Lost Art Press

A Link with the Past—Broken

Posted on by fitz

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The passing away, recently, of Gabriel Edmonston, that well-known veteran member of our organization and its first President, held an interest for us quite apart from the element of personal loss which it was only natural that all keenly interested in the affairs of our organization should feel, for his death, in a manner, marked a definite breaking with the past—or to be more precise, with that period when our organization was as yet unborn and the plight of the average journeyman carpenter in the world of American labor was comparable with that of one of the lost tribes of Israel.

Edmonston, picturesque figure that he was, in recent years, more and more appeared to stand out as one of the last links in the chain which bound us to the unorganized, or shall we say, the disorganized past, when the carpenter was almost a pariah wandering over the land, the victim of miserably low wages, excessively long hours of toil and wretched working conditions. One might say that in his later years he became a living testimonial to the efficacy of the instrumentality which brought about the amelioration and betterment of the carpenter’s condition—and that instrumentality was organization.
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Yes, There are Silly Questions

Posted on by Lost Art Press

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I would hazard to say that 99.5 percent of our customers are people I get along with, enjoy hanging out with and would trust to watch my kids. But during my 20 years in the woodworking publishing business, I have encountered tens of thousands of woodworkers with questions and suggestions. So you do get some nutjobs.

Here are the craziest questions I’ve been asked while an editor at Popular Woodworking and Lost Art Press. Every one of these is 100-percent true.

I want to build this secretary but I need full-size plans. I want to be able to stick the paper to the wood and cut out every part.

Can you recommend a table saw fence that is adjustable to thousandths, or better yet, ten-thousandths?

Could you give me a list of every tool I need to start woodworking? In addition to that could you recommend your top three favorite brands for each tool and give me a little bit of your reasoning on each brand? Oh, and links to the best price for each tool would be appreciated.

I don’t have internet access, but I would like to read your blog. Could you print out all the articles you’ve written so far and mail them to me?

Could you tell me where to buy Lie-Nielsen planes at a deep discount – something like 50 percent off?

I’d like to build the project from the latest issue, but I don’t have a table saw. If I send you the wood, could you cut all the parts and mail them back to me?

I’d like a bibliography of all the woodworking books in your library.

If I send you the floor plan of my shop, could design the optimal arrangement of electrical outlets, lighting, dust collection ducts and machinery?

I’d like to start woodworking. Don’t you think it would be a great column if I came to your shop, you taught me the craft and I wrote a column about the process in every issue?

Won’t that interfere with finishing?

If I send you my tools will you grind and sharpen them?

I think your magazine should be peer reviewed like an academic journal by a panel of experts like myself. We could critique each article to produce the absolute best way to achieve each operation.

I can’t believe the terrible tricks in your Tricks of the Trade column. You should be traveling to shops all over the country to seek out the very best tips hoarded by woodworkers.

I really need a table saw. If you get extras for testing, could you send one to me?

Your cutting list has an error. I cut out all the parts to the sizes you specified, and the stiles are too short. I want you to reimburse me for the wood I wasted.

I love the project on the cover. Could you give me a list of woodworkers in my area who could build it for me?

— Christopher Schwarz

Why so Negative? (An Updated pdf)

Posted on by Lost Art Press

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Some customers who purchased the electronic version of “Campaign Furniture” encountered some problems with the pdf – some of the photos looked like photographic negatives.

The explanation is long, but the solution is short: If you ordered the electronic version you should have received an e-mail from us that a new file is available. This new file looks fine on all the devices we’ve tested so far.

If you did not receive an e-mail, check your junk mail for it and then send an e-mail to John at john@lostartpress.com or me at chris@lostartpress.com. We’ll fix you up.

— Christopher Schwarz

New in the Store with Free Shipping: ‘Campaign Furniture’

Posted on by Lost Art Press

CF_cover1000_IMG_8211Our latest book, “Campaign Furniture,” is now available in our store for immediate shipment from our warehouse. Domestic orders placed before April 5, 2014, will receive free shipping.

The cost is $33 for the hardbound book. A pdf download of the book is $14. Or you can order both for $39. Full details are available in our store here.

“Campaign Furniture” will also be available from retailers here and abroad. Shipments of the book are on their way to these retailers, though we do not know when they will begin selling it. Here are the retailers that have agreed to stock the book:

• Lee Valley Tools
• Lie-Nielsen Toolworks
• Tools for Working Wood
• Highland Woodworking
• United Kingdom: Classic Hand Tools: www.classichandtools.co.uk
• Australia: Henry Eckert www.henryeckert.com.au

Like all Lost Art Press books, “Campaign Furniture” is produced entirely in the United States. The book is in a 6” x 9” format and hardbound. The interior is in full color and printed on paper that is heavy and coated with a matte finish for readability. The interior signatures are sewn for long-term durability.

All copies sold through the Lost Art Press web site are signed by the author via a letterpress bookplate.

— Christopher Schwarz

Download a Chapter of ‘Campaign Furniture’ Free

Posted on by Lost Art Press

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Our latest book, “Campaign Furniture,” will be on sale in our store on Friday with free domestic shipping (until April 5, 2014). The shipment of books arrived in our Indianapolis warehouse today, and the fulfillment service is getting everything ready to ship.

The hardbound book will be $33. The pdf version of the book will be $14. You can order both for the discounted price of $39.

In the meantime, we have prepared a free chapter for you to download. This short chapter is on building the campaign stool, one of the simpler projects in the book. We’ve received a lot of questions about the stool after we sold 100 of the tribolts for the stool last month. (If you want one of the tribolts now, you can buy them direct from Mike Siemsen, who made the bolts for us. Click here to order one – same price, same shipping arrangement.)

You can download the free chapter here:

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Be aware that it is more than 12mb – so if you have dial-up, go to your local library.

Also, as promised, here is a description of the physical book and a table of contents:

Like all Lost Art Press books, “Campaign Furniture” is produced entirely in the United States. The book is in a 6” x 9” format, 334 pages and hardbound. The interior is in full-color and printed on paper that is heavy and coated with a matte finish for readability. The interior signatures are sewn for long-term durability.

Table of Contents
Preface…vii
1. Campaign Style    1
2. Campaign Woods    38
3. Campaign Hardware    52
4. Campaign Chests    82
5. Campaign Secretaries    122
6. Folding Camp Stool    138
7. Roorkee Chairs    154
8. Strong Trunk    190
9. Field Desk    214
10. Collapsible Bookshelves    234
11. Traveling Bookcase    248
Afterword… 265

Appendices
A. Roubo on Campaigning… 269
B. India’s Joiners, by George Cecil… 279
C. Army & Navy Stores… 285
Acknowledgements…318
Further Reading…319
Index…323
Hardware Sources…331

The book is available only through Lost Art Press and our small network of retailers.

— Christopher Schwarz