Golden tips from the woodworker David Gabrio, who will help the amateur to become a master of woodworking.

#1: ADD ZEN TO THE ART OF WOOD PROCESSING

As a society, we are phenomenally obsessed with speed. Every second saved is an achievement, and time becomes a more valuable commodity than money. However, despite our fast cars, fast food culture and high-speed Internet, we continue to say that we feel “lack of time”.

With many things we want to achieve, many of us feel time-limited. And even on weekends it is tempting to pour yourself another cup of coffee and take on as many projects as we can. According to David, this approach to life based on caffeine has no place in the carpenter’s workshop.

“I think that people are in a hurry now, they want to start the project and finish it on the same day. And I sometimes think so, too. But, unfortunately, this is not possible. It takes time to achieve quality.”

This should not be seen as an obstacle. Vice versa. The woodworking project is your opportunity to make zen into your life. While working, you can ignore distractions and focus on the slow development of your creation. Think of it as a meditation in a movement that doesn’t involve hippies and chakras, but it also restores a mind overloaded with modern problems.

If you have basic woodworking skills you can also try to find zen using TUMI ISHI.

#2: LEARN TO USE HAND TOOLS

Woodworking equipment is fantastically useful for accelerating non-creative aspects of woodworking. However, David warns that you can’t rely on machines in all aspects of your job.

“The sophistication lies in hand tools. I have all the machines I need, but I think they’re designed so I can get to my workplace faster and use hand tools.”

#3: INVEST IN QUALITY TOOLS AND MACHINES

There is no place for motley purchases in woodworking, unless you are one of those masochists who likes to be disappointed. According to David, many people lose confidence in their tree skills, thinking they “just don’t understand it” when they’re actually being held back by cheap tools and equipment.

“The market is oversaturated. Machines built on the principle that the main price, not quality. It’s the same with hand tools. Many of my hand tools are expensive. People say, “Oh, no, I can find similar tools in a store a few times cheaper.” Well, yes, you can. But their quality will be different.”

David suggests if budgeting is an important factor, you are much better off looking for used woodworking tools and good quality machines. This way you can save some money without sacrificing quality.

You can read about the most necessary tools for wood processing in our blog.

#4: LEARN THE BASICS OF CARPENTRY

Having a wide range of adhesives available now, it may be tempting to just believe in grandiose statements on the packaging, glue the joints and think that it will be so.

“It just makes me sad. When I see people doing something and they put so much effort into it, but they do it wrong. If you do not take into account the extension and compression of wood in its design, the adhesive seam can fall out, pop out or split the wood.”

At the microscopic level, the tree consists of strands, strands and strands of tiny tubes. When humidity drops and the ambient temperature rises, moisture comes out of the tubes and they shrink and lose shape like compressed straws for drinking. Then, in the conditions of humidity or rain, the wood will absorb water from the atmosphere and the straws will expand.

All wood masters understand this and use the extension and compression of wood in their design and craftsmanship.

“The art of making furniture involves creating joints that blend so well with each other that you really don’t need glue”

#5: EXPLORE THE TREE

The more you know about the wood you work with, the better your creations will be. There are so many factors that affect which piece of wood is best suited for manufacturing. It is density, grit, color and even smell.

While your knowledge will be empiricald through experimentation and experience, all wood masters also seem to develop a more subtle, intuitive connection to the tree. Almost like a whole new feeling.

In his exceptional woodworking guide, The Cabinetmaker’s Notebook, wood master James Krenov notes the “relationship” you build with the wood that is stored in your workshop. He can sit in quiet contemplation for years before finally “tell him” what he wants to be turned into. David reports the same connection to the materials he works with.

“You can’t teach that. You just have to be sympathetic to the environment you work in.”

If you take David’s number one advice and develop a sense of zen in your work with a tree, this connection to the tree will appear. And if the tree speaks to you, you don’t have to worry about your sanity.