In Shop Blog, Techniques, Tools

We may receive a commission when you use our affiliate links. However, this does not impact our recommendations.

Bob Baker, a furniture and tool restorer and excellent planemaker, died unexpectedly last week.

I had the pleasure of meeting Bob in February of 2006 when we hosted a gathering in Cincinnati for many of the best planemakers and gave each of them the opportunity to present their work to one another, and to talk about planes, planemaking and toolmaking in general. Bob was high on that list of “best planemakers.” In the picture at left, he’s presenting two of his planes to the rest of the group.

I met him only that one day, but as I look back through the pictures of the event, I remember a kind and genuine man who had a grin on his face almost the entire time. Kari Hultman, who knew him better than did I, has written more about Bob on her blog, The Village Carpenter, and there are some touching comments below her post that I hope you’ll take the time to read.

Chris wrote a story about about our “planemakers'” event for the August 2006 issue, which features some of Bob’s work. You can link to it here

– Megan Fitzpatrick

AD

Get full access to the latest projects, videos, and more by becoming a member today

  • 10,000+ pages of expert woodworking knowledge
  • Exclusive videos from top editors & craftsmen
  • 25% off the entire Popular Woodworking store
Learn more

Start typing and press Enter to search