The last project for the “Campaign Furniture” book isn’t really a piece of campaign furniture. It’s a fairly close reproduction of a Kaare Klint “Safari Chair” in mostly black. Black leather, black-dyed mahogany and silver hardware. I left the strapping in its natural vegetable-tanned color for a little relief from the black.
Today I installed all the leather and strapping to the chair. Ty Black, my former shop assistant, was nice enough to stitch the arms and part of the back for me. Thanks Ty.
I included the chair in the book because the Safari Chair is one of the important links between the Victorians and modernism. It’s also a link between my book having typos and having fewer typos. I’m trading this chair for some editing on the book.
About 11 p.m. Christmas Eve, I wrote the final paragraph of “Campaign Furniture” and closed the laptop. Megan Fitzpatrick is editing the text now, and I’m finishing up some hand drawings, photography and scanning to complete the book.
I’ll start designing the pages on Jan. 1, and the finished product should ship to customers in March 2014.
I don’t know if I’m like other writers, but I have about zero point zero confidence about my books when they’re complete. My personal criticisms of my work are worse – way worse, actually – than anything spouted on the forums or lobbed into my inbox.
If I could stop myself from writing, I probably would. Unfortunately, writing and publishing is a compulsion, much like woodworking is a compulsion for me and many of my friends. So here is my pre-publication critique of my book: It’s too short, too shallow and not really funny.
1. Too short. This book clocks in at about 50,000 words. That’s about half the length of “The Anarchist’s Tool Chest.” I did everything I could to condense my thoughts and control my asides for “Campaign Furniture.” A lot of the information in “Campaign Furniture” is visual. There are hundreds of photos, drawings and scans of historical material.
My urge was to write an opus. I certainly have the material to do that. But I don’t have time to read an opus, and I know that many readers have lives that are as crazy busy as mine.
2. Too shallow. Here’s a confession: While I admire academic books and use them in my research, I do not enjoy reading them for fun. I am not an academic. I don’t write like one, I don’t think like one and I could never be one.
So while this book will have an index, a bibliography and some deep appendices, it is not going to impress a librarian or end up quoted in someone’s master’s thesis. The goal of “Campaign Furniture” is to introduce you to the style and – I hope – get you interested in building these pieces.
Campaign furniture, as you will see, is made with top-shelf joinery, beautiful woods and its only real adornment is brasses, which also reinforce the joinery. It is an under-appreciated style, and so much fun to build.
3. Not funny. I think good writing balances information and entertainment. But after writing several chapters in the same frame of mind as “The Anarchist’s Tool Chest,” I ended up rewriting them because the tone just seemed wrong. I find it weird to make jokes about the Napoleonic Wars, colonialism or severe urban overcrowding – all of which are part of the story of campaign furniture.
Some of the darkest and wrongest humor ended up on the cutting room floor. Here’s one bit that got cut. It’s too funny and sick and wrong not to share.
Attention, if you are easily offended, stop reading.
Sir Pratnap Singh, the Maharaja of Idar, was intent on wiping out the Muslim population of India. When an English official pointed out that they shared some Muslim friends, Pratnap replied: “Yes, I liking them too, but very much liking them dead.”
I know. It’s horrible on so many levels.
Despite my self-loathing, I do hope you’ll read the book and join me in researching and building in this fascinating style. I can already think of three more books about the campaign style that need to be written, and I hope this book sparks enough interest for me to continue my work.
During some annual inventory activity, John Hoffman and I turned up two cases of books we don’t sell anymore at Lost Art Press. These books aren’t doing anyone any good sitting in a warehouse, so we’re offering them at 50 percent off retail until they are gone.
We don’t have a lot of these, so they likely won’t be around for long. Here’s what we found:
“Workbenches: From Design & Theory to Construction & Use” (19 copies). This is my first book and covers the principles of bench design and construction that I still follow today. We stopped carrying this book because it’s suicide to compete with Amazon.com, and I’ve never been happy that F+W chose to print the title in China. We’re selling it for $15 plus domestic shipping. All the copies are signed.
First edition of “The Anarchist’s Tool Chest” – the tan cover edition. The first edition has a few typos and doesn’t have an index. But you can download the index for free here. And at $17.50 plus domestic shipping, it’s a solid deal. These are signed via either bookplate or directly.
You can buy the first edition of “The Anarchist’s Tool Chest” via this link.
Our audiobook version of “The Joiner and Cabinet Maker” read by Roy Underhill was a grand experiment. (Is there another woodworking audiobook?) We love the result – I’ve listened to it three times now. But we made a mistake in pricing the CD version. It’s too expensive.
