Handy Workshop Tips & Techniques
Author: Josh Giumelli
Published by: Kondinen Group
Published: 2014
Pages: 324
Cost: $39
‘Handy’ is an understatement for this large and comprehensive guide for Australian wood and metalworkers.
This is not a book of projects but rather a reference manual for tradespeople and serious hobbyists. Josh Giumelli is mechanical engineer who writes for Farming Ahead magazine and is the author of The Welding and Metalwork Book, The Workshop Companion, Best of Workshop and Fencing Fundamentals.
Ten chapters take the metal and woodworking enthusiast through a detailed outline of essential materials, systems and techniques. The book contains full colour images throughout, as well as numerous diagrams and tables of information. Here is an outline of the contents.
Chapter One: Setting up Your Workshop. Benches and bench vices, storage systems, installing compressed air, safety gear and set-up, lifting systems.
Chapter Two: Buying tools for metalwork and engineering, air powered tools, marking tools for security.
Chapter 3: Measuring and Marking. Processes and devices for both metal and wood.
Chapter 4: Fasteners and Workshop Supplies. Thread types, cutting threads, fastening to concrete, joining sheet metal with rivets.
Chapter 5: Drilling Steel. Machinery and bits for metal and wood.
Chapter 6: Grinding, Polishing, Cutting. Grinding wheel types, angle grinders, bandsawing, installing bandsaw blades, dealing with rust.
Chapter 7: Working with Metal. Solid steel section, joining structures, sheet metal cutting, forming and folding, curving.
Chapter 8: Welding. Safety, arc welding, electrode selection, preparation methods, MIG welding, oxyacetylene set, spot welding, plasma cutting steel.
Chapter 9: Machining. Metal lathe equipment and operation, cutting threads, milling.
Chapter 10: Woodworking Machinery. Tablesaw techniques, bandsaw basics including tuning, jointing and planing; dealing with dust, sharpening on a grinder.
Metal gets a bit more of a billing than wood in this book but the practicality of solutions and use of ready materials and equipment make it an invaluable resource. Most available books about tools and equipment for woodworking are written by US and UK authors. Whilst there is much common ground, one of the main strengths of this book is that it has been written by a local author.
The idea for this book was prompted by regular requests from Hare & Forbes customers for a detail manual of this nature. Established in 1930 Hare & Forbes Machineryhouse is a family-owned Australian company that is Australia’s largest machinery, workshop and engineering supplier with outlets in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth.
There is no other book like this available for Australian wood and metalworkers and the cost is very reasonable.
Buy the book from Hare & Forbes outlets or purchase online