Customer Reviews

Box-Making Basics: Design, Technique, Projects

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I shouldn't admit it, but I judged this book by its cover. It seemed to me, from the three lovely boxes shown there, that the author had solid design chops and a good understanding of wood construction.

Fortunately, I wasn't disappointed. As a professional woodworker, I was pleasantly surprised to find that Freedman intelligently discusses everything from the precepts of design and the principles of wood movement to the mechanics of stock preparation.

There's quite a range of nice box projects here. Some are simple enough to make in just a few hours. Others, which incorporate veneering and intarsia, should provide a few day's fun in the shop. The author's use of figured and spalted hardwoods underscores the fact that making small boxes is the perfect opportunity to use those "scraps" of exotic wood you've been saving. Some of the boxes also feature cleverly designed latches and hinges.

A couple of quibbles: Although the drawings are very well done, a few of them contain small inaccuracies. (But then every woodworker who has built something from published plans has learned to double check them first.) Also, the information on calculating board feet on page 15 is woefully inaccurate.

But all in all, both beginning and advanced woodworkers should enjoy this book. Beginners will learn sound woodworking techniques without risking a week's salary worth of wood on a project. That alone should be worth the price of the book. More savvy woodworkers will find that the book is full of great tech tips and jigs as well as nice project designs.

Paul Anthony

This book is definitly written for those of us that are just starting out in the field of box making. Freedman is what I refer to as a "Master". He not only can do it, he can teach it.
I found myself constantly saying to myself, "so thats how ya do that, man thats easy". With enough projects and plans to keep you busy for months, and clear instructions on how to accomplish some very nice decorative touch's, this book is must read for anyone who is just getting started making decorative box's. I really like the way he incorporates the "little" things that really help you along, but probably would have taken me years to think of. Great book, can't give it a high enough rating.

All my previous wood working had been on a relatively large scale. So when I wanted to use the scrap wood to make small boxes, I didn't know where to start. This book has pointed me in the right direction as far as dimensions of the wood thickness, joinery, finnishing, and ideas. The book is good for both beginners and intermediate woodworkers.

This is what I would expect from a book that used the word "basics" in it. I found it to be a great learning resource, as a beginner to creating boxes. Interesting designs, complete patterns, and cut-lists for each project.

The only problem with this book is that there are no pictures of the boxes in the process of being built. Beginners could use examples of the various stages. The only other pics, other than the completed boxes, are line drawings. That is the one thing that keeps me from giving it 5 stars.

All in all...a good book on box making.

I am a new boxmaker and have really enjoyed this book. The author explains the basics of a number of different types of boxes that get progressively more complex as the book goes along. I only dock it one star for the lack of color photos. As a child of the 80s, I need the flashing lights, I guess.

I was looking for a book that included information for making box joints and dove-tail joints. This book doesn't cover those topics. It is a book on making jewelry boxes and small boxes for collectibles. However, I still enjoyed the book quite a bit and have found enough useful information that I was not disappointed.

Freedman's careful development of the basic skills one needs to quickly begin making truly delightful boxes makes this a must for beginning woodworkers. He knows the tricks and shows you how to take advantage of his knowledge. Many of the projects will make great gifts or sure money makers at Art and Crafts Fairs.

I was not disappointed with this book in terms of learning the basics to make nice boxes. Projects are varied in shape and techniques, in depth, with plenty of explanation. The necessary sections about wood preparation, movement etc... are all nice, as well as sections on tools and finishing. the info in there seems very objective and based on excellent experience. You will learn a lot from those projects and techniques. I like some designs and not others, but there are enough of them to satisfy anybody and learn enough basic techniques to elaborate from there.

One regret is that you seem to find far too much of that technique of separating the lid via sawing versus actually building it separately. I'm not sure how many people wanting to learn basics could easily saw off the lid of a relatively large box and it would be nice to see some other techniques and ways of building base and lid separately.

This is a must have book for the box maker. It as all the basic information needed with instructions tips and techniques to get the beginner off to a good start. There are progressively more complex designs to demonstrate and learn various techniques. Each of these plans are attractive and keep me interested. I am going through this book project by project. When I finish it I'll have an excellent foundation for more exotic projects. I highly recommend this book.

This book is full of beautiful projects, from easy to really complex that will really catch your eye. The explanations are not very wide, but each chapter shows you the basics by means of the construction of a different kind of box.
Perhaps, like most of urban crafters, I don't have a workshop jigsaw and a router table right on my bedroom, but this book helped me to do my first little projects thanks to the ideas and concepts one can extract.
I wish this book had more pages!!!