So effective immediately we have cut the price by 50 percent (to $13.50) and are offering free domestic shipping on the three-CD set. This price cut is permanent until we run out of the CDs. After that, the audiobook will be available only as a digital download.
We’ve also reduced the price of the digital download to $13.
Reader Tom Haley sent me this fascinating list of tools an apprentice carpenter should obtain circa 1970, with recommended brand names and model numbers. The list was a faded mimeograph that was almost unreadable. Through the power of Photoshop, I made it almost legible. I’ve decided to reproduce the entire list here exactly as written, typos and all. It’s simply too awesome to mess with.
Haley (in the photo above) completed his apprenticeship on Jan. 22, 1981, and has certificates of completion from The United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America and from The United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Apprenticeship and Training.
Haley was a member of Local 512 in Washtenaw County, Mich. He was a business agent for Local 512 and a Field Representative for the Michigan State Carpenters Council.
— Christopher Schwarz
TOOLS
The following is a list of tools in the approximate order in which they should be purchased. You should get in the habit of purchasing one tool per week even if it is a nail set. You will find this a very profitable habit simply because your trade will be no better than the tools you have in your tool box. It is a well known fact, tools are one of the best investments that can be made, however, you must remember a poor grade of tool can be very costly to you. You will soon learn that a cheap tool quite often becomes the most expensive, not only in more labor that will be used, but also in the repurchasing of the tool.
It is a poor policy to wait until the demand presents itself before you buy a specific tool. Always remember that for a man to become a success in life is to be ready for the opportunity when it presents itself.
During your 1st. 6 month period you should purchase: Jack knife (good pencil sharpener) Hammer (Champion “Our Pride”) Zig Zag rule (Stanley No. 106 Finside) Nail set (Miller Malls 1/32 and 3/32) 8 point saw (Disston straight back D-23 26”) Ripping Bar or wrecking bar (Stanley) Cold chisel (Stanley No. 74 5/8” x 7”) Combination square (Stanley No. 122 12”) Screw driver (Stanley No. 1006-8”) Stanley chisels #60 (1/2” and 3/4” for now however, if you can afford it get set #69
During your 2nd. 6 month period you should purchase: Hatchet (Stanley Broad Hatchet No. 32) Steel square (Nichols No. 100-A) Level (24” Sands) or (Stanley No. 313 24”) Do not get a level with adjustable bubbles. Auger bit brace (Stanley No. 923 10” sweep) Screw driver bit (Stanley No. 26 1/4” and 1/2”) Auger bits (Russel Jennings No. 100 double thread) No. 8 No. 10 No. 15 bits for now. If you can afford it, get set No. 32 1/2 Qtrs. (13 bits) It is best to get No. Bx-D 32 1/2 includes box
During your 3rd. 6 month period you should purchase: Block plane (Stanley No. 60-1/2) 11 point saw (Disston D-23 Straight back 26”) Compass saw (Disston) Saw set (Stanley No. 42) Saw horse vise Coping saw (Disston No. 10) Hand drill (Stanley No. 624) Index of drills (No. spec)
During your 4th. 6 month period you should purchase: Hack saw (Disston No. 36 1/2) Jack plane (Stanley No. 5C) Celotex knife (Stanley No. 199) Countersink (Stanley No. 139) Scratch Awl (Stanley No. 7) If not already complete, complete your chisel set. Bevel (Stanley No. 18, 8”) Yankee Push drill (No. 41)
During your 5th. 6 month period you should purchase: Smooth plane (Stanley No. 4C) Wing dividers (Stanley No. 58, 8”) If not complete, complete your bit set. Ripping chisel (Stanley No. 818) 10 point saw (Disston D-23 Straight back 24”) Yankee screw driver (No. 130A quick return) Rabbit plane (Stanley No. 78)
During your 6th. 6 month period you should purchase: Butt gauge (Stanley No. 95) Expansive bit (Russell Jennings No. 71B) Line level (Stanley No. 187) Extension rule (Stanley No. 226) Jointer plane (Stanley No. 8C)
During your 7th. 6 month period you should purchase: Trammel points (Stanley No. 4) Phillips screw driver (Stanley No. 2752) Spoke shave (Stanley No. 151M) Bit extension (Stanley No. 180, 18”)
During your last period you should purchase: Cornering tool (Stanley No. 29) Disston Dovetail saw (No. 68, 10”) Screw driver (Stanley No. 1009 close quarter) Yankee off set ratchet screwdriver (No. 3400) Screw driver (Stanley No. 1008-8”) Hand scraper (Stanley No. 0, 2 1/2” x 5”) Burnisher (Stanley No. 185)
It will be to your advantage to add to this collection whenever possible.
