That’s Rex’s super power. He lures you in with gadgets and ensnares you with knowledge tinged with nostalgia. He’s used the same trick to hornswaggle me out of dozens of hours of my life. That’s not counting the vice I made out of a scaffold jack, or the myriad other projects he Pied Piper’d me into undertaking. I blame him for most of the polished aspects on my woodworking projects [Kerfuffles?]. I look forward to continuing to blame him for a good long while. Cheers!
I am a beginner to woodwork, the main test I have with this bundle ua-cam.com/users/postUgkxTNB_zFBSnTo_O1PqfVUwgi7ityw0JlKt is that I think that its hard to settle on a choice of the plan and outline to use as there are a large portion of them there. Nonetheless, I like the simple stride to step directions laid out there.
Yes, continue with Tool Stories. At the end, I started to think I knew Joey the timber framer. I do this every time I pick up one of my Dad or Grandfather's old tools with all the scrapes, bangs, sharpening scratches and modifications. Seem I go to them more often than my shiny newer tools. When I pick them up, channel my inner Dad and Grandfather into my work. If anything I think of them and appreciate everything they passed on to me. 3/7/2024
Anyone who has ever restored old tools, furniture, or houses has employed the same deductive process (with varying degrees of success, of course), and I think most of us would enjoy seeing more videos such as this one.
Absolutely second that assessment. In every house and piece of furniture You also can find where they bodged to make it look good/OK or straight without it actually being straight. It helps to try it with hand-tools only to understand what they did to get the thing outta the workshop asap and still be paid full price for it. That is what makes Rex' videos so special - he knows it because he not only tried once but finished his various hand-tool-projects.
I recently restored a moving fillister plane (a rare tool in germany) some stuff i can say about it: its made from white beech, pretty unused in its lifetime, has imperial hardware, the blade fits but is not original, the fence and deeptstop is rather Aluminium or zinc, the skewed wedge was missing so now it has a new oak wedge, at some point somebody added a dark brown boxing on the edge but maybe this is original (the glue is not hideglue, i wasnt able to melt it), its a factory made tool where some problems occured while cutting the bed, its a bit crooked, but the details on the plane are nice and there are some decorative pieces. Unfortunatly it has no markings on Blade or body, just a number on the wingnut of the nicker. I think its made after WW2, maybe in the 50's. Oh, and the most important: its now, after i buyed it for 4,50€, in my collection, restored, repaired and works even in difficult grain like a charm. Honestly, i had reversing oak grain and got Zero tearout. Maybe i overwork the bed at some point (i have a wood repair stuff that dryes very hard and i already used on my 120 yo Plane from my great- great- greatgrandfather), and maybe i close the mouth with a piece of hard and wear resistant cherry laurel.
I'd love a "tools stories" series! Toolmaking is lots of fun! I'd love it even more if you kept on coming at us with life lessons to learn from the tools we use!
Thanks Rex! I vote for more tool stories. I'm in my sixties, and because my father was 54 when I was born, I'm only two generations from the 19th century. My grandfather was a trade carpenter, and my father was a millwright and hobbiest woodworker. I was steeped in this stuff as a kid, and listening to your essay on this little marking gage really took me back to working in the shop with my dad as a child.
Yes, I would love to see more tool stories. My grandfather was an on-again, off-again lumberjack in Idaho. As a result he ended up with timber to mill and work in his barn. Many of his, and his father's tools are still around and I have been known to spend time with them sussing out how they did the work and used them. Imagining the work and the workers I descend from.
Absolutely!! I think you provide a comfortable level of insight making it impossible to disagree with your profound observation and reasoning. A series? I see the evolution of a show. I'm not British, so I won't say simply brilliant. The intricacies and complexities disallow me. So bravo sir.
Rex, as a reproducer of historic objects, I spend a lot of time following the tool marks of the originals, and I am loving this forensics video. It really shows how much you can learn about someone by studying the objects they leave behind. I would be super thrilled to see this become a regular channel contribution. Keep up the good work!
My personal favourite piece of furniture is a slightly crooked, pretty rural cupboard an apprentice built all alone as his final exam shortly after WW I here in my hometown in Alpine Bavaria - an exam which he failed, and quite completely so, having made about every mistake in the book. He made a second cupboard half a year later when he was allowed to apply for the exam next time and got full approval from every master in the guild in 1919, plus was awarded best apprentice finishing that summer, then immediately took off to open his own furniture business which ended up as an eighthundred employees fabrication at the time of his death in 1984. I was lucky to hear and being showed every single mistake he made with his first cupboard, and how he fixed what was fixable. Apprentices had to buy back their own work would they have wanted to keep it back then, because usually the master sold it off to get back the costs for materials - no one was interested in my grandad's first faulty fail of a cupboard, so he was given the dreadful thing and thus could hone his mistake-correcting abilities on it. He never threw it out and lastly gave it to me because I always was the one interested in the crooked thing and its obvious mistakes.
I love this tool story. I am facinated by history. In the past I have concentrated on military history. Since taking up woodwork as a hobby, I've become more and more interested in the history of woodwork. It is facinating just how long certain tools have been around, and how old many techniques are. I also studied geology, so am used to reading the history of an object from small clues in an item's morphology. And by studying the history of woodworking I'm learning how people built things, instead of how they killed each other. That's so much more rewarding. So please more of this!
