Maybe.
I must first apologise for not keeping my word about contributing to this humble web-log more often. It would seem that I had planned to have the time to be able to contribute here, but that particular plan failed spectacularly.
But you, faithful reader, appear to still visit? I don’t understand why, but anyway…
Recently on Woodnet, a tool ’set’ was discussed, and I stuck my foot in my mouth about doing something about it.
Well, I have managed to plan out a small kit for the time being, that may be worthwhile or not.
A larger, more comprehensive kit will follow soon, but for now just a scant 4 items make up this little collection of tools.
But first, why?
Currently the store has approximately 600 items listed. There are another 500+ to go in there as time goes buy where I can nail down a source, for them, find the time to write up about xyz tool, make the listing, etc, etc. It does take time, typically an hour per item, and an additional 10 minutes per derivative. So for a chisel ’set’ of 11-12 chisels, you would be looking at up to 3 hours. Reality dictates that it takes just over 1 hour to sort out all the details, and maybe 30 minutes to expand the listing to all sizes. But it still takes time, and that is something I currently have in very short supply.
There are 600 items, so there is a lot of time locked up in there.
But that also means you folk out there have choices, lots of choices.
Daunting is a word that comes to mind. Which tool do I really want/need? There are nearly 100 saws to choose from, which one?!?
So, these tool sets/kits are an effort to try and take some of the guesswork out of the process.
Every single kit will have solid performing tools in it. No filler, and nothing added for the sake of adding an item. Standard policy around here, but it’s worth repeating.
Every kit will be fairly small in number of tools and price. It might be really amazingly fantabulous to have a comprehensive tool set available, but if there are 50 pieces to it, and the final cost looks like a telephone number, then it’s pointless.
Instead, a small kit of tools aimed at filling a particular need.
And for my benefit, there will be no substitutions allowed. You will be able to add several different, directed kits together, but swapping out one tool for another, not happening. Too much trouble to make it worthwhile.
One of the big questions will be “howmuchizzit?”
Well, I don’t have a great amount of wiggle room here since I keep the store’s prices as low as is comfortable (which is why there are no sales, no discounts, etc.) because I prefer good pricing all the time rather than being gouged every day, except for that one day where everything is cheap. And it was yesterday.
For now, the plan is to have a small kit, priced slightly lower than each item would be individually, but have the final price include basic shipping.
Sound like a plan to you? I hope so, since the first kit roll out will be arriving very soon.
And it will be…
>drumroll please!<
A power tool woodworkers introduction kit.
(Big moan. Yeah, I know but anyway…)
Really simple here. Consists of a 3 piece chisel set (9, 15 and 24mm), a smaller (42mm blade, 180mm long) plane, a saw and a sharpening stone.
The chisels are something not yet offered. They are ‘Senkichi’ brand, they are not expensive, they are actually very good. I have used them for years, and not been wanting for a better chisel performance wise. They sharpen up well, take and hold a great edge, and look decent. They check every box for being a good chisel, the only caveat is that they are dirt cheap. Really happy to have found a source for these things.
The plane, Senkichi brand again. Look up the 42 x 180mm double laminated blade plane in the store. That one. Not a full sized plane, but something definitely useful and easy to use too.
Saw, Gyokucho ‘Blue Hard’ 240mm regular. Nothing special, nothing bad about it. Solid, dependable and worker through and through.
Sharpening stone will be a smaller King #6000 grit to keep the chisels and plane sharp.
I am also considering something like a #1000 diamond plate for rougher work on the edge tools and keeping the water stone flat. But that increases the price and weight of the kit, and is it really needed?
I am not sure, so here’s your chance folks.
Tell me what you think! Is this simple kit to get a kick start with handtools a goer or not? What should be added in, or removed?
Remember of course, this kit is for folks who already make wooden things, and as such already have some tools. We are not starting with a clean slate, so a lot of the smaller stuff can be left out, and I only want to include items that are pretty much ‘essential’.
I won’t mention prices since the exchange rate is a disaster right now, but whatever happens this small kit will be under $150 to anywhere in the world.
So have at it. Please. 
Thanks again for sticking around to you who actually read my drivel.
Stu.
This sounds like a wonderful idea and plan, can’t wait to see the link to your first kit. The only add on I can think of is a small geno (maybe 150gr) to help set the plane blade in the dai?
I do like the idea of including the diamond plate but you are right, it might add too much weight.
Hard to say what the market will be for such a kit. Looking back a bit to my intro to Japanese tools, it was more of a “I’d like to try a J. chisel”, then later now “I’d like to try a J. plane”, etc. having already been bitten by the hand tool bug (and having a sharpening system). I might have jumped at the J. tool package if it didn’t include stone(s), or if the included shipping meant I was getting the stone at a VERY good price.
Would your target power tool user want the (arguably perhaps) added complication of a first plane without adjuster? In other words do enough folks entering the realm of hand tools gravitate to J. tools?
Only you can determine time to assemble kit vs. potential business. Hope you get lots of comments to help you decide.
Hi Stu,
I can see the appeal of a tool kit, but at the same time, it may be too much to try and lump a few tools into a group that would be considered necessary. Its not that the tools won’t be useful, but such a slim selection might quickly prove inadequate. With so many tools to choose from even within the same type (chisels, saws, planes, etc.), it may be better to have people do their own homework on what they think they need and ask questions (with answers that avoid, when possible, any push toward a particular price point) to help determine what they really need.
