Customer Reviews

Making Antique Furniture Reproductions: Instructions and Measured Drawings for 40 Classic Projects (Dover Woodworking)

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

 

 

I recently built the Queen Anne chest-on-frame described in this book, and I found the plans and descriptions to be complete, but a bit challenging to decypher. This book is for the serious woodworker who wants to make period furniture, not for the hobbyist. This was my first attempt at a substantial piece of furniture, and I am pleased enough with the results that I will probably build other projects from the book.

Franklin Gottshall has written a number of great woodworking project/reproduction books and periodically reshuffles and reassembles his popular plans. This book one is similar to an earlier red cover version on Reproducing Antique Furniture. I built a variation of the blockfront chest. Gottshall's construction explanations are very clear and his drawings are thorough, and accurate. I wanted a four drawer instead of a three drawer chest. I used a Kittinger catalog to rescale the piece, but basically followed Gottshall's construction. His piece did call for full 7/8in sides which required a little research to find. A source supply would have been nice. I accomplished the carving of the shells from his layout, though I modified the center design somewhat, and thought his shell looked a little thick, but simply thinning it down did the trick. Because when I built the piece in 1974, I didn't have the variety of router bits available today, I found I had to design some templates and jigs to ensure success on the complex cuts. But all that is doable. Recommend that you draw up full scale plans from Gottshall's plans for complex pieces. It will help you learn the construction. Even if you do not like or build all the pieces, it is a valuable reference on fine furniture construction that you'll reference often. It's a great book.

I took the initiative to build the carved corner china from the plans in this book and they are excellent. When I was done with my project I wrote Mr. Gottshall with photos of my project and he wrote back immediately, as I am perhaps the only other person he knew who built this particular project.
I telephoned him to thank him for the education I got building from his plans but alas, he had had a stroke. This was in 1978. I can be reasonably certain Frank has passed away by now, but his legacy is in his books which got better as he got older. A must for any cabintmaker.

I guess some people really like this book. Like the other book, it has an attractive cover, but inside...lacks. The drawings are hard to understand, of not the best quality and would have expected more.

Some of the designs in this book are projects that I definitely intend to build. However, using this book to produce the designs in it requires a good set of woodworking skills and ability to come up with the project based on a minimal presentation. The drawings are adequate, but the photos are very poor quality. Frankly I could produce a better quality presentation on an office copier. Very dated to the 70's and not a book to read just for enjoyment or to look at the pictures.

Has everything a builder needs, photos, drawings and techniques on how to achieve great results.

This is one of the most clear and concise books on period style furniture I have ever read. It is very useful with it's measured drawing as a basis for designing up to date reproductions of time honored classics. The drawings are uncluttered and can be understood by the novice. There can be much knowledge gleaned here for all. The books by this master will continue to be references for many generations.

This is a great book for those interested in making period furniture reproductions. Gottshall wrote about 5 books on this topic, all of them excellent, must haves. Perhaps his best, my favorite, is Masterpiece Furniture Making, not to be confused with one of his other books, Making Furniture Masterpieces, also very good.

The book gives essential information to anyone interested in the design or construction classic American furniture.

This book has many of wonderful drawings and details of classic furniture. There is a section at the front explaining some methods of work, but this is not a step by step cookie cutter book. You have to be able to look at the drawings and use the basic guidelines they give you to make the projects. This book assumes someone already knows the basics of woodworking.