One of the things I like about your channel is your love of tool history. If more people understood that we’ve forgotten how to use tools, even this recently, maybe there would be less conspiracy about ancient people not being able to do something just because we can’t figure it out.
I will also say this. Your joiners mallet and Paul Sellers mallet combined is awesome. The first project I did 100% hand tools only, saw, rasp, file, planer and chisel. My buddy calls it Thor's Hammer
YES YES YES! Please do more tool stories! This is fantastic! I love finding the story in my own tools. I go on to imagine what my tools did, on a day to day basis!
Hi Rex! I always loved the furniture forensics, and this is great, too. Looking at what the old craftsmen did is kinda reviving the mindset of past centuries. Most people (those who wanna discuss alloys) are unable to imagine, how it is if you can't go to the next store and get what ever you want, or even that it is not normal to throw things away, just because they are dull or worn out. Once fixing things was normal, and I love to look at those old tools, which tell exactly that story. Greetings from Germany, Marcus
Tool stories is a great idea. It is what many of us do when we pick up old tools and can't for reasons, put them to work right away. Enjoyed this immensely!
I love the idea of doing a series on tool stories! I geek out on old tools and even though I have to admit that Rex is right that the important thing is getting projects done, I probably spend more time finding, restoring, and playing with old tools than building finished projects to show for all the tools I end up with. Learning the history and usage of tools like this is so cool, thanks Rex!
About the blade - and its’ roundedness: it is rounded to accommodate both “forward” and “backwards” operation, or more accurately, Left or Right Handedness.
you totally hit the nail by saying "just buy a quality tool" as a professional you know how to use and maintain it. As a wooden boat builder I inherited the handplane of my preceptor and it is still the plane I use to grab first. It is not a fancy plane but it is so good because it is tuned in perfectly after decades of use.
Yes, more tool stories! I have an antique tool box full of my grandfather's and great grandfather's tools. I have learned a lot about maintaining and using them, but more I'd always better.
Yes.....More tool stories please. Thank you. Gonna dig out my great grandfathers marking guage in a little while and rewatch this video to see what I can find. Very well done man.
Great video. I am brand new to woodworking, about 3 months, I learned quickly that I wanted to work with hand tools pretty much exclusively. UA-cam has been both extremely helpful and unbelievable detrimental. I tend to over think and so many YT woodworkers made that much worse and complicated. I recently decided to step back a little, simplify everything and go at this from a different angle and that simplification has improved my skills and made me happier in the shop. I would definitely tune into a tool talk series.
What a fantastic idea! “Tool Stories”. Have a few antique tools that I love to use I have found myself wonder who owned these before? What was he making with these? These are stories locked with history and need to be told . You my young friend are the one to tell it!
Yes...I love the history of tools and the historical methods of craftsman. A tool stories series sounds great. Also I truly appreciate your channel. It's thought provoking, entertaining, and inspiring without being pretentious, condescending, or elitist. You have the soul of a true craftsman. Cheers!
More Tool Stories? YES PLEASE! Really enjoyed your examination and explanation of the tool, its history and usage. Always a big fan of "rest of the story" stories. Tools are neat, but understanding the tool from user and usage perspective helps me learn more about the tool and ways I should/could be using it. Great job!
Thank you Rex. 100 % interested and you’re entirely correct. It’s easy to get into the weeds about whether what you’re spending money on is the best but at the end of the day it’s the project that matters. Thank you for the reminder.
I suspect even if I wasn’t a fumbling hobbyist woodworker I’d still have found that interesting. You really have developed an eye for spotting what would be hidden to most. Can’t wait for the series.
Dude, what a killer idea for a video. Like furniture forensics, but for tools. I love it. The best part of owning vintage hand tools is the mystery and wonder of who their previous steward was, what they did, and how cool it is that you get to add to the history of the tool. This series will tap into that experience, and it's something no other channel would dare try. As I watched, I held and inspected the gauges I've made for myself, enjoying the marks I've put into them. I realized that maybe a hundred years from now, someone might look over my tools and appreciate the same things you pointed out on Timberframer Joey's gauge. It made me proud to be a maker. Thanks for this great video and that nice moment, man.
I love history, not so much the dates and politics of time gone by, but the more down to earth parts, how did they live in olden times from day to day, how have they worked and what have our ancestors used to get things done. So l simply LOVE 'Furniture Forensics' and a series of 'Tools Stories' would be right up my alley! Thanks Rex for this fascinating first entry and keep up the good work.
Rex, please continue with tool stories. I really enjoyed it and didn't think I would get sucked into watching 14 minutes on a marking gauge. Can't wait for the next installment.
I need tool stories in my life. It combines so much I love. History, creativity, engineering, and just seeing how people got sh done. The artifacts are beautiful, practical, and yeah, tell a story.
I would love to see more videos like this. And for those that hate the pin style marking gauges-replace that finishing nail with a short piece of sharpened 1095 rod and you will be shocked by the performance.
If you had told me this morning that, before the day was over, I was going to watch a 14-minute video about a wooden marking gauge I would have told you to get bent. Having said that, I just finished watching a 14-minute video about a wooden marking gauge. Well done, Rex. The tool stories series sounds like a good idea to me.
I’d love to see more tool stories. I collect and use old machinist tools that have names engraved and it always makes me wonder what they did in the trade and how it got into my hands
These forensic investigations of antique & vintage stuff are among my favorite videos on wood working. I would honestly watch a whole half hour of TV doing a couple of these investigations in an episode.
