Early Access Video: Finding the Woodland Shop
🕑 Added 2021-08-07 11:01:01 +0000 UTCFriends:
I've been doing a lot of green woodworking recently, and it's got me thinking about the chair bodgers and Appalachian chair-makers. You know, the guys who really pioneered green woodwork. A lot of these craftsmen worked in the woods, right next to the trees they used.
So, could we do something similar? Could we leave our garages and basements and go work in the actual woods?
I know, many of you live in cites and suburbs; hardly the wilderness that some of the old-timers worked in. I'm in the same boat and I live in a tightly packed neighborhood where outdoor work is unreasonable.
Or is it?
In this week's video, I'll walk my actual neighborhood and explore the possibilities of setting up a woodland shop in improbable circumstances.
(And yes, I know that many modern woodworkers have woodland shops and teach classes from them, but I wanted to look at a smaller and simpler shop for the hobby woodworker.)
I'm posting this about a week before you're seeing it and I'm currently visiting family, so please excuse me if I haven't responded to comments or messages in a timely manner. I'll back to work in a few days.
Hope everyone is doing well!
--Rex
Comments
Howard Tuckey
Please accept my apologies for that last video. I sat here and realized how offensive it must have been and came back to delete it, only to find it gone already. Again, I apologize -
Howard Tuckey
And I did sorta get ahead of myself with the hickory - I girdled a few that will be in the way of a couple of other things I want to do. I read about the technique in an old novel - a settler would stake out his homestead, pick a homesite near sufficient good water, timber, etc, and girdle the trees, deeply enough to kill them, and they would season "on the stump" so that when time came for that specific wood, they'd be right there but he'd be assured that they were of the right size for the project in mind. And actually they're one reason to build that blodger's bench - I've got several tool heads around here that desperately need handles! So I did the same with the hickory, knowing I'd need saplings for tool handles, etc. The technique really works!
John Lamb
That was a lovely video Rex ! Got a change my wife watched it too. If it is possible you should do it and set up a woodland bodger shop!
Martin Hartley
New life goal into acquire acreage where I can have an outdoor workshop in the woods. Sadly, not very likely with the annual bushfire season we get here!
Jon Linna
You had me at 'The Hobbit'.
Skully Wood and Metal
Dry land in Louisiana? Very doubtful. I live on a one acre lot, with a 20 acre farm complete with cows behind my property. Great video, we have places like that much farther north of me.
Ian McElcheran
I liked the video a lot. The whole time you had me wondering how different your laws were in the US. I have lots of wooded space near me here but I couldn't build a shop there.
WoodworkLearner
12 bore shotgun for the mosquitoes
WoodworkLearner
Nice that you can do the exploring Rex. Here in the UK If you carry tools into the woods you would come out to a police officer. Felling a tree? Massive fine most likely even if you own the land in some cases. Nice to dream though. We have loads of great woodland near me which I used to walk extensively but sadly my smaller mobility scooter would struggle with practically all of it, even the so called wheelchair accessible routes.
Dad Kewl
Hi Rex. Sounds and looks amazing. We should definitely appreciate our surroundings more. Funny how often in America houses are called small when my house in the Netherlands is way smaller and not standing on it’s own. A house from your street would be at least 1,5 million euro’s. If only... Keep it up Rex and a humble thanks from Holland.
Howard Tuckey
That sounds like fun! I've got a few acres, with access to more, if I need it. And that two-board shaving horse is just the right size to take right out in the woods ! Now endorse a good brand of mosquito repellant and you're good as gold!
Hauptmann
Yeah, "kids" build the forts. Uh huh. I believe you.
Rex Krueger
I appreciate the honesty!
Robert Dennett
Unfortunately, unless you own the land, a forest workshop is not in the cards in Texas.
North Road Woodwork
This was a nice video Rex. It was a very different kind of thing than what you usually do, and I imagine that there was quite a bit of work involved in setting up many of the shots. Great job trying something new and pushing your skills. I live, and grew up in rural Maine, so I admittedly take access to the woods for granted. My shop is actually located about 200 yards down a dirt drive, in the woods.
Jeff Tinsley
You aren't fooling me with those claims of "forts". I've seen The Blair Witch Project! ;) Thanks for the video. I really enjoyed it (as always).
Kevin Lundquist
Oh thank goodness, not another plane video! :-) Pretty cool, I have some pretty large wooded areas within walking distance of my house, but I never thought of harvesting wood from them. Not sure what the legality of that is.
