I worked for 27 years as a piano designer, and one of the most valuable
resources I ever had was the US government's Forest Products Lab "Wood
Handbook". I had an old, dog-eared copy that was handed down to me from an
old veteran engineer who had worked for the company for over 40 years when I
arrived in 1973. I still have it, although it is pretty beat up.
It has been updated several times since the original 1920 something edition,
and is now available in downloadable .pdf documents at this link:
http://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/documnts/fplgtr/fplgtr113/fplgtr113.htm
It is a wealth of information for any woodworker wanting to know more about
his medium, and especially how to design and build something that will last
a long, long time (Example: Chapter 12 - Drying and Control of Moisture
Content and Dimensional Changes). Some parts are pretty technical, but
there is something for everyone there. Enjoy!
babygrand
Jim wrote:
> I agree 100% about the book, so much so that I listed it on my 'Help'
> page on my site.
> http://www.wysiwygwood.com/HelpfulLinksandDocuments.htm There you
can
> download it as one zipped up file or get all the chapters. There are
> some other documents from the FPL & USFS there too.
>
> Jim
Good book. Good idea.
ray
For those that want a hardcopy, LeeValley sells it.
Cheers,
cc
"babygrand" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>I worked for 27 years as a piano designer, and one of the most valuable
> resources I ever had was the US government's Forest Products Lab "Wood
> Handbook". I had an old, dog-eared copy that was handed down to me from
> an
> old veteran engineer who had worked for the company for over 40 years when
> I
> arrived in 1973. I still have it, although it is pretty beat up.
>
> It has been updated several times since the original 1920 something
> edition,
> and is now available in downloadable .pdf documents at this link:
>
> http://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/documnts/fplgtr/fplgtr113/fplgtr113.htm
>
> It is a wealth of information for any woodworker wanting to know more
> about
> his medium, and especially how to design and build something that will
> last
> a long, long time (Example: Chapter 12 - Drying and Control of Moisture
> Content and Dimensional Changes). Some parts are pretty technical, but
> there is something for everyone there. Enjoy!
>
> babygrand
>
>
[email protected] wrote:
> Thanks for posting this information!
FWIW, my Dad built a dock way backalong which promptly fell down due to
borer attack. I pulled out "Wood Engineering" (one of the incarnations of
the "Wood Handbook" and told him to order pilings with a particular
treatment that they recommended that was supposed to handle any kind of
borer. That was about 30 years ago. Dock's still standing and pilings
look good, from what I could tell past the barnacles.
>
> Bob
--
--John
to email, dial "usenet" and validate
(was jclarke at eye bee em dot net)
babygrand wrote:
> I worked for 27 years as a piano designer, and one of the most valuable
> resources I ever had was the US government's Forest Products Lab "Wood
> Handbook". I had an old, dog-eared copy that was handed down to me from an
> old veteran engineer who had worked for the company for over 40 years when I
> arrived in 1973. I still have it, although it is pretty beat up.
>
> It has been updated several times since the original 1920 something edition,
> and is now available in downloadable .pdf documents at this link:
>
> http://www.fpl.fs.fed.us/documnts/fplgtr/fplgtr113/fplgtr113.htm
>
> It is a wealth of information for any woodworker wanting to know more about
> his medium, and especially how to design and build something that will last
> a long, long time (Example: Chapter 12 - Drying and Control of Moisture
> Content and Dimensional Changes). Some parts are pretty technical, but
> there is something for everyone there. Enjoy!
>
> babygrand
>
>
Thank you for bringing this book to our attention. It is an incredible
resource.
--
Will
Occasional Techno-geek