Yes! I would love more of these Tool Stories. I love your Furniture Forensics as well. All of your videos are great to be honest, I put your channel on auto play at least once per month and just binge the whole thing while I do mindless tasks.
I love these forensics videos! This was not only historically valuable but was also a great lesson in all those values and methods you mentioned. I would very much like to see more old tool forensics videos.
I miss furniture forensics, i think its such an interesting and informative series. It got me thinking about furniture and wood in a whole new way. This is definitely interesting in the same way, it just shows another side of the craft!
Love the way your passion for these tools and their stories shines through - I would absolutely look forward to a series like this! You definitely knocked it out of the park with this one!
These old wooden planes have stories to tell. The tools were loved by someone and if lucky, we can see initials or a name. My wooden rabbet plane has initials and the year "1776".
I bought a Japanese marking gauge made from white oak in 1978 and used it for many years as my main marking guage. Then when the wheel gauges came in I bought one and used it as my main guage, and they are very good for making fine adjustments easily. But for jobs where you need to establish a strong line the Japanese gauge is unbeatable, the blade is an angled cutter that works on the pull stroke and can cut thin material if you need to. Plus you can resharpen that cutter for a lifetime and not have to worryt about a replacement wheel. Tool stories is a great idea!
The history of tools is, to me, a fascinating trip. I think the more we know about the evolution of a tool the better woodworker we would be. I enthusiastically recommend more “Tool Stories” videos.
This was great, and I'm all for more of these tool stories. I have tons of old tools, including a couple old marking gauges, and this gave me a new perspective. I'm traveling for work at the moment, but as soon as I get home, I'm pulling out some of my old favorites and just hanging out with them.
Definitely more Tool Stories, handmade tools have been a godsend for the broke hobbiest like me. So amazing what someone can make with just a little time and the right know how
This is a great video. Sounds like "Joey" was just like a lot of woodworkers today - broke but hard working. I enjoy learning about how craftsman of the past worked and how they overcame obstacles in the craft. I couldn't agree more when it comes to all the needless discussions about doing things this way or that way. I'm going to get the job done while those guys stand around and talk about perfect sole flatness, restoring tools to factory perfection, and a whole bunch of other stuff that doesn't add up to a hill of beans! Keep em' coming Rex.
Almost skipped this, glad I didn't. First up, very interested in a "Tool Stories" series of videos, always love getting into the nitty gritty of tools, new and old. Absolutely agree, our greatest asset is definitely our brains and creative thinking/problem solving - if you don't have a horse, ride a pig 😀 Also, thanks for this actual video, have a marking gauge I made out of purple heart and thankful for the reminder about the marking pin, also think I'm going to switch it from a screw adjust/tighten to a wedge just like this.
i made three wooden marking gauges based with a wedge along the arm, pins on the diagonal like a rare stanley 646 wooden gauge that Paul’s Sellers used. they are so great. seriously cannot overstate it.
Tool stories - HECK YEA! This was the most interesting woodworking UA-cam I’ve seen in months++++. Novel, fun, insightful. Pat yourself on the back. Oooorrrrr, another crosscut sled build. No, tool stories please.
I’m glad I saw your video on this. I am a preservation carpentry student and got an old Stanley marking gauge to use in class, but my teacher kept insisting that the Japanese gauges were better because of their cutters. He didn’t like the pins on mine, so I filed them to a shape closer to the blades I saw on my classmate’s Japanese gauge. It has been working great since then, but I was a bit worried I did something wrong since there weren’t any file marks on it or changes to the pins before I came along. The fact that the pin now looks as similar as possible to the one on your gauge is definitely a relief lol
Rex, this is an excellent development of your work. I would certainly watch (and recommend) more explorations of the history of craft, as embodied in individual tools. You have the knowledge, an analytical eye, and the capacity to put your insights across to a wide audience. We all have a lot to learn from your investigations. Many thanks.
Absolutely yes! Please make this a series. I love watching you work and I love how you work, but just as much as the quality of your skills, I also enjoy the stories that you share while you’re doing your bills. So yes, I would be totally into a series about old tools like the one you just did here
I love old tools. I have a Stanley Bailey No.4 plane that I restored that was made in the 1930's that I found in an old barn in a bucket with a bunch of old steel and rusty nails that someone was going to scrap. It was rusted and looked about ready for that scrap heap. I followed your tool restoration video and the results were a good working plane that is the best I have ever used. It's not perfect but I love it. Yes bring on the tool stories.
More Tool Stories please! I would also love more videos of you recreating old tools like this gauge or the Kebiki you made a while ago. Keep up the awesome work Rex!
I would love to see more of your forensic analysis of old tools. Your marking gauge analysis was most interesting and enjoyable. Keep up your great work on UA-cam.
I would love more videos like this. Furniture Forensics is one of my favorite series, so one about tools would be awesome!! Thanks for sharing Rex, take care!!
I would also love to see a series of videos about tool stories. I have and use a lot of old tools myself, and often spend time explaining to people why I have them. Not everything old is good though, just as not everything new is bad. But old tools, and made items, have stories to tell, if only we could remember how to read them.
I am absolutely OBSESSED with this style of video!! As a beginner in woodworking, hearing you explain how to intuitively deduce this tool's uses is teaching me a lot about woodworking in general!
