That guy at the lumber yard who said I was wasting my time with hand planes

Last month at Builders Supply in Tacoma, this older guy saw me buying a No. 4 Stanley and just laughed. Said nobody uses hand tools for finish work anymore, that I should just get a random orbit sander and be done with it. I asked him how he handles tearout on figured maple and he just stared at me. He walked off after that. Anyone else run into old school guys who think their way is the only way?

2 comments

2 Comments

keithbennett10d ago

...so my buddy Tom had almost the exact same thing happen at a different lumber yard near Puyallup. He was buying a set of chisels and some guy behind the counter told him he was fighting the 21st century and to go buy a power planer instead. Tom just shrugged and said he restores antiques for a living and the guy got real quiet real fast. Did you end up getting the No. 4 anyway or did that old timer put you off?

schmidt.grace10d ago

Your buddy Tom's story is the perfect example of why I still buy from local yards instead of big boxes. The guy behind the counter at the big store in Tacoma told me the same thing about my hand saws. Told me to get a cordless circular saw instead. I just smiled and said I'm teaching my kid woodworking. He didn't have a comeback for that. People forget that not all of us are in a race to finish projects as fast as possible. Some of us actually enjoy the process of using tools that take skill, not just batteries.