My gripes about what we get from three boutique sources for big money sort of reminds me of something. Do I think that nobody at any of those three tool retailers can design something better, or if making something substandard, make such a thing more efficiently?
I don’t think that’s the case.
Do I think they’re bad conniving people? Of course not. If you want to make money for doing little and dragging in big margins, you need to do something like misleading people, especially by doing nothing other than bringing things in from overseas and branding your junk with your name. The biggest layer of fluff that comes out of our wallet doesn’t happen at manufacture – it happens by manipulation or relationship leverage after that.
But what about agreeability – I have no burden for it here. I learned a long time ago online that if you want to be nice and make everyone feel good, it’s really hard to get anything across. I get things across like the complaining about the three mortise chisels partially becomes they come to mind, and also because I think it’s fair. Fairness is a big thing to me, but nobody will have a universal view of it.
For example, I was looking for something via google search yesterday and google took me to lumberjocks. Someone reviewed an IBC (which may give you IBS given the price) bench chisel against a veritas chisel and the implication is that the two are the top of the market. Neither of these chisels is a match for the admittedly rare middle production Ward and Payne bevel edge firmer. Not just in edge holding alone, but for all kinds of things. you may be able to get those W&P chisels for $100-$125 per if you could find them. In fact, I’d be surprised if they were that expensive.
However, the test shown and the statement about one being better than the other was then contradicted by someone in the following posts saying they had the opposite experience. I looked at both and though “wouldn’t want either”, but if someone else does, no real problem from my front door.
One of the first responses suggested that the test looked like an advertisement. This is actually not that far from reality as when IBC and Veritas had some rift in the past, the IBC rep or president showed up on the blue forum and went full on pitch man all the way to saying that they were jointly responsible for awards LV received. it was offputting.
Nonetheless, what happened next was hilarious – Stumpy Nubs showed up and berated the poster for questioning whether or not the test was in fact veiled advertising. Of all people who could’ve showed up, for Stumpy Nubs to berate someone else about ethics is something I found worth laughing audibly in a room by myself. Whatever he said beyond that was edited out by moderators, and he’s lucky I wasn’t a poster on lumberjocks at that point. Because my version of fairness involves the original poster disclaiming involvement and answering a question others may have wanted to know. I’ve never observed Stumpy Nubs to offer anything useful – certainly not anything I could run with – but he spends great amounts of time pretending that reviews or commentary are something other than link farming sponsorship.
There was little other response – people are agreeable inherently when they’re in a group.
Back to the Mortise Chisels
It’s not like I go off half cocked on a post like the prior one about the mortise chisels. I thought about it yesterday. I thought about it again today – is it fair when there are groups of folks trying to do the right thing in most cases. At least as much as they can.
I think it is. It’s objective – I have no personal issue with any of the three makers and there’s nothing else provided other than my genuine surprise yesterday – surprise that someone doesn’t make an 80crv2 chisel in Europe drop forged and ground for about $50. I don’t get it.
But as easy as it is for me to point out the things that would improve those chisels, I’m not a wizard. What I am is unhindered. I can buy about 50 mortise chisels (probably accurate over the years) and try various chisels and think while cutting mortises “what would make this better is “. Nobody is stopping me and I’m not at work with someone I have to work with tomorrow and month trying to accommodate anyone. I’m also not making chisels for pay tomorrow, at least not in the traditional sense of that. This isn’t some grand plan to create a trail showing myself as some kind of expert with a big product line rolling out by a “surprise, I never planned this” fake message going along with the rollout. I can simply see a problem, try and solve it, and take no other suggestions unless I can see their value.
I could not work in a tool design group as an employee and make my best effort – there are too many things in the way that aren’t the final tool. In my day job, I don’t smash other opinions or point out how they’re dumb, and others don’t do it to me. I’m part of a team there, and there’s a dynamic. We can’t act like sole proprietor single employee entrepreneurs with the nimbleness and disregard of failure. Or in my case, just being a garage enthusiast who isn’t going to stop at assembling a tool kit and celebrate from there.
What if the boutique makers could do that? I think you’d end up with self promoters pushing their way to the top, the same way we see some small brands being relabeled stuff with exclusivity agreements. Remember someone named Ken selling a bunch of sharpening materials? I think whatever agreement was there between retailer and “specialist” may have gone away, but during the time, it just resulted in guruism and expense products linked to the guru.
Ten years from now if I can retire, how will it play out with me? I guess I’ll work by myself. The same burr that makes me want to improve things in front of me also would prevent working with anyone else where accommodating would be needed.
Of Making by Hand with Wood and Steel 