Rex I greatly appreciated this video and found myself watching it intently! I learned woodworking and a love for fine craftsmanship from my father like he learned from his father. He also enjoyed collecting antique planes & other tools. It wasn't an extensive collection but was pretty cool and included several of his father's tools. This video reminded me of some fond memories of us having great father/son time as he explained how different tools were used and or why they were created. I remember being amazed by the simple and ingenious ways people solved problems prior to the industrial & modern age. Your work holding & workbench videos are an excellent example of that. Thank you for bringing me back to those times with my father and I can genuinely say that he would have loved your channel!
Hi Rex, I really enjoy your videos and your work. This episode really struck a chord with me. As a hobby blacksmith I have developed an interest in old hand tools. I thoroughly enjoyed your interpreting the life of this tool. I personally look forward to more! Keep up the great content!
Another Grand slam of a video. I would look forward to the series with great anticipation. You always make great teaching and informative videos, Rex. The effort and research shows. As always, Thank you!
I'm always intrigued by the history behind the vintage and antique tools I purchase. When buying someone's fathers or grandfather's tools its nice to get a bit of background from the seller, but this is a whole nother level. I enjoy furniture forensics and this is a hit with me 👍👊
I absolutely LOVE the idea of telling the stories of old tools, great idea! I've learned a lot watching your videos and am looking forward to many more. I currently have, and still use, my grandfather's 1937 Craftsman jointer, 1936 Companion drill press, 1935 Craftsman table saw, and a bunch of hand tools. My favorites are his father's late 1890's Siegley planes, many of which still have the original irons. All of these old tools still work just as well as they day they were made ... and learning about the history of them is just as much fun as using them.
Makes me pull out and review with new eyes the antique saws, planes, chisels and marking tools my grandpa (and his pa) used to use when marking and slicing wood. Unfortunately _my pa_ had a horrid tendency to bust stone and concrete with their tools, but I guess some history is left for me and my son. All good on you Rex for making these stories ...
This was very entertaining. I too have a lot of old tools that I love thinking about and exploring the history. Please make more, you’re very good at it.
I think it would be a Great Idea. There are so many Great tools that have been disappearing and their users that know how to use and maintain them are disappearing quickly too. I love to watch someone who knows tools and how to read them. The stories that they tell and how they have changed. Not too many years ago it was all done by hand, and now most people if you can't plug it in you can't do it. I love your videos and Thanks for the time and knowledge that you share in each one.
I love old tools and using old tools. You can learn a lot by rehabbing old tools and how they were used. I think it would be great learning about the tools you use. Great channel!
Would love to see more tool stories. Augers and hand saws don't get enough love. How about pre-WWII glues and fasteners and how they were used. I am certain there are tons of lore and stories to be had about old tools. You hit on something else in this video that I think is important. You talked about "Joey" the carpenter, which brought Joey the tradesman alive as part of the story. Looking at a tool to see its history is one thing, but the person who used it, and more importantly how they used it is a huge part of that story. Joey went from craftsman to timber framer. That was pure genius on your part to make the story captivating.
Would love to see more Tool Stories! Love your content and how you keep finding new interesting angles for sharing amazing stories and knowledge. Always a happy moment when I get the notification for a new video :)
I really like this series. Thanks Rex. The best way I've found to clean tools like this is to use linseed oil on very fine steel wool. Cleans off the grunge without taking off patina, also oils the wood.
I think Tool Stories will be great ! You run a great channel. I personally have been "gifted" quite a lot of very old tools over the years. I have been a craftsmen by trade for excess of 40 years. Power tools were priority as speed, efficiency and accuracy were always paramount for continued employment . The last 13 years or so.... vintage hand tools slowly became my preference in about 60% of my work. Funny how that flip flopped ... lol. 😃
Who knew I'd be glued to a 14-minute video about a wooden marking gauge. Tool Stories would be a very worthy series for your channel Rex!
@@kyronnewbury i agree too!!
Ditto
I agree. It's pretty interesting to watch and learn
👍
That’s Rex’s super power. He lures you in with gadgets and ensnares you with knowledge tinged with nostalgia.
He’s used the same trick to hornswaggle me out of dozens of hours of my life. That’s not counting the vice I made out of a scaffold jack, or the myriad other projects he Pied Piper’d me into undertaking.
I blame him for most of the polished aspects on my woodworking projects [Kerfuffles?].
I look forward to continuing to blame him for a good long while.
Cheers!
I am a beginner to woodwork, the main test I have with this bundle ua-cam.com/users/postUgkxTNB_zFBSnTo_O1PqfVUwgi7ityw0JlKt is that I think that its hard to settle on a choice of the plan and outline to use as there are a large portion of them there. Nonetheless, I like the simple stride to step directions laid out there.
Yes, continue with Tool Stories. At the end, I started to think I knew Joey the timber framer. I do this every time I pick up one of my Dad or Grandfather's old tools with all the scrapes, bangs, sharpening scratches and modifications. Seem I go to them more often than my shiny newer tools. When I pick them up, channel my inner Dad and Grandfather into my work. If anything I think of them and appreciate everything they passed on to me. 3/7/2024
Anyone who has ever restored old tools, furniture, or houses has employed the same deductive process (with varying degrees of success, of course), and I think most of us would enjoy seeing more videos such as this one.
Absolutely second that assessment. In every house and piece of furniture You also can find where they bodged to make it look good/OK or straight without it actually being straight. It helps to try it with hand-tools only to understand what they did to get the thing outta the workshop asap and still be paid full price for it.
