Make Your Own Handcrafted Doors & Windows Paperback – Illustrated, July 25, 2014

Although expensive, the book is worth every nickel. The author covers everything from the basics to the finer aspects of door and window making. If you are a novice, your eyes will be opened to basic hand and power tools as well as the skills required to fabricate your own doors. For the advanced woodworker, it will tweek your skills and perhaps motivate you to test your skills as opposed to ordering the next door from a local lumberyard. A must read.

Great book. I highly recommend this book for anyone attemping to build their own windows or doors.

Make no mistake- there is nothing from the year 2014 about this book except for the cover.This is definitely just a reprint of the 1988 edition by the same author.If you know the basics of building frame and panel interior and exterior doors, you will likely not learn anything from this book.If you are looking for tips and tricks of the trade from guys who build doors for a living, you will likely be disappointed.One of the biggest downfalls of this book for someone wanting to learn new skills is the absence of any of the tooling innovations that have occurred since 1988! He writes often of "HSS shaper cutters." Who honestly uses those any longer?! They are not in common production for a reason!If you've never built a door, this will be a great resource and shop guide. If you are trying to match something that was built years ago, this will be a great guide. If you are looking for new ways to tighten efficiency in your shop and compete in today's market, I'm sorry, but you will be sorely disappointed. All of the pictures and drawings in the book are grainy black and white, nothing clear. He shows a photo on one page of a lower exterior door rail supposedly faded and checked by the sun, but you can't even tell from the poor photo!I figure that if I spend $20-30 on a book, all I need to do is pick up one good tip that will make a difference in my shop for it to be worth my time and money. I did not find that in this book. I will be returning it for my $30.I'm giving 3 stars for the accuracy of the information contained in the book. There is nothing incorrect about it, it is just 26 years outdated.

If you are looking for a book that covers every thing you need to know about making your own custom windows and doors, this is the ONLY one you need. This book covers every thing. It shows you in great detail with pictures and text many different ways to measure, cut and put together the many pieces of windows and doors. This book not only covers the modern ways of doing it with power tools, it also goes into detail of how to do it the old fashion way with hand tools. It's a little expensive do to it being out of print. BUT, if you are truly wanting to make your own, you will be glad you spent the money when this gem arrives at your house.

its ok but would like more detail plans

A new cover was put on a very old book.I don’t understand why woodworking books always start at the beginning with a description of tools. If you want to build a door, you certainly are not a beginning woodworker. Interrmediate woodworkers don’t need a description of an I-beam sawhorse (page 17) or how to use power tools ( chapter 3). Time to retire this book. This book will disappoint

I should have read the other reviews more carefully. A beautiful cover on a simplistic book printed in 1988. Truly a case of can't judge a book by its cover. There is useful information with tools available 30 years ago.

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