Why are so many leaving?

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bitshird

bitshird

Member
Joined
Aug 27, 2007
Messages
10,236
Location
Adamsville, TN, USA.
Lately I've seen many folks selling off their tools and kits, even their lathes, I hate to see some of these folks go because I've learned things from them. I believe with some like Mr. William Young, it's a health issue, and I certainly hate to see him quit showing his great ideas both here and on his other forum, I've learned a lot from him, but we have more than a few unloading their stuff as well.
Is it because of economic issues or that the pastime has become so over crowded? is it due to just not enjoying it any more, or having found something more fun? I do know that there are several folks I wish would stick around.
I'm not supposed to do much, but I'm not gonna sell off my junk, it doesn't eat any thing when it's not running. I do know will miss most of these people, and I hope this isn't a flash in the pan hobby that go away after a few years.
 
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Ken

I think you are looking at it wrongly. There maybe some leaving and for good reasons and that is life. But look on the bright side there are those just starting that will take the place of the older turners. There is definetly nothing wrong with the hobby. Pen turning did take on a boon for sure and it may well even out somewhat but the economy has alot to do with hobbies. People can't afford them when things get out of control. Things go in cycles but turning has been around for ages. You are looking at the pen turning end of it. Just look at how many new members join here every day. It is alive and well and we all look forward for the rookies to lead the way. I say encourage the young and not the old.

I see this in my industry. We have the older electricians retiring and there is a new crop of apprentices right behind them. Life goes on.
 
I think the more we talk, the more we see how many competitors there are. Also, I have seen some work that makes my pens look second rate. Another factor is moving and rebuilding.
Dealing with the competition and the superior quality is healthy. It should make us work harder and try new things. We all should try to think outside the box. It helps the industry to try new things because we need to buy new tools. I wonder how much money each of us has invested in materials and tools inside our shops.
As for me, we are trying to move back to California. My thoughts are to take this opportunity to sell my lathe in order to upgrade to another lathe when we reach our destination. The timing is right for me because I have shut down the shop for a while until we get even billing on our energy bills. It costs money to power up the shop an to heat it.
 
Any kind of woodworking is expensive. I dug up 5 figures worth of receipts for my taxes last year alone. When I walk in my shop, to me it looks like I have nothing in there. There is no doubt that the little things in drawers are where all the money is. It sucks some people have to give it up, and the reasons are endless, but at the same time, it's a great time to be buying more stuff!
 
Boom

There has been a boom in pen turning and a lot of the new folks just found out that a) it is a hobby that constantly requires money - you can spend $100.00 in a blink of an eye and there is always something else. It also leave you with the task of getting rid of what you make...either that or buy a lot of storage. People find the don't have the time or inclination to sell and they run out of friends neighbors and relatives to give the pens to. And this is the third year of an economic downturn...even folks who have a job sometimes feel like they are waiting for the other shoe to fall. I think it was Philadelphia that just laid off some firemen and policement....People don't want a ton of money tied up in their workshop so they leave the hobby. It happens.
 
Ken,
I didn't know Mr. Young was leaving the hobby... I haven't been up on his forum for a while... guess I need to check...

To comment on your statement, I'm not leaving turning, but I've about stopped turning pens... I started about 8 or 9 years ago and still love to see a nice piece of wood or plastic develop into a great pen, but have also gotten a little tired of turning pens... I'm more into bowls, pepper mills and larger turnings now... I still enjoy my turning, just not so much the pen turnings.
 
I have found that the new guys go to somewhere like woodcraft and get told that they can make a killing making and selling pens.So they get talked into taking a class which cost 50.00 the after the class they are talked into spending a couple hundred to get them started.Then of course. You are hooked but like someone else said they run out of freinds,relitives and you find them on ebay trying to sell their pens at almost cost which kills the guys that make really nice pens.So the older guys figure it's just not worth the trouble anymore and they get out.
Hang in there freinds and keep turning!!!!
JIM
 
Smitty37 said:
There has been a boom in pen turning and a lot of the new folks just found out that a) it is a hobby that constantly requires money - you can spend $100.00 in a blink of an eye and there is always something else. It also leave you with the task of getting rid of what you make...either that or buy a lot of storage. People find the don't have the time or inclination to sell and they run out of friends neighbors and relatives to give the pens to.
[...]
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I could certainly be the poster boy for turning expenses this year, considering my outlay in the past few months. The lathe was just the tip of the iceberg. Everytime I go to Woodcraft, I spend $100. And mail order? I'm not sure I want to total the receipts. All I know is that I have racked up lots of rewards points! If you saw my lathe for sale here, it would be because I am already itching to step up to a better lathe, and definitely one with variable speed. I hate the belt changes.

I'm not in this hobby/craft/trade to sell pens, although I might consider that in retirement. And I have a long way to go to compete with the beautiful pens I see here! I plan to try mills next, and bowls. For me, it is more about learning some new woodworking skill. I've been a woodworker for 40+ years, so I'm in it for life, and turning is just a branch of he hobby I've recently begun to pursue. But, I've seen a lot of people come and go in other hoobies, myself included. (My wife still has no idea how much I sunk into RC airplanes!)

