The entire press run of “The Anarchist’s Workbench” passed its quality inspection and has arrived in our Indiana warehouse. Employees there are printing out the labels and will ship out orders in the coming days.
If you would like a printed copy of the first edition, you can buy one for $27 via this link. Or you can download the entire book for free at the same link. The electronic version is free and always will be. It’s covered by a Creative Commons license that allows you to reuse and adapt the material for non-commercial purposes.
For example, Ray Deftereos at the Hand Tool Book Review podcast has been recording the book as a free audiobook. He’s up through chapter 8 now. This is a perfect example of using the Creative Commons license, and we are thrilled by stuff like this.
“The Anarchist’s Workbench” concludes the “anarchist” series of books I began writing about 10 years ago. If you want to know why there will be no more “anarchist” titles, you can find out in the book. The answer is in chapter 16: “The ‘A’ is Now at the End.”
Because of the current problems at USPS, it likely will take longer to receive your book than usual. We have experienced delays of four or more days. So we ask that you please be a little more patient than usual. If you have problems with a lost or damaged book (it happens no matter what we do), please contact help@lostartpress.com. It’s best not to leave a customer service problem as a comment on the blog because we might not see it in a timely manner.
— Christopher Schwarz
The bench, and the book about the bench – I really like that final photo, and look forward very much to getting my copy!
Oh, and that same photo reminds me that the planing stop I ordered from Tom Latané is currently being cleared through customs here in Belgium, having spent almost four weeks in the momentarily not too fast hands of the USPS. That’s alright, though – as long as it gets here I’m happy!
Mattias
As the late David Graeber said “I see anarchism as something you do not an identity so don’t call me the anarchist anthropologist”. Thank you for the 3 wonderful books in this series and for your generosity in giving away the 3rd.
Well done, must be a great relief to have them on their way.
It is. I’m also glad we didn’t try to release the book at Handworks (which was the original plan). It would have been a disaster.
I look forward to fondling the print version.
But I’m sorry — it’s not over until I say it’s over.
Nice color. Goes well with SYP
Good news – glad the printing went better this time. Looking forward to getting one; hopefully Lee Valley up here in Canada continues their stocking of your books. Nancy’s kitchens book is due in next week; that’ll have to tide me over until the workbench book gets here. Ah well, tough “problem” to have!
Looking forward to the next one!
Bob
LAP, will there and when there be a publication on tool boxes, chests. Ralph
https://lostartpress.com/products/the-anarchists-tool-chest
🙂
Now the Crucible needs to produce a Planing Stop. I can’t find a decent one.
We are working on it this month.
Made from railroad spikes?
Nope. Can’t say more just now. Don’t want to let the cat out of the bag.
They aren’t cat-paw planing stops, are they? Bean has given enough.
Works for me:
Take some mild steel plate, I think mine was 3 mm (maybe 4?) thick, 5 cm x 10cm or so. 5×7 would have been better, don’t make it too wide (stress on the fasteners). I trimmed it down, could be even narrower, I think.
Mark equidistant (every 8mm or so) on the long edge and file down (I only had a rectangular mill cut file, used it as a “square”-ish file) on the marks and the margin.
Install on the wood planing stop post thing using them furniture fixing bolts with the nut mortised in. Screws don’t hold well in end grain. I also filed the teeth from bottom and top of the plate, making them really pointy, but I’m not sure if that’s needed.
I’m sure a blacksmith made one is nicer, but this one works. I’ll buy a decent pair of dividers next – limited funds etc.
Ordered my copy last night! Had to have all three in hardbound, obviously. Excited to read it! Haven’t downloaded the free version as I prefer to handle it and immerse myself that way. Thank you, Chris!
Hi – will some of these be made available through Lee Valley in Canada for anarchists north of the border, or is this only available strictly via Lost Art Press directly? Thanks.
Lee Valley carries our complete line. So I suspect they will have it soon enough.
Fingers crossed X 🙂
Quick question, sorry if I’ve overlooked the answer. I’m in the process of building mine, but I only have space for a 6′ bench. If I’m reading the plans correctly, and I center the top on the base, I’ll only have 2.5″ from the end to the planing stop mortise. I can see a couple of ways that could cause problems, but I assume I’m overthinking it. Thanks again for this book, and everything else.
Don’t center the base. Shift the base so you have some overhang on the end with the planing stop and very little on the other end. Also, make the base a little smaller to give you some more overhang. Hope this makes sense.
Total sense. Thank you!
Hi Chris, downloaded the e-version last night, and have just finished it; a terrific and inspiring read! I learnt a lot of new things, and will make a start on a build (with a print copy from Classic Hand Tools this side of the pond, of course!) Your book will make a great companion to your Tool Chest book, and Campaign Furniture, on my shelves.
Only problem now; more tools or more books?
Thanks for sharing your experiences and designs with us in such an enjoyable way,
Danny
Reading the description of the power tool workbench in flood water, p. 49, and then the choice of ordinary pva glue on p. 217; with flooding risks increasing seemingly everywhere, might not waterproof glue be an option? Just a thought.
I just finished reading the Anarchist Workbench and it is a wonderful conclusion to the Anarchist trilogy. I will proudly display it on my bookshelf next to the other two Anarchist books. While my current bench is a Richard Maguire style Nicholson, I plan on using parts of your design for a larger bench sometime in the future.
There was one Eureka! moment for me in the discussion on the doe’s foot. I don’t have a tail vice so I have tried doe’s feet to hold a board while traversing it with a plane. It did not go well. The doe’s feet kept slipping. Then I read your suggestion for making it “deluxe animal style” by attaching some sand paper to the underside. I immediately went out to my workbench and tried it. It worked like a charm. If that were all I got out of your book (it wasn’t), it would be worth the cost.
I enjoy your clear, concise prose mingled with humor and lots of expertise. Thank you for sharing your skills with the rest of the woodworking world. I look forward to your next contribution.
Thanks Shawn. I hope you find some more useful stuff in there in the future.