Matt Evans-Koch
Nice video Rex. A walk in the woods is always a good thing. Only bettered by a walk on the beach. I don't know about Ohio, but in many of the NW forests you can talk to the forest service people at their office and many times they have areas where you can cut firewood or get special permits for timber harvest. Where you would be using no large machinery, you may find that staying out in the woods for a period of time would be okay and you could put up a tent and do your work there for a week or two. Thank you for the video, hope your family visit was enjoyed and have a great week ahead.
Dianna (Coderjoy) Dearborn
Thanks for making me think differently about something I thought I knew. Wait! Isn’t that called learning? Are you a… a… teacher or something, Rex? I’ve lived in and around forests most of my adult life and hadn’t thot much about working green wood. Now I’m getting interested since I like working outdoors nowadays. Thanks for getting me thinking. This could be fun… especially with the cost of dimensional wood lately. I will follow you a ways down this journey with you.
Steve Levine
Thanks for the video. The field-trip structure with a theme is good. Have you seen a co-op approach? Group of 100 local subscribers could kick in $100-200 and a cheap landlocked undeveloped parcel could host. Like an artisan's coop (I am a member of a local).
Mark Petersen
I respectfully submit that while woodworking is important, it isn't everything. (Ahem). The next time you explore your local woodland, find a stump or take a stool, sit down and be quiet. Then wait. Without you knowing it, there was a circular area moving with you of scurrying, peeping and silence. When you stop moving and talking, the woods will come back almost as though you weren't there. Birds will chirp, bugs will buzz and you'll hear the tress talking to each other with rustling leaves. My late brother and i did this often. He would say, "If God exists, this is where He lives...."
TwoRavens
"Crab" apples are just apple trees that were grown from seed, instead of being cloned/grafted from a known type. Treat it like you would any other apple wood. (And maybe save some of it for smoking things with! Applewood smoked meat is mouth-wateringly good!)
Aaron Wasielewski
(Cue up “The Woodwright’s Shop” theme music as you traipse over the river). I love the concept Rex, and have experimented with green woodworking for some time now - mostly in the form of spoon carving (no spoons of which have gone past the becoming toy kitchen accessories for the kids). There are lots of public woodlands around our home, but nothing that I’d look at doing any more than some spoon carving in with some found pieces already down. An idea that does feel promising to me is the thought of venturing into the woods with an empty backpack or “foraging basket”, and a pruning saw to gather choice pieces, to then work at home at a backyard green woodworking shop. Also, many towns have log yards where they make mulch and firewood. You may be able to get in touch with the folks at one of those outfits to see if they’d allow you to select and purchase a 4 foot section of choice oak or the like for something like a chair, and allow you to split it out right there so you can load it into your vehicle to take home and work outside. One of Peter Folansbee’s videos starts out that way. Lastly, many US towns have a “chip drop” service available where tree companies can drop the logs and chips produced from a job right on your driveway, as opposed to taking it to a landfill. I know for the one near us, you can specify if you want logs or chips, or both. Sometimes it can take while once you’ve opted in for the service, but it’s something that is there in a lot of places. I loved your shots in this video and appreciate what it will mean for many of your projects moving forward!
Carol Ritacca
I won't be looking to set up a woodland workshop but the idea of green woodworking is appealing. Two nights ago my thirty year old crabapple tree split during a storm. The professional arborist says the tree can't be saved. Hmm, what can I make from green crabapple wood?
Marc Barash
Thank you, that was a refreshing change!
Scott Johnston
I live close to the center of a city of 5 million people and there is a small woodland nearby. Its tucked away in a valley that runs down to a hidden swimming spot on Sydney Harbour. Few people venture up from the bay and beach into the forest but if you make the effort is a great place to visit. Lots of Angophora (Sydney red gums) though nothing much over about 100 years old so mostly smaller trees. It's good to get back to nature, good for the soul.
David Dixon
It’s a lovely scenic video, although I do feel a bit that I’ve just been punk’d, by the promise of setting up a woodland shop and then getting the “I knew from the start this couldn’t happen” right at the end 🤣
jslee
yeah getting out and exploring — slowly, on foot — where you live can be full of surprises. I found a tiny tiny tiny beach, only a few metres long, in between two fancy waterfront houses and down some very steep and treacherous steps. Nice park bench to sit on halfway down, too.
Geoffrey Wilson
I think I prefer videos with technique shown or projects built. If you were going to do a video like this one, I would suggest it ends with actually setting up such a shop. As it is, I'm not sure I got much out of it. Sorry, I just didn't like like it as much, though I do like that you tried something new.
The Deaf Maker
Defo would love to see more videos like this. Such a relaxing video.
Jesse Woodring
My parents own 22 acres of woods, but too bad that most of the land is hillsides of a valley. Setting up a small shop like this would be fun.