That is what makes Rex' videos so special - he knows it because he not only tried once but finished his various hand-tool-projects.
I recently restored a moving fillister plane (a rare tool in germany) some stuff i can say about it: its made from white beech, pretty unused in its lifetime, has imperial hardware, the blade fits but is not original, the fence and deeptstop is rather Aluminium or zinc, the skewed wedge was missing so now it has a new oak wedge, at some point somebody added a dark brown boxing on the edge but maybe this is original (the glue is not hideglue, i wasnt able to melt it), its a factory made tool where some problems occured while cutting the bed, its a bit crooked, but the details on the plane are nice and there are some decorative pieces. Unfortunatly it has no markings on Blade or body, just a number on the wingnut of the nicker. I think its made after WW2, maybe in the 50's.
Oh, and the most important: its now, after i buyed it for 4,50€, in my collection, restored, repaired and works even in difficult grain like a charm. Honestly, i had reversing oak grain and got Zero tearout.
Maybe i overwork the bed at some point (i have a wood repair stuff that dryes very hard and i already used on my 120 yo Plane from my great- great- greatgrandfather), and maybe i close the mouth with a piece of hard and wear resistant cherry laurel.
I'd love a "tools stories" series! Toolmaking is lots of fun!
I'd love it even more if you kept on coming at us with life lessons to learn from the tools we use!
Thanks Rex! I vote for more tool stories. I'm in my sixties, and because my father was 54 when I was born, I'm only two generations from the 19th century. My grandfather was a trade carpenter, and my father was a millwright and hobbiest woodworker. I was steeped in this stuff as a kid, and listening to your essay on this little marking gage really took me back to working in the shop with my dad as a child.
Rex was even able to determine the name of the carpenter who owned this 100 year old tool. Now that is forensic skill!😀
I am so here for more tool stories!!!
Yes, I would love to see more tool stories. My grandfather was an on-again, off-again lumberjack in Idaho. As a result he ended up with timber to mill and work in his barn. Many of his, and his father's tools are still around and I have been known to spend time with them sussing out how they did the work and used them. Imagining the work and the workers I descend from.
Absolutely!! I think you provide a comfortable level of insight making it impossible to disagree with your profound observation and reasoning. A series? I see the evolution of a show. I'm not British, so I won't say simply brilliant. The intricacies and complexities disallow me. So bravo sir.
Rex, as a reproducer of historic objects, I spend a lot of time following the tool marks of the originals, and I am loving this forensics video. It really shows how much you can learn about someone by studying the objects they leave behind. I would be super thrilled to see this become a regular channel contribution. Keep up the good work!
My personal favourite piece of furniture is a slightly crooked, pretty rural cupboard an apprentice built all alone as his final exam shortly after WW I here in my hometown in Alpine Bavaria - an exam which he failed, and quite completely so, having made about every mistake in the book. He made a second cupboard half a year later when he was allowed to apply for the exam next time and got full approval from every master in the guild in 1919, plus was awarded best apprentice finishing that summer, then immediately took off to open his own furniture business which ended up as an eighthundred employees fabrication at the time of his death in 1984. I was lucky to hear and being showed every single mistake he made with his first cupboard, and how he fixed what was fixable. Apprentices had to buy back their own work would they have wanted to keep it back then, because usually the master sold it off to get back the costs for materials - no one was interested in my grandad's first faulty fail of a cupboard, so he was given the dreadful thing and thus could hone his mistake-correcting abilities on it. He never threw it out and lastly gave it to me because I always was the one interested in the crooked thing and its obvious mistakes.
I love this tool story. I am facinated by history. In the past I have concentrated on military history. Since taking up woodwork as a hobby, I've become more and more interested in the history of woodwork. It is facinating just how long certain tools have been around, and how old many techniques are. I also studied geology, so am used to reading the history of an object from small clues in an item's morphology. And by studying the history of woodworking I'm learning how people built things, instead of how they killed each other. That's so much more rewarding. So please more of this!
Yes, I would love to see more tools stories! Keep up the great work man!
One of the things I like about your channel is your love of tool history. If more people understood that we’ve forgotten how to use tools, even this recently, maybe there would be less conspiracy about ancient people not being able to do something just because we can’t figure it out.
I will also say this. Your joiners mallet and Paul Sellers mallet combined is awesome. The first project I did 100% hand tools only, saw, rasp, file, planer and chisel. My buddy calls it Thor's Hammer
Yes. More Tool Stories, Rex! The stories that these tools tell us are the "why" of things working.
YES YES YES! Please do more tool stories! This is fantastic! I love finding the story in my own tools. I go on to imagine what my tools did, on a day to day basis!
Hi Rex! I always loved the furniture forensics, and this is great, too. Looking at what the old craftsmen did is kinda reviving the mindset of past centuries. Most people (those who wanna discuss alloys) are unable to imagine, how it is if you can't go to the next store and get what ever you want, or even that it is not normal to throw things away, just because they are dull or worn out. Once fixing things was normal, and I love to look at those old tools, which tell exactly that story.
Greetings from Germany,
Marcus
Tool stories is a great idea. It is what many of us do when we pick up old tools and can't for reasons, put them to work right away. Enjoyed this immensely!
I love the idea of doing a series on tool stories! I geek out on old tools and even though I have to admit that Rex is right that the important thing is getting projects done, I probably spend more time finding, restoring, and playing with old tools than building finished projects to show for all the tools I end up with. Learning the history and usage of tools like this is so cool, thanks Rex!
