Green Woodworking Pattern Book E-Book

Ray Tabor

• Herausgeber: Batsford
• Kategorie: Lebensstil
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 186

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2022

Beschreibung

A guide to green woodworking, with detailed patterns to create beautiful projects. Discover hundreds of projects for working with unseasoned wood in this essential book. Ray Tabor, an unparalleled expert in green woodworking guides you through this old, traditional craft. Whether you are new to the craft and are looking for a simple project like a spoon or a bowl or want something challenging, you will find it here. The 300 patterns for the home and garden range from wattle gates to lemon juicers, from chairs, benches and stools to baskets, whistles and door wedges. Green woodworking involves the use of freshly felled timber (unseasoned wood), and embraces a number of traditional woodland crafts, including turning and carving. All patterns come with detailed dimensions in both metric and imperial. Each item has annotated black-and-white patterns, a brief description, historical information and details of the materials that should be used. Includes the simplest of woodland designs to more advanced, with something to suit every skill level. Both a historical record and a sourcebook for those looking to use their green woodworking skills to make traditional items of beauty, this is the perfect book for anyone interested  in whittling, woodland crafts and woodworking.   

Leseprobe

Contents

Acknowledgements

Introduction to a Green Woodworking Pattern Book

Chapter 1 Tools, Devices, Patterns and Gauges

Chapter 2 Fences and Gates

Chapter 3 Green Wood in the House and Garden

Chapter 4 Household Treen

Chapter 5 Wooden Tools and Tool Handles

Chapter 6 Rustic Furniture and Benches

Chapter 7 Post and Rung and Slab and Stick Furniture

Chapter 8 Baskets

Chapter 9 Toys, Games, the Outdoors and a Final Few

Appendix

Bibliography

Index

Acknowledgements

During the 30 years in which I have researched and practised woodmanship, I have received unstinting help from a large number of people. Many have become lifelong friends. Too many have passed on. Much that this book contains is a tribute to their unique skills.

I also owe a particular debt of gratitude to: The late Charles West, Dorset hurdle maker; Noel Cullum, Suffolk rake and hurdle maker; the late Frank Bird, Suffolk hurdle maker; the late Sidney Lukehurst, Kent hurdle maker; the late Cyril Mummery, expert in Kent woodmanship; the late Alex Mummery, Kentish woodman; Richard Edwards, coppice craftsman; Malcolm Lee, pole lathe turner; Hugh Spencer, pole lathe designer; Janet Spencer for introducing me to wooden spoons; Peter Lambert, Kent pole lathe turner and woodman; Jon Warnes, Suffolk stick and living wood furniture maker; Barry Gladwell, Suffolk master thatcher; the late Raphael Salaman, tool historian; the late Phillip Walker, tool historian; Fred Hams, Kentish edge tool historian; the late Alec Morris, Devon tool maker; the late Bryony Driver, tool maker; Andrew Breese, Sussex tool maker; Simon Leatherdale, Essex forester; and Professor Ted Collins, rural historian.

There remain many craftsmen with whom I have spoken, or whose products I have seen either in the flesh or in print, and whose names are lost or were never known. I thank them for their work. I hope through this book that their skills are not lost and I thank them all for their inspiration, direct or indirect. I am only sorry I cannot thank them by name. I hope that I have recorded correctly the patterns of all of these green woodworkers past and present – I apologise for any errors, the fault for which lies with me.

A special thanks is due to the staff at Batsford whose enthusiasm and commitment made this book possible.

Thank you to my team members at Shadwell Wood, Tony Morton and Mark Hinton in particular, who have helped so much in developing markets for our green wood products.

And finally my biggest debt is to my wife, Judith, without who’s forbearance this book would not have seen the light of day.

Ray Tabor

Introduction to a Green Woodworking Pattern Book

About Green Woodworking: The title of this book is quite specific. It is a pattern book for green woodworkers. Not cabinet-makers, not carpenters in sawn soft wood, but green woodworkers. So what is green woodworking?

