You know you're neander when....(yet another a quasi joke thread)

[Matt Lau]

I was at an Apple store--when I realized that the tables are essentially split top fake Roubo.
I'm not sure about the joinery, but I couldn't get the table to rack.

Then, I realized that I'm probably too neander.

You?

[Jim Koepke]

Joinery technique is always on my list of things to check when wandering through antique stores and other places where furniture is gathered.

jtk

[Andrew Seemann]

When you break down and decide to use a router to save time, but think, I'll still get to hand chisel the corners!

[Malcolm Schweizer]

When you cut up a tree with a handsaw while the other folks were waiting for the guy with the chainsaw to show up.

[lowell holmes]

I have both electric and gasoline chain saws. I also have 13 handsaws. I normally cut up a tree or cut off a branch with the electric saw.
I run the fuel out of the gas saws so they will start after being in the shed for long periods of time.
Actually I have two gas saws.

I am an old dog, in good health, I walk a mile every morning all year long. When you live in Galveston County Texas, you can do that. One of my
sons lives in Connecticut and he can't walk in the dead of winter.

[John C Cox]

I like to limb trees with an axe... I am amazed how slow a saw is compared to an axe... I was out clearing out storm felled trees at the HOA boat ramp with the other HOA guys... They all had their power saws and I had my axe.. They teased the heck out of me for being a caveman with my axe vs their super duper Stihl and Husky saws.. I limbed 2 trees by the time they got halfway through limbing their first one...

[Robbie Buckley]

... you don't know the power has gone out until you make a coffee.
... "hearing protection" means you are out of earshot of the wife.
... you have more sharpening stones than power tools.
... someone says 'Hey, look at that plane" and you don't immediately look up.

[Rob Luter]

Joinery technique is always on my list of things to check when wandering through antique stores and other places where furniture is gathered.

jtk

As it should be. Ask me about setting off alarms by leaning in too close in museums. Awkward!

[Brian Holcombe]

Pretty sure they’re Parson’s tables.

[Mike Allen1010]

... you don't know the power has gone out until you make a coffee.
... "hearing protection" means you are out of earshot of the wife.
... you have more sharpening stones than power tools.
... someone says 'Hey, look at that plane" and you don't immediately look up.


Robbie, I nominate you for "Head Caveman" of the Neanderthal clan – you clearly have a visceral understanding of of the difference in the way a hand tool use of proceeds world versus our electron consuming colleagues.


Cheers, Mike

[Vincent Tai]

When I was interested in all things Apple in junior high I found the company that made the tables; Fetzer woodworking. I think Apple may have changed makers or something, just something I heard haven’t confirmed. They were said to be solid maple but the store closest to me had very very very neatly veneered ones. I used to inspect the tables and get disappointed since I really detested veneered stuff at the time, veneer to me was IKEA stuff aka chipboard that the kid me couldn’t make things with (still haven’t made anything with chipboard). Perhaps the ones elsewhere like in the US are solid maple, the articles written about the stores and information available were all American. Only some wear showed seams and clues. I was at the Genius Bar today and had forgotten this and was just appreciating the thick solid maple endgrain shown in the joinery and then looking along the bar edge spotted a gap where the veneer had opened up. Closer inspection showed that the end grain was a very well done veneer. I use to dream of working for Apple and had a design for the tables where the split top had a clear resin or glass core (in the place of a larger split top slot) with an Apple logo floating dead smack in the middle of the resin. The logo would need to glow or illuminate without any visible wires or connection to anything; even underneath the logo. Fast forward 8 years and resin cast tables are all the rage; absolutely dominating social media — and yet now I would make a simple oil and wax finished table. Maybe French polish if I wanted something more loud; haven’t kicked that high gloss habit yet. A hand rubbed varnish for durability if needed. Of course I would handplane finish before applying finish. 8 years ago I couldn’t have imagined that I would end up with only a drill press that gets turned on once a month to see if it’s alive and a bench grinder as my only power tools. I might have to go make another belt sander jig for the drill press for metalworking now. One day i’ll save up for a few things to break down stock faster. Man this thread brought up some good memories. Though now I feel old and very underachieving now.

[Brian Holcombe]

Solid wood doesn’t perform well as a parsons table, there is no way to batten it and no amount if battening that will have a real effect on it.

4” thick maple tables are completely impractical for the scale of that operation, unless you can build in the cost of replacing 1/2 of them. :D

[Bruce Haugen]

As it should be. Ask me about setting off alarms by leaning in too close in museums. Awkward!

We were at the MMOA in New York and nearly got kicked out when I went to open the drawers on a desk to check out the dovetails. The guard wasn’t impressed when I said I could do better ones.

[Vincent Tai]

Yeah I later had a small voice in the back of my mind telling me all the impracticalities when I learned about wood movement. Begrudgingly accepted the roles that composites and plywood have. Still irked me that people claimed these were solid wood.

[Osvaldo Cristo]

...when you are part of the minority that never talk about dust collection system, actually have no idea when people writes DC in these forums (Direct Current?)
...when you cannot understand the excitement most people has when talking about either "Festool" or "Sawstop"

:) :)

Regards,

[Jim Koepke]

You know you are a neander when your fingernails are a bit long so you pick up a wide gouge with a #5 sweep, lay the back of your finger on a piece of hardwood and then trim the long nail with a single push of the gouge.

That's how mine are done when needed.

jtk

[Bob Glenn]

I guess I'm neander since I don't know what those Apple tables are about. Who makes tables out of apple? I don't even have an electronic pacifier!

[Prashun Patel]

You know you are a Neander if you need the label and don’t think hand tools are just tools.

[Jerry Olexa]

...when you are part of the minority that never talk about dust collection system, actually have no idea when people writes DC in these forums (Direct Current?)
...when you cannot understand the excitement most people has when talking about either "Festool" or "Sawstop"


:) :)

Regards,


Well said......I understand

[Matt Lau]

Touche! And true.

FWIW, I carry a disposable ryoba and a hatchet under my seat in case there's some nice wood to salvage...which occasionally happens off craigslist.
Thankfully, I haven't been stopped by a cop yet. It might raise more questions.

[Tony Zaffuto]

Joinery technique is always on my list of things to check when wandering through antique stores and other places where furniture is gathered.

jtk

Same here-have you ever had a clerk dash over, asking "what the h_ll are you doing", when all you're doing is pulling a drawer out to check the construction and seeing how the bottom is fit.

[Matt Lau]

On a side note, my understanding is that the Apple tables were partially inspired by Steve Job's fascination with Japanese Puzzle Boxes.
Inside the tables are assortments of ports, cables, and chargers discretely built into oversized rotating blocks.

Also, at the SF store, the tables were made of Oak.

[Mike Allen1010]

You know you're a Neander when:


* Your friend with a casual interest in building something asks "does it really matter that much how sharp your tools are?", you're happy to shave the hair off your forearm with a plane blade, draw blood and feel good about it.


* When working on community projects, you're unreasonably exasperated by complex discussions of how to move a 14' long x 12" wide pine shelf to the tablesaw for a simple crosscut.

* Your first consideration in setting up a shop is where the workbench, saw bench and hand tools will go, and not how to rewire the shop for 220.

* When your neighbor asks if you could help "refinish" a piece of his contemporary "heirloom" furniture, and your first thought is best option is to demo and recycle the hardwood lumber.

* Your exhaustive search of the lumberyard is restricted to "hand tool friendly" species.