plane socks - a must working in a boat yard, stops your expensive planes getting rusty from the salt air, well they help at least. Never come across 'cut lube', always used the nub of an old candle
Hi Daisy, I'm a retired mechanic/woodworker. You have no idea how many unnecessary tools we buy! I have a huge boxfull of obsolete tools that will never again be used. Enjoy them. They're fun! Love your channel.
Nice video. I would argue, (and it's pretty obvious that this is your subtext), that tools which, while not strictly necessary to accomplish various jobs, nonetheless make that job easier and quicker, and make it easier to do better, ARE actually necessary. The objective here is to do a bang up job efficiently enough to make a workable living and have a life after we down tools for the day. Otherwise, if we are constantly slaving away just to get jobs done, either barely covering costs or working ridiculous hours to make a decent living, then that's not really doing the craft, (whatever it may be), efficiently. To paraphrase one of my main mentors from my previous shopcraft days, when we are working like that, we're a "dead (insert trade here) working." If certain "luxury" tools help us do it faster and better with less stress, we manage our work life balance better, and we actually, shock of shocks, make some money! :) So that's necessary in my books. But of course, that's part of your point. :)
I don't think I have ever felt the need to apologize for any of my own specialty tools. Your work suggests that while you might be able to get along without some gadgets, with them your instruments are sublime. Really appreciate your advise in any case. The fret nippers show up as suggested necessities in the email ads from the folks in Ohio with remarkable consistency. I have resisted so far largely because I have not yet bound a fret board, certainly not from any moral opposition to un- necessary but still cool tools! Lol Cheers!
If you have a whetstone you still need a diamond stone to level them when they dish out. And yeah, they were out, but they wear out in a manner that means the diamonds break down and get finer, so over time you get a finer grain from them, so you don't really replace them, you just buy a new one and use the old one for finer sharpening. The shapton ceramic stones are also excellent.
I love cool tools. There is nothing quite so pleasing as the right tool for the right job. Some are essential as well, but the one-purpose-only tools make their task so much easier/more enjoyable so that said task is more likely to get done properly or frequently (eg, plane iron sharpening). I have never used a whetstone, myself. I have a CBN wheel for initial grinding or repair, and 3 grades of diamond stones and a leather strop. They all make me more likely to sharpen more frequently I used to put it off till I was absolutely frustrated with the plane. By then I would have either ruined the project or was so exhausted that I had to walk away and come back later to sharpen before even starting woodworking again. I’m a guitarist but not a luthier so I can’t justify some of your specialty tools , but I respect their coolness and will live vicariously through you. Oh, and I use a wax candle for a lube stick on my planes and saws. Thanks for another fun vid.
If you think you’ve got a problem with accumulating strange, obscure and expensive tooling, you’ve obviously not entered the world of silversmithing and jewellery making. Now that’s a field of work where you can really get into some hardcore accessorising.
I've been sharpening woodworking tools since sometime in the 70s and I still use a honing guide for chisels and plane irons. I've had to fix a lot of bevels that were rounded or otherwise a mess because someone during a tool's history sharpened them year after year without one.
Im not a luthier but a general carpenter/cabinet maker. I too have many tools that I dont need but love. Some I bought just to fill a space on a shelf. I'm new to your channel but I subscribed immediately. Look forward to watching your entire video selection. Cheers form Canada eh!
The Veritas sharpening jig is awesome! I know many top notch woodworkers that use them. Diamond or wet stone? Now that is a question that can bring all sorts of opinions. Me, I am a wet stone guy, but I sell both and my customers are pretty evenly split. I think you have now stepped to the dark side! Woodworkers are notorious tool (gadget) buyers! Keep up the good work. Your videos are a kick and your luthiery appears top notch! Nice to watch a craftsperson who enjoys their work so much.
I learn so much with your videos. I am not a luthier, but a player. I love these videos with the behind the scenes views. “Tang nippers” 😂, never would have ever guessed what those were, looked like tin cutters. You are a delight to follow. ❤
I've bought power tools thinking that they would make life easier. I quickly found that they are a great way to really f@%# things up in a flash. That was a hard lesson. I have done well at finding good vintage planes at very reasonable prices. Equivalent new ones are very expensive.
Unnecessary lutherie tools - pish posh - perhaps my obsession to have sets of French Pattern Picard Joiner’s Hammers and English Pattern Picard Joiner’s Hammers and German EC Emmerich planes and Swiss Pfiel Carving tools and German Dastra Gouges and ….
