Best Woodworking Magazine

jeff singer

Member
Messages
1
Hello,
I was wanting to get some thoughts on this. What do you all think is the overall best woodworking magazine? My Dad used to subscribe to Workbench magazine but I dont think it is still around. Just was wondering



Jeff
 
Workbench is still around. I personally like the Woodsmith Magazine from the WoodSmith Store in Des Moines Ia. They give tons of really great projects, and don't dwell heavily on machinery.

Wood Magazine and Fine Woodworking and this type seem to me to have way to many articles about all of the new machinery coming down the pike. If you are inexperienced or a beginner, they are fine. They help answer lots of questions.

Go to one of the Large Retail Book Stores and buy a selection of the mags avaialble, I think there must be 10-15 US publications as well as some from England and Austrailia too.

Doing the research will be kind of fun.
 
Hi Jeff, and welcome to the forums! :wave:

I subscribed to a few magazines a couple years ago when I started back into woodworking after a long hiatus. Within about a year I started seeing the repetitive nature of these mags. It seemed to be the same articles re-hashed a million ways, with very little new information. I also really didn't care about the latest "Router Showdown", since all the various tool reviews I've seen were either biased or incomplete. I also don't need or want plans for making an Arts and Crafts thimble stand or an Early American milking stool. (I recognize there are some folks who DO appreciate the plans...they're just not my cup o' tea.) I've not renewed any of the subscriptions, and I don't miss them. Seems I can find the information I'm looking for on the Internet these days.

I do have an online subscription to Fine Woodworking, which allows me to search their archives. I find that much more useful than having a stack of magazines gathering dust in a corner of the room.
 
Depends what you are looking for... For example,

Wood magazine has simpler projects and detailed plans - although I know some experienced people who really like it, I generally consider it a good magazine for beginners - both with the step by step plans and the simpler projects.

Fine Woodworking has tougher projects. I wouldn't want to make many of them, but I do like the way they go through the techniques that I can apply to my projects. In fact, I have most of the old issues, and am plowing through the complete set... a great education, but probably not for the beginner.
 
I don't subscribe to any magazines, but I buy about 10 woodworking and/or contstruction related magazines a year. Looking back at the projects that I have done that were based upon magazine articles, Wood magazine would be in first place, Shop Notes in second, and Popular Woodworking in third.
 
I used to get Wood, but have moved on to Fine Woodworking and do like to pickup a copy of ShopNotes every now and then. To me it would depend on where you are with your wood working skills and what your using them for. Years ago when I was remodeling a house it was Handyman that I looked at, but as I had time and was getting into Woodworking, Wood seemed to suit my needs as they had more tool reviews. More and more I like some of the down and dirty techniques that are in the more hands on magazines.

I guess I'd suggest going to the bookstore or library over the next month or two and see what magazine floats your boat.
 
I'm subscribed to Fine Furniture and Cabinet making (UK), and I've just got the 2007 DVD resumee of Fine Woodworking.

My feelings towards both of them and some others that I've seen is somewhat twofold.
On one hand I find them expensive related to the amount of useful information that one gets on each issue, specially because they are always too full of advertisements. Almost 50% of their pages is useless and on the rest is pretty evident that they strecht every article to get the most out of it and making it last for two or three issues and then issue a DVD and a book afterwards.

I know that publicity is their way of financiation but I think that they overdo it.

On the other hand there is always something of use or interesting that makes me think that's what I'm paying for or if it is worthwhile.:dunno:

My five cents
 
I'm with Charlie. It depends on what you're looking for, or interested in. I subscribe to several, Workbench being one of them. However, the mag has changed since I first started with them and will not renew. They'll have one article about a project, and the rest is how to fix up your house and ads. I also subscribe to Wood, Woodsmith, Shopnotes and Pop Woodworking. My favorite is probably WS w/SN being 2nd. I've built a number of jigs from SN and it comes in quite handy. I use the others for project ideas.
 
