A few days ago, Julio left me an extensive comment with his opinion on learning woodworking by reading blogs and watching videos on the internet. I thought this was a good topic for a blog post, so I’m copying and pasting his comment (I hope you don’t mind, Julio) and then I’ll share my response. You’ll see that we don’t agree on everything, probably because our paths and our state of the art are not the same. If you don’t know his blog, in the intimacy of the revealed shavings (it seems he closed the blog), stop by it. That way, you can compare two different ways of working and decide if we do the same work or different things.
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“My opinion (Julio’s) is that the internet is a great source of information and trying to learn through the web is economical but not very fruitful or successful. I have found several times that in this country, people who are fond of woodworking are closer to DIY than to completing true woodworking projects. Unfortunately for me, because everything else is fine, people who enjoy woodworking prefer to learn by experimenting, based on the trial-and-error method and through diffuse and incomplete information in foreign publications, instead of spending money on attending classes that demonstrate effective and transparent methods that guarantee success and good results in our workshops, and thus being able to enjoy the process during a task knowing what is being done and why it is done that way, and why other methods may be worse or less convenient. This way, I think a long path of uncertainty is saved, and a lot of time can be dedicated to truly working on projects instead of guessing what is being done. For me, learning with the internet is like groping in the dark. In the end, the piñata will be broken, but how many vases have we broken first. Proof of this are the comments I receive on my online publications, I am infinitely grateful for the support and appreciation of what I present, but people are wrong in saying that I teach something, that is incorrect, the only thing I do and intend with the internet is to make known the work of traditional and artisanal woodworking, disseminating some information that may be relevant. But to really teach and learn, you have to actively participate in a personal tutorial, where I can correct or warn about the mistakes made while working. My intention in aula flamingo is to offer worthwhile teaching, my function is to remove the blindfold of ignorance to break the piñata with the first hit.
I hope no one feels bad about my opinions, I am sorry to be so sincere, but it is the experience I have from recent years and seeing the activity of others on other pages, and the comments in forums.
As always, thank you, Sergio, for your effort in publishing such motivating information on your blog.
Julio Alonso”
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My response:
I believe that when looking for information on the internet, you need to know what you’re looking for, what you’re searching for, and what you found during that search. My impression after years of being passionate about woodworking is that in Spain (I don’t know how it is in other Spanish-speaking countries) the culture of woodworking has been lost in a short period of time. I know quite a few people who tell me that their father or grandfather was a carpenter, yet that knowledge has not been passed down and has been lost. Lately, with the rise of woodworking DIY, many people are interested in learning, but in many cases, they start from scratch, often progressing from other DIY projects. And that’s the problem. If you’re still young, for example, you can do a vocational training course or attend a woodworking school and learn the trade well, but when you reach a certain age, many people no longer think much about taking classes and prefer to experiment, use the internet, and have a friend teach them a few things. And I don’t see it as a bad thing; sometimes you need to experiment or see what others show on the internet to see what possibilities this hobby has and see how far you can go, since none of us like to make significant investments in a hobby when we don’t know where it will take us. I have to say that my path has been through experimentation in my workshop and watching videos on the internet. I have gained practice and some knowledge and see that I can achieve quite good results with what I have. Being aware of my limitations, now is when I feel I would like to take classes with a professional carpenter or in a woodworking school to learn the proper techniques and knowledge, but at this moment, I can’t afford it, and I don’t have access to those classes in person here either.
Starting from scratch in a hobby like this, there has to be a phase of approaching the practice that allows us to discover how strong our interest is, to then decide which paths to take based on our possibilities. And I mean economic possibilities (which will be what they are), available resources (which will largely depend on the area where we live), and the possibilities given by our own skill (which will improve as we acquire knowledge and practice). So I think woodworking DIY is a good start for more people to gradually get into the hobby of woodworking, and then many of those people will be encouraged to take courses offered by artisans or woodworking schools focused on teaching more traditional woodworking.
There are significant differences in the content of your blog and mine. You seem enthusiastic about the knowledge of techniques; for you, the final aesthetics of your woodworking projects cannot be fully understood without the aesthetics of your working method. I enjoy watching you work like that because I understand the effort, knowledge, and passion needed to work that way, but when it comes to my projects, I have to rely on my capabilities and aim more for the final result before thinking about such a perfectionist work (which I haven’t had the opportunity to learn and which can’t be learned in a few days just by watching videos on the internet). To carry out my projects, I use my DIY power tools, which require me to isolate myself (glasses, mask, and ear protection) to protect myself from the wood that defends itself by launching large amounts of splinters and sawdust that get into my eyes, wood dust that clogs my lungs, and machines that generate deafening noises. Meanwhile, you need a closer contact with the wood, treat it gently, feel the subtle vibration of the hand tools as they cut the fibers accompanied by a characteristic sound, and it seems the wood responds delighted, delighted in every sense.
In some comments, people call me a master, and I have to say I take it with humor because I am not a master carpenter at all. I would say my thing is woodworking DIY. I am quite handy, that’s for sure. Especially with my power tools. I try to show my tricks and how I make some projects, aiming to improve our small workshops to maximize the possibilities of our small machines. And with the intention of encouraging those who watch my videos and read my blog to continue with this hobby. But anyone looking for someone to teach them the woodworking profession is in the wrong place. I totally agree with you that if you want to really learn the woodworking profession, you should find a school where you can receive the necessary theoretical and practical classes. If someone is content with doing some projects in their home workshop, it’s always good to check out the tricks and projects that others post on the internet, although that can also involve risks and frustrations. Against that, common sense, patience, and reflecting on which sources of knowledge to rely on are needed.
I suppose it all depends on how far each person wants to go, although once you get there, you often want to keep going.
Sergio (author of the woodworking blog enredando no garaxe)