A
Anonymous
Guest
Having kept track of some of what has been going on lately I have at times been amused and saddened.
Expert is a term too frequently used and often in the wrong context. I often undertake Court work and am refered to as an Expert Witness, when in truth I am merely a Technical Witness. Many who truly are experts do not need to claim it for themselves.
I wonder if knowledgeable is a better term most of the time?
With regard to the joinery question I have actually written to the Crafts College run by The Carpenters Company (a liveried company). I have not yet had a response. My nephew has just begun a caprentry course there and is thoroughly enjoying it. But I digress.
Sash is a term I have used to refer to any joinery frame holding glass; the opening section of a window (whether hinged or not); and the vertical sliding sections of a window. In the thread below I suspect it is being used in the sense of the vertical sliding sash variety, as these are the only ones I know of that have pockets. In the context of this type of window it is of course quite possible that the test of the best quality of joinery could be the ability to create the pocket. However, as has been made clear in other threads it is a skill that is not in books and has been passed down to very few.
The fact that this one aspect of joinery making is such a mystery does not render other joinery work as inferior.
I am sure there are many very skilled joiners making various building components, etc who make top quality work, but wouldn't know a pocket if it hit them in the face!
The one way of telling a true expert is that they admit themselves that they never stop learning.
In any trade there may be certain matters that may be regarded as the 'give-away' in assessing true craftsmanship, but a true craftsman is usually willing to share their knowledge and not rub it in at the expense of others.
Finally, there is always the danger of someone knowing how to make a sash pocket and being a rubbish joiner anyway. For example, I know how to wipe a lead joint in plumbing, does that make me an expert plumber? NO. In fact my wife calls me Mr Flood because of my lack of skill in plumbing.
Expert is a term too frequently used and often in the wrong context. I often undertake Court work and am refered to as an Expert Witness, when in truth I am merely a Technical Witness. Many who truly are experts do not need to claim it for themselves.
I wonder if knowledgeable is a better term most of the time?
With regard to the joinery question I have actually written to the Crafts College run by The Carpenters Company (a liveried company). I have not yet had a response. My nephew has just begun a caprentry course there and is thoroughly enjoying it. But I digress.
Sash is a term I have used to refer to any joinery frame holding glass; the opening section of a window (whether hinged or not); and the vertical sliding sections of a window. In the thread below I suspect it is being used in the sense of the vertical sliding sash variety, as these are the only ones I know of that have pockets. In the context of this type of window it is of course quite possible that the test of the best quality of joinery could be the ability to create the pocket. However, as has been made clear in other threads it is a skill that is not in books and has been passed down to very few.
The fact that this one aspect of joinery making is such a mystery does not render other joinery work as inferior.
I am sure there are many very skilled joiners making various building components, etc who make top quality work, but wouldn't know a pocket if it hit them in the face!
The one way of telling a true expert is that they admit themselves that they never stop learning.
In any trade there may be certain matters that may be regarded as the 'give-away' in assessing true craftsmanship, but a true craftsman is usually willing to share their knowledge and not rub it in at the expense of others.
Finally, there is always the danger of someone knowing how to make a sash pocket and being a rubbish joiner anyway. For example, I know how to wipe a lead joint in plumbing, does that make me an expert plumber? NO. In fact my wife calls me Mr Flood because of my lack of skill in plumbing.