“The Anarchist’s Design Book, Expanded Edition” is now a free download for everyone. You don’t have to register, sign up for dumb marketing or give up your email address. Simply click here, and the book will start downloading to your device.
If you want to read more about what is in this book, click here. We will continue to offer printed copies of the book. I love physical books, and this one is particularly nice, with its premium endsheets and bookmark ribbon.
This is the fifth book of mine that I have made free as a download. Here are links to the other four (if you are interested):
“The Art of Joinery”
“Roman Workbenches”
“The Anarchist’s Workbench”
“The Stick Chair Book”
Eventually I hope to make all the books I’ve written as a free download. This is a small attempt to help the craft by lowering the bar to enter it.
— Christopher Schwarz
What a grand idea, thanks Chris
Cheers
You rock!
That said, I own it, and really enjoyed reading it. I also built… some of the projects, some alone, some with the kids (now 8 and 6). I’m now building kitchen cabinets, but I hope to be done soon.
Very generous of you and I’m glad to support your work.
Thank you. I have purchased two copies of of the ADB, one as a gift and one for myself. I am downloading this now to use on my tablet.
Thanks Chris. This is unheard of!
Extremely generous.
Wow wow wow! This is something else. Cheers to you Chris!
Amazing.
This is another enormously generous contribution by you to the craft.
Was recently looking through my copy thinking how inspiring it is and wanting to share my treasured copy with a friend who I’m tempting to come over from the dark side of power tools to hand tool woodworking.
I can’t wait to share this.
I just bought a copy and now it’s free?!?
That’s great news! I still would’ve bought a hard copy and will still download the digital version. Having the information in multiple places will make re-visiting it convenient and the hard copy (I splurged and got a signed one) is worth every penny.
🫶
Dear Chris,
Thank you! I already have the hard copy from LV but not the other ones listed (I do also have The Joiner and Cabinet Maker, The Anarchist Tool Chest, Mechanic’s Companion and W/All The Precision…also in hard copies. This will likely get me to toward the hard copies as I’m like you and Love the feel, smell and turning pages of real books finely made. However, I do like printing these out, three hole punching and taking notes on them. I have a weird obsession with not wanting to mark in such nice real books. I did have and use Roman Benches to build mine, almost, ready for glue up and Lump hammering the wedges. Cheers!
PS Thanks for the Open Wire as well. I went for the LV spokeshaves from LV and No.7 Stanley with two dates (from Michael Rouillard Fine Tools – highly recommended). Your always spot on it seems with me on every recommendation:)
Hey Chris, this is unbelievable! The woodworking community will be grateful forever for what you do for the craft!
Thank you for your incredible generosity! Not only for these books, but for all the other ways that you give so freely, be it the woodworking advice in your blogs and the “Open Wire”, the free downloads of your books and excerpts from many other works and your research, the help you give to those who are underprivileged or disadvantaged, right down to your humor and life advice.
You are truly a “prince among men”.
To give without expecting … thank you. Since I found out at Handworks 2023 that you offered your books for free online I have made a few purchases… books and tools. Lump hammer is my fav.
Thank you! This is very generous of you. Will you be my Valentine?
You are very generous indeed! Thank you.
Thank you so much Chris.
I too prefer the printed books, but as someone located in Australia (where there’s often significant mark-up on everything from specialty woodworking stores) I simply can’t afford to purchase all the LAP books I’d like to.
Right now The Anarchists Design Book is retailing for $113 AUD (~$73 USD), a 35% mark-up from the LAP store price. Shipping for me adds another $18 AUD.
I’m not sure how much of this is due to higher costs for businesses in Australia, and how much is actual profit for the retailer so I won’t throw shade at anyone. But the reality is, as a result I end up purchasing less LAP books than I would if I was in the states (I typically limit these to being gift requests to my wife on my birthday and at Christmas). Other times I’ve purchased digital copies from LAP instead.
I appreciate you doing this to help bring this knowledge to a wider audience.
While there are a lot of reasons to be critical about the state of the internet, freely available knowledge has been incredibly powerful, particularly for those who are financially disadvantaged (which is not how I would classify myself now, but was absolutely the situation I grew up in).
