My first response to Silvan went off too soon when I hit the wrong button.

Computers and tools both are more widely available in a profusion of types and
styles never before seen on the mass market. It's a good idea to remember that
when you can't buy a really good Stanley plane any more, you can now buy
Veritas and Lie Nielsen and Steve Knight planes. And when a lot of crap table
saws are on the market, a lot of imported table saws are effectively reaching
for the stars by providing lower cost cabinet saws of good, if not always
excellent, quality to a wider range of buyers than ever before.

There are certainly plenty of crappy tools on the market, but they are
generally easy to avoid. Buy from reputable dealers/distributors with good
return policies and don't expect to get something for nothing. If a type of
tool that has until recently cost $200 is now selling for $39.95, only a fool
would expect it to be the same quality as the $200 tool unless there's a major
change in the technology.

In other words, don't be a fool.



Charlie Self
"Giving every man a vote has no more made men wise and free than Christianity
has made them good." H. L. Mencken