wood handbook

[bluemax1811-newsgroups]

Thanks for posting this information!

Bob

[bluemax1811-newsgroups]

Thanks for posting this information!

Bob

[babygrand]

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:

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

[J. Clarke]

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.

[WillR]

Thank you for bringing this book to our attention. It is an incredible resource.

[Jim]

I agree 100% about the book, so much so that I listed it on my 'Help' page on my site.

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

[Ray_Manor]

Good book. Good idea.

ray

[James "Cubby" Culbertson]

For those that want a hardcopy, LeeValley sells it. Cheers, cc