Woodworking is truly an international language, thanks to our common knowledge of tools, techniques, and joinery details, as well as the appreciation we share for sharp edges and beautiful grain. It’s nice to be reminded of this unity, especially during divisive times. For the last 10 years, I’ve had the good (and unexpected) fortune to make friends with woodworkers all over the world, thanks to a single blog I wrote about an unusual combination machine.
Here’s the backstory: I’m a tool junky just like you, and I sometimes indulge this addiction by cruising the tools for sale on Craigslist. That’s how I ended up with an Italian-made combination woodworking machine called a Zinken MIA6. Manufactured sometime in the 1980s, the MIA6 is about the size of a portable table saw. But through a dizzying array of flexible belts, the Zinken’s single motor can power five functions: table saw, jointer, planer, shaper and horizontal mortiser. There’s even a sliding table that can be used with the saw and shaper.
The Zinken didn’t work when I bought it, so I set about finding an owner’s manual and troubleshooting various problems. I wrote about my Zinken adventures in a blog at MotherEarthNews.com. About a month after the blog was published, I received an email from a woodworker in Australia who also had a Zinken he was trying to restore. I sent him the owner’s manual and other documents I had tracked down, along with a wish of “good luck, mate.”
Since that initial inquiry, I’ve received a slow but steady stream of queries from all over. Thanks to this little project, I’ve met woodworkers from England, Belgium, South Africa, Germany, the Netherlands, and even Italy, the Zinken’s country of origin. I always try to find out what kind of woodworkingmy new acquaintances are doing, and let them know about Woodcraft Magazine. I sold my MIA6 a couple of years ago, to a Brooklyn-based woodworker with a tiny workshop; he really appreciated the machine’s small footprint and multiple functions. But the digital trail leading back to my original blog continues to expand, so the Zinken is still helping me to grow my list of pen pals.
Whether your woodworking buddies are down the street or on another continent, it feels good to share ideas and help each other out. Let’s keep doing it together.
