Unsung Master Craftspeople

[El Chaba]

Good post^^^

[bikinchris]

Originally Posted by AngryScientist

I'll toot it for you.

I'm highly impressed with every Abbey product I've laid my hands on, and even more impressed to know you are not just a niche enthusiast supplier, but the Abbey tools routinely are sighted in pro mechanics tool boxes. You know you're good when race critical mechanics who demand the best choose your product.

I also think most Park tools are substandard and they get away with mediocre quality because they are the big hammer in the room. I'm glad other folks challenge what a good tool should look like and bring much higher quality products to market.

Park has never had the very best of any one tool. Their range has good quality in many items, but the best of everything would be a mixture.

[sw3759]

I would like to think making quality wool cycling jerseys should be considered craftsmanship.
So I’d like to give a shoutout to Harth and the fine folks at Wabi woolens for putting out some very fine products.
Not many people in the industry are committed to nice wool products anymore.

[merckx]

Drew at Boure cycle clothing also provides great products. I have purchased a few pairs of shorts, and this fall, received two pairs of Elite Thermo tights. The tights in particular are outstanding. Fit, function and comfort. Pick three.

[ggdave]

Originally Posted by FriarQuade

Not to toot my own horn, but the world is only as good as the tools we have to build it with.

I'm saving up for a couple of your tools. I saw a youtube video with the HAG and lever setter and I was sold.

[guyintense]

Originally Posted by FriarQuade

Not to toot my own horn, but the world is only as good as the tools we have to build it with.

But it's a poor workman who blames his tools.

[El Chaba]

Due largely to the fact that he is building a bike for me now, I have had a fair number of exchanges with Olivier at Cycles Alex Singer recently. Well beyond the fact that I am looking forward to receiving the bike and putting it to use, it just does me a lot of good to know that there are still places like that shop that have not been crushed by the homogenization of the profit machine. (This is my bike that he is working on…)

[jlwdm]

I recently purchased some Nakata AUT-05 suit hangers. Hand carved in Japan. A real work of art.


https://arterton.co.uk/collections/nakata-hangers-uk

Jeff

[samkl]

Originally Posted by Coluber42

It's great to see these folks getting appreciated. For all the discussions of buying things Made in the USA etc, I'm often struck by how little most people know about how everyday objects come into being, and how much human labor it actually takes - especially niche products produced on a small scale. The concept of a factory is essentially a black box to most people: raw materials go in one end, and finished objects come out the other, and inside is a bunch of mysterious robots or possibly sweatshops on another continent.
They don't realize the extent to which human hands are involved, especially for sewn products. It turns out that lots of operations involving fabric are really difficult to automate because fabric is floppy and unpredictable. A large enough factory can have a lot of dedicated machinery with guides and jigs and pre-programmed aids of various kinds, but robots can't completely replace a human at a sewing machine.

Speaking of which, I nominate the maker/designer of my Dill Pickle handlebar bag, the best handlebar bag I could ever imagine.

[skouri1]

Jeff Duser. Tom Kellogg gave him credit. He has all the skill of any boutique steel builder period. Was brazing his own custom lugs for every steel spectrum that left the shop. I bought a ti frame 10 years ago and had the opportunity to see his work in person. Tom and Jeff are amazing, humble craftsman. They could have gone more Instagram and rock and roll but they were both focused on making the best bikes they could to suit their riders. A lot I respect there. Jeff was the man in the background , maybe only bike forum nerds know his name.

[JLQ]

I agree with donevwil on Jeremy Sycip and feel the same way about Paul Price. He was pumped this week about building shop shelving with kiln dried wood. I admire the straightforward and stylish design of his stuff.

[Veloo]

Yes, it is.
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/lyBajgbElhE

Originally Posted by Tickdoc

And as an added bonus it is super fun to watch him bend the cages. Masterful.

[FriarQuade]

Originally Posted by guyintense

But it's a poor workman who blames his tools.

That's true, too a point. When you're in the building trades that's a pretty universal statement as you can pretty much always hide the error with a little extra effort and a tube of caulk. As you get deeper into modern manufacturing it holds less water. There really is a limit to the accuracy you can consistently produce with lesser quality tools. The HAG is a good example of this, it's more accurate than anything else on the market and you're just not going to align a hanger as accurately with a Park tool. You're welcome to argue if that extra accuracy is needed but we think it does when everything else is optimized.

[choke]

Lawrence and the Cima Coppi crew. They make great merino jerseys, will do one off custom work/embroidery and custom sizing all for a more than reasonable price.

When I talked to Lawrence, they had never made a jersey with a collar or front pockets. But he said that they had thought about doing both, so he was willing to give it a try. It turned out perfect.

[Coluber42]

Originally Posted by FriarQuade

That's true, too a point. When you're in the building trades that's a pretty universal statement as you can pretty much always hide the error with a little extra effort and a tube of caulk. As you get deeper into modern manufacturing it holds less water. There really is a limit to the accuracy you can consistently produce with lesser quality tools. The HAG is a good example of this, it's more accurate than anything else on the market and you're just not going to align a hanger as accurately with a Park tool. You're welcome to argue if that extra accuracy is needed but we think it does when everything else is optimized.

It's also true that while an excellent craftsperson can still achieve excellent results with less-than-ideal equipment, the same task will end up being more time consuming and more demanding of a higher degree of skill, experience, flexibility, and outside-the-box thinking to get those results. And a less skilled craftsperson will be at an even bigger disadvantage from the crappy tools because they won't have the skills to overcome those shortcomings.

The right tools make that job faster and easier, less tiring, more consistent. If you're producing more than a small number of something, that adds up. Even just the difference in mental effort and attention required to do something freehand versus doing it with a jig adds up.

But the trade-off is that the more a tool or jig facilitates a specific task, the more likely it is to be useful for only one specific task and/or require more setup time, etc. And of course stuff like that also costs money and takes up space. So for a small shop, it's also always a balance between where it's worth relying on skill to compensate for a setup that's a compromise, versus where a dedicated tool or jig improves a task enough to be worth the space, money, setup time, etc.