Thanks, Chris! I always buy the actual books, but I love having downloads on my work computer and phone to look at when I’m bored. I appreciate your generosity.
You can’t beat hard copy books. Thanks for the free download.
Thank you !!!
Heartfelt thanks for the links for the free downloads. I love your approach to woodworking and writing and publishing. I love Lost Art Press. I own many of the books that I’ve downloaded so I could have a digital copy to work from. As a bibliophile, the books are as billed–fantastic. I have acquired multiple tools as well and my father built the portable Moxon style workbench featured in a former magazine. He was visiting me in Texas and said that this is the bench I’m looking for as I move too much. That was in 2015. The workbench as been everything I have wanted and more. Interesting enough it does have the McMaster Carr plates for easy disassembly and reassembly but it has moved from Texas to Idaho and never took it apart and it is so stout that it actually aided in supporting the other ‘stuff’ in the moving trailer to stay in place over 1800 miles. Can’t say enough good about Chris and his staff, LAP, and the design of the workbench.
Thank you, Chris. I already have the book, but my eyesight is not as good as it once was. This will allow me to enlarge the print as much as I need. Yay!
thank you so much ! Already own most of these but a digital backup is comforting to have
Hopefully tour sell of surplus copies went well, I bought one and don’t regret it.
Thank you!
Thank you very much Chris.
I just purchased The Anarchist’s Design Book. Normally I’d kick myself if I bought something and the next day it goes on sale. But this is an awesome thing to now offer. No regrets from me. Thanks for supporting woodworkers at all levels.
Your generous contribution to the ancient topic of workbenches and work-holding for woodworkers is unparalleled. You are the under-appreciated modern expert on the subject, and I have long owned three of your books on the subject, some pre-dating LAP itself (not even to mention other LAP books). They were the motivation for my own workbench design and project many years ago, and they gave me the confidence that I would never be entirely unhappy and disappointed with the result. I have other books on the topic as well, but none of them compares in thoughtfulness, completeness, and usefulness to your own collection of works. That you have made some of your best books available at no cost is remarkable, and anybody interested in these topics should be grateful to you for that generosity. Thank you, sir.
That’s pretty damn cool. Tip of the hat, sir. I’ve got the book, and it’s a great one.
If I could ask a question about peaking behind the curtain, I’d be curious what the sales history of the books you offer as free download shows against the purchase of the physical books? Obviously each book sells differently anyways, so there’s no apple to apple comparison, really, but do sales of the physical titles dip dramatically? Or does it cause people to buy more of the physical out of appreciation? Totally understand if you don’t want to divulge that information, but I am curious.
Thanks!
This is not a sales- or data-based decision. Sales for all these these titles are steady. Making them free for a download doesn’t really change sales (up or down).
I do it because personally, for my writing, I want it to be as free and as accessible as possible. In time all my titles will be free. What stops me from making them all free now is that these are some I’m not done working on. There will be a special 15th anniversary edition of “The Anarchist’s Tool Chest” first, then it will be free. Other books are at a different place in their life cycle. “Sharpen This,” for example, still sells a lot through our retailers. If I made it free now, they would be upset.
Hope this makes a little sense.
Makes sense. Was wondering how the sausage is made. I deeply appreciate that philosophy.
Nice to have a digital copy, thanks. I recently got the print edition and I love it – definitely recommend getting a physical copy.
Thank you Chris. Your philosophy and attitude toward the preservation and dissemination of woodworking knowledge only reinforces the pleasure I receive from buying and using Lost Art Press/Crucible tool products, and the respect I have for your approach to the craft. Keep on fighting the good fight for aesthetic and personally responsible anarchism!
Your generosity is inspiring. Thanks Chris.
Thanks, Chris, for doing what you can to spread the good word for the craft. I own this book, and several others from LAP, but I sent this posting to 2 young co-workers who don’t have a pot to pee in, but show a spark of woodworking interest. I’ve told them how much they can do with a small tool kit and a simple low bench. I hope their interest ignites and that your books help them. Well done!
Wow, Thanks Chris! Very generous of you.