7 things I wish I knew when I started woodworking
7 things I wish I knew when I started woodworking
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One of the best things about woodworking is the element of discovery. It’s a hobby filled with challenges to overcome and problems to solve. And while this is part of the process, there are a few things that would have saved me some unnecessary struggles, frustration, and self doubt.
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Great advice Steve
This has always been my favorite wood working channel. Years ago I followed your steps on an end grain cutting board with different colors. I gave it to my mom for Christmas and she still has it on display in her kitchen. I made a lot of mistakes with it, had to plane it with a belt sander and and it’s shaped like an hourglass, but it looks like it was meant to be the shape it is. Anyways, never said thanks for your help and cool videos. You’ve been gifted with a great voice for what you do. Only Norm Abram gives you a run for your money.
I’ve been working with zombie boards this whole time oh noooooo!!!!!
by the way I started helping my dad at a very young age " while he babysat me " I learned a lot of carpentry skills from him and that inspired me to build stuff …some things not so good but I always have said ( I made it that way ) I’m 66 now and I still trying to make or start something everyday even if its ugly . Woodworking is the best therapy .
Totally correct, you strive for perfection but you never get there, if we believe in God, he created man, and let’s be honest, that was one monumental cock up in design lol, great video Steve as always , thanks for posting from Garry in the UK
Steve Ramsey is a legend!
You should do some projects what some would say "the wrong way/unexperienced way" just to show projects WILL still look good or function.
All the woodworking nerds must hate your open minded approach to woodworking. We love it 🔥🪵
well done, thank you
Hi I want to join your podcast for knowledge exchange, greetings from Turkey.
When I finished my carpentry school in Danmark, I had to build a door with the frame assembled with hand cut dovetails. I had to stay with in an error of +0.9 *-0,9 mm
the OG.
Whoever says it’s not manly to use push sticks better be cutting down their own trees and making their own tools out of stones.
Hey !!! just started watching your videos and this one my friend probably the one of the most encouraging , Thanks for simplifying and most importantly the point of woodworking be it a hobby / business . Use your imagination !!! Tell the hard and true precision naysayers to go " Ride A Board "
"There are no proper ways to build." Huh, that’s not what the inspector who came to look at the deck I built said.
Thank YOU!
Sometimes it is good to hear the reality of something vs the romance!
5:31 I get fed up of people suggesting "you should sell them for a living" where is the fun of that, a production line of chopping boars, resin River tables, or bird boxes. If I meet my costs, great, I have a good job I enjoy, woodworking is my hobby, my release of sorts.i dont want it to be my dayjob.
1:25 OMG! ! !
Great video! All the information you give is direct, useful and easy to understand, and you manage to work in humor really well without getting in the way of the actual topic, which is something a lot of youtubers are guilty of.
Speaking as an artist of varying abilities – there’s a certain tremendous satisfaction in using (imperfect!) objects which I’ve created. Think you nailed it with perfectionism vs. discovery; (hm, that might boil down to left v. right brain?) The one is onerous and demanding, the other just is fun.
Thanks for this video. It’s incredibly helpful for a brand new woodworker just getting started on their journey… especially as one from a STEM background.
Subscribed!
Please delete #5 before anyone else sees this; Can’t risk said spouse seeing it.
"Can’t see it from my house"
"Good enough for government work"
"A real carpenter doesn’t need a level"
"Nothing some caulk won’t fix"
"Let the painters worry about it"
These are some of the sayings I learned from the old carpenters as a lad working in home renovation.
You’re relaxed approach is much appreciated, especially for me as a measure 4 or 5 times and still cut it wrong kinda guy, precision and perfection are simply beyond me, but at least I haven’t lopped off any digits or otherwise maimed myself [yet!, and that includes more metal work than wood]. I’ve still managed to make tons of ‘perfectly’ useful items and you’ve helped, thanks.
thanks, I needed to hear a lot of that
Most clients I’ve had don’t want perfect nor notice any flaws like we do as the builder. They want character and nice craftsmanship. If they want perfect they can go to ikea and get that manufactured look. yuck
If you start woodworking at age 20 and lose one finger every ten years, by the time you are 70, you will only have five left, and they are probably useless for anything, It is amazing how important your thumb and firt finger are. Take care of them.
