Not about cabinets | Illustrated Cabinetmaking: How to Design and Construct Furniture That Works

It's a "must have" for a woodworker's library | Illustrated Cabinetmaking: How to Design and Construct Furniture That Works | Bill Hylton

books:


	• Illustrated Cabinetmaking: How to Design and Construct Furniture That Works Bill Hylton Fox Chapel Publishing, 2008 - 384 pages average customer review:based on 13 reviews view larger image
	for more information click here

highly recommended

Excellent resource book for advanced hobbyist woodworker

Definitely NOT for the beginning woodworker. This book does not give measured drawings or instructions on how to make pieces of furniture. It has a section which gives drawings of a large number of woodworking joints, BUT does not discuss how to make them. This part of the book has been done in many other books along with "how to" information. Thus, this part of the book could have been eliminated without losing any real value.

HOWEVER, the rest of the book is worth its weight in gold!!!! It takes virtually all types of "Case furniture" (cabinets, chests, tables, desks, etc) but not chairs, and it gives well-researched, thorough, easy to understand diagrams on how they were constructed -- that is, what types of joints were used throughout the piece. It also provides excellent references to more detailed sets of plans and descriptions of each piece. The beginning woodworker won't know what to do with this book. The professional furniture maker will not need the book, but the vast number of serious weekend warriors of woodworking will find this book to be invaluable.

The potential purchaser of this book should realize that it was published twice, under the same name. Rodale published it in 1998. Readers Digest published it in 2003. Today I examined both editions side-by-side. Except for their ISBN numbers, the two editions seem identical. I examined a number of pages side by side, and I could not find any differences. They have the same number of pages. The only differences I could detect were in the paper used. The original Rodale edition has a more glossy paper, and the print seems to be slightly darker. Both of these differences are insignificant.

I have seen this book referenced in many places as one of the best resources in the field of woodworking. It is a masterpiece. This fact is made obvious by the difficulty in finding copies of the book for sale in either new or used form. Last week (Aug 2006) I saw three copies for sale on Amazon from $79 to $129 and all sold quickly. PLEASE NOTE - I also saw three "for sale" listings for this book last week by using a FROOGLE search. Three different Electronic bookstores indicated they had a copy of the book in stock. I contacted all three and found that they weren't really "bookstores" but rather are organizers of individuals who sell books and use the electronic bookstores as a central clearinghouse. All three said to contact the actual individual sellers. I did. None of the three had a copy for sale, even though all three of the electronic bookstores had listings saying that they had copies in stock for sale. I found a number of negative comments about these electronic bookstores when I searched. To their credit, FROOGLE stated that you should check out a seller before making a purchase. I hope this information helps you. I am very happy that I was able to buy a copy of the book. If you really want to see this book and can't buy a copy, go to your library.

for more information click here

Not about cabinets

If you're looking for a book on how to build cabinets, this ain't it. This is a primer on how to build furniture (which is often referred to as cabinet-making) but references to building cabinets are brief and limited. It's really an overview of furniture building rather than a hands-on, how-to book.

It's a "must have" for a woodworker's library

I bought this book because I have difficulty in two areas. One is in visualizing the construction details for a design I've sketched out. The other is in deciding what joints will be most appropriate. This book covers those two topics extremely well. In fact, better than any other book in my library.

The text is very well written. He says what he has to say in a concise and easy to read way.

I think it was written for intermediate and advanced level woodworkers, but I see a lot that would be of great value to beginners who want to try their hand at something a little more challenging.

for more information click here

Incredible resource but lacks some of the how-to

This thick little book is filled with dimensional drawings of all kinds of furniture, including the very high-end furniture and some historical pieces. The author goes into great detail about every type of joint with some practical commentary on the pros and cons of each type. There are also detailed sections on legs and feet, table types, and drawer construction.

My only letdown, as an amateur furniture hobbyist, is that there is little or no talk about tool usage and how to make some of these pieces. The author favored information about origins, history, and aesthetics. However, the book makes up for this with its great perspective drawings on every page, complete with dimensions and names for each component. This will be a great resource down the road when I need to know how to construct a unique joint or when I just want to see something new to inspire me.

for more information click here

Featuring each piece in highly-detailed, exploded drawings and applying time-honored dimension and ergonomic standards, this comprehensive visual sourcebook takes the guesswork out of furniture joinery, assembly, dimension, and style. Woodworkers of any skill level will benefit from more than 1,300 crisp and detailed drawings that explain classic solutions to age-old problems, such as hanging a drawer, attaching a tabletop, and pegging a mortise. Covering hundreds of pieces of furniture, including kitchen cabinets, dining tables, desks, bookcases, and chests, readers will unlock the mysteries of legs, moldings, separate braces, and dozens of other subassemblies.

for more information click here

reviews: page 1, 2, 3

hot