The Woodwright's Guide: Working Wood with Wedge and Edge - Hardcover

Roy Underhill

4.41

86 ratings by Goodreads

9780807832455: The Woodwright's Guide: Working Wood with Wedge and Edge

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0807832456 ISBN 13: 9780807832455

Publisher: University North Carolina Pr, 2008

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This book is by America's master of traditional woodcraft.For thirty years, Roy Underhill's PBS program, ""The Woodwright's Shop,"" has brought classic hand-tool craftsmanship to viewers across America. Now, in his seventh book, Roy shows how to engage the mysteries of the splitting wedge and the cutting edge to shape wood from forest to furniture.Beginning with the standing tree, each chapter of ""The Woodwright's Guide"" explores one of nine trades of woodcraft: faller, countryman and cleaver, hewer, log-builder, sawyer, carpenter, joiner, turner, and cabinetmaker. Each trade brings new tools and techniques; each trade uses a different character of material; but all are united by the grain in the wood and the enduring mastery of muscle and steel.Hundreds of detailed drawings by Eleanor Underhill (Roy's daughter) illustrate the hand tools and processes for shaping and joining wood. A special concluding section contains detailed plans for making your own foot-powered lathes, workbenches, shaving horses, and taps and dies for wooden screws.""The Woodwright's Guide"" is informed by a lifetime of experience and study. A former master craftsman at Colonial Williamsburg, Roy has inspired millions to ""just say no to power tools"" through his continuing work as a historian, craftsman, activist, and teacher. In ""The Woodwright's Guide"", he takes readers on a personal journey through a legacy of off-the-grid, self-reliant craftsmanship. It's a toolbox filled with insight and technique, as well as wisdom and confidence for the artisan in all of us.

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Review:

""The Woodwright's Guide" captures the true glory and mystery of the material that built this country, from the first swing of the axe to the final shaving of a smoothing plane. Roy Underhill's impressive technical knowledge, respect for traditional methods, and amusing storytelling make this his finest effort to date. I devoured every word and enjoyed it immensely."
-- Christopher Schwarz, editor of "Popular Woodworking" and "Woodworking Magazine"

"I own all of Underhill's books. . . . So it is no small thing when I say that Underhill's new book (his first in 12 years) is his best. . . . Unlike his previous books . . . "The Woodwright's Guide" is focused entirely on technique. . . . Underhill's other great strength is his ability to explain extremely complex ideas in a way that makes it feel like you've suddenly achieved Buddhist enlightenment."
--Christopher Schwarz, "Woodworking Magazine" Weblog

About the Author:

The longtime master housewright at Colonial Williamsburg, Roy Underhill is the leading authority on old-time woodworking techniques. He created <i>The Woodwright's Shop</i> for public television in 1979. The series, produced by the University of North Carolina Center for Public Television, has aired nationally since 1981, with thirteen new programs introduced each year. Roy is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and holds a master's degree from Duke University.

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