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Like a lot of people I have a branding iron for woodworking projects that says “Hand crafted by Steve Prior”. I’ve used that brand for a couple of CNC projects and some people found that funny. So now I’m trying to brainstorm what would be a good new brand to get. The idea that comes closest so far (but is too long) is “Created by Steve Prior using hand crafted robots”.
I want to express that:
I created the design for these things
I built the robots (CNC, 3D printer) as kits and then customized them
there was some manual effort involved (cleaning up, assembly, finishing) involved
Has anyone come up with a particularly amazing branding iron for this?
At some point, the line between hand-crafted and machine-crafted is impossible to discern. If I only use the CNC for 10% of a project is it still hand-crafted? What about 50%? What if the other 50% utilizes a router jig to duplicate an existing template?
There’s a lot of unpacking to do about where a person draws the line between “hand made” and “machine made.”
What’s the difference between setting a stop block or jig and programming some carving instructions?
Would you consider someone less a craftsman for using the best tool for the job? If you want to cut straight lines, circular saws are usually best. If you want to profile an edge, a router is the way to go. If you want to cut custom shapes or letters out, a CNC gives the best results.
After all, the X-Carve won’t do anything unless you tell it to. The same as a table saw won’t cut any wood unless you feed it into the blade. So if you’re providing the motivation, the intention behind the creation, and you’re still making it with your hands, just on a keyboard and mouse instead of a push-stick and featherboard.
I think “shamelessly copied from a picture I found on the internet, then partially created by a computer controlled router and hand finished using techniques I saw on YouTube” is too much to fit on a brand…
So I gues an analogy would be when I create a new manuscript on my Mac using MS Word, I still say it was written by me - I dont acknowledge Microsoft or Apple for their contribution. When I cut, copy and paste a stack of text from Wiki-thingy though, I also dont claim to be the author and I always acknowledge my sources and the work of others.
Somewhere between these two extremes is the answer…