You could perhaps offer sets of tools, like your choice of three chisels, a set of saws (ryoba, kataba, dozuki), a block plane and a larger smoother, coarse/medium/fine stone set, etc. You could try special prices for those particular tools if purchased as a group.
I know I’m not helping much. Maybe you need to offer the tool kit as you propose and see how much interest there is. Either way, I’m glad you are a source of reasonably priced tools that work well.
Steve
Hey Steve,
The main thinking behind the this kit is to offer something to folks who are interested in trying some tools that are useful to all woodworkers, but because of the large number of choices, cannot decide what they want to try out. By simply packing them up as a bundle and sending them off at a reduced price, it makes the decision to try a little easier.
This kit won’t be trying to fill every possibility, that’s for something else later, maybe.
It’s something that might work, or might not. But I do see a lot of people put items into the shopping cart, and then abandon it for whatever reason. Probably ‘cold feet’ but it may also be a case of “Hmm, maybe I should try that one instead? I can’t decide!”. I want to nip that in the bud, if I can.
I have also gone with tools that are moderately priced, but offer unbeatable bang for the buck. I know this as I was using all of them when I was scratching for money, and none of them let me down performance wise. Just good, solid and easy to use tools.
I deliberately left out many things, mostly those that any handy person might have anyway. The hammer (Neda! Not missing your comments at all.), marking and measuring gear, extra stones, etc. I wanted just enough to be useful, but not so much to be overwhelming.
I think I got it right enough, but who knows.
Fortunately, I can throw a kit together, put it up in the store and see what comes of it without too much trouble. If it works, yippee! If not, no harm done. The only new tools in there (as in ones I have never sold before) are the chisels, and they won’t be hanging around for long I don’t think.
Steve, your comments are helpful. I suffer from ‘Analysis Paralysis’ and am learning to throw more caution to the wind. I don’t always get it right, so having someone I can trust to ‘check my trim’ is valuable. Thanks.
You too Neda, I may add a hammer anyway, but that will be for the ‘big kit’ without a doubt.
Thanks a heap, and if anyone else out there has suggestions, I am all ears.
Stu.
Hi Stu,
Looks like it would be a great kit! Depending on price, I’d be tempted to get one even thought I already have functional equivalents of all the items mentioned…
Since you asked for feedback, I think the diamond plate would be a valuable addition. Especially if it could be used for coarse sharpening and for flattening the fine stone… Since flattening waterstones is so essential, I would have to say the diamond plate would be important in this kit.
And finally, I wonder if you might include a very basic (side-clamp?) honing guide. Dunno if they’re available there, or if it’d even work with the particular edge tools you listed, but that seems to me to be the only thing missing from this otherwise all-inclusive “hand tools for power toolers” kit.
Thanks for following up on this idea!
Andy
Hi Andy,
I’d love to include both a sharpening jig and diamond plate, but right now the target price for this kit is 12495 yen shipped. Adding the plate and a plain old jig would blow that figure to pieces, to the tune of over 7000 yen (with included shipping), and at the moment, with the exchange rate as it is, that pushes the final price well above US$200, which is just too much for a ‘basic’ kit.
I can get the simple jigs, but they are ‘Made in Japan’ (would I get away with a cheap, Chinese jig? Don’t even suggest it!) and as such, are still simple but not all that ‘cheap’.
The plate would have to be the iWood #300/1000 to cover flattening AND sharpening adequately, and they are not exactly ‘cheap’ or ‘light’ which hurts them.
I did consider a few ways to keep the stone flat, but none of them rubbed me the right way. Maybe suggestions for stone flattening with stuff folks can get easily might be an option, but I am no sure yet.
All I wanted to do was get a really simple, no nonsense kit available for folks who just are not sure, and nothing that would need replacing in the future because it was not up to scratch.
Still playing with the idea, but I really want to keep the price down, and still cover the basics adequately. Not an easy task.
(Of course, I could cheap out and hit the $$$ target with ease. But I don’t work like that…)
Thanks Andy, muchly appreciated even though I am kinda stuck in a difficult place with this thing. I really want to make it properly complete, but don’t want to scare folks off with a big price tag (which is what will happen if I make it the way I want it to be. Maybe an add on ‘kit’ might work…
Stu.
I have been waiting to see this since the beginning, I think it will be a winner.
A particular tool set, that I would love to see, would be the critical list. What tools would Stu take if he had to leave with only what he could carry and refugee to a desert island?
Bob
Hey Bob, I hope so. I know it’s lacking (as has been pointed out!) but I think it allows folks who are predominantly power tool users to pick up a few good, usable hand tools that will just work.
It might not convert them to hand tools, but there are no ’slackers’ in the choices.
Being deserted on an island?
Tool #1, satellite phone.
Tool #2, case of water.
Tool #3, beach umbrella.
Will that work, or do I have to actually think about it?
Now, if there were a tool I could use to make more hours in a day…
Stu.
That will probably do! I think a towel should be on the list however.
Bob
Hey Jim,
Your reply got sent to the spam bin, not sure why…
This is more for someone looking to try out hand tools of the Japanese variety but don’t know what they want. Everything was chosen as a solid performer, excellent value for money and won’t need to be upgraded, ever.
In short, no junk-priced keen.
It’s one of those things that there is nothing really specific in there, and if nobody wants one, no problem. It’s just a few electrons and a little time spent throwing it together.
(And yeah, you basically get the stone for as cheap as it can get. You don’t want it, or any part of it, sell it on and you wouldn’t lose any money.)
Thanks Jim, and I am sorry your comment got binned. Not sure if the blog did it or I did…
Stu.