We’ve had have about 100 people at our storefront so far today for our Open Day. So we aren’t physically or mentally able to answer Open Wire questions. Sorry!
We’ll be back next Saturday with Open Wire.
— Christopher Schwarz
Today is the last day you can purchase any of our Lost Art Press videos for 50 percent off. The sale ends at midnight Dec. 2. You can see all our videos here.
All our videos were made by working woodworkers. We’ve been making these videos for years with basic equipment. This sale will help fund new audio and video equipment for future videos. Though books will always be our first love, we know that many woodworkers learn best with the help of video.
Our current videos cover a wide range of topics, from turning to sharpening to building workbenches to building chairs. All the videos are easily portable from device to device. You can stream them on our website. Or download them to any device. We don’t add any digital rights management (DRM), so you’ll be able to put them on all your devices without any security or password aggravation.
One final note: We don’t do “fake sales.” This is our first-ever sale on videos in 16 years. After midnight, these videos will return to full price and remain that way.
Check out the entire collection here.
— Christopher Schwarz
First, if you are in the area tomorrow (Saturday, Dec. 2), I hope you can stop by our shop at 837 Willard St. for our Open Day. We do this only twice a year, and it’s a great way to catch up with other woodworkers and snag some bargains on blemished or discontinued products (basically 50 percent off – cash only).
Second, here are some quick updates on some products.
The Anarchist’s Square Kit: We had some problems holding the parts as we were milling the joints – the tolerances are a bit crazy. But we have it under control now and are in full swing with production. We hope to have the first batch for sale next week (if we’re lucky).
Crucible Lump Hammers: We are still waiting on handles. And our hopes are diminishing that we will have hammers before Christmas. Lee Valley still has stock. As does Highland Woodworking.
Crucible Engraving Tools: I just finished assembling 145 of these on Wednesday with the new round cutter. As of this morning we are down to 113 in stock. As I type this Megan is sending out replacement round cutters to those customers who received the too-pointy ones.
‘With Hammer in Hand’ Posters: We are down to our last 150 posters from the run of 500. The good news: We turned a profit on this poster. The bad news, at this rate we will run out of these posters by January.
‘Lost Art Press Workbook’: We’ve sold half of the 1,000-unit press run. We have just gotten into the black with this project, which allows me to unclench various organs.
— Christopher Schwarz
One of the many benefits of bringing our order-fulfillment operations back to Kentucky is that we can again offer pre-publication orders of our books, with a free pdf and free shipping.
So I am happy to tell you that we are now taking pre-publication orders for Andy Glenn’s first book, “Backwoods Chairmakers.” You can place your order here. The book is $47. When you do, here’s what happens:
The book is currently at the printer in Tennessee, and it is scheduled to ship the last week of December. Because of weather and the holidays, that might slip to the first week of January 2024.
Why should you buy this book?
When working with Andy on this book, we had a lot of late-night conversations. This book is a massive work. Andy said to me: “If I ever do another book, you have to stop me from going to extremes. Like trying to do everything. I’m like that. I just can’t help it.”
“Andy,” I replied, “that fact that you go to extremes is why this book is so damn good.”
Andy traveled all through Appalachia for this book, putting thousands of miles on his car and talking to people far and wide to do one thing. It’s this: Give the Appalachian chairmaker their due.
For centuries, people in this region have been making chairs for their communities and for sale to others, and the skills have been handed down through generations. Thanks to the modern world, their numbers have dwindled. Andy went and found them. He documented their work and their lives.
And – this is important – he approached the work as a woodworker as much as an ethnographer.
I love the “Foxfire” series of books. I have the complete series on my shelf. But they weren’t written for practitioners. “Backwoods Chairmakers” is a must for anyone who makes chairs or is interested in the culture and spirit of Appalachia.
Andy took thousands of photos and collected archival photos from all over the region. He talked to everyone who would let him in the door. He wrote their stories with an open heart – empty of the bias that often permeates the writing about the region.
And he shows you how these Appalachian chairmakers influenced his own work at the bench. The final two chapters detail how Andy builds a settin’ chair and a grand rocker.
Like all our books, “Backwoods Chairmakers” is made in the USA to the highest quality standards. The signatures are printed on #70 matte coated paper, sewn together with thread and bound with glue and fiber tape. All that is casebound between cloth-covered boards. And wrapped with a tear-resistant dust jacket. This is a permanent book.
Read more here.
— Christopher Schwarz
When saw sharpener Tom Law died in 2012, he left behind more than a thousand vintage saws that he had fixed up and filed – ready for use. Some of the rare saws went to collectors. But many of these saws would not interest a collector. They were vintage but common working saws – like the Disston D-23.
Josh Clark, the all-around-good-guy tool seller at Hyperkitten, has obtained these saws and is now selling them at user prices on his website.
If you just want a saw and not the whole backstory, go here. Don’t walk, run.
All of the saws are sharp and ready to use. And because it’s Josh with Hyperkitten, you know the tools are going to be well-packed and sold at a more-than-fair price. The saws range from $20 to $55, with most going for $30 to $40.
And did I mention they were sharp?
How did this happen? Here’s Josh:
When Tom passed away in 2012, he left behind more than 1,000 handsaws, all restored, sharpened and ready to use. For years his wife, Sandra, would bring boxes of saws to the yearly PATINA tool meetings in Damascus, Maryland. Over the years I got to know her and we’d joke about her saw horde. I always looked forward to seeing what saws she would drag out of the stacks to sell.
Tom didn’t discriminate between the rare and the common, they were all just good sharp working saws which meant there was always something interesting to discover. It was clear there was something different when I saw her this past spring. Sandra told me she was ready to get rid of all the saws and reclaim her living room. She wanted to find someone who would buy all of the saws and get them into the hands of people who would use them. It was a tough project because of the scale (500+ saws) and the fact that the collection had been cherry picked over the years leaving behind nothing collectible or sexy, just good quality working saws.
These are just the type of saw I love to sell so I committed to buying the collection. We came to an agreement on a price and she was pleased to allow me to sell them as “Tom Law” saws. Earlier this fall I rented a moving truck and brought the collection home (driving ever so slowly, dreading every pothole). Sandra was equally happy to have her living room back, and to know that these saws would be put to use again.
So if you want to do a good deed, and get a good saw in the bargain, visit this special sale page that Josh built.
We have six of these saws here in the shop, and I can attest that the sharpening is excellent.
— Christopher Schwarz
