We are a woodworkers association – but what is a woodworker?

Is a person who frames houses with 2 x 4 studs a woodworker? – They are skilled people but the only hand tool they use is a level and these have mostly been replaced by lasers on tripods by now.

Is a person who builds kitchen cabinets on CNC machines such as we saw at Laney College last year a woodworker? – They are also skilled but use no hand tools.

Two of the earliest civilizations the Egyptians and the Chinese had woodworkers – people whose skills put them very high in the social order of importance. By the middle ages woodworkers were in Guilds, or craft associations. They had very specialized tools that people outside of the apprenticed Guild members did not have access to. By the beginning of the twentieth century factories were mass producing high quality woodworking tools, planes, chisels, etc. Some of these tools were very specialized, such as molding planes or tools for barrel making, etc. As a craftsman you acquired your tools and used them all of your life. Tools were relatively expensive and you only had a limited set. When you built new projects then you would make any extra jigs and guides needed as required.

Today anyone can obtain a great range of woodworking tools at a relatively low cost. Have woodworkers just become another target market for vendors sell to?

In the last 50 years we have seen the corner grocery stores mostly disappear and be replaced with supermarkets that stock 50,000+ items. If you wanted to just look at all of the products in the condiments and salad dressing aisle it would take you several hours. And with this "new" kind of store are we eating better? – We may be eating cheaper but I am not sure of that.

In the last 10-15 years woodworking seems to have gone through the same type of transformation.

I read a few weeks ago that OSH carried over 50 types of hammer. I checked the Rockler website and they have available 80 types of clamps, 85 Marking and Measuring tools and 161 items in the Workbenches, Vises, Shop Stands category. Woodcraft has about 105 items in the Marking and Measurement category and probably close to 100 clamp offerings.

Does this vast range of products make for better woodworkers? – I do not think so.

But it does encourage more people to get involved and try woodworking which is a good thing. Hopefully some of those that try will realize they need more than the tools. They need the knowledge that comes from learning about woodworking through meeting and talking to fellow woodworkers.

BAWA provides that knowledge by our osmosis type of meeting environment.

I hope you will encourage friends and acquaintances that show any interest in woodworking to attend one of our meetings. They should also be told that a year's membership is cheaper than most new tools!

(As a short postscript: I was looking at the Rockler website while thinking of this letter and read that they are selling something called "Flexx-Ra Finger Protection Wrap". It allows you to bind up your fingers prior to starting your project to help protect them from the stresses of woodwork. Are we now moving into the area of professional sports like boxing and football etc? It is a long way away from woodworking.)