Collins Complete Woodworker’s Manual

excellent book covering all the basics

The book was delivered yesterday. I have already turned every page, not read, but turned. As I turned each page I looked at the pictures and read some of the content. The book has excellent photos and diagrams. The first part of the book describes what you need to know about wood. I have seen this material in other basic woodworking books, but this book also has several pages showing what lumber (boards) of different species look like. I found this quite helpful because the picture of each board is quite large and you get a good sense of the coloring and grain pattern for each. BUT, throughout the entire book including the table of contents, the word "clamp" is spelled as "cramp" in all forms, ed, ing, ... It does not take away from the awesome content, but it caused me to do a double take each time I read a sentence and ran into the word "cramp" when they meant "clamp". I really don't see how this got past the proofreading stage. It is so blatant and it is throughout the book. Note: I checked Google before posting to see if Cramp was a British form of the work clamp and did not find anything. So I wrote this review. Later I was telling my wife about my review and don't you know it, she investigates and finds that Cramps is equal to Clamps. So I have bumped my review to 5 stars and having some humble pie with my coffee! The other thing to note is that this book is British. So in the US where we say jointer and planer, the say planer and thicknesser, respectively. They do mention the difference between British and US word usage. They also do a good job of stating metric and imperial measurements, e.g., 2.5 cm, 1 inch. Being a 2005 edition, as would be expected, the power tool section, especially power hand tools is a bit outdated, e.g., no mention of an orbital sander for example. I do like the book and have already learned a few things just by browsing. I think it makes a great addition to one's library. It is well written, illustrated with excellent photos and diagrams. If not for the clamp/cramp issue, I would have given this book 5 stars (as noted above I have now rated this 5 stars. I left this review in place in case anyone else is perplexed by the use of cramp throughout the book.)

I've been reading about this book for a while, as a begginer woodworker I have found it really helpfull, it has become my main source of information as I start any project. It has excellent quality, and walks you through every step of any woodworking project you decide to start working on. I have been reading it for about a week and I've already learn lots of techniques that helped me to accomplish great cuts and joinery. As an architect, I must say, the chapter on design process is really throroug and complete. I could not be happier. One of the best tools to have in your workshop. (Sorry about my English, I haven't been writing for some time now)

I got this book because youtuber, Matt Estlea recommended it. In my opinion, all woodworkers, beginners and experts should have this. I would consider this to be a Bible for woodworkers. I think even the expert woodworker would find this useful. This book covers wood types, furniture design, shop tools, and joinery. There is only one spelling error that I found to be quite funny in this book. In the section on clamps, the word clamps is spelled as cramps. Don’t let that spelling error dissuade you from buying this book. This book is worth every single cent.

I got this based on Matt Estlea and his recommendation. It is a FANTASTIC resource for anyone getting into woodworking and truthfully one of the only two (or three) woodworking books you'll ever need. As a coder, I bought a TON of books when I got started, but truthfully used very few of them as I learned that craft. The same goes for woodworking. You can buy a TON of books, but will use only a few. This book, "Workbenches: From Design & Theory to Construction & Use", and [honorable mention] Nick Offerman's "Paddle Your Own Canoe" should be must haves for any woodworkers library.

This is an exceptionally useful book for anyone who creates with wood. The attention to detail is superb. I truly enjoy reading through this book. I understand now why some call it "the Woodworker's Bible". I can easily recommend this book to anyone wishing to learn about woodworking.

What a great reference book. I thought I knew about wood grain until I read the corresponding section. I like the pictures that indicate what may otherwise be difficult to explain in words alone. Would recommend for anyone wanting to work with wood.

This was a Christmas gift for our son. He said this was the absolute best book on woodworking that has ever been published.

This book is packed with interesting and practical projects.

J'ai acheté pour mon mari, il aime le livre

Vale a pena ter este livro. O conteúdo é muito bom, ensina muita coisa! Capa dura, papel de impressão excelente, muitas figuras explicativa. E de quebra tem a vantagem de nos forçar a melhorar o inglês. Recomendo !

Creo que es un libro muy completo para acercarse al trabajo de la madera desde cero. Habla primero de los tipos de madera, luego de algunos montajes básicos y conceptos a tener en cuenta para diseñar muebles y finalmente tiene una sección muy amplia con todo tipo de herramientas, tanto de mano como eléctricas, incluyendo como curiosidad herramientas de mano tradicionales japonesas. Explica para qué sirve cada herramienta, cómo se usa y mantenimiento básico. Sin duda una guía básica a partir de la cual explorar muchos caminos.

This is a great book. It covers tools, techniques, types of woods, finishes standard dimensions for shelf's, tables, etc... It contains colour pictures, for those things that require colour pictures, and for the rest it uses monochrome drawings. It also has quick references, in the upper left corner of the page, pointing to other sections of the book for more info. All and all, a great book.