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User Profile: Manny Hernandez

Who's Manny?:


Contact Manny.

What do you do for a living?

I'm an Engineer working in Silicon Valley. I work for a start-up called Force10 Networks. I have a EE from University of the Pacific.

What got you into woodworking?

I took shop classes in high school way back before school shops were replaced with computer labs. I also took metal working classes. I much preferred the warmth of wood as opposed to the coldness of working metal. As with most high school shops most if not all work was done with machinery. There was a handtool cabinet full of paint can openers and various shaped hammers and pry tools. Nobody ever told us they were actually called chisels, planes, awls, etc, much less how to use them. I continued off and on doing some type of woodworking through college and early in my career as an engineer. I finally decided it was time for some formal training and took most of the classes offered at the Woodworker Academy in Alameda. It was during this time that I would wander into the Japan Woodworker, in the same building, and look at all the Japanese handtools. So, I took a couple handtool classes at Woodworker Academy and got hooked on the quiet side of woodworking. Since then I've taken more woodworking classes at other schools to widen my exposure to different styles and techniques. In 2000 I took a 3 month leave from work and spent 6 weeks of that time in Maine at The Center for Furniture Craftsmanship taking various classes. One of the classes I took was Japanese Tools with John Reed Fox.

What got you into Japanese woodworking?

I think it's been about 10 years since I picked up my first Japanese tool. While I was spending time at the Woodworker Academy and Japan Woodworker I saw a brochure on Japanese style woodworking classes offered by Jay Van Arsdale. After taking a few of Jay's classes I leaned more towards using Japanese tools. I like the feel and look of Japanese tools. I still use western style tools for some operations. I wanted to learn the art of making dais, so I've twice attended the dai making seminar by Inomoto sponsored by Japanesetools.com in Pepperell, MA. I can now cut my own dais and make serviceable Japanese planes. I still need a lot more practice....

What are you currently working on?

After a couple years away, I re-enrolled in Jay's class at Laney College. We are working on a Japanese style gate for the Lake Merritt Horticulture Garden. I also have a list of furniture projects for family members that I need to get started on.

I also look forward to further development of The Daiku-Master 1000 All-in-One Planing Board/Workbench. The latest enhancement is a bottle opener. The tricky part is mounting it for easy access.

What are your favorite tools?

The ones that are freshly sharpened. :-)

Handtools: My favorite plane is a toss up between my Imoto Masao Dai Dogyu and the Kanda Mosaku blade in the dai I made at the 2004 Inomoto seminar. My favorite chisels are my small set of Hisasaku brand I bought at Japan Woodworker when they briefly carried that brand. As far as saws, my Yataiki saws are numero uno!

Powertools: My 24" Aggazzani bandsaw, 20" SCMI planer and 16" SCMI jointer are priceless. I like to buy rough-cut lumber and those three tools allow me to mill it down to workable size very quickly.

What are your interests?

My main interest is spending time with my 5 year old daughter. Aside from that my limited leisure time is spent woodworking or playing in an adult baseball league.

What are your favorite online places?

The Daiku-Dojo website of course!! :-)

I try not to spend too much time on the internet websites anymore, except for email and checking out Tomohitos site for any new tools available.

Manny's Workshop: