During my trip to Colonial Williamsburg, which I highly recommend, I got into a conversation with one of the carpenters who worked there. We were chatting about what it was like doing carpentry with 18th century tools and techniques.
I was originally curious how long his tools kept and edge and he really enjoyed talking about them. I got the impression that most visitors are from the class of people who’ve never done much manual labor or work with tools. He explained in detail how they sharpened and cared for them and that the secret was that while most of the tool was indeed soft iron, the tools of the time period usually had a steel edge welded or worked onto the blade edge. This helped keep the tools sharp and usable longer.
As the conversation progressed, we started talking about the differences between modern carpentry and 18th century carpentry. How they worked outside in covered sheds instead of in shops and the lack of power tools, for example. Rough conditions, rougher lumber and everything being more physically demanding being three things that make the job much harder but also maybe a little more fun.
The interesting bit was that expectations of tradesmen were lower at the time, at least in terms of production speed. Tradesmen just worked slower back then. They had to work slower to avoid heat exhaustion and physical exhaustion. A steady pace of work was valued but the focus on producing as much as possible wasn’t part of the culture in the same way it was today. Instead there was a focus on quality work. Taking the time to work the hand tools to produce perfect, precision joins, for example.
It may seem like an obvious insight to someone who works outdoors but as an indoor cat who commonly works 12 or 14 hour days that are heads-down all day…it makes a lot of sense. You can’t wear your body out or beat yourself up for not reaching the finish line as fast as possible. Instead, focus on the process and making each step as high quality as possible.
As I continue my journey into the world of home repair, DIY and carpentry…it really helps me change my mindset from beating myself up for not being able to finish building a new workbench in one day to focusing on building the best bench I can with the skills I have. Pay a little extra attention to the mortise and tenon joinery and appreciate the perfect fit…and leave the pressure to produce quick results behind me at work.
Turns out if I don’t finish the workbench today, I can always finish it tomorrow. I just need to work a steady pace and take just as much pride in the process as I do in the product.