Question Of The Week....( 2026 Week 42 )

[ripjack13]

How do you envision the future of woodworking as a craft and as a community? What trends or developments do you anticipate?
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**Rules**
There is no minimum post requirement.
Leprechauns, primates, woodticks, and wood lovers are welcome to post an answer.
But who cares, no one reads the rules anyhow....

 

[woodtickgreg]

I see cnc work growing more and possibly beck.ing more affordable. It's not for me because im an old dog and set in my ways of using old style tools by hand. But for those that are more computer literate I can see their place in more shops.

 

[Gdurfey]

I’m going the other direction then @woodtickgreg , Greg. Not that I disagree with him, but the way I read the question woodworking will become more of a craft as technology comes in. Hand made items, traditional tools and methods, etc. I am remembering going to Silver Dollar City in the late sixties and early 70s before it became an amusement park and all the traditional craftsmen using late 1800s skills and tools.

As for the community, it will be there. Like minded folks find each other. It may become smaller, but it will be very strong. For example, I keep seeing new turners show up at the symposiums doing amazing things.

 

[DLJeffs]

Sadly, I think woodworking as a skill and craft is going to decline with fewer people doing it. Like many skills - such as carving, stone mason, acoustic guitars, bamboo fly rods... it's very difficult to make a living at those because of the man hours involved. I think people still appreciate the skill involved but one has to charge so much to get a reasonable return on your labor that it makes the end product out of reach for most people. Machination, computerization and automation which can replace skilled labor and reduce production time will slowly winnow the skilled craftsmen out of business. That means those skills will be relegated to small niche businesses and hobbyists. Fewer younger people can afford the time and space necessary which means it'll be the old retired folks who mostly practice woodworking. And that demographic has a finite lifespan which means the craft also has a finite lifespan unless it has a feeder stream of new craftsmen coming in. Will it go extinct? I don't think so - but I think the woodworking community will become smaller over time.

 

[daniscool]

I see growth in any craft you can do with few tools and a small workshop. Carving and turning. Box making too. Bigger stuff is too limited. With space and time reducing these crafts will likely grow a lot.