No. 1,000

The old proverb goes, “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” I wonder how many steps I’ve taken to reach this point?

Back when I did my first Woodshop News blog in January of 2008, I certainly knew I was taking the initial step of what I hoped would be a long journey. I just didn’t know that journey would be long enough to post this, my 1,000th blog, a bit more than 13 years later.

Naturally, as this milestone approached I gave a lot of thought to what significant and pithy remarks I should make to note this historic occasion, but finally decided that a momentous statement of some sort just wasn’t necessary. After all, “1,000” is just a number. In fact, the number comes up a lot in woodworking.

Tool manufacturers love the number. My current table saw is a Powermatic PM1000. For crosscutting chores, I’m betting many of you use an Incra 1000 miter gauge. The Ridgid RS1000 radial arm saw was one of that company’s earliest offerings. And let’s not forget the Saw Trax 1000 panel saw, Irwin Tools 1000 I-Beam Level, or the Craftsman 1000 Series of steel tool storage cabinets, and many more.

News coverage in the last year of skyrocketing lumber costs saw analysts tracking the pricing per 1,000 bf. That #0000 steel wool you use to rub out a finish has steel strands measuring 1,000th of an inch. Speaking of finishing, once sandpaper grits hit four digits they go up in steady increments of a thousand. Fasteners, depending on size, are typically sold in boxes in multiples of 1,000.

So, hitting a thousand blogs fits right in with woodworking in general. A milestone? Absolutely. But in the whole scheme of things it’s a pretty common woodworking number. In the end, the number is just another step in a journey that will continue next time – with blog number 1,001.