Woodshop Library

VINTAGE WOODWORKING MACHINERY, VOL. 2, by Dana M. Batory, is an illustrated guide to four major woodworking machinery manufacturers of the 19th and 20th centuries: Parks Machine Co., Boice-Crane Co., Baxter D. Whitney & Son, and Crescent Machine Co. In the first volume Batory provided a history of each manufacturer, as well as a description of the evolution of its product lines over the years. Based on reader response from the first book, Batory came out with this volume, which explains how each manufacturer became known for its line of woodworking machines. For example, Boice-Crane produced medium-size and -capacity machines that were ideal for home and school shops, as well as small woodworking businesses. Whitney was famous for its thickness planers and spindle shapers, Crescent for its band saws and its Universal Wood-Worker combination machine. Accompanying the histories are illustrations reflecting each company's range of products, along with specifications and descriptions, taken from the catalogs of the period. The 208-page softcover sells for $33. A third volume covering DeWalt, Beach Manufacturing Co., H. B. Smith Machine Co., and C.B. Rogers & Co. is in preparation. Contact: Astragal Press, P.O. Box 239, Mendham, NJ 07945. Tel: 866-543-3045. www.astragalpress.com

FURNITOLOGY 101 — MASTERING TECHNIQUES OF FLAT PANEL CABINETMAKING, by Neil Lamens, is a DVD that takes viewers through the building process of a three-drawer chest and cupboard. It covers design, panel selection and layout, construction of a curved leg, wood selection and milling of solid lumber, creating a mortise-and-tenon joint, gluing techniques, drawer construction and assembly, lathe work and finishing. Lamens, a woodworker for more than 25 years, has designed and constructed custom cabinetry for interior decorators and exhibited at the International Contemporary Furniture Fair in New York. The 84-minute DVD sells for $19.95. Contact: Furnitology Productions, P.O. Box 262, Brookhaven, NY 11719. Tel: 631-286-7948. www. furnitology.com

SIMPLY BOARD FEET: A DEFINITIVE GUIDE TO LUMBER CALCULATION, by Douglas E. Maxwell, is a quick reference guide featuring pages of tables to help readers configure board foot measurements without using calculators, computers and lumber sticks. The introduction explains what a board foot is: fixed measurement that is 12" long, 12" wide and 1" thick. For example, a piece of wood that is 12" long, 12" wide and 2" thick would be two bf, which is easy to calculate. But if a board is 7" wide, 1-1/4" thick and 9' long, how many board feed would that be? The answer is 6.6 bf, but readers don't have to figure that out. They simply have to turn to the 1-1/4" materials on Page 12 of the guide, go to the 9'-long column, and run a finger down to 7" wide. Knowing these calculations can help woodworkers save money in the long run when placing orders. Maxwell has been a purchasing manager for a large custom cabinet manufacturer in Naples, Fla., for the past decade. He has resourced and acquired hundreds of bf of lumber for his inventory. The 60-page softcover sells for $9.95. Contact: Linden Publishing Company Inc., 2006 S. Mary, Fresno, CA 93721. Tel: 800-345-4447. www.lindenpub.com

— Jennifer Hicks