Cabinets and Countertops (Complete Construction) [Paperback]

Charles R. Self (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0071348999 | ISBN-13: 978-0071348997 | Publication Date: April 28, 2000 | Edition: 1

Cabinet-building tricks of the trade

Would you like to have your own cabinetmaking business...do an excellent job...and make a decent living? Cabinets and Countertops shows you how. Learn how to set up your custom shop, fill it with the right (not necessarily expensive)tools and use them to produce cabinets while pleasing high-end customers with top-notch quality, design and service.

You get all of author Charles Self's expertise on:
*kitchen planning, including designing for lifestyle
*suitable woods - natural and engineered
*tools and basic joinery techniques
*constructing the carcass, face frames and doors
*building and attaching drawers
*hardware and finishes
*installing base and wall cabinets
*selecting, building and installing countertops
*projects for slow times
*much, much more!

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

"This book teaches design, and general principles, and then takes the reader through a step-by-step process of building all types of kitchen cabinets ... This is a true building book that can be used by even the newest woodworkers."
--author Charles Self

Professional Planning
Custom Results
A Complete Guide for Woodworkers, Cabinetmakers, and Remodelers

This perfect-for-any-project sourcebook can enhance every stage of creating beautiful kitchen and bath custom cabinetry and countertops. If you’re a contractor looking for answers on design, installation, materials, and tools, why go anywhere else but Cabinets and Countertops? Written by one of the top authors in building crafts, this single information-packed volume covers everything you need to know, and then some, from planning to final cleanup. Inside, you’ll find:

Stepping stones to ideal designs for kitchens and baths, including the use of CAD.
Designer tips on cabinetry coordination.
Insights into customer psychology that help you give them what they want.
200 photos and illustrations demonstrating options and simplifying tasks.
Complete case studies, with before-and-after photos.
Actual cutting, joining, and assembling lists for cabinets.
Problem-avoidance tips and traditional and new problem-solving methods.
Job- and budget-saving remedies for avoiding errors.
Value-added modifications for shop-built and one-off cabinets.
The newest hardware, designs, and techniques.
An easy-reading style from a popular building writer, a Contributing Editor to Remodeling News.
And much more!
A volume in the Complete Construction Series

About the Author

Charles Self is a professional writer and a Contributing Editor to Remodeling News. He is the past president and former newsletter editor of the National Home & Workshop Writers. He is the author of several books on construction topics.

Product Details

• Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill Professional; 1 edition (April 28, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0071348999
• ISBN-13: 978-0071348997
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.4 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,100,529 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #75 in Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > Interior Design > Professional Reference

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars The real story on this book, November 12, 2001

By A Customer

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Cabinets and Countertops (Complete Construction) (Paperback)

To qualify myself and my comments, I offer this.
I am a modestly accomplished woodworker and a kitchen cabinet hanging expert. I have personally hung over 200 kitchens from layout, demolition, plumbing, electrical; To completion.
This book falls far short of delivering on its title or description. "Cabinets and Countertops" should cover exactly that. It doesn't.
This is a 450pg text, 40 pages are devoted to an cursory explanation of joints. Not a problem for me, but if you don't know the caveats of these different joints, figure out yourself. You won't learn how to make any of them either.
6 pages cover drawer making. 30 pages are in a chapter called "cabinet construction, but it must be mislabled. The meat of this chapter is a pair of exploded view drawings of a cabinet, and a lecture on being organized.
9 pages cover countertops. Not the construction of countertops, not the differents kinds of countertops. Just the terrible advice that you should buy a POST-FORM countertop from a dealer, and what color it should be. I wouldn't even consider a laminate counter for my kitchen.
The rest of this book is very general, plebeian advice on a myriad of topics. Considering the source of this advice, it should be discarded.
I am unhappy with the standard cabinets available and prefer not paying 40 grand or more with an independent shop. I looked to this book to fill the small holes I have in my skills to accomplish this myself. It doesn't even scrape the surface, and is unworthy of the shelf space it occupies, let alone the purchase price.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Handbook for Cabinet Construction, July 12, 2000

By 

Al the Pal "Al the Pal" (The Fruited Plain, United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cabinets and Countertops (Complete Construction) (Paperback)

This book really does cover it all - from outfitting your workshop to installation. It is well illustrated with B&W photographs and drawings of about everything he is writing about. There is a prioritized list of tools & equipment as well as advice on choosing a workspace. He reviews a large number of tools, which was nice as he confirmed my choice of a JET tablesaw as appropriate.

He also lists common dimensions of appliances you will need to build around and has examples of CAD drawings in many styles. Construction techniques are covered as well as which tools work best for each task. He has whole sections on kitchen workspace layout and installation methods.

If you are thinking of building kitchen cabinets for fun or for a living, this is the only book you need to see how to do it. If you are looking for lots of color pictures of creative designs, look elsewhere. This is mostly a technical manual, written in a conversational style that makes it interesting to read. It is an essential book in your woodworking library.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars I want to build some Kitchen Cabinets not build a Business, January 2, 2002

By 

Conrad P Koch Jr (NH United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cabinets and Countertops (Complete Construction) (Paperback)

I bought the book hoping to see a step-by-step approach to build my own kitchen cabinets. I found in the book a well detailed treatice on woods, cabinet styles, psychology of dealing with customers of various monetary means, tools, table saws, jointery, and a lot of stuff that I really don't care about. I also found out about 32mm European construction that is still a mystery to me. Who cares????