I do plan to offer some tools/jigs for penturners sometime in 2011. I'm an engineer, and always looking for a better, simpler way to do some task. An engineer friend has a very extensive metal shop, and we have developed tools and jigs for other hobbies over the years.

Bottom Line? Seeing stuff go up for sale is nothing new. The economy maybe explains a little, but there are always people that jump into something head over heels, and a few weeks/months later, things cool off, and they are off pursuing something else.
 
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Well I will put in my thoughts on this subject. I got into penturning as another phase in woodworking. I enjoy making pens and when I dont have the money to buy kits, I turn bowls and lided boxes, whatever comes into my mind. The best part about turning these items is that you dont have to buy kits, just have some wood. I do love to make pens and I do sell some of them and I give away some too. I will not quit making pens. I really got into making the cartridge pens and love doing them. I have a reliable source for the casings and the antlers. It is also a way to keep in practice and an excuse to try new turnings.
 
For most of us it is a hobby. Over the years I have gone through woodworking, amateur radio, winemaking, competition handgun shooting and back to woodworking. All hobbies are expensive and we have to make choices. In a town of 900 I ran out of people to sell to long ago so most of mine get given away and you can only do that for so long. I think most who leave the hobby are in the same position. I think many who give up on pens don't give up on turning. On my small midi lathe I can turn a small bowl or plate and other ornaments. FOG wood works well for this. (found on ground) cost is the power used. Make a pen you have the cost of the kit plus whatever you use for a body and if you use the kit refill you risk a lousy reputation because most of them are crap.
 
Ken, I think most of it is the economy and then people figure out that this hobby is not that cheap. I have accumulated my woodworking tools since 1983 and still don't have all the fancy stuff that I hear some of the pros here have. The other thing is the nicer kits are not that cheap anymore and unless you have a lots of money left over from retirement funds that you can enjoy most people would have trouble purchasing those kits and the blanks at the prices that they are offered. the other thing is the older guys see the influx of so many getting into this hobby so quick that it may be a turn off to them. Just look at how many new comers we have just in 2011. Not that it's a bad thing , but scares the old timer away that this is getting too popular now so its losing its value for them. that's just my .02+ the .20 for the inflation.:rolleyes::biggrin:
 
Or, maybe, some folks are like me.

My hobby is collecting hobbies.

Every so often, one has to drop by the wayside to make room for a new one.
 
I have not given up but I sure dont do much. I have made maybe 6-10 pens in the last 17 months and 0 pens in the last 5 months. I can barely get into the shop at this point nevermind work in there. I am luck that I still have a day job and a wife that also has a full time job and makes ok money. I have not had to sell anything off to make monthly bills. I am also a pack rat so selling or getting rid of anything is tough.:biggrin:
 
One has to take the good with the bad in this biz. With ANY business. I was in retail sales, inside and outside sales, for over 35 years. I quit/retired and became self employed the end of October after "working for the man" for far too long a time. I could not fathom another Holiday Season working the retail hours; 50-60 hours per week, full comission sales, split shifts, going in at 6am one day and getting off at 11pm the next. Well you've all heard of that story. And I bet most worked that story like me. Maybe not as long. There are always a lot of Ups & Downs...in life as well as business. It is sad to see people leave, I am betting there are several good to great pen turners leaving because of the economy. I am a self taught turner myself and probably not even close in skill as most in this forum here. In IAP for just over a year and I have learned so much from this site. But folks, hang in there, the economy has to get better! For one reason you should stay in - it costs too much to get in (or back in) this business today. If you already have the tools - KEEP them!! Save the tools for a while and re-start you engine mid-year or so. You set your own time and work schedule. That's something you could never do at any jobs! You cannot get a retail job that pays as much today and this comes with little to no pressure, except for what you put on yourself to excell.

Sorry to rattle on so... :biggrin:
 
not too many folks have been able to make a living doing this. the ones that have, good for them, mmost of us just call this an expensive hobby
 
DurocShark said:
Long Beach, CA just laid off a bunch of teachers!

It's scary out there!
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Bakersfield just laid off a couple. Unfortunately, I was one of them. :frown:
That's what I get for being a new teacher trying to teach a subject that is different from my degree. I'm not going to stop turning though, it's one of the few things that keeps me positive.
 
I'm buying shop equipment today, but I'm selling off the contents of my 150 gallon marine aquarium, a hobby I passionately pursued for 20+ years.

In with the new, out with the old. Sometimes it's hard times that shuts down a hobby, or a move across country. In my case, it's the fact that I have just enough time and money for two hobbies... track-driving my sports car and turning pens and pepper mills soon enough.
 
That's one of my older hobbies. I had to give it up because it was too burdensome with all my other hobbies. Though at one point I had a business: Don's Wet Dream Aquatics

:wink:
 
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