I really like videos of people making jigs and tools today. You do a fascinating job of providing info from past tools. Keep the stories coming.
Tool stories would be an incredible series. It really plays to your unique strengths as a youtuber and woodworking historian! Please do it !
About the blade - and its’ roundedness: it is rounded to accommodate both “forward” and “backwards” operation, or more accurately, Left or Right Handedness.
Dear Rex, I would love to see a series of tool stories by you/! Very inspiring and fascinating to learn to understand tools better this way.
Yes to the tool series! I love how you called us out and paid tribute to woodworkers of the past and how they get work done. 🤘
you totally hit the nail by saying "just buy a quality tool" as a professional you know how to use and maintain it. As a wooden boat builder I inherited the handplane of my preceptor and it is still the plane I use to grab first. It is not a fancy plane but it is so good because it is tuned in perfectly after decades of use.
Yes, more tool stories!
I have an antique tool box full of my grandfather's and great grandfather's tools.
I have learned a lot about maintaining and using them, but more I'd always better.
More content featuring your furniture forensics and possibly tool stories would be much appreciated! Greetings from a woodworker to another!
Yes.....More tool stories please. Thank you. Gonna dig out my great grandfathers marking guage in a little while and rewatch this video to see what I can find. Very well done man.
Great video. I am brand new to woodworking, about 3 months, I learned quickly that I wanted to work with hand tools pretty much exclusively.
UA-cam has been both extremely helpful and unbelievable detrimental. I tend to over think and so many YT woodworkers made that much worse and complicated.
I recently decided to step back a little, simplify everything and go at this from a different angle and that simplification has improved my skills and made me happier in the shop.
I would definitely tune into a tool talk series.
More tool stories! I enjoyed this as well as the analysis of workbenches/worksurfaces, and designs of old furniture. Bring it all on!
Yes please! More tool stories! Seeing how tools are used throughout time and understanding how they wear is really interesting.
What a fantastic idea! “Tool Stories”. Have a few antique tools that I love to use I have found myself wonder who owned these before? What was he making with these? These are stories locked with history and need to be told . You my young friend are the one to tell it!
Yes...I love the history of tools and the historical methods of craftsman. A tool stories series sounds great. Also I truly appreciate your channel. It's thought provoking, entertaining, and inspiring without being pretentious, condescending, or elitist. You have the soul of a true craftsman. Cheers!
More Tool Stories? YES PLEASE! Really enjoyed your examination and explanation of the tool, its history and usage. Always a big fan of "rest of the story" stories. Tools are neat, but understanding the tool from user and usage perspective helps me learn more about the tool and ways I should/could be using it. Great job!
Thank you Rex. 100 % interested and you’re entirely correct. It’s easy to get into the weeds about whether what you’re spending money on is the best but at the end of the day it’s the project that matters. Thank you for the reminder.
I suspect even if I wasn’t a fumbling hobbyist woodworker I’d still have found that interesting. You really have developed an eye for spotting what would be hidden to most.
Can’t wait for the series.
Dude, what a killer idea for a video. Like furniture forensics, but for tools. I love it. The best part of owning vintage hand tools is the mystery and wonder of who their previous steward was, what they did, and how cool it is that you get to add to the history of the tool. This series will tap into that experience, and it's something no other channel would dare try.
As I watched, I held and inspected the gauges I've made for myself, enjoying the marks I've put into them. I realized that maybe a hundred years from now, someone might look over my tools and appreciate the same things you pointed out on Timberframer Joey's gauge. It made me proud to be a maker. Thanks for this great video and that nice moment, man.
I love history, not so much the dates and politics of time gone by, but the more down to earth parts, how did they live in olden times from day to day, how have they worked and what have our ancestors used to get things done.
So l simply LOVE 'Furniture Forensics' and a series of 'Tools Stories' would be right up my alley!
Thanks Rex for this fascinating first entry and keep up the good work.
This tool& furniture forsenics series becoming my favourite. So much insight to be gained!
Rex, please continue with tool stories. I really enjoyed it and didn't think I would get sucked into watching 14 minutes on a marking gauge. Can't wait for the next installment.
I need tool stories in my life. It combines so much I love. History, creativity, engineering, and just seeing how people got sh done. The artifacts are beautiful, practical, and yeah, tell a story.
I would love to see more videos like this.
And for those that hate the pin style marking gauges-replace that finishing nail with a short piece of sharpened 1095 rod and you will be shocked by the performance.
If you had told me this morning that, before the day was over, I was going to watch a 14-minute video about a wooden marking gauge I would have told you to get bent. Having said that, I just finished watching a 14-minute video about a wooden marking gauge. Well done, Rex. The tool stories series sounds like a good idea to me.
I’d love to see more tool stories. I collect and use old machinist tools that have names engraved and it always makes me wonder what they did in the trade and how it got into my hands
These forensic investigations of antique & vintage stuff are among my favorite videos on wood working. I would honestly watch a whole half hour of TV doing a couple of these investigations in an episode.
Yes! I would love more of these Tool Stories. I love your Furniture Forensics as well. All of your videos are great to be honest, I put your channel on auto play at least once per month and just binge the whole thing while I do mindless tasks.
I love these forensics videos! This was not only historically valuable but was also a great lesson in all those values and methods you mentioned. I would very much like to see more old tool forensics videos.
