Bad news: The entire press run of the “The Anarchist’s Workbench” has to be recycled and reprinted. The inking problem was throughout the entire run and was unacceptable to all parties.
The printer will redo the run and hopes to have it done by mid-September.
At this point, no one knows why it happened. The plant is conducting an investigation and will share the results when it’s complete.
Apologies for the delay. I am disappointed by the setback, but I’m glad the problem was caught at the plant.
— Christopher Schwarz
Mole people again?
Is there a silver lining in that you might be able to use the corrected version that was going to have to wait until the 2nd printing?
Not the end of the world. Thanks for keeping us updated! I really appreciate your and your team’s hard work.
Thanks for the update Chris. Damn mole people.
Murphy’s law measure 3 times cut once, mighty expensive firewood
Oh man. A signed misprint from the destroyed pile would be worth bank in the year 2200.
Clearly the cause was anarchy!
Or an inky blanket on a web press….
What are your thoughts about selling them at a clearance price and keep them out of the landfill?
A couple loaner copies would be nice – then the good one stays on my bookshelf without going walkabout. Maybe a few more copies that for guys that are nervous about getting started.
Sorry Brinton,
My name is on this, so I take quality very personally. Nothing will be wasted (except labor). Everything will be recycled.
As a graphic designer for 27 years prior to retirement, I would do press checks on every signature of every job no matter the hour of the day to limit such problems, and to send the signal to plant production that anything less than perfect would be rejected. Of course if you are not local to your printer you are at the mercy of print production oversight. If it was in only one signature it should have been caught prior to finishing and binding. That mistake can cost the printer and will surely mean no profit on the job. Always a sad day for everyone.
Post 9-11, press checks became impossible. I used to do them as well, sleeping at Quebecor plants all over the country. Instead, we hire an independent firm to QC. That is who caught the problem.
I like Ron’s idea. Would rather wait a bit longer for the corrected version first time around. Chris, John, et al, no upset from us. This stuff happens. Just deal with it and move on. It’s not like we don’t have the pdf in the meantime.
I like the idea of swapping for the corrected versions, if possible, but won’t complain either way. Such is the life of early adopters in everything. Besides, it gives me a little more time to finish ADB 🙂
Waiting in the driveway by the mailbox is more pleasant this time of year than January. I guess I can wait a little longer.
I have a recent copy of Workbenches (one of Chris’s earlier books) that was printed cheaply and all the photos have streaking / uneven shading stripes through them. Totally destroys the pleasure in reading the book.
So I’m thankful the mistake was caught in the print run before the books went out and the hard decision made to reprint.
Sorry about that Paul. I wish I had any say in how that book is manufactured.
I wouldn’t want to be the guy responsible for the screwup!
Another example of the high quality standards of Lost art Press.
LOST ART PRESS = TOP QUALITY.
Sorry to hear of the error, no problem. My touch of woodworking is making bamboo fly rods. 3 or 4 sections of 6 strips each; each planed by hand to.001”. Say 80 hours of work. If a piece isn’t perfect, it’s kindling.
Chris,
It happens; thanks to you and all the crew for keeping us informed. Just make the anticipation greater!
Robert Knowles, AIA
No worries, thank you for the update.
It’s worth the wait
As you say, cutting a few extra legs while you try out the angles on a chair project saves the day in the end.
It is at a moment just like this that this clip from the Monty Python “Holy Grail” opening credits may provide some needed succor: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=79TVMn_d_Pk
“We apologies again for the fault in the subtitles. Those responsible for sacking the people who have just been sacked have just been sacked.”
The credits have been completed in an entirely different style at great expense and at the last minute.
Executive Producer CHRIS SCHWARZ & “BEAN” The Wonder Cat
Producer: JOHN “THE LLAMA” HOFFMAN
Assisted By: JOHN J. BEAN, MIKE Q. BEAN III, SY BEAN, MERLE Z. BEAN IX
Directed By: 40 SPECIALLY TRAINED ECUADORIAN MOUNTAIN CATS, 6 VENEZUELAN RED CATS, 142 MEXICAN WHOOPING CATS, 14 NORTH CHILEAN KITTENS (CLOSELY RELATED TO THE BEAN CAT), REG CAT OF BRIXTON, 76000 BATTERY CATS FROM “CAT-FRESH” FARMS LTD. NEAR PARAGUAY, and MEGAN FITZPATRICK
Not a problem at all. The book will be well worth the wait and judging by all the commenters before me, the people you attract here all understand the cost of quality.
You know I was just thinking I would read The Joiner and Cabinetmaker again, anyway. Let’s just go ahead and say Sam probably had something to do this.
Sam strikes again! The never-seen mole apprentice…
Anyway, anticipation is the best part! Glad you are keeping up the fantastic work.
(apologies if there is a better forum for questions about the content of “The Anarchist’s Workbench” as opposed to the publishing – happy to be redirected if there is a better place to post this kind of question)
Really enjoyed the book and was inspired to start building.
I have my benchtop lumber planed down to 1 1/4, except for one particularly ugly board I had to take down to 1″ to get it flat. On page 227, it says:
“It’s easy to do if you make all your pine parts exactly the same 1-1/4″ thickness. I’m repeating the 1-1/4″ stuff for emphasis, another mark of quality literature.”
Is that warning more applicable to the base than the top? If I understand the plan correctly, the only impact in one board being a little thinner is on the overall benchtop depth as long as I don’t use that thinner board where any of the mortises are going to go (where the exact thickness would presumably help make the exact 2 1/2 inch mortises for the base) or on the front side of the bench (where the difference would result in the leg not being flush with the
I notice that the final benchtop width on page is listed as 22″, not 22 1/2″, so it seems to allow for some loss of thickness through the course of the build.
Am I thinking about that correctly?
Yup. You have it right. Good luck!
Thanks! Appreciate the response.