TIL a 1920s cabinet shop had a single guy doing 200 dovetails a day by hand

I was flipping through an old Fine Woodworking issue from the 80s my uncle passed down, and there was a piece on a shop in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. They timed one old timer and he averaged 200 hand-cut dovetails in a single 10 hour shift. That kind of patience blows my mind. Anyone else stumble on old shop stats that made you feel slow?

3 comments

3 Comments

jasonallen1mo ago

Used to think that was impossible till I actually timed myself on a slow day.

ruby_henderson361mo agoMost Upvoted

Timing yourself is like opening a whole can of worms you weren't ready for. Next thing you know you're checking every little thing with a stopwatch and getting weirdly competitive with yourself. I did that once and realized my "quick shower" was actually like 15 minutes of standing there doing nothing. Made me rethink a lot of my life choices honestly. Now I just don't time anything and live in blissful ignorance. Much better that way.

miles_hall1mo ago

Totally been there. I started timing my dog walks and it got sad fast.