people joinery is kind of invisible, I th...For most people joinery is kind of invisible, I think. It's often hidden behind drywall or in attics. In the house I grew up in many joints were made with steel connector plates. I assume this was done to save cost.<br /><br />Given how good you work looks I cannot fault people for thinking it was made by machine, given that most high-precision parts are made by machine these days.<br />A layman wouldn't know that the rectangular corners in your work aren't really possible with milling.<br /><br />It's a good thing that you're exhibiting your skills at venues like these. Future generations should learn that we can create both beauty and precision with our own hands and modest tools.Roland Smithhttp://rsmith.home.xs4all.nl/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261993076995357307.post-25008174675139247762016-07-24T15:49:31.533-04:002016-07-24T15:49:31.533-04:00Hi Marc,
Oh, I did plan on bringing the sawhorses...Hi Marc,<br /><br />Oh, I did plan on bringing the sawhorses over, however I changed my mind when I realized it didn't make sense to do an actual carpentry demo as I was the only one manning the table and couldn't keep an eye on everything at once (and that was hard enough as it was). And they provided a table, saving me the trouble of bringing one.<br /><br />~CAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14328401081765407624noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261993076995357307.post-71722591068089300582016-07-24T15:47:31.749-04:002016-07-24T15:47:31.749-04:00I'll save the laser article for a later post -...I'll save the laser article for a later post -much later. <br /><br />I did mention to some that I work on the machi-ya (which is inside the BCM) and that I had designed and built the gate at the MFA's Tenshin garden.<br /><br />~CAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14328401081765407624noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261993076995357307.post-62077781996611380912016-07-24T15:43:18.451-04:002016-07-24T15:43:18.451-04:00Man, you didn't use your sawhorses as a subfra...Man, you didn't use your sawhorses as a subframe for your presentation's table?!<br />Nevertheless, glad you took the opportunity to act as a counterpart to all this robotics stuff.<br />I hope you enjoyed the day.<br />Marcnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6261993076995357307.post-12718342847964061902016-07-24T15:03:42.472-04:002016-07-24T15:03:42.472-04:00So, can you tell us more about the lasers you use ...So, can you tell us more about the lasers you use to make those?<br /><br />I hope you had an opportunity to at least point a few of them over to the gate or battari shogi. :)Brian Hhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06207345071092915936noreply@blogger.com