From the beginning, my focus has been on the skillful use of hand tools to create a finished piece.  Whether it be a hand plane, mallet and chisel, hand saw, or measuring tool, when it comes to making a thing, this is where I have always been the most comfortable.  From the standpoint of craft, being able to make a refined thing using tools made to fit the hand, is the nature and art of workmanship.

Despite a strong belief in the use of hand tools, I couldn’t imagine a modern day shop without stationary power tools, a router or two, and a dust collection system.  The power tools in my shop advance my process.  They are used as roughing out tools, and are not used to achieve an end result.  They are accurate in the sense that once set up to perform a task, can repeat the same task over and over again with the same reliable result.  All work is meticulously refined by hand, and in some cases, only done by hand.  For instance, when joining wide solid panels from narrow planks, the only way to achieve a truly invisible joint, is by using a joiner plane and shooting board.  Once assembled, these panels are surfaced, and leveled using a series of hand planes, straight edge, and winding sticks.  All dovetails, where ever they occur in a piece are always done by me, by hand.