IMO, anything that makes the job go easier, IS necessary...Because, "time is money$"...It took me 50 years to discover diamond sharpening stones...No turning back now! Love your enthusiasm:)
I'm just about to finish my first guitar, the main things I'd say you NEED is a jointer(or hand plane) and a thickness planer, a router with various trim bits, and a laser level(I use it to align my center lines perfectly).
Honing guides rock. Great video! Have you thought about doing a video on how you select the wood that you use? You may have touched upon this in other videos. I can spend all day at the lumber yard looking for the right grain, or what have you. And my projects are influenced by the type of wood available and its character.
Nice Daisy! I have MANY years of mechanical inspection and I can agree with tools that may not be necessary but make life much easier. They save you time and money in the long run.
Useful and well explained as always. Sidenote compliment: that sweater is amazingly complimentary to your already stunning facial features. Looks great!
Always enjoy this channel. The explanations are so clear, the enthusiasm for the littlest things so genuine. It's always fun watching craftspeople do their things, but this is next level. As a person that tries to do all my own work on my many guitars, I'd love to see a video on nuts and the preferred tools - making them from a blank, cutting the slots just right, etc. For some reason I'm good with fret-work and all that, but nuts are intimidating!
Wayne Henderson (master luthier) says his most important tool is his pocket knife. Bottom line: whatever tool makes you happy and helps you create wonderful things (guitars) is absolutely necessary!
A Pleasure to watch! They say these tools aren't needed, until you need it!! I've been buying and using tools for many different types of building for decades and any tool you have to make the job better and more precise is worth having!! For instance that drilling jig! I watch a lot of people drilling holes and their not even close to being perpendicular to the work. If you drill those little holes off it takes more work to make it look good!!
I use a real inexpensive diamond stone and I really like a honing guide to get nicks out.. or fix hand sharpening.. mistakes haha. I love how high quality all your tools are, you don’t compromise!
My math is terrible also so I use the string spacer too and it's the best haha! You can also use wax by rubbing a candle on your saw and plane for a smoother cut and stops it sticking......but I'm guessing you already knew that 🤔
Tool videos are always welcome. As a retired mechanic, welder/fabricator, I have plenty of strange contraptions myself and they are all precious. Also, using a tool to simplify a task you could do without it is smart. Not lazy. The tools are meant to do the work is just out job to direct them. 🙂 Thanks as always for your videos.
I would say the honing guide is an essential. After 40 years of sharpening blades and holding them down with my left hand I’ve now developed arthritis in my first finger joints which doesn’t help my playing at all. Any aid which takes pressure from the hands is worth having. Before machines tools became widely available most woodworkers had bent No and broken hands.
Years ago, I bought a neck with a unique wood inlay but the fret edges were horribly cut wrong. Could cut you fingers on em😮. Didnt have any nippers but spent hours of taping around those burrs and two days of filing those down. Had a heck of a time rounding them off too. Well worth it as it was my first time. Patience pays off. Didn’t want to rush it and wanted no mistakes. Love your channel and thank you for a bit of inspiration getting back to woodworking. ☮️🎸
Great topic! But I think you still managed to made quite a few of us blush a couple times in this one LOL. I literally laughed out loud at the stuffed animal bit hahaha
I love those diamond stones, I got a 120 and before it bedded in it just breezed through lapping my planes flat! Wish I could find something that stays that aggressive. And I have been taught to use paraffin wax to lube up and it's just a amazing what a difference a tiny tiny bit of wax on the plane can do, just flies right through, helps stop tearout on difficult wood like rosewood. Why make things harder for ourselves!
I’ve done a few refrets on bound fingerboards without the tang nippers, clipping the tang with fret cutters and then filing down the rest of the tang… I’ve now done a fair few with them and that’s definitely a necessity in my toolbox!
As you mentioned, I am one of those people who are EXTREMELY extra when it comes to stupid tools. So much so that I really appreciate the links to the side dot guide and the diamond stone. I actually already have a diamond stone (but yours looks nicer 🤣)
Whatever makes you happy and are able to enjoy the process. Like when I whip out my comb and take it to my perfectly clean-shaven head. It makes me happy so... Enjoying what you do is the best tool you can have
I love Tools,,, lols I love myself.... Ain't it just ain't it 😎 but Yes I love Tools...and have too many interest... I guess you could say I am a Jack of all trades and a Master of none... I have Grandfather's tools and my Pops tools many that have been given me because Men would watch me at the shop and they would gift them to me....😎 Love your channel...
