Good books from your local Library?

[Glenn Shotwell]

I'd like to hear what good woodworking books you've seen at your local Library.

I just picked up "David Charlesworth's Furniture-making Techniques, A Guide to Hand Tools and Methods" from my local Library. It was the only Charlesworth book they have in my local system. I had to have it delivered from a Library a few cites away. But so far it is an excellent book for me as a newbie to many of these more traditional hand tools.

I've looked up other books but it seems that many are not in my system. I wonder how books get into the system and if certain ones are kept out of the Library systems. My local library has Fine Woodworking Magazine too.

[Hank Knight]

See if your library has Tage Frid's three-volume work on woodworking. It's a classic and relevant; it never goes out of date. It was my first serious push toward hand tools.

[Pam Niedermayer]

My library has piles of woodworking books, a very good mix of tool using/making and furniture making, to say nothing of the timber framing and other home building books.

Pam

[Johnny Kleso]

You can download a lot of good old books from Google, there is a list here at Toolemera
http://www.toolemera.com/Books%20%26%20Booklets/library-freelinkslist.html

Also I have bought several used books from Amazon in great condition for very little..

Just look under the regular book section and look under the Buy New link and there more times than not has a Used Book link..

[Ethan Sincox]

Hey, Glenn, one thing you might want to try is just locate one woodworking book on the shelf in your local branch. That will get you to the right section. From there, just start looking at all the titles until you find something that jumps out at you.

(I believe it is 684.08 in the DDS, if you want to just start looking for that number...)

(I'm not a total nerd, guys; I just married into a family of librarians.:D)

[David White II]

I've really enjoyed the James Krenov books and Alan Peters' "Cabinetmaking: the professional approach" for inspiration, and Jim Tolpin's books for more practical matters.

[Glenn Shotwell]

Hey, Glenn, one thing you might want to try is just locate one woodworking book on the shelf in your local branch. That will get you to the right section. From there, just start looking at all the titles until you find something that jumps out at you.

(I believe it is 684.08 in the DDS, if you want to just start looking for that number...)

(I'm not a total nerd, guys; I just married into a family of librarians.:D)

Thanks Ethan. The two local libraries near me have a slim selection on the shelf. I am finding that I need to access the county data base and have a book sent to my local for pickup.

So I was just looking for good books that others have found at their local library that I might be able to search the data base for.

Hank, I did find a couple of the Tage Frid books, I'll check them out, thanks!

[Jim Koepke]

It seems like a long time ago now, almost 20 years since a trip was made to the library to find a book on woodworking.

We wanted some chairs for the backyard. Those in the retail stores were either plastic and unwanted or way too expensive for our budget.

One time when taking my son to a park where there was a kid's construction/play area that he enjoyed, someone had built a couple of adirondack chairs out of scrap wood. I struck up a conversation with the kid tool crib attendant who told me about them. Before that I did not know about adirondack chairs.

So, a trip to the library was made and looked in the card catalog for adirondack chairs and found a book written in 1938 by a high school shop teacher, William W. Klenke. Just now looking for the book, it seems like he was a prolific writer of how to woodworking books into the 1950s.

The book was mostly working drawings of different projects including an adirondack chair. I made copies of the pages that appealed to me and returned the book.

I made my first chair from old pallet wood. Made a few more from pallet wood trying different sizes. Have since adapted the design to make some benches and more chairs. Sold a few and got started down the woodworking slope.

Since then, I have bought books if they appeal to me. A few on joinery, a few on tools. Also bought one called "Tools of the Trade" iirc. An interesting novel about one man's journey in to the wood crafts and the tools he used. Not sure if it is the same one written by Jeff Taylor, my copy is buried in a pile of books right now.

For my purpose, it is easier to just add a book to the home library than get a book at the local and then have to take it back. That is the hardest part, the taking it back.

jim

[Robert Rozaieski]

If you like traditional woodworking, anything by Roy Underhill pretty much goes without saying. Also, American Furniture of the 18th Century by Jeffrey Greene is a must have even if you don't like the style of furniture. There is a lot of good information on traditional joinery and techniques.

[Eric Heinz]

Glenn-
Just down the road from you, the San Diego Fine Woodworkers Association arranges for almost every new woodworking book to be purchased for the San Diego county library system. The San Diego city library has a pretty good collection too.

I think that SDFWA has a standing donation to the libraries for this purpose, and that the libraries match the donation.

The SDFWA web site has a page that lists these books- a long list.

Perhaps Dana Point has a sharing arrangement with the San Diego city or county libraries.

Eric

[tim harris]

:)I have requested and looked at these boobks from our local library, for ideas on fixtures and Jigs!! One of them was recently in a e-bay auction.

Woodsmith custom Woodworking,"Shop-built Jigs and Fixtures", Oxmoor House - #684.083 S559 2000

New and Best of Fine Woodworking,"Working with Routers", The Taunton Press, - #684.08 W9267 2004

These both have had jig ideas that show great exploded views and some of the joints and cuts that the jigs make. I have gotten several ideas from these.:D

[Glenn Shotwell]

Eric, that is great the SDFWA does that. I'll check on that on my next visit. Posting this thread has lead me to search the online library system more for some of the suggestions, and helped me to learn how to search my public library better. Over the last couple of days I have found a ton of great woodworking books and video. Looks like I'll be keeping busy reading and watching.


Glenn-
Just down the road from you, the San Diego Fine Woodworkers Association arranges for almost every new woodworking book to be purchased for the San Diego county library system. The San Diego city library has a pretty good collection too.

I think that SDFWA has a standing donation to the libraries for this purpose, and that the libraries match the donation.

The SDFWA web site has a page that lists these books- a long list.

Perhaps Dana Point has a sharing arrangement with the San Diego city or county libraries.

Eric