This week I’ve signed off on a new press run of our four-volume set of “The Woodworker: The Charles H. Hayward Years.” We ran out of stock last year, and reprinting the books became prohibitively expensive (thanks, inflation!). I didn’t want to charge people more than $200 for these foundational texts on handwork.
So we worked with our printer to come out with a new four-volume set at an affordable price. What did we change? Only the cover. These books will be softcover instead of hardcover. The text will be printed on the same #60 paper. The pages will still be gathered into signatures and sewn for durability. The book will still be printed on offset printing presses in Michigan – not some digital perfect-bound piece of impermanence.
The four books will be wrapped in #100 Mohawk Carnival, a gorgeous American-made paper, for the covers. And we’re going to have a special introductory offer. Here’s how the pricing will work:
Vol. I: Tools: $40
Vol. II: Techniques: $38
Vol. III: Joinery: $29
Vol. IV: Workshops & Furniture: $32
The set of four should retail for $139. But for the first 30 days, you can buy the full set for $100 with free shipping.
These books make me hyperbole. We spent eight years culling these articles from hundreds of issues of the now-defunct magazine The Woodworker. These books cover all aspects of handwork, from getting started to making complex mouldings and curved barred-light doors. By hand.
These books are densely packed with thousands of hand drawings by Hayward. The four books comprise more than 1,500 pages of information. All organized so you can find it (here’s a list of the entries). I consider these books to be the backbone of my handwork library. When I have a question about a technique or a tool, these books are the first place I look.
We hope to have all four volumes in stock by the end of February. Save your pennies. These books are worth it.
— Christopher Schwarz
100 bucks for all four? You’re insane. You’ll be wandering Covington wearing an old pickle barrel on suspenders.
Seriously, anyone who doesn’t already own these books would be nuts not to buy them at that price. Sell some blood. Rob a gas station for Hayward money. Those books are just that good. After the zombie apocalypse they will help rebuild our civilization.
“You’ll be wandering Covington wearing an old pickle barrel on suspenders.”
Yes, but think about how well that pickle barrel will be constructed!
I agree. These books are a window to a more-skilled world. Every time I open the books (and I know them backward and forward), I find something new.
Did you ever thought about republishing David Charlesworth books, I had them and they were great, unfortunately now they rest in Dave’s Jones Locker with my boat.
We talked to David about it before his death. He was very interested, but his publisher (which owns the rights in toto) was not. We tried help him get the rights back, but it was to no avail.
Most publishing problems are caused by %$#&-hole publishers.
How apropo. Found a copy of vol 3 and 4 for 50 each yesterday and ordered them. Lol, now I have buyers remorse seeing this! At least now I can stop my search for the first 2 volumes! Hooray!
Dude. When do you sleep??
lmao
Hear, hear! I was just looking up his articles on mortise and tenon joints this afternoon and learned something new. Which is no surprise as I’m quite the neophyte.
What would shipping cost EU citizens if they wanted to take advantage if the $100 offer since I realize you can’t offer free shipping to us?
I’m afraid we don’t ship outside the US. We have distributors all over the world who will likely carry the titles.
Or you can use a re-shipping service if you prefer.
Another title I can’t go without now that I know about it.
Do you ship to Germany? Can’t wait till they show up in a year or two at the local distributor.
The only way to get LAP products from the US to someplace overseas is using a reshipping service. the excellent Mattias Hallin wrote a post a few years ago on how to do this.
https://blog.lostartpress.com/2021/12/23/my-bonnie-lies-over-the-ocean-a-way-to-shop-at-lost-art-press-from-outside-the-u-s/
What’s so funny?
My head hurts. I picked up a couple of those last volumes last year and was quietly, patiently waiting for a restock. These new ones will be wonderful, but you’ve broken my anal retentive bone, or my OCD bone or something. Either way, I’m ecstatic to be able to complete the collection.
If it’s vol. 3 and 4 you’re missing, Lee Valley still has them in stock!
Hi Chris.
Another opus magnum accomplishment for your journalistic career.
.can’t wait to have these as part of my library…
Once again, thank you so much…
Mike D. GNHW
I already have all these, plus Honest Labour. The book nerd part of me loves a hardcover for a book with information that is intended to be relevant for many generations. But I see this as an opportunity for gift giving. I plan to buy the set for $100 and put them back for some future, young woodworker just getting started. This will allow me to gift him or her a great storehouse of knowledge that would otherwise take a great deal of time and searching to accumulate. Thank you for this opportunity!
I almost suggested making this a boxed or slipcovered set, but that would drive up the cost again. And, duh, I’m a woodworker (of sorts). I’ll make a box.
When can order set of “The Woodworker?”
My copy of “Honest Labour” just came in, and even though I’m only up to 1937, it’s been almost eerie just how similar Hayward’s observations are to today. How hard it is to make a living selling quality work in a sea of mass-produced mediocrity. That a lack of meaningful work when work becomes just attending machines leads people into empty distractions, and how bountiful it is for someone to commit oneself to doing it anyway for one’s own sake.
We are dealing with the erroneous element here, the human, always unpredictable, forever changing direction.
Hi LAP, I looked into the re-shipping service, I live in the little ol UK, so costly to ship to here, you have to be very dedicated to want to shell out using this system.
These books really are the greatest treasure trove.
Will Honest Labour also become a soft cover?
Yes. But we have a five year supply of that on hand.
This is great news…
Now, for certain, I will need a new bookcase. This is not a bad thing, however.
If anybody has “extras” of volumes I and II I’d be quite pleased to purchase them at a premium in order to complete my set!
My wife and I have 3 daughters. None of them like woodworking. But my youngest daughter, the one that gave me two beautiful grand daughters, made my heart sing in December when she sent me my Son in Law’s Christmas list and told me he wanted to get some woodworking tools to make a shelf. You can’t imagine the joy I felt. I’ve been waiting my whole life to hear something like this. I gifted him a tool kit, complete with some saws and a book on Joinery, but I would love to give him this set for his birthday next summer.
I am SO stoked! I purchased and have read, “Honest Labour” twice! I know…it’s really not a “woodworking” book per se, but it is an inspiring book. I am looking forward to the reprint of the series and am scrounging in the couch cushions after someone visits our house and leaves.
When I first got my hands on the series, I finally let go of my library of twenty five years of FWW magazine. Nothing against FWW, but there is more useful information in those four volumes than I’ll be able to digest in my lifetime. Solid instruction for beginning or advanced woodworker. Thanks so much for keeping this in print.
Great Job!!!! When can we order and where will the link be?
I’ll certainly will be looking forward to picking up the complete set when it becomes available. A Great Addition to my library and to pass on to my Grandkids! Thanks for putting this together!!