I wonder how many of you have watched a skilled furniture maker at a show and seen how easy it appears to use a plane, achieving that translucent shaving, or paring with a chisel with the slightest of effort. So why is it that when you return to your own tools they won't repeat what you have seen? An important factor in this difference is how they have been tuned and sharpened. This course is for anyone wanting to work with timber, whether complete beginners or students with limited experience of wood working hand tools.

For this introduction into how to achieve that professional standard we have selected Tom Kealy, a leading furniture maker and tutor with 30 years experience. He was a senior craftsman and workshop manager in the John Makepeace workshops at Parnham House. He runs weekly furniture making classes from his workshop and teaches regularly in America and at West Dean College in Sussex.

5 students are taught in a group during this course.

You will learn the basic principles of how to prepare and sharpen your own furniture making tools, including how to tune your tools to achieve their maximum potential. Maintenance of both the tools and the sharpening stones themselves will also be covered. This course will also enable anyone considering any future tool purchases, to gain an insight into the various options available. As the students bring their own hand tools to tune, any pre course enquiries on tools and purchasing can be addressed to tom@kealy.co.uk.

This course will be taught by Tom Kealy.

This following course events are available at the Axminster Skill Centre in Devon: