Lost Art Press

David Savage on ‘The Book of Plates’

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Furniture maker David Savage has posted a review of “The Book of Plates” on his blog today.

I wasn’t sure what he would think of the book. His furniture is so incredibly contemporary, that it would be easy for a modern maker to dismiss the work of A.J. Roubo as irrelevant or obsolete.

But then David is also an artist who values highly the skill of drawing.

If you would like to read his entire entry, go here.

Here is a brief excerpt:

This book is just stunning! Why in this three-second-attention-span age should we need an American publisher to show us the work of an almost forgotten French furniture maker? We deserve the celebrity-ridden, cultural desert we inhabit – so we should celebrate and recognise the publishers who take this delightfully contrarian view. It will have taken conviction and determination to do this – this alone should be celebrated.

So what have they done, this small independent American (dammit) publisher?

They have found and published the writings of an almost forgotten and largely ignored French writer, designer and craftsman, called Andre-Jacob Roubo. This is a man who not only has the technical skill of great maker, but the illustrative ability of an artist and, to complete the circle, the communicative ability of a writer.

“The Book of Plates” is available from the Lost Art Press store, where it is shipped in a box made from baby seals who were clubbed by Festool employees. It also is available from our retailers here.

— Christopher Schwarz

Be Smart and Carry the Gazintas

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As you design your tool chest, a little bit of cypherin’ can make a tool chest seem like the Tardis – way bigger on the inside than it should be.

This traveling chest carries a remarkable amount of tools in its 28” long x 18” deep by 16” tall carcase because it imitates a lot of older tool chests I’ve observed. Those numbers above are one of the typical sizes you’ll see for a working chest (plus or minus a few inches here and there). Another set of common numbers is found in my Anarchist’s Tool Chest.

Where do these numbers come from? Our tools and our bodies, which is to say, from our bodies. The 28” length allows you to fit a long jointer plane and your panel saws inside – a critical dimension. The 18” depth is a standard depth for carcases, it also creates a box that one person can lift (ignoring the weight of the loaded chest for a moment).

The height? When this chest is complete with its lid it will be 18” tall. A square profile view is another standard form you’ll find in furniture, and it creates a stable case compared to a much taller carcase. I’ve also noticed how many chests seem to be divided into thirds along their vertical axis. The bottom third (about 6” or 7” of height) is for heavy tools such as bench planes, the big dinosaurs of our tool chest strata. The middle third (another 6”) is for the medium-sized tools in a big sliding till – braces, hand drills, some joinery planes and hammer. The top third is for the little bits, such as layout tools, knives, little planes and the like.

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Today I finished fitting out the interior of this chest by adding a till for backsaws. I made it much like the till for the panel saws, except there are two bits of wood and the wood bits are wider because I want to hold three joinery saws.

The wooden holders are arranged so the saws can go into the rack either with their handles on the left or the right (I want them on the left so their horns are protected).

And yes, the wood is white oak – it’s what I have on hand after making the tills and runners. Several readers have questioned the wisdom of using oak because of its pH and tannin content. I’ve seen a lot of oak in old tool chests, and here is my reasoning:

If you use your tools and keep them wiped down with oil, like a responsible mechanick, you will not have a problem with corrosion. If you plan to store your tools for a long time without using them, consider Tupperware and rust-inhibiting paper. Wood is acidic. Period. But if you take care of your tools, oak isn’t going to give you any trouble.

Now I just have to turn the handles for the carcase and wait for the lid to arrive….

— Christopher Schwarz

Build a Workbench in 2015: Two Classes

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One of the best reasons to build a workbench at a school is to take advantage of the industrial-scale machinery and the strong backs of your fellow students. Oh, and your workbench is done in just a week.

In 2015, I am teaching two workbench classes: A knockdown Nicholson workbench July 20-24 at the New English Workshop at Warwickshire College. And a French workbench class Aug. 10-14 at the Connecticut Valley School of Woodworking.

There are still spaces available in both classes.

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The knockdown Nicholson bench is a fantastic bench I built during the summer using some principles swiped from Mike Siemsen, Caleb James and Peter Nicholson. The bench assembles in minutes and once together, you would be hard-pressed to say it could ever come apart. The thing is solid.

And the whole thing knocks down flat for transport or for when guests come over. It’s the ideal bench for an apartment, a temporary workspace or if you ever plan to move.

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The massive and classic French bench we’re building in Connecticut will be made with the super-primo ash from Horizon Wood Products that we used to build benches at the Marc Adams School of Woodworking in 2014.

Bench classes are physically taxing, but they are like an Amish barn-raising. Everyone has to pull together to get all the workbenches complete. It’s a team sport, which is something rare and wonderful in the world of furniture-making.

— Christopher Schwarz

A Simple Saw Till for a Tool Chest

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Because saws are delicate rust-magnets, storing them is a balancing act of protecting their bendable, rust-prone sawplates and still making them easy to get in and out of storage.

There are many good solutions. This is a simple one that gobbles up the least amount of precious real estate in a small chest. It’s made using one piece of tough 3/4” x 2-1/2” x 5” wood and two screws.

Kerfs in the block of wood hold the toes of your saws. The heel of the saw rests on the floor of the chest. The weight of the saw keeps it from slapping around when the chest is moved. The saws would be more secure if you added a second kerfed block near the heels. Also good additions: magnetic chewing gum, making the thing from transparent aluminum and airbrushing a buxom librarian/barbarian somewhere on the saw or chest.

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I have seen this form of simple till in many surviving chests, and the block of wood usually has some rudimentary decoration. I decided to shape this one like the blades of some 16th-century try squares I’ve been building this year.

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First I made a sample block to see how much wood I could remove and keep the saws stable. I decided to end the kerfs about 3/4” from the end of the block.

After cutting the block to shape and sawing the kerfs in it, I secured it to the chest with one No. 8 x 1-1/4” wood screw into the front wall of the chest and a second one through the floor of the chest and into the block.

That’s all there is to know except one important detail: If you are right-handed, put the block on the left side of the chest. That will make it easier for you to fish the saw out of the bottom of the chest.

— Christopher Schwarz

You Didn’t Get This

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Sweet mother of mercy I have been waiting a long time to post this entry.

Question: Do you want a polissoir that looks and works exactly like the one shown in Roubo’s 18th-century masterwork?

Answer: Why yes, I do. Click here.

Lie-Nielsen Toolworks is offering a gorgeous and simple polissoir that is the twin of the one shown in A.J. Roubo’s “l’Art du Menuisier.” It matches the original in form, size and everything. And it’s only $36. Buy it now or you will regret it when they run out.

This polissoir is made by the same artisan who makes Don Williams’s polissoir. And these are provided to Lie-Nielsen by Don Williams. In other words, everyone wins. Including you.

— Christopher Schwarz