Customer Reviews

Do-It-Yourself Coffins: For Pets and People (Schiffer Book for Woodworkers)

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

The photographs in "Do-It-Yourself Coffins" are nicely done. Unfortunately, the artisanry and aesthetic appeal of the coffins are not. As a person who designs and builds fine, handcrafted coffins, I was disappointed in the level of how-to information presented as well as the quality and appearance of the finished products.

I have built one of the coffins following the directions in the book. Some measurements are missing, and some are not correct. This cost me in materials and time. Beware!

I should have paid more attention to the ratings. I was looking for something to get me started, and this book just barely did that. Anyone with any woodworking skill at all will cringe at the drawings and poor quality of the measurements. Photo's are good. Quality of the products are very pooooor!

I was very disappointed in this book. We make our living from woodworking and the techniques in this book are better suited to junior high school shop class.

Too bad this program forces me to put a rating star on this book, I tried to give it a zero but the site requires a higher rating.
As with the majority who have rated this book so far -- this book deserves a quick death. Poor craftsmanship and lots of wood putty. The excellent photographs only prove the point. The caption under the photo for tight finger joints should read "fill gaps with more putty." The poor orientation of wood grain, the cheap plywood, the missing measurements, it all was sad to see. The photos of the staining and finishing show very sloppy work. Even the upholstery work is a shame. I agree with the earlier review that suggests this book is for 7th-8th grade wood shop. If you have any woodworking skills and take pride in your craftsmanship, don't waste your money on this book like I did.

This book is a total waste of time and money. the title says "coffins" but it only offers one coffin to build (badly). For an alleged technical manual there are many, many things in the book that are just WRONG. The author invites you to rip a piece of plywood that is longer than the standard plywood length. The craftsmanship is horrendous with proudly displayed mitered joints that don't meet. I have the feeling that the guy who gave this book 5 stars is either related to the author or I can picture him trying to turn on his table saw through his straight jacket. Save your money this one is the pitts and a disgrace to be sold alongside serious woodwoorking books

There is nothing "woodworker" about this book. Woodworkers generally pride themselves on clean precise joints, no visible glue marks, QUALITY finishes...this book carries NONE of those. The craftsmanship is poor at best and the execution of this "toe pincher" coffin is every synonym of awkward that I could find on thesaurus. com "all thumbs, amateurish, artless, blundering, bulky, bumbling, bungling, butterfingers, coarse, floundering, gawky, graceless, green*, having two left feet, having two left hands, incompetent, inept, inexpert, klutzy, lumbering, maladroit, oafish, rude, stiff, stumbling, uncoordinated, uncouth, unfit, ungainly, ungraceful, unhandy, unpolished, unrefined, unskilled, unskillful ". This book is REALLY bad and this guy should stop shopping himself around as a "woodworker" and should stick to building birdhouses on the weekends. I'm not usually the one who writes reviews or even much less, bad ones but I spent my hard earned money on this piece of crap and I want the world to know that this guy does NOT deserve to be gracing the pages of this book or any other. This only positive note is that the dimensions in the front of the book MAY be helpful but I am sure you can find plans/dimensions on the internet for free.

I wish I could give this book no stars. I'm sad that there is only one real coffin book out there and this guy made it. :(

When I found out my pet weimaraner Lucille had a major heart condition, I knew I had to giver her a proper Christian burial, rather than let my vet - quote - "take care of it".
However looking into the price of commercial dog coffins, I decided that while I loved my dog Lucille, that love does not transfer to dollar amounts.
After a little research, I came across this book! I was blown away with the beautiful photography, the very detailed step-by-step instructions. I was sure I could build a lovingly hand-crafted coffin for my Lucille.

I was however disappointed in just how long it took me to complete one coffin. By the time I did a final sanding, laquer and wax, my poor Lucille was attracting so many flies in the house! I had to put fly catchers on all the windows.

Anyway, this book is a really good for first time coffin makers. My coffin came out really professional looking, and I am going to start right away on my next one!

As the leader of a growing vampire brood in troubled economic times, I'm always looking for ways to save money. I figured with coffin prices going through the roof, what better than to make my own? The plans are wonderfully detailed and while each one is quite labor intensive, being immortal means I have plenty of time on my hands.

Imagine my dismay, then, after a year of work and a grand presentation ceremony where I gifted them to my 10 closest kinsmen and advisers, I wake up the next morning to find all 10 of my clansmen reduced to ash!!! How anyone can design coffins without consideration for the needs of the undead is beyond me!!

That said, since, cosmetically, the coffins were beautiful, and since I imagine the plans would work fine for humans, I gave it two instead of one star.

I would like to say that I am a reasonable man, and as such I often find myself searching for nifty cost-cutting measures. Imagine my delight when I realized I didn't have to pay half a million dollars for an expensive coffin when I could simply make my own for only the cost of the materials plus the cost of this book! When the book arrived I started immediately. I found I had a knack for handiwork like this, and in no time I had a beautiful pine box for myself, saving hundreds of thousands on funeral-related expenses for my loved ones.

But my admiration for myself suddenly turned into a ghastly horror. The box would now sit in my living room as a grim reminder that one day, sneaking ever closer, I was going to die. I saw the coffin every morning before work and every evening when I got home. I couldn't throw it out though. That would be admitting I wasted 85 hours of work and $600 in supplies! I'll throw myself off a cliff before I let my pride suffer a blow like that (although if I did at least I would have this nifty coffin prepared for me)! My only option to avoid a grisly reminder of my own impending doom every time I entered my own house was to build it into the surroundings in a completely incongruous way.

So I went to work immediately and converted the frame of the coffin into my front doorway. But alas, what I thought would be a brilliant transition from despair to contentment turned out to be a decidedly unbrilliant transition from despair to worse despair. My friends stopped coming over. My wife left me. My kids killed themselves. My boss found somewhere else to hold our office dinners. But worst of all, I felt slightly uncomfortable every time I walked into my own home.

So, reader, if you want to avoid a deep depression and the imminent suicide of your loved ones, please do yourself a favor and do not buy this book.