Look at these YouTube instructors. How many of these planes and chisels get used?

[mike stenson]

If I was getting paid, I would be alot more interested in speed of work.

[steven c newman]

I don't get paid...so...I couldn't care less how long a project takes....as long as it is done well, to MY standards....although..I do get accused of working way too fast....

PS: I have been doing woodwork just about as long as Paul Sellers. I do take everything he tries to teach with a grain of salt....I also tend to learn a few things from him. FOR FREE>

Thing that most FAIL to realize....Sellers is trying to teach the next group of beginners to this Kraft....AND get them interested enough to continue to LEARN about woodworking.

He couldn't care less about those out there that CLAIM to be "PROs" and "Fine Cabinet Builders" ...THAT is NOT who he is trying to reach. Maybe all those "PROs" should come down off their high horses, and TEACH people about this Kraft.

[Tom M King]

The people doing the paying generally are too.

[mike stenson]

The people doing the paying generally are too.

Exactly. That's all fair. For me, this is a hobby. It's a creative pursuit. It lets me work with my hands again. This is why I don't machine wood.

[Jim Koepke]

Woodworking does not wait for retirement. It does not wait for the collection of tools to be complete. It happens in spite of there not being enough time, or enough space, or the appropriate tools. It happens because you will it to be, in the face of family commitments, or the apparent priority of a new car. The passion is now, not tomorrow.

Regards from Perth

Derek

Exactly, my first shop was a half of a corner in a one car garage. It took a bit of care to turn a 2X4 around. If the easiest tool to do the job wasn't there, some other tool was made to do it. My bench was a little Black & Decker Workmate. Anything more than a couple of feet long had to be taken outside.

The "tools as investments" things was a joke, considering how expensive they've become.

Think about this Luke, the tools bought years ago for $10 or $20 are now selling on ebay for $100 or $200. If your stock portfolio was doing that, my guess is you would be laughing all the way to the bank on that "joke."

Even some of the LN tools are selling for multiples of their prices from just a few years ago.

Some joke.

jtk

[Joel Gelman]

Interesting to see the LN reference. I usually know what I have but this week I found unused LN 5.5 inch shoulder and 99-98 rabbet planes. They were inside some tiny drawer of some wall cabinet I made in the 8th grade. I looked them up and am confident I did not pay what people are selling them for even when adjusted for inflation They seem to be of huge value to collectors, but for performance, I am thinking other current models are better and I am not a collector. Just listed them. For the 99-98, I listed on eBay for $460 and within 10 min was offered $400. Maybe I should have listed for more.

that being said, for almost everything I purchased and then did not use and then sold, generally at a major loss where I wish I were the guy finding them at that price when I was purchasing them.

[Luke Dupont]

Exactly, my first shop was a half of a corner in a one car garage. It took a bit of care to turn a 2X4 around. If the easiest tool to do the job wasn't there, some other tool was made to do it. My bench was a little Black & Decker Workmate. Anything more than a couple of feet long had to be taken outside.



Think about this Luke, the tools bought years ago for $10 or $20 are now selling on ebay for $100 or $200. If your stock portfolio was doing that, my guess is you would be laughing all the way to the bank on that "joke."

Even some of the LN tools are selling for multiples of their prices from just a few years ago.

Some joke.

jtk

Haha. Yep. That's why it's funny -- because it's true, in spite of its absurdity.

Another one of my hobbies is electronics and single board computers. It's exactly the same thing in that space. Example: there's these tiny single board linux computers called "raspberry pi"s that people use in projects a lot. One could have bought the smallest version for $5 about 5 years ago. Now they're going for a whopping $50! That's a CAGR of what? 60% a year? I could be retired already. lol

Had I a collection of way too many unused tools in a big shop, I'd most certainly be cashing out on some of those gains and laughing all the way to the bank right about now...

Of course, the real question is whether you could have come up with an intelligent investment thesis at the time of buying. I generally regard buying anything that doesn't produce a cashflow as more of a speculation than an investment, and I certainly would not be buying tools now in expectation that they'd 10x again. $1000 for a Stanley No. 4, anyone?

[chuck van dyck]

I’ve been rereading “make a chair from a tree”.
I feel like this pic is relevant here.

This is the screwdriver Brian Boggs fashioned into a mortise chisel for making his first ladderback.

It can be a fun and fullfilling challenge to make sure there’s no other way of doing it before buying a new tool.

Luke, I don’t know how you resist the flea market tools. I find all the small finger planes endlessly useful.

[Daniel Culotta]

Sure wish I would stumble on a drawer like that!

[Jim Koepke]

Of course, the real question is whether you could have come up with an intelligent investment thesis at the time of buying.

What has worked for me is to always buy tools for less than they are selling for on ebay.

Before two years ago my most expensive used bench plane was a Stanley #8 at $50. My first #7 cost me $40 and sold for $85. It was replaced by a #7 that cost me $21.25 including the tax. It will likely end up with one of my grandkids.

If something comes my way at a good price it is likely to get a ride home. Though now days my only incentive to sell is to make more room in the shop. Otherwise one of my grandsons has been very grateful to have his tool kit grow.

I found unused LN 5.5 inch shoulder and 99-98 rabbet planes. … They seem to be of huge value to collectors, but for performance, I am thinking other current models are better and I am not a collector. Just listed them. For the 99-98, I listed on eBay for $460 and within 10 min was offered $400. Maybe I should have listed for more.