Working with green or unseasoned wood is the oldest form of woodworking – an ancient craft of woodmanship that has survived to the present day. By green I mean wood that is not fully seasoned but that still contains much, if not all, of the moisture present in the living tree at the time it was felled. Normally trees are felled during the winter months once their leaves have dropped and the sap is not flowing. At this time the tree’s moisture content is lower (it is highest in the spring when the leaves are fully open and the tree is growing vigorously) and the wood is at its prime for many craft purposes. Some craftsmen, such as hurdle makers, do cut wood in the summer when it is in full leaf in order that they can work all year, but this can cause problems with the regeneration of the stump from which the poles have been cut. For some jobs, such as the removal of oak bark or lime and elm bast, the sap does need to be rising to enable the wood man to remove these items cleanly for tanning and weaving chair seats respectively. For some craft products wood can be used as soon as it is felled. For others, the wood needs to be held and partially seasoned over a period of between four weeks and six months, during which time the loss of moisture toughens the wood, making it more suitable for some uses.

It is easy to understand how and why our Neolithic ancestors started woodworking with green wood. Once tools such as flint axes and chisels became available, wood could be worked in larger sizes than just small rods that could be wrenched from the tree stool. And, of course, with primitive tools it was much easier to work green wood that is softer and more pliable than seasoned or sere wood. The remains of hazel wattle trackways from this period have been discovered in Somerset and are dated at 3100 BC. In those 5,000 years during which woodmanship has evolved, an enormous range of artefacts – elegant, functional, ingenious, beautiful and all made from green wood, have been developed. Their patterns have been honed and modified by years of use to those that we know today. Who cannot wonder at a product such as the hazel wattle hurdle? A tough, resilient fencing panel used to restrain sheep, made from small rods by a craftsman using only a billhook. No nails, wire or other aids are needed to make this marvel of ingenuity that can be regularly manhandled and still last up to 10 years in the open. This book contains many more examples like this, where it is hard to believe that a better pattern can be designed. Working wood while it is still green has allowed craftsmen to develop a number of techniques that are both fast and produce better products than when using sawn seasoned wood. These advantages include:

• Green wood can be worked faster than seasoned wood since it works more easily with edge tools.

• It rives (splits) well, which is faster than sawing and reveals hidden faults in the wood. Riven wood is also more water repellent since the wood fibres have not been severed.

• Because many green wood products can be made in the wood, the offal is left behind, minimising the weight to be moved when the job is done.

• Small rods of various species can be wound (twisted) whilst still green to make ties.

• Pushing young green rods into the ground so that they take root can produce living artefacts and offers a whole new range of outdoor products.

• Green wood has a fast turn round, being used the year it is felled. This means little cash is tied up in stocks of seasoned wood.

• Green woodworking uses mainly small, round wood, which is quick to grow and is lighter and easier to work.

Of course there are some drawbacks to using green wood. After working green wood will continue to shrink, so that where very accurate turnery is required it may be necessary to turn, season, and then turn a final time. Also some warping of finished products may occur, although this can also result from normal use, such as frequent contact with very hot liquids. Joints in green wood can shrink and come loose unless cutting patterns and pegging are used to mitigate the problem. The existence of so many timber-framed buildings of great age in Britain would indicate that this problem is more an aesthetic than practical one. Finally, care is needed in the manufacture of turned products to avoid radial splitting as a result of products drying too quickly.

Why have a pattern book? Traditionally the patterns and skills associated with wood crafts were handed down from father to son. This was not done in writing but rather by practical training in the wood or workshop, starting with the simplest tasks and graduating to a whole job. Unfortunately the decline in the woodland trades during the second half of the 20th century has broken this essential chain. Full time chair bodgers or bowl turners in the traditional sense, producing essential products for a mass market, no longer exist. Those trades still in use are practised by a new wave of green woodworkers, many of whom are new to the trade, with no familial history to support them, and with a mere handful of craftsmen remaining from whom they can learn the details of their craft. Thus the first important role for this book is to record the patterns of once common products, together with the key features that made them work so well. Where possible the book explains the function of the artefact and what is important in its design. This record will provide a baseline, charting our knowledge of the patterns of green wood products at the start of the 21st century and to which new generations of green woodworkers can refer.

Secondly a pattern book is for practical reference. If a product has not been made for a long period, here are the notes that will allow workers to check the shape, the size, and the subtle nuances of that product so they can make it again. It is like a notebook in which a craftsman has jotted a sketch and the dimensions of a product they have made; it is noted down so that in the future it is there to refer to.

