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Title: Workbenches: From Design And Theory To Construction And Use (Popular Woodworking)
ISBN: 1558708405
Author:
Christopher Schwarz
Publicate Date: 2007-11-07
Publish: 2007-11-07
List Price: $29.99
Average Customer Rating: 5.0
Format: Hardcover
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Amazon Lowest New Price: $17.00
Amazon Lowest Used Price: $14.78
Amazon Merchant Price: $19.79
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| Customer Review: |
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1: EXCELLENT
ONE OF THE BEST WOODWORKING BOOKS I'VE EVER READ, HANDS DOWN. BEING AN ELECTRICIAN, I AM ONLY AN AVERAGE WOODWORKER, WORKING IN MY SPARE TIME MAINLY. I HAVE, HOWEVER, READ MANY BOOKS ON WOODWORKING AND NO BOOK HAS BEEN CLEARER AND MORE ENJOYABLE TO READ. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED TO ANY WOODWORKER, ADVANCED, BEGINNER, OR LIKE ME SOMEWHERE IN THE MIDDLE. OPEN YOUR MIND, READ THIS BOOK, MAKE A BENCH WITH YOUR OWN TWO HANDS, AND SEE WHAT IT'S POSSIBLE TO ACCOMPLISH WITH A FEW HAND TOOLS, A LITTLE HARD WORK, AND YOUR IMAGINATION.
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2: A definitive book
There are a number of excellent reviews of this book, to which I've nothing to add.
Simply, I own all the workbench books. This is in a class by itself. And not simply if you are hand tool obsessed - the ideas described are equally applicable to power tools.
Schwarz quotes Roubo a lot. I wouldn't be surprised if in a 100 years people refer to Schwarz in the same way.
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3: Must reading if you plan to build your own workbench
Starting from the basic elements of how a woodworker performs his craft to a review of several of the most popular design styles, Mr. Schwarz provides the history and the information for you to make your own decisions regarding the most personal of woodworking tools, the workbench.
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4: Best Woodworking Book of All Time
Yes, I really do rate this as the best woodworking book of all time. That said, as a matter of disclosure, I must admit I have not read EVERY woodworking book ever written, so it is admittedly possible there is another one out there that I would rate even higher, but I doubt it. I have read hundreds of these things and like this one the best of all.
Now obviously my claim that this is the best woodworking book of all time is a darned strong claim, and strong claims require pretty strong evidence to back them up. This is what has slowed me up on writing this review. First, I'm not as good a writer has Chris is, so however I try, I'm afraid my review won't do his book justice. Second, I got this book when it first came out, and just loved it immediately, but I wasn't sure exactly why. Since then, I have re-read the book several times and I think I now have it figured out.
This really isn't a book about workbenches, but rather a book about workholding. Now workholding might seem like a rather pedestrian subject, certainly not as exciting as the latest golly gee whilikers gadget or jig, but it is fundamental. Like sharpening, good workholding makes learning new skills or learning to use new tools far, far easier than it otherwise would be. I would go further and say that the truly fundamental skills are those that make good work even possible. And, after having been a hobbyist woodworker for over 25 years, I have slowly come to realize that workholding is indeed one of those fundamental skills.
Now the fact that this book is well-written and addresses what I consider an issue of fundamental importance in woodworking may explain why I rate it highly. Indeed, when I mentally review my list of favorite woodworking books, the ones I keep returning to, they are nearly all concerned with developing fundamental skills in such things as tool preparation, sharpening, etc. But this fact alone does not explain why I rate this book to be at the very top of a select list of extremely good books. What brings this book to the very very top of the list is the fact that the author is, so far as I am aware, the first to present a systematic, deeply thought-out, and well-researched treatise on this subject. Thus, Chris gets extra points for having the genius to recognize how fundamentally important this topic is.
The book is virtually encyclopedic in its treatment of workholding for hand-tool woodworking. The author does not, however, address the needs of either the luthier or the patternmaker. And I suppose Chris really should master these two vocations in his spare time so he will have additional material for the second edition. Neither does Chris address workholding and set-ups for machine woodworking (or for machinists on milling machines for that matter). But he does do an absolutely superb job of presenting workholding methods and the equipment necessary (workbenches and their accessories) to implement them that are useful for hand tool work in cabinetmaking.
The first time I read this book, I kept exclaiming to myself: "Yes, yes! that's exactly it!" My reason for this reaction is that I've been working for years on a modern commercially available workbench. I've made all kinds of stuff with this bench including entry doors, interior doors, and a full set of kitchen cabinets. But I've found the workbench somewhat awkward to use and inadequate for much of my work, and I've gradually been becoming more and more dissatisfied with it. I've considered replacing it numerous times, but I never could quite get motivated enough to do the hard thinking and research necessary to figure out what features would make a workbench work for me and why.
Chris has done all that hard work for us. The book is almost scholarly in nature (as a Professor in my day job, I appreciate that!), and is clearly deeply and thoroughly thought out. It is indeed impressive. One conjecture I have since reading this book is that Chris must be largely a self-taught woodworker who did not learn "the one best way" at his master's knee. Only someone who had to figure out things for himself could possibly have had the idea for this book. Only someone who was deeply committed and quite intelligent could possibly have written it.
The book is profusely illustrated with photographs, and that is the source of my only minor complaint. Sometimes photographs obscure relevant details rather than bring them out as do well executed line drawings. (To see an example of the sort of line drawings to which I refer, please take a look at any of David Charlesworth's books.) And I am afraid that this book could have benefited from having a few more line drawings in place of some of the photographs.
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5: This is an amazing book!
I bought this book the day it was released, knowing it would be good, and now am convinced that it's one of the finest woodworking books I have ever read! I built the English bench that's in the book, and it is by far the best bench I have used in my 30+ years of woodworking. The author tells you step-by-step what to do, and why, and the bench works exactly as it's supposed to. I do woodworking with hand tools only, and this book has taken me to another whole level of woodworking. Even my wife thinks this bench is cool. If I ever meet Chris I will shake his hand and buy him a beer or two!
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