The LN #98 & #99 are the current models of a very useful tool. If you ever need to fit a shelf into a dado or a drawer into a slot that is too tight the Side Rabbets are the tool to have to remove a shaving or two to widen a slot.

They are also useful to square up the wall on a rabbet or remove fuzz from a plowed slot.

jtk

[Jim Koepke]

While reading an article, "Ten Rules of Philosophy," one quote reminded me of this post:

“It is futile to do with more things that which can be done with fewer.” - William of Ockham

One may have heard of Occam's Razor in many different fields of study or endeavor. It is often heard as the simplest solution is the best solution.

Though often the "simplest" method or explanation will leave out important steps or details.

Just something to think about philosophically.

jtk

[Rob Luter]

Joel, the two gentlemen you linked to are similar insofar as they are both salesmen. They just sell different things, and do it differently.

James Wright (Wood By Wright) is, however, not to be mentioned in the same breath as Rob Cosman (in the second video). Wright is click baiting - he makes his income from teasing viewers to view (as do many others), and his planes are window dressing. They are an attempt to portray Wright as a skilled hand tool user (which he is not). I do not recall his having ever made a piece of furniture. It is one thing demonstrating a technique, but a decent furniture maker needs to sustain their focus all the way through a project. Snippets are easy.

Rob Cosman is firstly a teacher of hand skills (which he has done for decades), and secondly (but closely linked) sells tools in his store. One feeds the other. But he is a very capable furniture maker. His array of tools represent what he has to sell, and his hand skills invite others to use what he does, with the suggestion that one can purchase his skills this way.

There are lots of salesmen on YouTube. Stumpy Nubs is one of the biggest click baiters (his workshop looks like a set). Paul Sellers does his bit here too - his schtick is to appear to minimise the number of tools used, because he is singing to the choir of beginners (who cannot afford them), but then he sells video lessons and memberships instead. Do not be fooled, his evangelical approach to to seduce his possible membership. At least he is a demonstrable woodworker, which is more than can be said for SN.

There are many reasons to own a few or many tools. Some, like Steven, never build furniture and just like showing their tools .... no, I'm teasing Steven, we know you build ... but you also enjoy collecting and showing tools as you do so at the drop of a hat.

Nothing wrong with owning lots of tools, even if it is just to admire them. Some get pleasure from using as many as they can. Some get satisfaction from using as few as possible.

Regards from Perth

Derek

A little harsh for a gentleman like yourself, don't you think Derek? While these folks don't operate in the rarified air you do, they further the cause of the craft we all love with over 1,000,000 combined subscribers. I have the deepest respect for you and your skillset, but why the sour critique?

James Wright does in fact build furniture. Watch some of his content, as painful as that might be for you. He has two YouTube channels with over 300K combined subscribers. He's pretty goofy at times but has published some informative videos. Info-tainment if you will. I've been able to glean a few tips from the episodes I've watched. Should he be mocked because he's a content creator? I don't think so. His chosen path is different than mine but he seems to do well. At least he's honest. Good for him.

Stumpy Nubs is another success story. He has a cabinet shop/video production facility in Michigan. His workshop is a set. Like James Wright he comes off a little silly at times, but that's his schtick. He has almost 800K subscribers that seem to like the cornball approach. I suspect the resulting income from YouTube exceeds both yours and mine. He promotes a craft we love. Why drag the guy down?

Both of these guys (and many like them) decorate their studio backdrop with all manner of old tools. It's mostly window dressing. This is not a new idea in show business. Here in the states, members of our legal profession (solicitors in your neck of the woods?) make slick ads for television showing them seated behind immense collections of legal publications looking as serious as an undertaker, the message being "look how smart I am. I read all these". The reality is legal research is all done electronically with keywords and search engines. No one cracks a book any more. It's show business.

Please take this in the good spirit intended. Also please consider adding some content to your YouTube channel. What you have is gold.

[Derek Cohen]

Rob, I prefer not to be critical but to support and encourage others with their efforts on forums. YouTube is another matter since it is not interactive, and the presenters generally fall into two categories: those that offer information for the education of others (I do this - and have a very small viewership ), and expect little in return; and those that do this expressly to make money. There is nothing wrong with providing valuable information and being paid for it. However, when the express purpose is to make money and the content is effectively a repeat of that of others, plus there are click bait titles to capture attention, then I find this to be unethical and plagiaristic. SN and WBW fall into this category.

Edit to add: firstly, thank you for your kind words about my own videos. They are intended as instructional and DEFINITELY not entertainment … unless you have a warped sense of enjoyment! Secondly, part of my reaction with WFW and the like is disappointment. Which is a reflection of my naivety, since my head is in the early years of YouTube, when it was not so materialistic.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Kevin Smira]

Rob Cosman is a close, personal friend of mine, so I may be biased. He in fact uses nearly everything in his tool cabinet that is behind him. Sure, he’s a salesman. Let’s face it, every monetized YouTuber is in fact a salesman. They are “selling their content” for ads. The videos you see if Rob doing something on YouTube is your free content video. If you have any questions or concerns about his ability, head over to his pay site, and at the very least, take the “free tour” and see for yourself…

[Derek Cohen]

Kevin, by-and-large Rob produces original content in his videos. I think that he is a fantastic teacher. The other video makers mentioned here offer up photocopies.


Regards from Perth

Derek