Good 'ol Nil. Yes, this week you get the much-anticipated "How To Make A Piano" treatment. This is, in fact, the article I cite the most when telling friends how much Work clobbers contemporary DIY magazines. It could be my twentieth century sensibilities, but the blind audacity of suggesting the readership take up piano construction precipitates a distinct sensation of apprehension, then admiration, then disbelief.
That said, it's also clear that the author, whom I don't believe we've heard from so far, had some inkling of the ambition inherent in the premise. By way of preempting frustration on the part of any would-be pianowright, Nil Desperandum favors us with a translation of his nom de plume; "never despair."
For those of us who, through no lack of know-how or adoration for Nil's subject, choose still to refrain from piano making, allow me to direct attentions to this week's treatise from David Adamson: "Practical Veneering: Hammer-Laid & Caul-Laid Veneers."
Astoundingly, David likens the action of a veneer hammer to that of a squeegee. By that I mean "squeegee" is clearly printed on the page. I, for one, was unaware that the squeegee had been with us for so very long. Clearly this bears further research. –TIM
Disclaimer: Articles in Work: The Illustrated Weekly Journal for Mechanics describe materials and methods that would not be considered safe or advisable today. We are not responsible for the content of these magazines, and cannot take any responsibility for anyone attempting projects or procedures described therein.
The first issue of Work was published on March 23rd, 1889. The goal of this project is to release digital copies of the individual issues starting on the same date in 2012, effectively republishing the materials 123 years to the day from their original release.
The original printing was on thin, inexpensive paper. There are many cases of uneven inking and bleed-through from the page behind. Our copies of Work come from bound library volumes of these issues and are subject to unfavorable trimming, missing covers, etc. To minimize harm to these fragile volumes, we've undertaken the task of scanning the books ourselves. We do considerable post processing of the scans to make them clear but please bear with us if a margin is clipped too close, or a few words are unreadable. We would like to thank James Vasile and Karl Fogel for their help in supplying us with a book scanner and generally enabling this project to get off the ground.
You are welcome to download, print, and pretty much do what you want with the scan for your own personal purposes. Feel free to post a link or a copy on your blog or website. All we ask is a link back to the original project and this blog. We are not answering requests for commercial downloads or reprinting at this time.
Good 'ol Nil. Yes, this week you get the much-anticipated "How To Make A Piano" treatment. This is, in fact, the article I cite the most when telling friends how much Work clobbers contemporary DIY magazines. It could be my twentieth century sensibilities, but the blind audacity of suggesting the readership take up piano construction precipitates a distinct sensation of apprehension, then admiration, then disbelief. 
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