Great video as always Steve! My father really wishes that he took point 7 more seriously through his life too as he now can’t hear his own grandchildren. Don’t skip it folks!
Well said, Sir.
NEEDED THAT! Thanks again, Steve.
man thank you for adding more creative content. most creators builds are things I don’t care about.and tools too make. or tools the got for free ( festool). but you always seem to give information or inspiration. 🙏
NO there are actually FOUR levels of woodworking tools and styles. Power, Hand, Combo, and . . . Cro-magnon. This last method uses any available tool (like someone else’s) or any nearby object to Get ‘Er Done. Fasteners usually include a variety of nails, (bend-over, Roofing, too small, ) and various screws (slotted, phillips, machine and Lag). Measuring . . . Eyeball or section of a stick. (or your Tape measure). Woke up one morning (quite early) to sounds of something being constructed outside. A friend was patching together a car trailer, (I could tell by the flat tires on it) using Whatever was handy and my tools. Plywood, wet particle boards, 2X’s, even SheetRoc. Rope and baling wire added for extra strength. He was actually hammering with a fist-sized bolder. Appearance: completely atrocious. Functionality: N.A. or dangerous to even be near it. :—)
Also, I’m trying to build my grand baby a toddler bed/toy box (mattress platform as a toy box lid with sides as the “fall off” safety), and I’m paralyzed because there’s thousands of videos out there on toy boxes and thousands on building toddler beds. Nothing on combining the 2 into one piece. I can’t figure out how to get started, because I’m unskilled really. I came across your channel while falling down the rabbit holes that lead to one or the other but in search of both. Your videos have given me the confidence to start. Unfortunately, I still lack the energy and time off babysitting said grand daughter to have time lol. Thanks a bunch!😊
4:07 – Hugely important statement there Steve, I personally enjoy both, but it’s also important to know that just because you CAN doesn’t mean you’re obligated, or even that you should. Like you said it may be cheaper, or more time efficient to just bring in the heavy hitters and hire a professional. For the projects I do for myself, I like to keep separate tools for house work from my woodshop tools. Same for my automotive tools. It’s more expensive, but there’s something to be said for having a specific set of tools for any job that you can just grab and go without accidentally removing it from your workshop.
Another excellent video!
You rock sir! I’ve watched you for quite a bit. You have always been super informative and had a great outlook/attitude! Thank you for being such an awesome human being!
Great video, thank you!
Another perfect video
Many Thanks Steve,,,
Great video. FYI the link to your tool list is dead. Would love to get a copy of that guide.
I love your attitude. It keeps me going when I feel overwhelmed with a project
Oh and I now have my prescription safety glasses because of you!
While I understand it’s important to encourage people to get started, in my personal opinion, I don’t think leading with precision and perfection being "overrated" is the right mentality. Sure, don’t be so hard on yourself in the beginning while you’re learning, but I do think aspiring to perfection and precision is vital
Thanks
“Perfectionism” is exactly why I don’t make anything to sell. Everything I make is planned for a home purpose. I’m afraid to work on things to sell, because I’m not good at this at all. That was a good tip. Thanks 😊
I see you’re also into 70’s/80’s horror films. Man after this ole girl’s heart! Love it!
Excuse me?! It’s thousands of a millimeter or nothing.
A Jedi.
My wife wanted a ‘tea cupboard’. I screwed up every single step, made ad hoc adjustments and redesigns as my wife made pointed out issues. (I literally ran plywood through a planer to make a drawer fit.) In the end I tell my friends, "I took $600 worth of lumber and hardware, and over the span of 8 weekends turned it into a $200 tea cupboard."
Lefty says that safety is overrated. 🙄
I think the reason we stress over imperfections is that we compare our work to manufactured products that are pretty much perfect because the manufacturer is making 800 of them a month and has fine tuned their process. Especially given that I am spending more building it than it would cost from the store with no imperfections.
Really great advice that can be applied to all facets of life. Love your channel!