Handworks 2017 in Iowa

[Admiral]

 Maybe $450 is a lot of money, but it's not $800.

Ha, ha, well as you've said before, "$300 is a lot of money"

Again, I'll be patient, eventually something will happen closer to home.

[Handplanesandmore]

  Sooner or later it will happen, I'll wait patiently.

It is nothing but just a consumerism event billed romantically as something else. Wait patiently? So will I.

Simon

[Admiral]

Well, no. I can't agree with that at all. It's a place where many independent toolmakers get to strut their stuff and sell their goods, which for me is a good thing as it keeps them in business and gives all of us choices. Plus, most of those makers are great guys to boot.

[Handplanesandmore]

Please feel free to disagree, but to me toolmakers from around the world gathering to showcase and sell their products while demonstrating along were exactly about sales (and consumerism). If these artisans and companies gathered to show tool skills or making of tools without taking any orders (which of course was impractical because to go to the event cost everyone money), then I would not consider it a tool sales event. I am not belittling anyone or the event and I would have attended it if it wasn't 1,000 miles away. There is nothing wrong for makers to sell and attendees to buy, but I would call a spade a spade.

Simon

[Mike Brady]

When Benchcrafted moves from Cedar Rapids , IA (never) to one of the coasts then you guys may see a Handworks.   Meanwhile, you get the oceans and we have Amana.  WIA tried coastal venues and you didn't show up.  The first person I met when I arrived in Amana had driven 700 miles to get there.  Stop whining!


...and yes, it is a tool sales event. Everyone there knows that. Most tools are made to be sold to someone else. There was no extra charge for learning how to use it while buying it. If I remember correctly you have to pay just to see the tools at most events and the instruction comes at a hefty fee too...over four hundred bucks at an event I shall not name.

[SteveVoigt]

It is nothing but just a consumerism event billed romantically as something else. Wait patiently? So will I.

Simon

Here's a bit of perspective. My sales at the event basically just covered my expenses of gas, food, lodging. From talking to lots of other makers, I'd say this was typical, or average…there are a few vendors who really ring the cash register, but most just do ok. Further, I spent a solid week out of the shop, and I gave away a plane as a door prize, so that has to be factored in as well.

On the other hand I got to meet a ton of great makers who were invited (like Ron Brese!) and a ton of interested and knowledgeable attendees (like Wilbur Pan!). I had great conversations about planemaking with Larry and Don of Old Street, Jeremiah Wilding, and others. The stimulation and knowledge sharing were a huge part of the event.

For people attending, there's the opportunity to try a ton of tools, but also to learn. I probably had 200 people try my planes. I taught dozens of people how to sharpen, how to plane, and how to adjust a wooden plane. Hardly any of those people were buyers, and there was no pressure anywhere to do so. A lot of people just came by to say hi and chew the fat, and that was great also.

So to sum up, attendees can get a ton of hands-on experience and learning with no pressure to spend money. Vendors get to rub elbows, be stimulated, and be reminded of why they started doing this in the first place. And everybody gets to hang out in a cool place for a weekend. Now, does that really sound like "just a consumerism event"?

Yes, people are selling, and other people are buying. If they weren't, the event wouldn't exist. But if you think that's all it is, you're wrong. And since you haven't attended, you don't really know, do you?

[mvflaim]

Generally speaking, most tool shows are advertising expenditures for the vendors. If you cover your costs after all your sales, you've done well. The idea is to get eyeballs on your products so that it will turn into sales down the road, either through your website or at another show. Making a living simply doing shows is tough. It's doable, but tough. That's why a lot of the guys have microphones and speakers at The Woodworking Show. The bigger the audience, the more sales you get. Sometimes even that doesn't work. Just look at what has happened to The Woodworking Show over the past twenty years. I think the reason that Handworks and WIA work is because of the hype. After awhile, the hype goes away and so do the sales along with the vendors. Be happy they exist.

[Ron Brese]

Events like Handworks are necessary to keeping the interest in hand tool woodworking alive and well. The venue for this event actually couldn't be better. You have to remember that some people are actually drawn to an area of less population concentration and are very put off by the perils of large population locations. Given the attendance at this recent Handworks it would actually be difficult to accommodate any larger a crowd of attendees. That being the case obviously a lot is being done right in the organizing of this event.

Do the businesses that put themselves to great expense like to regain that in sales? Of course they would. If not they will discontinue to come and share their wares at these type of events. But that is not the main focus of this event.

When I first started participating in Lie-Nielsen hand tool events, Woodworking in America, and subsequently Handworks the age of the attendees was pretty much all over 50 years old. Now we're seeing more and more young adult aged people at these events and that's tremendously encouraging and bodes well for the future of hand tool woodworking and that more than anything is what Handworks is about.

Ron

[Admiral]

Ron, well put.

On the younger set (i.e., under 40 
), I drop in to the "r/Handtools" over on Reddit, and while not as active as Woodnet, there is mostly a younger crowd there finding their way into the hobby, which is also encouraging.  Budget is an issue for folks when you got kids to raise, etc., so while I think they would lust for your stuff, it will take a few more years for that crowd to become customers, but its all good.

[Don McConnell]

Following up on Ron's comments, for me, one of the highlights of the show was the group of teenagers who were members of a 4-H woodworking club from Henry County, IL (about a 2 hour drive from Amana). They spent a fair amount of time in our booth both days of the show and were engaged, curious, and eager to try a variety of our planes. Kudos to their advisor for taking the time to expose them not only to the participating tool makers, but also to the fact that a large number of adults share their interest in woodworking. And Ron is right in observing that the crowd included an encouraging number of younger fo1k.

On another note, I managed to sneak away from our booth long enough to spend a few moments watching and interacting with the six Norwegians who were there demonstrating some of the tools and techniques used in their woodworking culture. They were in Amana largely to document a Scandinavian planing bench which survives there and is very similar to ones they use. They had participated in another event in the states for which they may have been paid, but, as far as I know, they were in Amana on their own dime and with nothing to sell. The tools I was shown were very clever and even though I will likely never utilize any of them I feel enriched by having learned a little about them. The Norwegians were very friendly and generous with their knowledge and I was pleased to be able to spend a little time with them.

Don McConnell
Eureka Springs, AR