Clear, instructive, a very good introduction. Some errors.
I first got this from the library and then after studying it realized I needed to own a copy of my own.
I am a pretty big fan of this book. The author starts out by telling you the ins and outs of the various tools you need to have around the shop; why one tool might be better than another; what sizes of what kinds of chisels to buy and when to buy things as a set; which tools you should spend the money for and which you shouldn't bother with. (Hint: a router features heavily in the last couple projects, but a table saw doesn't make it into any.) In each class of tool she tells you which size and style she finds herself reaching for most often, which when distilled can make a kind of skeleton shopping list for those newbies (such as myself) with a naked workshop.
Once she's introduced you clearly to the tools and basic methods involved in using them successfully, she plunges into projects. First is the simple handmade box, next an Adirondack chair, then later comes a table, a bookshelf, and a drawered cabinet. Each project introduces a simple set of new skills and builds on the skills learned in the preceding projects; it's very like a textbook in that way. In fact the author did teach woodworking classes for many years and it shows.
I bought it because these projects are actually useful; my daughter needs a toybox, which could be an upscaled version of the handmade box once I've made them. We don't have any pool chairs, so the Adirondack chairs will be perfect. The plans for the coffee table, she claims, are easy to upscale if you'd rather have a dining table. Guess what - we have no dining table at the moment. And the bookcases... well, it's my dream to turn my family room into a Craftsman-style library some day.
The book isn't perfect - I think whoever edited it was not a woodworker. I've already found a few disappointing mistakes. In the first instruction ever given, she instructs you to cut the wrong size board (the 3.5 board, when it should have been the 5.5 board), as previously noted in some reviews. In one of the skill-builders (which are strangely inserted randomly throughout the project, instead of being placed handily right before you're going to need them to complete the next step) she instructs you on how to polish your chisels by asking you to buy 8 ascending grits of wet-dry sandpaper and gluing them, one sheet to a side, onto two sheets of glass (you do the math.) Second, because she's been a woodworker for so long she tends to call for fairly specialized tools.... or maybe my local Lowe's is just particularly crappy. (I couldn't find a Japanese backsaw, or panel clamps, or a honing guide for sharpening my chisels.)
Regardless, it is way better than the book that I bought along with it, Woodworking for Dummies, which already assumes that you own all the high-end power tools (such as a planer, etc). I think the errors are easy to work around if you don't trust her blindly, and the step-by-step instruction throughout various skill levels is invaluable. This book is well worth the money spent and I'm glad I stumbled across it.
Good beginner book
I really like this book. The projects build skills used in later projects. The reason I did not give it 5 stars was the descriptions for some of the steps in project making. I found them hard to follow, requiring several readings. I also think that there is a typo on step one on page 65.
The skill building sections, however, were first rate. I liked the section on hand tool sharpening.
All in all a good book
Mark
Disappointed in errors
I was very excited to get my hands on this book after reading some of the material covered. I have a woodworking background from a long, long time ago, but wanted a good refresher since so much has changed since the last time I held a block plane in my hand. I am currently finishing up the first project and am extremely disappointed in this book. The errors contained in the first few steps didn't become apparent until several steps later, causing me to basically toss aside my first few pieces of work. This is never a good way to start for a "beginner" like myself. I am going to have to draw up my own plans and do all of the calculating and measuring myself, since the author and editor can't provide it.
First example: Step 1 of the box project tells you to cut your 1/2" x 3 1/2" piece of wood into two 16" long pieces. Easy enough, as this was later chopped down to two 4 1/2" and two 10 1/2" pieces to make the sides of the box. WRONG!!!! The actual wood that should be used to make the sides of the box is the 1/2" x 2 1/2". First step already a mis-step, as the finger joints to be cut was specified to be 1 1/4" (which is correct for 2 1/2" tall side pieces). Fortunately, I recognized this mistype early and cut my finger joints at 1 3/4". I did have enough material to build 3 boxes when I first started - now I am going to be lucky to be able to build one, as a majority of my 1" x 4" (nominal) wood was mis-used. Frustrating. . . .
Second example: When you later cut the bottom and top of the box to begin working on the finger joints, you realize that the 4 1/2" pieces that you cut for the sides (and the 10 1/2" pieces as well) are too short, as the author tells you to buy 1" x 4" and 1" x 3" wood, but her actual measurements assume your wood is 1/2" thick, not the 3/4" thick that 1" nominal actually yields. Now the pieces that were cut from the wrong wood to begin with are useless as they are too short to form the joints. I suppose that you could cut the top and bottom pieces down further to fit, but then your box is too small to do much with other than admire. I began at this point to question my sanity as to getting back into woodworking, but as I have already squandered nearly $1000 in equipment, I decided to forge ahead.
Third example: The pictures are best ignored, save for the final project. They aren't presented with the text that they represent, so they can be more confusing than helpful. The author likes to use terms that I have either forgotten or never knew when referring to parts of tools, so I find myself re-reading and studying pictures until the concept of the written text dawns on me. I have small children, so my workshop time is limited to late at night - not the best time to decipher this text.
If you buy this book, be sure to buy some Post-It notes or book marks or tape flags, as you will be flipping back and forth continuously. The skill builder sections are nicely done, but appear in very strange places in the book. I would have put them all either before the projects or in an appendix. As it is, the first project refers you to several skill builders that are scattered throughout the pages of the first project (never on the facing page or the same page). This breaks the project text and pictures up too much.
The best thing that can be said for the first 1/2 of this book is that the projects look really neat, if you can survive the errors. I am now taking the approach to study the end product, draw my own plans, and learn the hard way (always a dangerous prospect when using sharp tools). If I could get a refund, I would - then spend the money on a different book.
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