Zach Dillinger Is A Very Impressive Woodworker

[george wilson]

Zach didn't say he beat it up(maybe Norm does?? I don't follow his work.) However,Zach did good work on the coloring of his piece,so it has an old look about it.

Often,I do have to age parts to look original to please a customer. Aging can take quite a lot of time and learning. I won't "beat up" surfaces,but will give appropriate patina when called for.

There was this guy from the company (Kittinger) that made the furniture that Col. Wmsbg. sold until several years ago. He had a kit of brass chains nailed onto wooden blocks and all kinds of other things for "distressing" furniture. This guy thought he was God's gift to furniture making!! He went with some of us craftsmen on a demonstration in Philadelphia. He put on quite a show on stage. The ladies just loved him!! All he did was beat up stuff!!! He had an incredibly superior attitude,way beyond what he could do,which was to just beat up furniture. A guy who could not see beyond his own nose,for sure.

[Jessica Pierce-LaRose]

I always find the over-the-top beating things up with hammers and chains or dragging it behind a truck (I've seen that trick used on a guitar in a video once - no idea why) absolutely ridiculous. Particularly when it's done by someone with more enthusiasm than skill - if you don't look at how a piece honestly wears, you just end up with something that looks like it was beat up needlessly and not something that has honest wear. I still think it's a little silly at times, but when someone with a good eye and some foresight does it, it actually can be pretty convincing. I remember seeing a lady on one of those HGTV type shows make a mantle out a piece of oak and then show the homeowner how to hit it with a hammer before applying a gel stain and then rubbing shoe polish on it to make it look "antique" and "distressed". It was tacky as all heck.

The funniest one are the "pre-aged" electric guitars in the lower price brackets that they offer now. The wear applied to paint and the fretboard isn't terrible looking, and i suppose with modern poly finishes, it's the only way you'll get your guitar to have that look if it's what you want, but it's pretty poorly executed versus one "pre-aged" by hand. But when I first started seeing the lower end Fender Squier's with that faux finish, done by machine, I assume, it was hilarious because they'd have six guitars in a row at the guitar shop, all in different colors, but everyone was worn exactly the same. . . .

[Kees Heiden]

Norm is certainly not beating anything! His work is the other side. The very clean, machined looking reproductions.

Well, my house is from 1950, so it doesn't really matter what I put in there. It just has to look nice to my eyes (and my wifes of course).

[David Keller NC]

Thanks guys, for the kind words. I'd have a hard time, on a personal level I mean, selling this piece for $8,000, given that it is only about two feet high and I have less than 100 hours in it! But I'm open to offers!!

Zach - This is something that all of us have to "get over", at least if you wish to make woodwork semi-professionally. We tend to apply our own frugality and hyper-criticality for flaws to our judgement about what a piece is worth. Most of us will (incorrectly) calculate the price of a piece based on either what we would be willing to pay for something, or a calculation based on time and materials. That last calculation is erroneous - the customer is paying for your time, materials and your learned skill as a craftsman and artist.

I cannot say that last part with more emphasis - 99.9% of the population cannot make what most of us on this board would consider relatively trivial. 95% of woodworkers cannot make what most of us on this board can make, either. And that's worth something - depending on the clientele, it can be worth quite a bit.

One suggestion for your blog photos, btw - include one photograph with an everyday object in it for scale. A coke can is nearly standard for this purpose, since nearly 100% of the population has a "feel" for how big a coke can is.

[Zach Dillinger]

Thanks for the suggestions. I made the leap to selling my work as a fair part of my income a number of years ago. My pricing structure is reflective of those I sell to currently, here in Michigan. I've been very lucky to fibd folks who will pay a decent fee for my work. The pricing on this piece is reflective of the size and the short period of time I have into it. Less than 100 hours total.I'm not trying to get rich, just make excellent furniture and pay the bills. I've been doing ok so far. Should I get more national exposure as a result of this work, I may be forced to charge more. As is, I think I'm pretty close on pricing.

[Jamie Bacon]

Beautiful piece Zach. I too am happy to see some W&M style get some press. And to see another hand tool only guy getting a project in print. Still hoping for an all hand tool only magazine some day. Out of curiosity, was the walnut kiln dried or air dried?

[Zach Dillinger]

Very nice. Is there a historical reason behind doing the dovetails in that manner or was this personal aesthetic?

The dovetails were done this way because of the drawer construction that was used in Philly around this time period. All the drawers have rabbeted sides / front / back, into which a thin bottom is nailed. Then, a white oak slip is glued over the nail heads to provide a long-wearing bearing surface for the drawer that is easily replaced should they wear out in the future. So, the short bottom tail is done that way to fit into the rabbeted front. Certainly not an aesthetic choice.

Zach didn't say he beat it up(maybe Norm does?? I don't follow his work.) However,Zach did good work on the coloring of his piece,so it has an old look about it.

Nope, no beating up the piece here. Just honest tool marks and a lot of effort in coloring the piece. I hate to see woodworking personalities go overboard with their own importance... sounds like your guy from Kittinger achieved that and then some.

Beautiful piece Zach. I too am happy to see some W&M style get some press. And to see another hand tool only guy getting a project in print. Still hoping for an all hand tool only magazine some day. Out of curiosity, was the walnut kiln dried or air dried?

Kiln dried walnut. Ordinarily I'd prefer air-dried, but my latest walnut flitch is still a touch too wet to use. Plus, this wood is already spoken for; I'm planning a escretoire style desk for my library. All the wood, including the veneer, for my spice chest came from Johnsons Workbench in Charlotte, MI. I buy most of my kiln-dried stuff from them.

[Jeff Hamilton Jr.]

Zach,

Though everyone has said it, it doesn't hurt once more . . . ​BEAUTIFUL, AWESOME, EXTRAORDINARY!

[Mel Fulks]

WM pieces especially benefit from some variation in surface and slight differences in turning .When you do see modern made pieces ,they are usually "over worked". The proper execution of the period feel is a big part of the appeal .The few pieces you do see can usually be recognized as modern from a good distance.I hope you have signed and dated it in several places.

[Zach Dillinger]

Zach,

Though everyone has said it, it doesn't hurt once more . . . ​BEAUTIFUL, AWESOME, EXTRAORDINARY!

Thanks Jeff! It's a peach! I love it!

WM pieces especially benefit from some variation in surface and slight differences in turning .When you do see modern made pieces ,they are usually "over worked". The proper execution of the period feel is a big part of the appeal .The few pieces you do see can usually be recognized as modern from a good distance.I hope you have signed and dated it in several places.

Thank you for the compliment. It is my dream, someday, to be able to produce a piece that is convincingly 18th century, only to point to some small detail or marking that proves I made it. Not to be like LaMontagne, I would never sell it as an antique or allow it be sold as such. So it is signed and dated, indelibly in several places, as well as a more standard signature on a drawer bottom.