L-N: How they make them.

[Dave Cav]

I haven't seen this posted yet.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iHQULv8R40A

Lots of hand work. Not surprised the mortise chisels are back ordered.

[Jeff Burks]

The new video is much better quality than the old one (http://www.youtube.com/user/LieNielsen#p/u/38/5gQOVHf0bWI), though I prefer a narrator than just music. It's always good to see the work that goes into fine tools. It's amazing that they have 80 employees.

There was also a video clip archived from the Martha Stewart Show (http://marthastewartliving.com/article/lie-nielsen-toolworks).

[Thomas love]

Kind of funny watching the bench shake back and forth while the saw was being tested, Great video.

[Richard Magbanua]

What a great video! Thanks for sharing.
For those who scoff at modern, high quality tools such as Lie-Nielsen and the prices they are sold for, if you made tools to the same quality with the same business practices and same location (USA!), what value would YOU place on them (and still be able to stay in business)?
For me, hand tools are very much about an ideal and a principal. The same goes for my old Stanley's.

The shaky benches are funny!

[Michael Peet]

Wow, so much labor. I'm surprised they can sell them so inexpensively, actually.

Mike

[John Schreiber]

That's cool. I understand basically how sand casting works, but I don't know how they make the original positive. Is that what he was working on at the beginning of the video? Is it reused with each casting, or does it need to be recreated? What's it made of?

[Jeff Burks]

There are lots of pattern making videos (http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=pattern+making+foundry&aq=f) on YouTube. In the old days the positive was made by a pattern maker in wood. The wood pattern was used for small production runs. If large quantities were needed then they often made another cast iron or aluminum pattern that would not break down when subjected to repeated immersion in abrasive sand. What is really interesting is that the pattern maker had to calculate for metal shrinkage when crafting his pattern. The pattern had to be a certain % larger than the finished product to account for the shrinkage that occurs when the pattern cools in the mold. The % was figured from the metal type and volume of the piece. Google Books has many old Pattern Making books (http://books.google.com/books?lr=&spell=1&as_brr=1&q=patternmaking&btnG=Search+Books) available. In modern times a lot of companies use rapid prototyping (http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=rapid+prototyping&aq=f) machines that create the positive in plastic or something similar.


Lee Valley has photos (http://www.leevalley.com/newsletters/Woodworking/1/4/collection.htm) of an actual Stanley Match Plate.

I would recommend the YouTube video series posted by Tubalcain (http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=TUBALCAIN+casting+foundry&aq=f)

[Thomas Nye]

Great Video, Thanks For Sharing.

[Paul Atkins]

Very cool - not a place to work barefoot though.

[Mark Roderick]

Wow, what a great video. I'd love to spend a day or two inside the factory.

The next time someone complains about the pricing of Lie-Nielsen or Veritas planes, remember to re-post this video.

[Heather Thompson]

Wow, what a great video. I'd love to spend a day or two inside the factory.

The next time someone complains about the pricing of Lie-Nielsen or Veritas planes, remember to re-post this video.

Mark,

In 09-06 my husband and I visited Maine for our honeymoon, visited the ToolWorks and were able to take a short tour of the factory, as was noted before this is not a place to be barefoot. I also attended the Chicago LN Tool event at Jeff Millers studio, had a nice chat with Mr Lie- Nielson, Thomas and I spoke about woodworking, politics, the effect of the economy on his business. As we were chatting one his employees (Angie Kopacek) came up from behind and put her hand on my should to say hi and see how how I was doing, truely made me feel like family.:)

If you would like to spend a day or two at the ToolWorks, they are having their annual open house July 16/17, if you get to go be shure to visit the Center for Furniture Craftsmanship, Peter Korn runs the Center and the place is incredible. I wanted to take the nine month program but the economy is an issue with my husbands employment at this time.:(

Heather

[Dave Anderson NH]

On the subject of castings John. You have to note that L-N no longer does any of it in house. Their volumes increased over the years to the point that the better casting houses were willing to do work for them and now compete for their business. They originally made their own castings because the volumes were so small that no one who was good enough wanted to do their work.

[Ken Peluso]

>.<

makes me want to finally pull the trigger on the No. 7 ive been looking at forever. guess I need to post some old Bailey's I never use down in the classifieds.

[John Schreiber]

There are lots of pattern making videos (http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=pattern+making+foundry&aq=f) on YouTube . . .
Thanks Jeff. Those are fascinating. I had a general idea what a pattern maker did, but this really fills in the knowledge gaps.

I imagine most of that work is now done on CNC machines.

[James Taglienti]

I really wish I knew about patternmaking and casting.

I'll never forget handing a 1/8 - foot shrink rule to a former employer and watching him curse as he made 3 or 4 attempts to cut the same part and each one came out a hair too small. He was pulling on the saw and sharpening his pencil and getting close to ripping his hair out.

I never did well having a boss. :o

[David Weaver]

LN planes really can't be over-hyped in terms of how good they are for the price. I have never gotten a bad iron in one, never got one out of flat, and never got one with a bad adjuster or so much as a tiny pimple sized blemish of any kind.

If you ever think about making your own planes, and you set out to do it and pick at the experts to find out what makes a plane really work superbly, you look at an LN at a completely different angle yet - to the point that you almost wonder why you even bother to try to make any user-made tools. It is really hard to make one that feels any better than an LN that is tightened down and set up properly, and even then, it might just be maker's bias that makes you prefer your own - and even then you only prefer your own a teeny bit, and maybe not even every day.

[Steve Kirincich]

Was I the only one waiting to see if one of the guys in the foundry, who was wearing a cotton sweater, was going to burst into flames?

[Sean Nagle]

Two summers ago I took a short tour of the factory when visiting the region. My general impression was that even with some CNC machines, the general feel was of an old-school industrial production facility. Those people work hard. I own many Lie-Nielsen products and I will continue purchasing their products as long as they continue making them as they do.

[Mark Roderick]

Thank you. Sounds like a lot of fun, although I would have to leave my credit card at home. Maybe I'll drive up there for the July event.