STL356: Unconscious Competency – FineWoodworking

In this year-end episode of Shop Talk Live, Ben Strano and Vic Tesolin run through a grab-bag of “quick-fire” questions that quickly turn into thoughtful, meandering conversations about how woodworkers actually work. They dig into sharpening discipline and how learning to stop early is often the key to working better and with less frustration, debate when it’s worth changing blades or saws for ripping versus crosscutting, and confess their very human struggles with hoarding scrap wood and “perfect” boards saved for the right project. Along the way, they talk candidly about tools that didn’t live up to expectations, what they always carry in the shop, snacks and coffee breaks as part of a healthy workflow, and the moment when woodworking starts to feel intuitive rather than forced. The episode wraps with reflections on…