Greetings all. Back in Brooklyn after the wildly successful Handworks show, I'm finding it difficult to focus. Iowa has a lingering charm that is at once comforting and humbling. Moreover, the weekend spent in the company of so many talented, exuberant woodworkers and toolmakers has left me in a state of awe, wondering if I am equal to the tasks set before me. Pity me not but do bring me a Shild Brau if you're headed my way.
In any case, chief among my tasks is posting Work issues in earnest again. Show prep forced me to phone in a couple of weeks with only amusing images to accompany the publication. Mercifully, this week's issue offers a comforting metaphorical corollary to the Amana activities by leading with a discussion on CONSTRUCTIVE STRENGTH IN WOODWORK, followed by a piece on MODERN FORGING. The connection is a bit wistful, but I reserve the right to be wistful for at least another day.
Huge props to Jameel Abraham for masterminding all of the pleasant mayhem. Besides showing himself to be a proper visionary, he's simply a fun guy to be around. I'm certainly looking forward to the next one. -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.
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