Dovetail saws

[Benchwayze]

Cheers Paul, and I appreciate the help.

I just checked LV and they are out of stock on the Wenzloff's.

But as I said, I am a patient man. I have a fair old Gent's saw that I have been using for some time now, but it leaves a thick kerf and it's a cross-cut but it will keep me going!

Thanks again Paul

Regards
John

 

[Benchwayze]

I just heard from MW Paul.
He has given me an approximate date for the saw.
It's a good while, but I sure don't envy him the problems he's had. So I am settling down to wait, for the saw I decided I needed.

Cheers again Paul.

John

 

[Harbo]

Well worth the wait:

Handles American Black Walnut

Gloat!!

Rod

 

[Paul Chapman]

I just heard from MW Paul.
He has given me an approximate date for the saw.

That's good news. You'll find Mike very nice to deal with.

Let's see if we can out-gloat Rod before too long

Cheers :wink:

Paul

 

[paulm]

Beautiful Rod !

Mind if I copy the handles ? !!!

Cheers, Paul

 

[Benchwayze]

Well worth the wait:

Handles American Black Walnut

Gloat!!

Rod

Gloatworthy indeed.
Thanks Rod.

Regards

John

 

[Philly]

John
Mike tells me the new staff will be office staff to get the paperwork, phone calls, etc side of the business organised. The sawmaking will not be seeing a drop in quality
Hope this helps
Philly

 

[Imperial]

As mentioned in previous reply, I waited 6 months and still got no saws, gave up a few days back and bought a LN from http://www.craftsmanstudio.com a company I can highly recommend if you happen to be in the US or have a friend who'll bring back tools for you. No such trouble from Bill with responses to emails or excuses and great prices . I find it quite strange that Mr Wenzloff is getting away with such poor service, obtaining a contract with LV and yet before hand can't meet the orders he already has backlogged for months! I was warned by a good friend that this was likely to happen, but I decided to try my luck, I'll pay more attention next time. Mr Wenzloff has, since reading this thread, apologized for this and keeps using the same excuses about computer crashes and his big inbox for the misunderstanding, but IMHO some people may be great craftsmen, and he may make some great products, but are not capable of running a business. So if your after one of his saws don't hold your breath and count yourself lucky if you get your hands on one. I'm severely disappointed.

 

[Paul Chapman]

but are not capable of running a business.

I think that's a little unfair. If a mass-produced or semi mass-produced saw meets your needs you can have one tomorrow. But if you want one hand-made (and for which there is a big demand) it will take as long as it takes.

Cheers :wink:

Paul

 

[Saintsman]

I agree: I have one of Mike's carcas saws and have just ordered a tenon saw from him. With any luck I'll have it by Christmas!

As Paul C says, anything bespoke is going to take appreciably longer than a mass-produced item. Mike has had one or two problems lately, but the new shop should help things along without, as Philly says, compromising the quality.

Cheers,

Paul

 

[bugbear]

It crossed my mind, that a laminated blank, made from three plys of walnut, (say about 3/8" thick) with grain opposing (cross grain on the outsides ) would maybe make a nice handle and the problem of short grain might be less of an issue?

I have seen a (guess) 1950's wooden jack plane with such a handle.

When making such an item, the stock must be very well seasoned; since wood movement is different with and across the grain, any movement in a laminated objects results in steps" at the boundaries.

In ply the laminations are thin enough that the cross grain movement is constrained by the adjacent layers, but thicker laminations *can* move.


BugBear

 

[Imperial]

Re the earlier comments, Mr Wenzloff is no longer just involved in Bespoke and is now mass producing, so that comment does not really wash. Its not really the time it takes as I was told about a rough time at the begining, it's the feeble excuses etc, If my computer kept crashing I'd buy a new one, and as for answering emails, he found the time to read the posts here so how can't he find the time to answer the huge inbox he claims to have. I'm sorry but having had my own business in the past I know what it's like to be busy and did not ever find myself in that position. He didn't even ask if I, would still want the order, think he'd rather have one less order to deal with.

 

[MikeW]

Bloonose,

As I wrote you, I apologize for dropping the ball on your order. I also accept the fact there is nothing I can write or say that will amend this situation. I didn't offer to proceed on your saw as you had told me you purchased one from Tom instead. It wasn't that I didn't desire your order but rather you told me you bought something elsewhere. I feel this is a "damned if I do, damned if I don't" situation.

As I also wrote, there are so many orders that were lost in the crash that I have chosen to work on 2-3 of them to every order post crash. We have averaged 2.4 saws per order. This makes getting to the latest orders a time consuming process. It was a decision I made, rightly or wrongly.

