giant Cypress: Japanese woodworking tool punk • The problem with internet woodworking discussions

The problem with internet woodworking discussions

We’ve all seen this. A question gets posted on an woodworking internet website that asks a basic question, such as “How should I sharpen my tools?” One person posts a very well-written and well-reasoned explanation as to how they go about sharpening. Another person posts another method for sharpening that is just as erudite and logical. A third person weighs in with yet another method. Then the arguments start as to which method is better. Tempers flare. Feelings get hurt. The person who originally asked the question gets confused, and takes up knitting instead. Much popcorn is consumed by woodworkers lurking on the discussion.

I’ve seen this sharpening conversation happen many times at my woodworking club, and it’s always a completely civil and helpful back-and-forth. Everyone gets something out of it, and we all still talk to each other afterwards. But through the magic that is the internet, this conversation often takes a turn where I’m just glad to be rid of it.

So why does this happen? Let’s take the sharpening question mentioned above. If one took a look at the real world, this is what sharpening methods among woodworkers might look like:

(The data in this chart are completely made up by me.)

In the internet world, things are quite different. The internet is great for instant communication and the ability to reach people far and wide. The downside of that is nuance is hard to transmit by words alone, and the ability to communicate quickly often comes with a lot of hastily written opinions. As a result, what is written is often taken only at face value, feelings get hurt, leading to an overly quick response, and we’re back to popcorn time again.

Because if this limitation, if someone writes a long, detailed, well-written, and logical post on an internet forum on why waterstones are the best sharpening method around, then inevitably someone who doesn’t use waterstones to sharpen will easily interpret that statement like this:

Now, the person advocating for waterstones most likely doesn’t see others that way, but this is often how things come across over the internet. Break out the popcorn.

I’m not saying that we shouldn’t share our experiences and opinions about woodworking with others. One of the things that makes woodworking such a rich and fascinating hobby for me is that there are so many ways of approaching the task at hand, and I try keep in mind that there’s always something to be learned from woodworkers who don’t do woodworking the same way that I do, and that the presence of one method of work does not automatically invalidate other methods of work.

This is also probably why I have little patience for people who insist that there is only one way to get the job done. The truth that in woodworking, there often isn’t a single best way of doing things. Because if there was, we’d all be using Japanese tools.