Anyone using their hands and minds to make a living will know they are always threatened by the tech & machine age and the general public’s inability to understand the difference between them. Don’t get me wrong but there is a place for machine-made things, especially when the same item is needed repeatedly en-mass and to lower costs.
I was thinking about motor cars and when there was more human labour used in their production and the prices of yesteryear compared with today. In theory, this area of production with the aid of robotics should have increased productivity and lowered costs, however, even though human contribution has declined the prices for the end product have steadily risen. What has declined as a result is the skilled people who often went on into repair and restoration in the motor industry. Today we see a different type of mechanic who swaps out faulty parts for new replacement parts rather than having the ability to fix a small component of that part, the deeper understanding has been lost.
I often think about the advances of past civilisations and how their knowledge of the marvels they created wasn’t adopted in the rise of the new cultures that took over. Could it happen again, especially with our reliance on the age of tech?
The dumbing down of society is advantageous only to the large corporations who want society to be reliant upon them, and what are the real risks when dependence plays a major factor?
In the past 10 years, I have devoted much of my time to understanding the qualities of just about every vintage hand tool maker and type of tool available in the UK. I have also experienced what is supposedly on face value those tools that have similarities to those same makers of the past. It’s only when you get into the details you see the differences.
I’m sure, regardless of the topic the same can be said within most trades and subjects when all the factors are taken into account. A specialist’s deeper knowledge of a subject cannot be replicated by a programmer who suffers from what is known as the Dunning-Kruger effect. We have five senses that play a role, hence why robots can never fully replace humans for that in-depth knowledge.
What we humans need to understand properly, if we are to thrive, is value! I feel the masters of the universe have purposely done over the years to uncouple us from the true value of things. It was the reason for the Arts and Crafts era of the late 19th century but I feel it’s much worse this time because money in general back then had real value. After all, it was aligned with tangible precious metals such as gold and silver as a marker.
I believe there is a need and demand for skilled hands making unique items and where a deeper understanding makes a difference. Where new woodworking tools such as planes are concerned even the best of what’s produced requires a skilled hand and time to finalise the setup. The same can often be said of saws because I’ve improved the sharpening on new Lie Nielson saws which I now know have much softer steel than most good vintage saws.
The use of laminated steel in edge tools for example provides flexibility and strength that a modern edge tool doesn’t possess, this is because if chipping does occur in modern singular steel types it tends to result in much bigger chunks being lost. The lamination with softer outer steel supports the high-carbon steel often made in a crucible so extra carbon isn’t absorbed from the air.
Steel also changes over time and this is most obvious in spring steel or saw plates by what is known as crystallisation, this is a natural hardening process and why some old saws are prone to their teeth snapping during the setting process. Hence why, I have always said when buying an old saw it is important to purchase one that has been sharpened as proof this isn’t an issue.
It can take me a couple of hours on some saws to get them right before I set them and if a single tooth snaps I have to work out if it is an isolated area and joint it again, file in new teeth, and reset. Usually, at this point, if a tooth snaps again I have to admit the saw is not fit for purpose. Saws where more than one tooth snaps when setting, I have found usually need discarding at that point.
This illustrates a couple of points when working specifically in an area of expertise. With old tools, there is a learning process of maintenance and a learning process of refurbishment which can happen on a series of degrees where attention to detail is important.
So, getting back to understanding the value of old tools to users.
Many Novices will see very little value in tools with limited knowledge and therefore will buy the cheapest they can find. Secondhand would sound like a good option and they will be bemused as to why old tools often cost more than new Chinese-produced ones. They will look at our website, huff, and puff, and think we are overpriced because they haven’t got a clue about the finer details and what is involved with refurbishing old tools and would probably look on eBay to compare prices. The value cannot be set by these people’s opinions.
Once a Novice with an ambition to progress eventually learns everything isn’t what it seems, even with online tutorials and they come to us, usually with a different perspective of the value we provide.
Old tools have a variety of states of condition, Raw, Cleaned, Tarted up, and Professionally Refurbished like they are here where the focus is on accuracy performance. The first three (Raw, Cleaned, Tarted up) in my eyes are the same because there is a process of work needed for all to achieve a satisfactory result, to our standards set by having the right equipment to test them. (Attention to the finest details, while trying to keep as much originality as possible.)
If only the consumer could see through my eyes, and understand what is involved! I’m sure, many who make things by hand for a living will say the same!
If I wrote a book on the subject of ‘refurbishing old tools’ it would be like a cookbook with many good recipes that include ingredients that would be unviable to hold in most kitchens. That sentence just about sums up our USP (Unique Selling Point) and how hard this is to replicate.