Talk about being in the minority:eek:. I subscribe to Popular Woodworking, Woodworkers Journal, Wood, FWW, Shop Notes, Woodsmith, American Woodworker, and a couple of free trade mags like Cabinet Maker. basically, anything I can get my hands on. Been that way for many years. I'm a charter subscriber of Wood and have every issue back to #1, Volume 1. My magazine collection occupies 4 8' long shelves in my home office. I save nearly all my magazines except for the freebies. I buy Workbench at the newsstand, but only if a particular article interests me.

I find something of value in every one of them. Some more than others, sometimes lots, sometimes not-so-much. I always get something from them and I enjoy reading about woodworking. The last 20 minutes of every day is spent reading about woodworking. Guess I'm just weird. :dunno:
 
I used to get Wood as a gift from my parents every year because my mom's students had a fundraiser selling mags. That stopped and so did my subscription because like others the content didn't appeal to me. That said I haven't thrown out any of them. I also have quite a few shopnotes, woodsmiths, workbench and others in the garage shop and also the "reading room".

IMO forums like this provide more help, inspiration and more importantly friendly conversations than any publication ever will....but like I said, I probably won't ever get rid of my mag's no matter what my wife says.:p
 
What is best for one isn't necessarily best for another. Could you be a bit more descriptive.

After reading that I realized I hadn't said which is my favorite. ShopNotes for sure...it shows how to make homemade tools. :D When my dad saw the one about making a lathe he got excited....then he became addicted to turning with me along for the ride. By far my favorite because of that. :)
 
Talk about being in the minority:eek:. I subscribe to Popular Woodworking, Woodworkers Journal, Wood, FWW, Shop Notes, Woodsmith, American Woodworker, and a couple of free trade mags like Cabinet Maker. basically, anything I can get my hands on.

I got your back, Rennie! :wave: Except for the free mags you mentioned, I subscribe to the same list, plus Woodcraft Magazine, Handy and Woodturning Design. Is it any wonder that, between reading mags and this forum, I rarely get anything made in my shop? :doh:


Guess I'm just weird. :dunno:

You and me Rennie ... you and me. :thumb:
 
I got your back, Rennie! :wave: Except for the free mags you mentioned, I subscribe to the same list, plus Woodcraft Magazine, Handy and Woodturning Design. Is it any wonder that, between reading mags and this forum, I rarely get anything made in my shop? :doh: :thumb:
:rofl::rofl::rofl:
Fortunately, I do the most of my reading in bed just before the lights go out. Not really prime shop time!:D

Now, about Woodcraft. Do you find it to be a good magazine? I've been thinking about adding it to my list.:eek::rofl:
 
I don't think there is one "best" magazine...I agree with the comment that it depends on your skill level and the kinds of things that interest you. A few years ago when I got back into woodworking in earnest, I subscribed to every woodworking rag I could find...and then started the elimination process. I prefer solid wood except when it makes sense to use plywood, so I dropped Wood because they build nearly everything from plywood. There was some router mag that was worthless...lasted a year. Workbench...well, somebody already said it. Woodsmith has project ideas that appeal to me, but I finally dropped it as well...same with Shop Notes. It finally came down to choosing a magazine because of the people. I have high regard for Christopher Schwartz (great craftsman, plus he can write) so I get Popular Woodworking. I also respect guys like Garrett Hack, Gary Rogowski, Ernie Conover, Yeung Chan and others who regularly appear in Fine Woodworking, so I get that. And that's it out of the 12 or 14 subscriptions I started with. I do wish FWW would drop their tool reviews, since they're usually not all that helpful, and in some cases misleading (although I'm sure not intentionally). Anyway, I'd suggest you try a similar approach. It seems like a lot of money for magazine subscriptions the first year (and it is!), but what should sift out of that is the one, two or three that seem to address best your areas of interest. It will also give you a perspective on all the repetition that exists across the magazine selections (ie, every Spring count on at least three articles on building an Adirondack chair). Keep sampling, though, because as your skill level and your interests change you may find better matches in the magazine world.
 
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