Dear Galootarati:

I have been lurking for quite some time, but have on occasion, overcome my
temerity to ask a few questions about moulding figured wood with hand
planes.  Since finding out about the Galootasite, I have finished several
projects that have been in various stages of completion for years, thanks to
the help I received from the group.  This includes a tiger maple/cherry wet
bar, a reproduction tiger maple/cherry picture frame and a violin
restoration that has an interesting story behind it.  Comments regarding
figured wood was good advice and spurred me on to do additional research.  I
will post some project photos at a future date and some of my findings on
hand moulding figured wood.

I vividly remember my Jr/Sr High school woodworking shop and I still have
and use several of the projects I made including a pine harvest table. Those
classes were the most useful I had in high school except for typing.  My
next immersion in woodworking was in Hanover, NH at Dartmouth where I was
doing a residency in general surgery.  Dartmouth had an outstanding woodshop
and also a blacksmithing shop that I took full advantage of.

I am now retired and getting to use the old tools I have been collecting for
thirty five years. I do most everything by hand except I do have a band saw
for resawing and a lathe.  Ok, I also have a belt and orbital sander, and a
jigsaw.  Did if forget the table saw and chainsaw?  Never mind, I do try to
do everything by hand but I am old enough to appreciate the advantages of
power under some circumstances.

I am particularly interested in old ways of doing things including
agricultural practices and have collected books and learned articles of a
Galootish bent for years. I have put on demonstrations for our Historical
Society in Lafayette, NY and for some interested students in my daughter's
school.  My family lives in an 1820 farmhouse and barn that I restored when
I came to Syracuse, NY in 1976.  Unfortunately, none of my four children
(including the one boy) got the tool bug, but my youngest still have a
chance to develop it at the ages of eleven and twelve.  My eldest, the son,
now in his thirties and in his own home, kicks himself for not taking
advantage of what was going on down in the barn shop.

Nearly all the tools I have are users and I really have no tools of true
"collector quality" at least in my opinion.  I have some interesting
specialty tools such as blacksmithing, timber framing, woodland trades and
sabot makers tools as well as woodies, saws, mallets, chisels, clamps etc.
The only metal planes are one transitional jointer that I have never used
and a few metal carriage maker planes.  I recently found a wood lathe on
eBay that is the duplicate of the lathe I learned on in High school
(Walker-Turner) and I have restored it to do my HS alma mater proud.  In
reclaiming it from the junk heap, I found that this machine tool was made in
the town next to mine in Plainfield, NJ where I was raised so this made it
especially good find for me.

Following the Galootacus proceedings has reassured me that I am not alone in
my bizarre tool fetish and that there is nothing wrong with doing things
"the old way".  Perhaps someday someone will write a 10 step program to
treat those similarly afflicted, but I don't think it will help, nor should
it!

I am looking forward to signing up for Galootaclaus exchange which is sure
to make my holidays memorable and I hope will make someone else's holiday
memorable as well.

Paul Ferenchak,  Lafayette, NY - Syracuse Area.

------------------------------------------------------------------------