I miss furniture forensics, i think its such an interesting and informative series. It got me thinking about furniture and wood in a whole new way. This is definitely interesting in the same way, it just shows another side of the craft!
I'll do more forensics. It's just finding pieces that's the roadblock. I mostly use stuff in the trash, so it's sheer luck when I find something.
Love the way your passion for these tools and their stories shines through - I would absolutely look forward to a series like this!
You definitely knocked it out of the park with this one!
These old wooden planes have stories to tell. The tools were loved by someone and if lucky, we can see initials or a name. My wooden rabbet plane has initials and the year "1776".
I bought a Japanese marking gauge made from white oak in 1978 and used it for many years as my main marking guage. Then when the wheel gauges came in I bought one and used it as my main guage, and they are very good for making fine adjustments easily. But for jobs where you need to establish a strong line the Japanese gauge is unbeatable, the blade is an angled cutter that works on the pull stroke and can cut thin material if you need to. Plus you can resharpen that cutter for a lifetime and not have to worryt about a replacement wheel. Tool stories is a great idea!
The history of tools is, to me, a fascinating trip. I think the more we know about the evolution of a tool the better woodworker we would be. I enthusiastically recommend more “Tool Stories” videos.
This was great, and I'm all for more of these tool stories. I have tons of old tools, including a couple old marking gauges, and this gave me a new perspective. I'm traveling for work at the moment, but as soon as I get home, I'm pulling out some of my old favorites and just hanging out with them.
Yes! Please do a tool stories series.
I love learning the history behind them.
Definitely more Tool Stories, handmade tools have been a godsend for the broke hobbiest like me. So amazing what someone can make with just a little time and the right know how
Yes please. Keep videos like this coming. I love tools, I love history, and I love all the little itty bitty details that offer clues.
This is a great video. Sounds like "Joey" was just like a lot of woodworkers today - broke but hard working. I enjoy learning about how craftsman of the past worked and how they overcame obstacles in the craft. I couldn't agree more when it comes to all the needless discussions about doing things this way or that way. I'm going to get the job done while those guys stand around and talk about perfect sole flatness, restoring tools to factory perfection, and a whole bunch of other stuff that doesn't add up to a hill of beans! Keep em' coming Rex.
Would love more tool stories, even more on the history of how a tool came to be used. Thanks for the great content.
It's really interesting how much you can tell about the craftsman from the subtle marks on a tool like this, would love to see more.
This is perhaps the most fascinating and wonderful woodworking video I’ve seen, and I’ve watched a LOT of videos here on UA-cam. Thank you, Rex
I'd love to see more of these, and please bring back furniture forensics too if you have access to old pieces.
REX,
I now know WAY More about the marking gauge than I did. Thanks for the technical/ tactile history lesson.
Pls continue the series.
Almost skipped this, glad I didn't. First up, very interested in a "Tool Stories" series of videos, always love getting into the nitty gritty of tools, new and old. Absolutely agree, our greatest asset is definitely our brains and creative thinking/problem solving - if you don't have a horse, ride a pig 😀 Also, thanks for this actual video, have a marking gauge I made out of purple heart and thankful for the reminder about the marking pin, also think I'm going to switch it from a screw adjust/tighten to a wedge just like this.
i made three wooden marking gauges based with a wedge along the arm, pins on the diagonal like a rare stanley 646 wooden gauge that Paul’s Sellers used. they are so great. seriously cannot overstate it.
Tool stories - HECK YEA! This was the most interesting woodworking UA-cam I’ve seen in months++++. Novel, fun, insightful. Pat yourself on the back. Oooorrrrr, another crosscut sled build. No, tool stories please.
I’m glad I saw your video on this. I am a preservation carpentry student and got an old Stanley marking gauge to use in class, but my teacher kept insisting that the Japanese gauges were better because of their cutters. He didn’t like the pins on mine, so I filed them to a shape closer to the blades I saw on my classmate’s Japanese gauge. It has been working great since then, but I was a bit worried I did something wrong since there weren’t any file marks on it or changes to the pins before I came along. The fact that the pin now looks as similar as possible to the one on your gauge is definitely a relief lol
Rex, this is an excellent development of your work. I would certainly watch (and recommend) more explorations of the history of craft, as embodied in individual tools. You have the knowledge, an analytical eye, and the capacity to put your insights across to a wide audience. We all have a lot to learn from your investigations. Many thanks.
Absolutely yes! Please make this a series. I love watching you work and I love how you work, but just as much as the quality of your skills, I also enjoy the stories that you share while you’re doing your bills. So yes, I would be totally into a series about old tools like the one you just did here
I love old tools. I have a Stanley Bailey No.4 plane that I restored that was made in the 1930's that I found in an old barn in a bucket with a bunch of old steel and rusty nails that someone was going to scrap. It was rusted and looked about ready for that scrap heap. I followed your tool restoration video and the results were a good working plane that is the best I have ever used. It's not perfect but I love it. Yes bring on the tool stories.
I loved seeing how "wear-n-tear" told a story, once you know what you're looking at. More!
Love the concept of Tool Stories. Your revelation of the 'secrets' of this marking gauge was extremely enjoyable!
More Tool Stories please!
I would also love more videos of you recreating old tools like this gauge or the Kebiki you made a while ago.
Keep up the awesome work Rex!
