kai463•3d ago

Warning: I think we're too quick to push apprentices onto the band saw

Last week at our shop in Spokane, a new guy cut his thumb pretty bad on the band saw trying to break down a pork shoulder. It made me think back to my first year, about 3 years ago, when my boss had me doing nothing but hand boning with a 6 inch cimeter for months. Everyone says get them on power tools fast, but I think that old school hand skill builds a feel for the meat you just don't get otherwise. It's slower, sure, but you learn the seams and the grain in a different way. How many of you still make new folks start with a hand knife for a good while?

2 comments

2 Comments

piper_thompson312d ago

Man, this is everywhere now. We skip the basics to go fast, but then people miss the feel of the work. It's like trying to run before you can even walk steady.

sarah2682d ago

Ugh, exactly. And it makes everything feel the same. When nobody learns the slow, hands on way first, all the work starts to look and sound copy pasted. We lose the weird little choices that give something its own soul. It's not just about skill, it's about what gets lost when we only teach the shortcut.