Thread: Time Life Custom Woodworking books

SS,

Is that the Art of Woodworking series, as I have eight of those?

PS: love he avatar

I only ended up with 14 of the 20 before Time Life said I had received all. This was about 18 months ago. This suprised me at the time because I had found the following web page http://www.volumelists.com/detail.ph...%20Woodworking which listed then 19 titles. It now lists all 20. The ones I didn't get were

Fine Hand Tools

Gift Projects

Heirloom Projects

Home Entertainment

The Complete Bedroom

Workshop Essentials

The one that was not on that page at the time was

Power Tool Upgrades

I found most of them to be very good although a couple didn't appeal as they contained what I would call "American Style" furniture which doe'nt apeal to me but still gives you some ideas.

The ones pertaining to workshop machine, jigs etc were all brilliant and well worth the money.

PS. Anyone interesstedI would recomend the ebay link on the page above as it brings up quite a few strting at $2.00

Who knows what Time-Life are playing at. It's one thing to choose to not continue some books, another to claim they don't exist (ie - you have all the titles before all the titles listed are delivered).

Some of the titles Squirrel got which are different to my list look interesting.

I think the series squirrel is listing is called "The Art of Woodworking" which was introduced before the Custom series.



Bob

Yep, I got the whole set of 20 - I found that towards the end of the series there was some doubling up, especially in the workshop jigs etc.. i.e. two very similar mitre saw stations but on the whole the set was pretty good and better than I had thought. Most things are very well thought out and the advice generally pretty good. I still go back to them every now and then.

Sorry, didn't read the fine print, clubbyr8 is right. My series is the art of woodworking. I don't use them all but refer to the odd one every now and then.

Squirrel

This is a really marvellous series. I've made no end of items from these instructrions which are the closest thing to being foolproof I've discovered so far. I just finished a pair of bedroom side tables from the 'Complete Bedroom' and just before that a long needed presedidential desk from 'Tables, desksetc' and it looks marvellous.
I wasm't so mimpressed with the other Time/Life series 'The Art of Woodworking', but it has its moments.
So this series based on the American Woodsmith Magazine is to be heartily recommended. I sometimes buy the US Magazine when I can afford it, but always get the Australian Woodsmith which is the US clone converted into metric.

Really keep an eye on ebay if your after the older "art of woodworking" series. I got 19 from one seller in the states for $210AUD including postage. My winning bid was around $95US...sucker.

Reg

Originally Posted by Redgy

Really keep an eye on ebay if your after the older "art of woodworking" series. I got 19 from one seller in the states for $210AUD including postage. My winning bid was around $95US...sucker.

Reg

Really? It may be time to put mine up for sale then. I have 25 of them.

Time to start writing your own Groggy

Originally Posted by Stuart.

Time to start writing your own Groggy

It's an option , I really wasn't that impressed with the Time Life series.

I have another series the missus began buying for me, the American Home Handyman series. After six volumes I had to ask her to stop being 'kind' to me. I think if I saw another male model holding a saw wrong, or a drill that wasn't plugged in drilling a hole, or another immaculate saw cut (no sawdust to be seen), or one bluddy more bright yellow or red business shirt with no creases or dust (twitch, twitch) . . . .Argghhh, ya know what I mean. I just couldn't take 'em seriously.

Originally Posted by Groggy

I have another series the missus began buying for me, the American Home Handyman series. After six volumes I had to ask her to stop being 'kind' to me. I think if I saw another male model holding a saw wrong, or a drill that wasn't plugged in drilling a hole, or another immaculate saw cut (no sawdust to be seen), or one bluddy more bright yellow or red business shirt with no creases or dust (twitch, twitch) . . . .Argghhh, ya know what I mean. I just couldn't take 'em seriously.

Groggy,
From all you have said, they were clearly and effectively selling to their target market.
The male models, the shirt buttons undone, down to the navel where possible. Did your wife get the calendars, too?

Originally Posted by sea dragon

Groggy,
From all you have said, they were clearly and effectively selling to their target market.
The male models, the shirt buttons undone, down to the navel where possible. Did your wife get the calendars, too?

Never thought of that!

Are you sure it was power tools they were selling, and not just them making a tool of themselves?