I would love to see more of your forensic analysis of old tools. Your marking gauge analysis was most interesting and enjoyable. Keep up your great work on UA-cam.
I would love to see more videos like this, they give an insight into thoughts of past generations and past fault fixing ideas
I would love more videos like this. Furniture Forensics is one of my favorite series, so one about tools would be awesome!! Thanks for sharing Rex, take care!!
Tool Stories, Furniture Forensics and anything else historical about tools and trades, ABSOLUTELY!
I would also love to see a series of videos about tool stories.
I have and use a lot of old tools myself, and often spend time explaining to people why I have them. Not everything old is good though, just as not everything new is bad. But old tools, and made items, have stories to tell, if only we could remember how to read them.
I am absolutely OBSESSED with this style of video!! As a beginner in woodworking, hearing you explain how to intuitively deduce this tool's uses is teaching me a lot about woodworking in general!
Rex
I greatly appreciated this video and found myself watching it intently! I learned woodworking and a love for fine craftsmanship from my father like he learned from his father. He also enjoyed collecting antique planes & other tools. It wasn't an extensive collection but was pretty cool and included several of his father's tools. This video reminded me of some fond memories of us having great father/son time as he explained how different tools were used and or why they were created. I remember being amazed by the simple and ingenious ways people solved problems prior to the industrial & modern age. Your work holding & workbench videos are an excellent example of that. Thank you for bringing me back to those times with my father and I can genuinely say that he would have loved your channel!
Tool stories sounds like a wonderful idea for a series and you definitely have a great start in place!
Hi Rex, I really enjoy your videos and your work. This episode really struck a chord with me. As a hobby blacksmith I have developed an interest in old hand tools. I thoroughly enjoyed your interpreting the life of this tool. I personally look forward to more! Keep up the great content!
I’d love to see a series breaking down antique tools. I’m a historian and it’s something I to do whenever I pick up an antique tool anyway.
Another Grand slam of a video. I would look forward to the series with great anticipation. You always make great teaching and informative videos, Rex. The effort and research shows. As always, Thank you!
I'm always intrigued by the history behind the vintage and antique tools I purchase.
When buying someone's fathers or grandfather's tools its nice to get a bit of background from the seller, but this is a whole nother level. I enjoy furniture forensics and this is a hit with me 👍👊
I absolutely LOVE the idea of telling the stories of old tools, great idea! I've learned a lot watching your videos and am looking forward to many more. I currently have, and still use, my grandfather's 1937 Craftsman jointer, 1936 Companion drill press, 1935 Craftsman table saw, and a bunch of hand tools. My favorites are his father's late 1890's Siegley planes, many of which still have the original irons. All of these old tools still work just as well as they day they were made ... and learning about the history of them is just as much fun as using them.
Makes me pull out and review with new eyes the antique saws, planes, chisels and marking tools my grandpa (and his pa) used to use when marking and slicing wood. Unfortunately _my pa_ had a horrid tendency to bust stone and concrete with their tools, but I guess some history is left for me and my son. All good on you Rex for making these stories ...
This was very entertaining. I too have a lot of old tools that I love thinking about and exploring the history. Please make more, you’re very good at it.
YES...old tech is awesome. Suddenly I feel compelled to make this gauge out of old barn wood! But with all 3 knives.
Thanks Wrecks!
Yes for tool stories. Also loved it when you talked about how older furniture was made.
YES!!!! Please more of such content. Very enjoyable and educational. Loved it, Rex.
I think it would be a Great Idea. There are so many Great tools that have been disappearing and their users that know how to use and maintain them are disappearing quickly too. I love to watch someone who knows tools and how to read them. The stories that they tell and how they have changed. Not too many years ago it was all done by hand, and now most people if you can't plug it in you can't do it. I love your videos and Thanks for the time and knowledge that you share in each one.
Please do more tool stories! I love learning about the lost simplicity and ingenuity of the past!
I have my grandfather’s marking gauge, it’s about 100 yrs old, and is extremely similar to the one your showing. I still enjoy using it regularly
I love old tools and using old tools. You can learn a lot by rehabbing old tools and how they were used. I think it would be great learning about the tools you use. Great channel!
YES! I like the idea of tool stories. I like your take on the importance of craft and preserving the knowledge and spirit of the working craftspeople.
Would love to see more tool stories. Augers and hand saws don't get enough love. How about pre-WWII glues and fasteners and how they were used. I am certain there are tons of lore and stories to be had about old tools.
You hit on something else in this video that I think is important. You talked about "Joey" the carpenter, which brought Joey the tradesman alive as part of the story. Looking at a tool to see its history is one thing, but the person who used it, and more importantly how they used it is a huge part of that story. Joey went from craftsman to timber framer. That was pure genius on your part to make the story captivating.
Would love to see more Tool Stories! Love your content and how you keep finding new interesting angles for sharing amazing stories and knowledge. Always a happy moment when I get the notification for a new video :)
I really like this series. Thanks Rex. The best way I've found to clean tools like this is to use linseed oil on very fine steel wool. Cleans off the grunge without taking off patina, also oils the wood.
I think Tool Stories will be great ! You run a great channel. I personally have been "gifted" quite a lot of very old tools over the years. I have been a craftsmen by trade for excess of 40 years. Power tools were priority as speed, efficiency and accuracy were always paramount for continued employment . The last 13 years or so.... vintage hand tools slowly became my preference in about 60% of my work. Funny how that flip flopped ... lol. 😃