Local woodworker, chairmaker and former air-traffic controller Ray Schwanenberger is culling his herd of good user tools.
Check out what he has for sale on his blog.
And while you are there, check out his gallery of chairs and casework. That gun cabinet he built for a client was all hand mortised. In oak. Ouch. But nice.
— Christopher Schwarz
We have just received stock on the CD version of “The Joiner & Cabinet Maker” read by Roy Underhill on three CDs.
The three-CD set is $27, is made in the USA (like all Lost Art Press products) and comes in a protective clamshell case. We are offering free domestic shipping on this item until Feb. 15, 2013. As mentioned above, the item is in stock and ships immediately.
Click here to see the item in our store.
“The Joiner & Cabinet Maker” is the almost-lost 1839 text that tells the fictional story of young Thomas West’s apprenticeship in a rural English workshop. Since we republished an expanded version of the book a few years ago, its pages have opened up the world of hand-tool woodworking for thousands of people.
The book’s anonymous author detailed the day-to-day workings of a hand-tool workshop in the early days of the 19th century as a way to guide children who were thinking about entering the woodworking trade.
The book begins with instructions on how to sweep the shop, tend the shop’s fire and help the other journeymen. It ends with the hero, Thomas, building a full-blown chest of drawers as a journeyman.
The original text is extremely rare and was unearthed by Joel Moskowitz, the owner of Tools for Working Wood. He brought it to the attention of Lost Art Press, and that partnership resulted in the publication of print version of “The Joiner & Cabinet Maker.”
The Lost Art Press version of this book includes the original 1839 text, a historical commentary on the trade by Moskowitz and a detailed explanation of how to build the three projects featured in “The Joiner and Cabinet Maker.”
The audiobook version of the book consists of the original text only, read by Roy Underhill. Lost Art Press was particularly pleased to get Roy to read the book for us. Not only is he a student of early trades, but Roy is also a long-time thespian, and he brought his many voice talents to the project.
As a result, the 215-minute audiobook version of “The Joiner & Cabinet Maker” is a joy to listen to once you become accustomed to the early 19th-century way of explaining things.
We also offer this audiobook as an mp3 download for $22 here.
You can order the book here for $29, or the book with an accessory data DVD here for $34.
— Christopher Schwarz
Almost every week, I am asked to support someone’s Kickstarter program, and about 99 percent of them are lame, ill-advised or doomed for one reason or another.
This one is different.
Furniture maker J. Leko is seeking to recreate a 1750 Oeben mechanical table – a masterpiece of marquetry, French style and mechanical genius. Leko, a thoughtful and detail-oriented woodworker, seeks to reproduce this table to complete his Michael Fortune Fellowship at the Marc Adams School of Woodworking.
Leko is going way over the top with this project. He isn’t required to make this crazy-cool table to complete his fellowship, but I know that he is doing this because he is… how do I say this. Uncompromising.
In a good way.
I’ve personally pledged $100 to support his effort in building this table. And if you have any extra discretionary income, I hope you will consider helping him out as well. Even $1 helps.
You can read all the details of his Kickstarter program here.
— Christopher Schwarz
When measuring my car and drawing up the plans for my first Dutch chest, I forgot two things: the handles and the caster assembly.
Which means, as you probably can guess, that the chest does not fit in my car.
After considering all the options – remake the handles, saw the chest in two like a lady at a magic show, going to Home Depot and buying tool bags – I concluded it would be faster (and more fun) to build a smaller Dutch chest.
This one is a mix between the first chest, some other historical examples and one that Roy Underhill owns that I examined last year (read about that chest here).
I also took the opportunity to try some different things in this chest.
1. The top has clamps (breadboard ends). I did this – instead of battens – to make a sawtill that was lower in profile.
2. The removable front panel has battens that extend beyond the bottom edge of the panel. These allow me to use a simpler locking mechanism (more on this later).
3. I used wrought nails from blacksmith Peter Ross. My one-word review: Dang.
Anyway, I’m going to paint this sucker today and will talk more about it in a bit.
— Christopher Schwarz
P.S. Also, I’m going to build a lower unit for this chest – a la campaign furniture – after a suggestion from a reader.
A little knowledge about trees goes a long way toward improving your woodworking.
You don’t need a degree in dendrology to build a desk. But you do need intimate knowledge of how our raw material grows and – more importantly – how it responds to its environment after it has been cut and dried.
This knowledge allows you to tame the wood into the shapes that you have envisioned in your head. And it ensures that your furniture will endure the seasons and age with grace and aplomb.
That is why I am particularly pleased to announce the latest book from Lost Art Press: “With the Grain: A Craftsman’s Guide to Understanding Wood” by Christian Becksvoort. This is the book about wood that I wished I’d had when I started woodworking.
It is, above all, succinct, easy to understand and perfectly suited for the furniture-maker. As important as what is in its 144 pages is what is not. It’s not a detailed analysis of cell growth. It is not a heap of tables and equations for figuring truss loads in residential construction. It is decidedly not a scientist’s approach to the material.
Instead, “With the Grain” contains the facts you need to know at the lumberyard, in the woodlot and in the shop. It gives you enough science so you understand how trees grow. It explains the handful of formulas you have to know as a furniture-maker. And it gives you a hearty dose of specific information about North American species that will inspire you. Becksvoort encourages you to use the trees in your neighborhood and makes the case that just because you cannot find catalpa at the lumberyard doesn’t mean it’s not a good furniture wood.
You’ll learn to identify the trees around you from their silhouette, leaves and shoots. And you’ll learn about how these species work in the shop – both their advantages and pitfalls.
Becksvoort then takes you into a detailed discussion of how wood reacts to it environment – the heart of the book. You’ll learn how to calculate and accommodate wood movement with confidence and precision. And you’ll learn how to design furniture assemblies – casework, drawers, doors and moulding – so they will move with the seasons without cracking.
There’s also a chapter on how to manage a small forest or copse of trees – how to care for them, encourage them to thrive and harvest them. You’ll learn the basics of cutting, stacking and drying the wood, if you should ever have the privilege of harvesting your own lumber.
“With the Grain” is a major revision of an earlier work by Becksvoort titled “In Harmony with Wood.” While a lot of the raw data on trees hasn’t changed, Becksvoort updated the text, drawings and photos to incorporate more details and strategies for dealing with wood movement.
Like all Lost Art Press books, “With the Grain” is printed and bound in the United States on acid-free paper. The binding is Smythe sewn. The book is hardbound with a green cotton cover. The book is $25.
“With the Grain” is at the printer now. If you order it before the publication date (Feb. 20), you will receive free domestic shipping. After Feb. 20, shipping will be $7.
Order “With the Grain: A Craftsman’s Guide to Understanding Wood” in the Lost Art Press store.
— Christopher Schwarz