This Old House

[HowardH]

I had forgotten that this show was still in production.  I recently started watching this past season's shows on Apple TV about the house in Arlington, MA.  IMO, this show is not only the original but the best.  It goes back I think at least 30 years and it's good to catch up with Norm and Tommy.  I'm always on the lookout for any Festool they will be using but I'm watching the demolition episodes right now so I'm sure it will be coming soon.  It sure appears that their "conversations" with the homeowners are scripted.  I can't think of another show that compares to it.  Rehab Addict is pretty good and they don't try to finish a project in one episode.  I have a friend in Waco who knows Chip and Joanna Gaines from Fixer Upper.  Nice enough but until their show got popular, they owed everyone in town. 

 

[TylerC]

I still get excited every time that I see the TOH crew using Festool, which is pretty often. It was about this time last year that Norm and Tom spent a week in our office building a table for our new conference room. That was a real honor.

My wife loves "Fixer Upper", but the focus is too much on the design for my tastes. They brush right past most of the real work. It's become a continuous source of lighthearted bickering in my house.

 

[DB10]

  My wife is also a big fan of fixer upper but as I' ve mentioned more than once this is essentially a reality program where all reality goes out the window, in the real world Chip would have the time to act the fool in junk shops and sip homemade lemonade at the farm, no he would be pulling his hair out chasing permits and no show contractors, but in Fixer Upper everything is a breeze and very relaxed, ideal for Sunday night viewing.

 

[Kevin D.]

I hardly ever catch TOH.  I really should as it is a good show.  Most how-to shows where they actually show you how to do things are gone.  Nowadays, it's all revolving around staged scripted drama, which I can't stand.

 

[RustE]

I hardly ever catch the showings on the local channels either.  And I have not played around with Apple TV, so I guess that's worth looking into as well.

 

[leakyroof]

At some point my Father got a bit disgusted with TOH and started to call it This Group of Subcontractors.....I think that was the period where the show took on really big projects and needed more help than the on-show people could handle. He hasn't probably watched it in years though..... [doh]

 

[Dogberryjr]

I still enjoy the show, but it's evolved into a showcase of new and high-end products for the most part, but I guess that's what keeps it going.

 

[Paul G]

At some point my Father got a bit disgusted with TOH and started to call it This Group of Subcontractors.....I think that was the period where the show took on really big projects and needed more help than the on-show people could handle. He hasn't probably watched it in years though..... [doh]

Considering they move around into different jurisdictions, I'd imagine they're often required by law to bring in the licensed subs and even get a local GC to manage the whole thing as well.

 

[greg mann]

I love the show for a host of reasons, including the pretty extensive use of Festool. Had to laugh during one episode where Norm was assembling a table from reclaimed lumber with 'loose tenons'. Just about the time he was finished he referred to them as dominoes and I guess no one caught it. My wife wondered what I was laughing about. Too much trouble to explain the whole public TV and non-commercial content stuff, but it is funny when Tom uses his portable mortising machine and my wife says isn't that the Domino I got you for Christmas?

I also enjoy the inclusion of other contractors. It would be a lot to expect Tom to be everything he is plus a timber-frame operation and a stonemason and a whatever else he needs to be, including as was mentioned having the right licensing and all. It is also a nice way of 'spreading the wealth' to those contractors in their area that gain exposure worth its weight in gold.

Who knew there was a company in Vermont that will precut everything. The framing, the doors and stairs and all the interior and exterior trim, even the kitchen cabinets. Ready to assemble and/or preassembled?

On the present project, Norm visited a company that cut all of the curved porch rafters on a CNC router, Tom appeared to assemble them in minutes. Faster, Better, Smarter. A few weeks earlier they took advantage of a steel fabrication for the addition.

I have learned about SIPs, ICFs, Nests, and a host of other innovations because of these guys. I may never need to know all these things but it is very cool nonetheless.

 

[HowardH]

I knew once I got through enough episodes they'd break out the Festool.  I was rewarded with the 8th or 9th episode when Tommy cut and assembled the new dormers using the new Festool circular saw and the hammer drill to install.  I'm sure a lot of non-woodworkers saw that track he used and wondered what was going on.  The skill of the tradespeople always blows me away.  We better get some young people learning how to do this stuff or we are going to be in trouble down the road.

 

[Poindexter]

We better get some young people learning how to do this stuff or we are going to be in trouble down the road.

That's a big point and I'm so glad to see Mike Rowe pushing it hard.  For those who haven't thought about America's dilemma where our younger generations are pushing harder and harder for "white collar" work, here's a quick video on it: https://www.prageru.com/courses/life-studies/dont-follow-your-passion

Good to see This Old House covering it with Mike. 

I fired up the DVR on TOH a few weeks ago and have definitely been enjoying the show again!

 

[bobfog]

What I find interesting is there appears to be no specific allegiance to a brand. Sometimes you'll see a huge pile of Dewalt, sometimes Festool, sometimes Makita, etc.

Either they rotate tools not to show favouritism to a brand or possibly one brand will sponsor or make a contribution to a specific episode.

Or more likely the likes of Tommy, Norm et al are too old and wise to be taken in by one brand over another, knowing there's actually little difference between one brands router/impact/Saw to another, so just use whatever is nearest and available.

 

[Mort]

I don't know about that. Norm had a whole lot of Porter Cable tools for a while there. Even on PBS a greased palm gets your product placed.

 

[HowardH]

Our Euro friends would be better to comment on this but I have heard that there is a much bigger emphasis in high school on kids learning the trades than automatically assuming everyone is going to college.  I read in Germany, 60% of high school grads choose vocational training rather than academic. I know how much my plumber charges an hour so that's not a bad idea!

 

[Marven]

The porch with the curved rafters was very cool.  I learned about "Wacky wood" too.

 

[HowardH]

I just watched that episode last night.  Very cool, indeed.  So that brings up another question.  Is using a CNC considered woodworking?  I would suppose if one looked back a 100-150 years ago when table saws, jointers, etc. first made their appearance that the woodworking establishment who learned on just using hand tools may have had the same question.  Your just using your hands to run a software program instead of a machine but you still have to understand what you want to create.  Even Norm was impressed.  He said something to the effect that would normally take him many hours or even days can be accomplished in 20 minutes.  Look at the stuff that Andrei at mtmwoods.com creates with his CNC.  Beautiful and probably impossible to make otherwise. 

 

[Letsonbandr]

Not to get completely off topic - but which tab in apple tv did you look under to find it?  Is there a PBS tab?

 

[HowardH]

  If there's not already a PBS app listed, you'll need to go to the apps store on the Apple TV and open that and then add PBS. Once you do that, it will ask you to go to PBS website and put in an activation code.  You type that cut it into your computer at the PBS website and you should be ready to go.

 

[Letsonbandr]

THANKS!

 

[leakyroof]

I don't know about that. Norm had a whole lot of Porter Cable tools for a while there. Even on PBS a greased palm gets your product placed.

  yeah, early on it was Delta everywhere in his shop and on his spin-off show from what I remember.