Illustrated Cabinetmaking (Reader's Digest Woodworking) (Hardcover)

~ Bill Hylton (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"For the advanced woodworker, [this] is a treasure trove of project ideas. Recommended for woodworking collections in any library."  —Library Journal

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Description

Design and construct furniture that works. A visual source of information ranging from furniture styles and dimensions to joinery. 100 classic furniture pieces are captured in highly detailed, exploded drawings.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 374 pages
• Publisher: Readers Digest (January 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0762101830
• ISBN-13: 978-0762101832
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 7.8 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,024,387 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

43 of 44 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent reference for any serious woodworker, November 25, 2001

By	Mark M Lambert (New Smyrna Beach, Florida United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rodale's Illustrated Cabinetmaking: How to Design and Construct Furniture That Works (Hardcover)

As a semi-pro woodworker I found this book to be invaluable. It has detailed drawings of just about any type of joint or furniture item you can imagine. The first section is a discussion of wood and it's properties and then there is a detailed comparison of wood joints. Mortise and tenons, miters, dovetails, etc. are all discussed.

Then the book moves on with chapters dealing with various classes of furniture, desks, tables, beds, cabinets are all discussed with clear exploded diagrams.

Although the book does not contain detailed, measured drawings, it shows the conceptual details of how to make functional furniture. Additionally there are references to detailed plans that you can access via the internet or purchase to make typical examples of each piece.

Especially helpful are the "standards" sections at the start of each chapter. The "nominal" dimensions for tables, beds, kitchen cabinets are all given along with illustrations.

If you're serious about woodworking and furniture making, this book belongs on your bookshelf.

29 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Introductory design for the novice cabinetmaker, February 17, 2000

By A Customer

As a novice woodworker, but a professional trades instructor, I found this book to be a wonderful source of information about traditional and contemporary styles and techniques in furniture and cabinetmaking. It introduces the fundamentals of furniture anatomy, styles and wood movement. You are then moved along to joinery and furniture subassemblies with detailed and very readable illustrations. The strength of the book is, indeed, in the illustrations. The project section illustrates, by example, the styles and techniques introduced earlier but allows Woodworkers the freedom to add dimensions of their own. It is a very useful guide for those who are looking for ideas and allows great freedom to customize the design without getting too far off track.

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Reference, February 17, 2004

By	Doug Van Horn "Doug Van Horn" (St. Charles, MO) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I like to check out books from the library before I buy them. I checked this one out, now I'm buying it.

As a novice woodworker, I anticipate this will be an excellent reference as I move forward with designing and building cabinets, tables, and chairs.

It's not a how-to book, it's a reference. So when I'm wondering how I'm going to design a small cabinet with four drawers and a television cabinet for the bedroom, this book will give me options and ideas from casework to drawers to what goes on the bottom and what goes on the top.

I think it's a great reference.