Comment by davexunit

Woodworking is a hobby I really enjoy, but I've found nearly every public figure in the community to be pretentious and exclusionary (I don't actively watch Matthias' youtube channel, I just know him as the "wooden band saw guy", so I'm not applying this to him), much more so than other hobbies I've tried, programming included. Seems like everyone who is a "real" woodworker has a giant dedicated shop space filled with Sawstop and Festool brand everything, massive planers and jointers, a wall of expensive hand planes, and an elaborate dust extraction system. Going into a Woodcraft or specialty lumber yard for the first time sucks because some old white guy makes you feel dumb. Am I a "real" woodworker if I just have part of a basement/garage and a few Ryobi tools? Am I a "real" woodworker if I make things out of pine instead of black walnut? What if I use pocket screws or rabbet joints instead of hand cut dovetails? Steve Ramsey's Woodworking for Mere Mortals youtube channel and his online courses (costs money, but quite affordable, IMO) are the best resources I've ever found for lowering the barrier to entry. I would have given up long ago if it weren't for his stuff.