Band Saws: A Workshop Bench Reference

Rating:
Summary: Possibly the worst edited book ever published
Review: For the expectations of the title, this is the worst possible book that can be had on this subject. Out of 99 pages (I gave up trying to comprehend after 99), I found 58 editorial and authored errors on 30 pages. These include: bad spelling, totally irrelevant information (check the oil level and add oil???), misleadingly wrong information, crossed up tables, wrong words (especially in illustrations and safety directions), redundancies, left out words, reversed pictures, pictures of the wrong item, totally confusing figure references, and out of sequence operations. If this is the best that Sterling publishers and Duginske can do, it is a wonder that they are still publishing. I consider the book to be a danger to the band saw operator that tries to use it and put it's directions into practice. I give this book 1 star only becaause zero is not allowed.

Rating:
Summary: A respected expert's advice is compromised by awful editing.
Review: I have read this author's articles for FW (Fine Woodworking) and alway's found them to be excellent. This was the first book I purchased after getting my own bandsaw. My hopes for a definitive reference tool vanished as I plowed through too many typos. The most damaging were step-by-step sections that were incomplete (i.e. missing an important step.) and paragraphs of advice that conclude by contradicting the advice just given. (i.e. I still don't know if I should de-tension the blade after use or not.) I was very disappointed, and returned the book. Mark Duginske's articles in past issues of FW by the Taunton Press contain most of the core-content of this book, and benefit from excellent editorial oversight. Something Sterling Publishing does not have. Save your money and skip to you local library. All you need to know about caring for your bandsaw this author has already written in the pages of FW (Fine Woodworking.)