You have no idea how much this makes me yearn for fret tang nippers. I would even settle for non-delux ones. I suppose I will have to save but I think I need a few more clamps first.
I have a set of 8" diamond stones, and I'm not just lazy, but I forget to clean them every now and then. It's just safer to use some liquid instead of water, which prevents rusting. I have HoneRite, but for some weird reason, the seller in UK doesn't ship these kinds of liquids to the rest of Europe. I had to order it from USA. Either way, it's here, and it works very well for me.
Daisy! Love you! Love your content! I am an untreated wannabe luthier and tool junkie. Watching on my phone, so it's hard to tell what psyduck's favorite plane is. Also, you've asked for content suggestions. What about a vid on bracing? I've looked at lots of plans and can replicate what's drawn. So, some technique, but more philosophy. How do you decide what mods need to be made to improve tone and durability/longevity? Or not. Keep up the good work!
Actually.... *insert meme there* String spacing ruler gives you a little bit more then removing math from that task. There's an issue with equal string spacing - as strings becomes thicker from first to sixth space between them becomes smaller. Its not so big of an issue for classical guitar where all strings are quite thick, but with steel string guitar it is quite noticable when there's equal spacing. String spacing riles gives you equal spacing not between centers of the string, but between edges of the string (corrected to have same size windows for pencil) - thus each space is a little bit bigger from one end of the ruller to the other. Yea, it's all about precision.... I'll show myself way out )))
well... I have not one but two honing guides... and thinking on a third. They are essential to me for sure and I think they are not ridiculous. I use them since the lutherie school and I love them. For the tiny blades I made an adaptor and it seems Veritas are selling also one like it. About the planes... so recently I bought the 101 from Lie Nielsen... I already have the 102, wich I think its really a gamechanger in my workshop (I work with violins, btw). The 101 it was unnecessary? IDK, but i love it. posibly the most expensive an unnecesary tool in my atelier is a lathe... as in my school they work mostly with galizanpipes, and I use to play them, I got one xD . Not so needed in violin making, as we use to buy the pegs. They are really cheap and its really hard to make them well 🤦♂. I like it tho🛠⚙
I love tools. Totally understand the diamond stone too, I hate sharpening narrow things like chisels on my wetstones. Do you have any duplicate tools that are ALMOST but NOT QUITE the same as each other? Like I have 4 different hammers for forging blades, but all in different weights. So unnecessary but...I do love my hammers.
Good insights, thank you! I've got one little tip about frets and binding: always cut the fret tangs a little shorter than the binding thickness, so if the fretboard shrinks a bit over time, it won't split the binding. Got that tip from twoodfrd, awesome channel, check him out.
Kor, how extr’ord’n’ry Daisy’s impending lutherie pictures prove! She’s a British gem, right honorable artíste, but ultimately a true lover of music and history. Guitars dreamt-crafted via her mind and limbs should fetch values above high end first-world price. (limiting CNC application). #art
Daisy I am a retired guitar builder. Please use Imperial units of measurements. All instruments were made in incehes etc. before metric was used by certain countries. I was first taught Imperial in the 60s at school and e.g.0.040" = 1mm. The Americans decimilise their mesurements and accuracy is to within 1/1000" They do it well. Worth learning. So too does my luthier who learnt his craft at the Galloup School of Luthiery in the US ( Michigan I believe). He agrees with me on this point. He had to learn all measuring types as metric doesn't suit guitars. Thanks.
Very nice, but I kind of disagree. All of those tools are "necessary", as they reduce stress for the maker, which is a tremendously important role for a tool in the hands of a craftsperson. Stress kills creativity. I own a 16" blade circular saw which I purchased for a single job (cutting 6 x 12 clear wood beams for a very fancy patio cover). I still own it after 35 years. One never knows. I wonder if I can still lift it? Hmm. 🤔
i hit 7/7 sometimes i do think why did i buy them but theres always that one job or part of the jobs that i say thanks i have it. the puchase i had that i thought would be used everyday was a crowning file but i prefer using a normal traingle file and just grind the edges and get better results
Do you think some people make guitars by hand without speciality tools I think it would be cool to have a guitar that had those small imperfections idk
I have a crazy possibly stupid question and it will give me away. We all know that there are 7, 8, 9, 10 string electric guitars. Are there "extra string" acoustics? Never seen one or heard of one but I'm curious. Thank you
