giant Cypress

Woodworking Media – How Do You Learn Best?

Great observation from Bob Rozaieski on his experience learning how to do some sleight-of-hand tricks:

The simplest of tricks seem to be really complicated when they are written out in a book. However, actually seeing the sleight explained by someone who is practiced in the effect all of a sudden makes it much clearer to me. It makes my practice time that much more focussed and productive instead of clumsy and confused.

This got me wondering, is it me, or is it just that this particular skill is not easily taught in print? I then began to wonder the same thing about woodworking.

Woodworking is full of tacit knowledge — knowledge that is hard to pass on via writing or talking, but instead is learned by doing. There are some aspects of woodworking that can certainly be written about. But there are other things, such as what a truly sharp chisel is capable of, what cutting with a really good saw is like, or what a well set up plane can do, which are quite hard to describe just in words or pictures. One of the seminal events of when I started woodworking was when my back door neighbor, who is a tremendous woodworker, showed me what a Stanley #4 plane can do. In an instant, I knew and understood. I would have never been able to understand this just by reading.

Which is why my usual advice to people looking for a start on hand tools, Japanese or otherwise, is to go find their local woodworking club, find the hand tool nut (believe it or not, in my club, it’s not me), and hit them up to show them what hand tools can do. There’s a lot of great information on the internet, but some things need to be experienced in person.