Lastly a pattern book provides a catalogue of options that a craftsman can offer to the customer. Whether it is the pattern of a garden fence, the shape of a vase, or the decoration on a chair leg, a pattern book attempts to offer a range of choices. Pattern books started in the 18th century with furniture designs, when in 1762 Thomas Sheraton produced his ‘Drawing Book’ and Thomas Chippendale his ‘Director’. By Victorian times it was a sine qua non for most companies large and small to have a catalogue illustrating all of the available patterns of their particular product. Although it may still be the case that the customer requires something slightly different, the illustrations in a pattern book or catalogue help to focus their ideas.

What does this pattern book contain? This book is unique in that it is the first to cover patterns for the whole range of green wood products. It ranges from the humblest pea stick for the vegetable garden, via fencing, wooden tools and treen, to furniture turned on the pole lathe. In addition there is a chapter describing the essential tools and devices traditional devised by craftsmen to help them do the job. They were masters of innovation and, either themselves or with the help of the local blacksmith, produced a range of unique tools and devices with names such as ‘engines’, ‘brakes’, or ‘horses’. Each tool had a key role in the process. Perhaps the best known and most influential of these is the pole lathe, upon which many of the products in this book are dependent. Patterns and key dimensions for these tools are described, since they will not be found in any catalogue.

Under each section a range of products and patterns is described, together with, in most cases, an illustration. The illustrations are simple line drawings so that the key points of the artefact are clear. In some cases the drawings are from two perspectives where this is needed to make the design clear. Not all of the products described are in current use – not many of us use ‘crow starvers’ today! However, some of these older products are shown, however, firstly to ensure that a historical record maintained, but also to show how more modern versions have evolved. And who can tell when a similar pattern may be needed in the future? On each pattern is added the most important dimensions. The finished shape and size of a piece is, in many instances, down to the preference of the customer or the eye of the craftsman. Thus the height of a chair seat will be adjusted to the height of the user, as will the length of an axe handle. Dimensions are given in both metric and imperial measures, but it will be clear to users that, due to the history of the products, their sizes were originally imperial.

This book also tries to put each of the products in some social and historic context. Where possible there are notes on the history of the artefact and its original use(s). This helps to show the reasons why a particular pattern evolved, for invariably there are good, functional reasons for a particular design. Long feet, for example, on a Kentish gate hurdle are so the hurdle can be driven into the ground; this in turn requires a ferrule to avoid the head splitting. In some instances by looking at patterns of old and new, one can see how the product evolved. Lemon juicers, for example, have changed as the size of lemons has gradually increased over the last 300 years.

Understanding this process of evolution is important, for the process is still carrying on today. It remains a basic truth that customers will beat a path to the door of a craftsman who has a better product. If this book is repeated in 100 years time, there will be many new and interesting patterns to add to those illustrated here.

Where does the information come from? The patterns for the artefacts shown in this book came from a number of sources. While I have seen most products ‘in the flesh’, there are a number that have come from published sources. The difficulty, as always, is in deciding what to include and what to leave out. The end result is a personal choice, but I have tried to choose patterns that show the functional properties of good design, the effectiveness of different woods and the opportunities offered to the craftsman by the warmth and beauty of wood itself. The best products have, as Walter Rose described it, ‘a little touch of beauty engraved on the article of utility’.

The greatest source of data on green wood products has come from my own records, collected in over 30 years of both working wood and in meeting craftsmen practising a wide range of trades. I always carry a note book and there are many of these on my shelf, full of quick sketches of products, lists of dimensions and notes on how the products were made, all of which I made in the field. In addition I have collected over the years cuttings from newspapers and magazines, photographs and catalogues that show patterns for products that I have not seen before.

Another great source of information has come from visiting museums in many parts of the country. There is not a single rural museum that does not contain one or more unique items that are of interest to the woodworker. Some, however, such as the Mary Rose Trust, the Weald and Downland Museum, the Chiltern Furniture Museum and Museum of English Rural Life are outstanding. Here one can see historical artefacts in the flesh, exactly as used by our forebears as far back as the 16th century. Some museums have been good enough to open their reserve collections, which contain some real gems not usually seen by the public.

Catalogues provide a veritable mine of information. Some of the best are those Victorian editions published by tool and furniture makers. They are full of drawings illustrating almost every pattern made. Readers bitten by the bug are recommended to seek these out, for they will offer more ideas than has been possible to incorporate in this volume. Even rural workshops in some areas, such as the renowned Suffolk rake factory, produced catalogues of their wares, and have proven useful for detailed patterns. Lastly there are a number of books that I have referred to over the years, and which contain descriptions and photographs of many products. The most important of these are listed in the bibliography (see here). Most of these books concentrate on one subject area, but are excellent references for different patterns.

