If you are interested in any aspect of hand tools you will be interested in this new guild special interest group. The vision for this group is to provide a forum for discussion, the exchange of information, and demonstrations and training in the use of hand tools. How we focus the group and where we place most of the emphasis is dependant on the interests and desires of the guild members who attend.
There are a number of topics and potential areas of concentration that immediately come to mind. For the user or person who wants to learn how to use or improve their hand tool skills potential topics include; selecting a new or used tool, tuning and fettling your purchase, new vs used, choosing a basic tool kit, and what tools can replace power tools. A couple of others areas to explore are instruction in using everything from spokeshaves to molding planes and even the making of your own tools.
There are also options for those interested in collecting hand tools such as focusing on brands, how to value a tool, history of particular types of tools, and cleaning and storing your tools. These ideas are only a few samples of ideas that come to mind immediately. - Dave Anderson