It is the decision to work on the orders lost in the two crashes which affect the more current orders. I made that decision to work 2-1 or 3-1 against newer orders as a compromise situation.

fwiw, it was two separate crashes with two different computers. I mainly used my laptop. When its drive went out, I began using the server to work from (to which the laptop's files were being backed-up). It had redundant drives. Which I thought would be safe as the main drive backed-up data every hour to another drive. When the power supply caught fire, it fried both drives. Both drives were sent out to a data recovery service.

What I got back as regards the email store was a single, massive text file of all the emails. Not every email had both the body and the header information together, and the bodies of many were broken up and in different places in the file. It took working on making sense of that file several months--as it wasn't my all day, every day priority. But once it was in a semi-working order, I have begun writing those people and working on more of those orders than orders post crash. As well, the company's financial software's data file needed to be rebuilt. This too took me many weeks.

This will take me quite a while to rectify. Even with the move and bringing on the two people who have worked with us part-time now and again, it will take some time. Hopefully one day this will be fully behind us. It has taken working 12-16 hour days to get done what we have. There are other issues that affect order timing that I won't bore everyone with.

It has been ages since I participated on the forums, due to time. Lately I have been reading and participating on a limited basis. Doing so at 5 am here, I figure it is my own time while drinking some morning coffee before starting my day. I have been recently told I cannot work so many hours and so have chosen to take some time for my own pleasures--one of which has been reading the forums.

Because we had such limited space (187 sq/ft), we were limited by how much we could accomplish. Hopefully that will change over the coming months now that we have just moved into a larger space.

We make the saws for LV and The Best Things in the exact same manner as the direct orders. Which is probably why they too are perpetually back ordered. What we do differently on the direct orders is customize the tote if needed, change how we file the saws and or the PPI, and in the case of an exotic like Ebony or African Blackwood (among others), spend a lot more time preparing the handles because they need to be. There are other, differences, like handle choices, etc.

Well, I suppose this post will go over like a lead balloon. It is now nearly 6:30 am here. Time to get to work.

Take care, Mike

 

[Anonymous]

I've had a couple on order from Mike W for ages and I'm still waiting. He seems to be very busy.

Cheers :wink:

Paul

I think he must be. I tried to order a Panel Saw kit with 22" blade and 10 or 11 PPI X-Cut from him in Jan 2007 and still waiting :lol:
Last I heard (end of feb 2007),William, his youngest son was making the saw and it would be shipped the following Wednesday.

He got that huge Veritas order around that time, and I know that he was absolutely snowed under with an order for around 400 saws and so I decided not to chase it any more. I was pretty philosophical about it, 3 people trying to fulfill an order for 400 saws :shock: :shock:

Nice tools, but I suspect too popular for him to cope with on occasion.

Never did buy a decent panel saw and still use the B&Q hardpoint that seems to work OK

 

[Benchwayze]

I have seen a (guess) 1950's wooden jack plane with such a handle.

When making such an item, the stock must be very well seasoned; since wood movement is different with and across the grain, any movement in a laminated objects results in steps" at the boundaries.

BugBear

Thanks BB.
I was taking that into consideration. The walnut I have has been in the rafters of my workshop for at least 10 years. I had it from Corby Glen in Lincs. (Adcocks). The piece is the last remaining, through sawn piece of four which I bought. Maybe four feet long and it still retains the shape of the original 'butt' of the tree. So there is some waste sap-wood that I use where I can. The heart of the board has such a fantastic figure that I am loathe to cut into it until I know exactly what I want to use it for! Horns of a 'walnut-dilemma'! Cheers though for the info on the 'ply-handles' I might decide to go for more and thinner plys.


As to my saw, I had a reasonably firm period of time given me, (around the length of time you waited.) So I am settling down to wait. Until Mike tells me he can't supply, then the order stays.
If he can't supply, then I will consider a 'Wenzloff' from another supplier.
In a previous life, I never gave anyone second chances without good reason. Now I can please myself, so I am a patient man!

Regards
John

 

[Jake]

I've had a couple on order from Mike W for ages and I'm still waiting. He seems to be very busy.

Cheers :wink:

Paul

I think he must be. I tried to order a Panel Saw kit with 22" blade and 10 or 11 PPI X-Cut from him in Jan 2007 and still waiting :lol:
Last I heard (end of feb 2007),William, his youngest son was making the saw and it would be shipped the following Wednesday.

He got that huge Veritas order around that time, and I know that he was absolutely snowed under with an order for around 400 saws and so I decided not to chase it any more. I was pretty philosophical about it, 3 people trying to fulfill an order for 400 saws :shock: :shock:

Nice tools, but I suspect too popular for him to cope with on occasion.

Never did buy a decent panel saw and still use the B&Q hardpoint that seems to work OK

You seem to have missed Mike's post, about 45 minutes before yours.