Who should use this book and how? This book does not tell the reader how to make a particular product. There are numerous excellent books on the market that already do this, the best of which are included in the bibliography (see here). This book is for those who are starting in green woodworking and are looking for products to make, as well as those competent at the basic elements of the craft and looking to broaden the range of what they produce. It will give the reader ideas for a variety of products across the whole range of green woodworking. It will also be of great use to those with experience who are teaching newcomers what they can do and how. It is all here – the complete range of green wood products to choose from.

This book is best used as a reference. It is like my note books and files – full of sketches and key dimensions that remind me what size and shape a stable fork should be, or how to weave the rods at the bottom of a hurdle, or a favourite pattern for a turned chair leg. Using this book acts as a reminder for these key features that make the product both work and look right. Also, browsing through the book will refresh your mind as to the patterns and ideas you can use.

Any artefact should be designed by the craftsman who will make it – it should have the creator’s stamp on it. No one has to slavishly follow the patterns that are illustrated here. They can, and should, be modified and improved to reflect the design skills of the worker and the taste of the customer. For this reason only the most important dimensions are shown on the products. I expect that every craftsman will take the time to design in some detail the product they are going to make. It is not possible in a book of this scale to show fully dimensioned drawings and cutting plans, but worked examples for a garden bench and a chair are shown in the appendix (see here). If you go to the trouble of working out your plans to this level of detail, you will have to face any difficult issues and solve them before you put saw to wood. It also gives you the chance to alter the design to improve the product and give it your own style. It is worth taking the time to do this, whether for a whistle or a chair, because you will understand the design of green wood products better and this will be reflected in the quality of what you make.

I hope the text and the tips make it clear where you can apply flexibility in your design and where it is best to stick to traditional wisdom. The shapes and sizes of many features, such as the height of the arms on a chair, can be changed, but the height of a cricket stump is fixed!

The interest in green woodworking continues to increase year by year, although it will never return to the pre-eminence it held up to the 1920s. However, these ancient woodland crafts still have much to offer 21st century society – not only fine products in beautiful wood, but also a role in conserving our ancient woodland heritage and an opportunity for many to enjoy satisfying, physical work in an environment of often unparalleled beauty. All of those who work so hard training green wood workers or pursuing these trades deserve our support. I hope this book will contribute to their efforts and introduce more people to what green woodworking can achieve. And when I see copies of this book well thumbed and with pencilled notes in the margin denoting new sizes or patterns, then I shall know it was worth while.

Chapter 1 Tools, Devices, Patterns and Gauges

Introduction

Before looking at the range of products made by green wood craftsmen, we need to look at some of the tools and devices that are used to produce those products. Traditional woodworkers have always been masters at devising the best means of manufacture. The devices they used enable their artefacts to be made, not only very quickly and efficiently, but also to repeatable quality and dimensions. A good hurdle-maker, for instance, can tell the quality of the hurdles made by another simply by the straightness of the stack in which they are stored; a leaning stack means there is a problem! Doing the job repeatedly, speedily and effectively requires exactly the right tool or device.

A majority of these tools were either made by the craftsman himself, or by a blacksmith under his instruction. Because of this there is a wide range of tool patterns varying, not just between regions, but also between individual craftsmen. These tools often cannot be found in catalogues, new or old, so I have described the best here so that their patterns and unique properties are not lost, and so that modern craftsmen can reproduce them.

The devices that are described are more ephemeral, but no less important. Invariably made of wood, and, in many cases, designed to last only one season, their often rustic appearance belies the efficiency of their operation. Indeed it would not be possible to rind, rive or shave wood properly without an appropriate ‘horse’ or ‘brake’. The examples described are all designed and used by woodworkers and are extremely effective.

Tools

Froes are tools for splitting wood (fig 1.1). They are based on a moderately long but narrow blade fitted at right angles to a longer handle that enables the blade to be levered from side to side. The thickness of the blade is determined by the fineness of the work – coarser clefts require a thicker blade and a longer handle. Relatively short clefts (shingles) only need a short handle (fig 1.2), while lathes that are very narrow only require a short-bladed froe (fig 1.3). The end of the blade may be sharpened so it can be inserted into a split, or used as a chopper in the case of a froe for lathes.

Cleaves or bond splitters (fig 1.4