Why do we do it

[Mick p]

For me, it's a way of getting a much better quality piece of equipment at a reasonable price. I don't do the full restoration, just get the tool into functioning condition for use.
I love old cast iron machines. simple design and they last forever. I get a lot of pleasure getting them working well and even more pleasure using them.

Sandy Well said your statement just about sum’s me up when I first started woodturning i spoke to a retired master woodturner who who worked for moody boat builders near Southampton who said if I can’t afford the very best quality lathe then bye an old English manufactured one which I did I still have a very old Tyme lathe today which has served me well and dose everything I need. I will always buy a cheap Tyme Record or Arundel lathe to service and refurbish sympathetically and sell on to help introduce people to our wonderful hobby with good quality equipment that will last at a reasonable price .

 

[Jameshow]

Its the human urge to create. Where is the joy in just clicking a button and having something delivered or going to Ikea. If it were not for the lines on the floor I would never find my way out again. I guess when I started with my first house it was also to save money but I enjoyed doing it. Cost of wood these days there is no savings you have to be doing it for love. The feeling you get standing back looking at the finished item just can't be bought.
Regards
John

It annoys me when shmbo buys an item of furniture which I know will have me repairing it in 2 years time!! Perhaps it's because I'm too slow at making stuff! Or she dosent like my classic style and prefers to downcycle everything with chalk paint and ceramic knobs!!

 

[throbscottle]

If I didn't design and make stuff (or often, make the thing I need to make the other thing I need without which my original idea is stuffed. Repeat ad-infinitum) then I would go completely mad.

As well, pretty much what everyone else said. A lifetime of being various degrees of broke has meant that often, if I want a thing I have to make it (or, "rescue and repair"). Now I am not broke anymore I still have to be careful, but at least the money saved by reclaiming materials and making stuff means I can get nicer versions of things I can't make.

 

[Adam W.]

I like the research.

 

[bp122]

I can make things that are better than I can afford to buy.
Or,
If I spend as much as it will cost to buy X, I can have it made from solid timber, or I can afford to buy the tool that I'll need to do the job and will benefit from that in the future.
Or,
That's rubbish - I could do better than that myself...
Or,
Because that's what dad would have done and it rubbed off at a young age
Or,
Because solving problems and learning how to do new stuff is very satisfying
Or,
Because it means more when you've spent the time and effort to make it yourself
Or,
I want something custom that I can't buy
Or,
I just enjoy the process and developing a skill
Or,
The sound, feel and smell of it
Or,
It's a way to be (even just a little bit) creative

Pick any or all of the above...

I pick all of these!

 

[Henniep]

Why do we all do the projects and restorations we do ?
I am not quite sure why I do it, so would like to hear from others.
This often involves LOTS of time, effort and money - so what is the driving force ?
What is the "satisfaction" ghat drives this ?

Simple because we enjoy it?

 

[cowtown_eric]

For me, fixing things was a pragmatic reality.

As a self employed person, something goes wrong with the van full of tools , I just ain't gonna unload it, take it to a shop, wait a couple of days till they get around to fixing it. Ergo, fix it yerself in the eve so yer set to go next day/following morning (most problems are simple things)

Same for shop tools, ...in the middle of a job when things go sideways due to equipment problems, oft it is only a simple fix, so DIY or wait weeks for a shop to fix it.

fast forward many years, and I find myself the only person maintainng (changing blades) repairing millwrighting our various wwing machines when they get beastily broken by neophytes.

So being a total tool junky, on job sites, I'm quite used to being teased for having too many tools, until other trades want to borrow them....and just the other day, a makerspace metalhead asked me if I happened to have my gauge blocks in the truck !not that day!-put em back at home!!!) The teasing still goes on!- and I just get a chuckleout of it.

although I've got way too many seldom used tools, I've never gone more than a day with a truck or machine down.

And do I get satisfaction from that? you bet! And enjoy every moment when younger or less experienced folks ask to watch while I change blades on planers/jointers/etc or show them how to make tools, sharpen the ones they use, or show them tools that they didn't know existed.

Eric in the colonies

 

[niall Y]

I just like making things. and I've tried lots of different things. From glass-blowing to blacksmithing and from gilding to embroidery. I find all the various processes, skills, tools, materials methods, and history endlessly fascinating and enjoyable. Woodwork has been the one thing I stuck with. It's what I did at work, and what I now do in retirement

It has puzzled me that many of my colleagues simply sold all their equipment when they retired. and apart from some DIY are quite happy to do without woodwork. Maybe they were the real professionals and I am - in the true sense of the word - an amateur.

 

[Adam W.]

Indeed, amateurs get a lot of bad press these days.

 

[recipio]

Back in the 80s I subscribed to 'The Woodworker ' and then' Practical Woodworking.' I have to say the projects blew me away and you could see that cabinetmakers were inspired by the past but many like Freddie Baier were modernist in their approach. Magazines have largely turned into artsy showcases for 'studio' furniture now but I still reach for the old magazines for inspiration. They feature furniture for living with - not ' looking at ' !

 

[thetyreman]

I'd say if you've worked with wood all your life and sell your tools off when you retire, you might not have enjoyed it at all, you just worked for money and no other reason, amateurs are under rated.

 

[Spectric]

Because we don't like an easy life and need motivation, something to keep the brain active and the body in motion. I have always said that people who win huge sums of money may be able to buy anything and pay to get anything done but what motivation keeps them going because at some point you will become bored because happyness cannot be brought but the challenge of making something is far more rewarding.

 

[Bingy man]

Although as far not mentioned, another reason I do woodwork and other jobs for my friends family and paying customers is the trust we have in delivering what is requested and sometimes working in a customer’s home to carry out said work or project. I personally think it speaks volumes when a customer goes off to work or on holiday etc leaving you with a set of keys and uttering the words help yourself to a drink or something to eat etc . It’s just something that fills me with pride and of I’d never abuse this . My last big job was a complete kitchen make over - new floor, new paint job to walls ceiling and woodwork. Cust left me a key and off he popped to South Africa for 6 weeks . Kept in touch via WhatsApp and discussed any issues as they arose .

 

[Cheesehound]

For me, there's nothing so satisfying, fulfilling, and honest as putting a smile on someone's face through the fruits of your own labours.

 

[Bingy man]

Well said

 

[rafezetter]

It's my medicine - keeps the voices quiet - the demons from my difficult childhood. When I'm wrestling with a project (as I am this last week) my mind stays clear and I sleep better. I get a semblance of that with my work, but most of that is fairly "humdrum" and less mentally taxing, whereas most of my woodwork related projects are all things completely new to me, so more of my mind is occupied.

 

[sawdust1]

For when the customer hands over the cheque, even that fun has gone now with BACS payments.
Its the way i make a living, just about !

 

[MorrisWoodman12]

It annoys me when shmbo buys an item of furniture which I know will have me repairing it in 2 years time!! Perhaps it's because I'm too slow at making stuff! Or she dosent like my classic style and prefers to downcycle everything with chalk paint and ceramic knobs!!

But @Jameshow if you didn't have to repair all that carppy furniture you'd be so much faster making stuff.

 

[throbscottle]

I really don't understand how some people can retire and they just .... stop .... presumably to do Leisure Things. Strikes me as very boring.

There are simply not enough hours in the day. I'm looking forward to being able to use all of the ones that there are!

 

[sawtooth-9]

I really don't understand how some people can retire and they just .... stop .... presumably to do Leisure Things. Strikes me as very boring.

There are simply not enough hours in the day. I'm looking forward to being able to use all of the ones that there are!

Totally agree.
Those who " retire " and do nothing, usually die soon after.
I regard retirement as the opportunity to have the time to do all the things I wanted to do while I was " earning a living " and could not do.
The real challenge is retaining sufficient intellect and finances to ensure it's still fun.