Ted's Woodworking Videos/ DVD's

[GordieWhooo]

Okay, I'm sure this is a loaded question....
Anyone purchased this set of DVD's / 16K plans?

Or ... just buy plans as I need them from wherever ...

I'm too much of a READ IT junkie..

Gordon

 

[MarkE]

I have heard that Ted's Plans are just a bunch of plans found on the internet gathered into one collection. I have also heard that there are some 'stolen' plans included, copyrighted material and such.

Not worth taking a chance, IMHO.

 

[Raymond]

Please don't waste your money on his junk - you will be terribly disappointed. My brother bought it years ago and he said he couldn't make heads nor tails out of most of the drawings - when I viewed what he was looking at - we discovered a lot of the plans are incomplete. If you are going to buy plans; then buy from a reputable source.

 

[Willemjm]

It's a big scam.

What are you planning to build, for which you need a plan? Perhaps the members here can help you out, with no charge.

 

[cyclopentadiene]

There are two sources that I have that are versatile for almost anything I want to build. The first was a special issue of fine woodworking magazine that has typical dimensions for almost any piece of furniture that you would ever want to build.

the second approach I use is that shaker style furniture is the most basic form of all furniture. I purchased a book several years ago at Ollies for $3.99 published by Fox Chapel entitled Shop drawings for craftsman furniture. This has most any piece you,would ever want to build with very detailed measurements.

It it really does not matter what style of furniture you build, a basic drawing, size and dimensions can be adapted. If I am building a new piece, I sketch it on paper and build key parts or design features using SYP from lowes. This provides a great way to see the design before I do a final build. I will generally tweak this design and make a pattern for curved pieces from MDF. I then wing it for the build. I generally build very few items that are square but if you notice my designs, the joinery is generally I the same spots as they would be in a shaker or mission style piece of furniture.

 

[Barry W]

. . .

the second approach I use is that shaker style furniture is the most basic form of all furniture. I purchased a book several years ago at Ollies for $3.99 published by Fox Chapel entitled Shop drawings for craftsman furniture. This has most any piece you,would ever want to build with very detailed measurements. . . .

.
I found this book and sevral subsequent editions tonight on Ebay.

 

[Jim M.]

Ted''s Woodworking has one of the worst reputations for stealing plans and selling worthless drawings. Spend a few more dollars and get some subscriptions to several Woodworking magazines. You find cool plans, tool reviews, resources and get inspiration with every issue.

 

[GordieWhooo]

Hi to all ...

Many, many thanks for your time and thoughts / advice !
Truth be known, since I'm still in the gee-whiz mode of learning, etc. etc. as a woodworking hopeful.
Plans that are really USEFUL and not a bunch of smoke and Bar Soap are what I'm looking for.
Let me back up and define here .. NOT a furniture builder at this point. Like to build (or attempt) useful jigs, work bench is high on the list, storage, etc. ... outfitting a small shop so to speak. Have purchased some tools .. power and hand. NO room for a table saw ... sigh.
Watch more YouTube that should be allowed by law ... read LOTS of woodworking magazines as indicated by some already .. thanks!
Bug the whiskers off the guys in Winston's Wood Working shop .. Kevin especially.
Oh, in case you're wondering ... the OWL and Book avatar ... Loong story on Scouts / WoodBadge and my Patrol emblem (Scout Leaders will understand) and my love of reading. AND >>>>> AND I'll be retiring at the end of July !!!
Thanks to all for your time. Breakfast anyone .. in August ??

Gordon

 

[cyclopentadiene]

Gordon

One recommendation that I can make is try to learn as much as possible from the participants of this site. There are some awesome woodworkers here and they are always willing to provide guidance and assistance.

The workshops that are held by members are awesome. I highly recommend signing up early for as many of these as you can possibly attend. These usually have a very small fee that covers the cost of materials, lunch etc. and a donation portion to NCWW. i have paid for classes that were several hundred dollars that are not as good as any of the NCWW workshops that I have attended. The other advantage is that you get to put a face with the names and posts that appear on the site and the opportunity to meet peers and mentors.

There are several opportunities for learning near Greensboro. The second Tuesday of each month, the Piedmont triad Woodturners Association meets at a community center near the airport (see PTWA.org for details). There is also,a woodworking program at RCC in downtown Reidsville. I have not taken any of the classes but have heard good things about them. I live in Elon and have taken classes at ACC as it is,close. The classes are good, the equipment is mediocre. If you are willing to take the challenge of 5 pm traffic on I40 to Raleigh, the NCSU craft center offers classes at a relatively low cost. Because they are part of the university, they spend a lot of time teaching. These classes are relatively basic but another advantage is you receive a studio pass. They have a large planer and a supermax sander. The cost of a course is not much more than the cost to have someone surface a wide slab or table top.

 

[marinosr]

I was wasting time at work reading The Onion, and I saw that the male model that plays Ted "Woody" McGrath is also the subject of an Onion headline today, and it also seems he's still wearing the same shirt...

[h=1]Area Dad Looking To Get Average Phone Call With Adult Son Down To 47.5 Seconds[/h]

 

[MarkE]

From the BBB:

[h=4]Business Alert[/h] Consumers allege that according to the website, they are purchasing a CD with over 16,000 blueprints for woodworking projects. In actuality, they receive a log in and password to download plans from a website. Upon downloading some of the files, consumers are immediately dissatisfied with the quality of the plans. Although the company's website states that they have a 60 day money back guarantee, consumers are unable to obtain a refund.

The BBB has been unable to contact the company regarding their complaints. The company does not provide an email address or phone number and the address listed on the company's website is invalid.

https://www.bbb.org/iowa/business-r...king-in-slater-ia-32038978/Alerts-and-Actions

 

[nn4jw]

There are many copies of Ted's plans being hawked via spam. All seemingly from different places, but the text of the emails looks almost the same in every case. Avoid this scam.

 

[Willemjm]

We did some calculations way back about Ted. We came to the conclusion that he makes more than $100k per year with his scam.

Part of democracy appears to be freedom to make money by selling snake oil.

 

[Graywolf]

Gordon,
please keep an eye out for class announcements on this site. And if your looking for some help with some projects we can help. Like Cyclopentadience stated there are several resources in the area that can get you started down a path. I'll be offering some group classes later this summer and I am available to teach one on one classes on occasion. Also, tablesaws are nice but not an absolute must to make furniture. As you gain skill you will find there is more than one way to skin a cat. And for the cat lovers out there myself included, I wouldn't do anything to hurt that little cat. By the way congratulations on making retirement, myself I'm working until lunch the day of my funeral.

 

[Richo B]

Is this Ted operation the same one where you get on their website and there is a video about the plans/DVD set that you can get at an amazing low price if you order immediately after watching the commercial. If you don't order it then you'll never have the opportunity to buy it again. Detailed plans that tell you all the information unlike so many other plans, or that is what it claims. I saw this once a couple years ago when I was looking for plans but I don't like to buy things that I'm pressured into buying especially by that kind of advertising strategy. Most of my projects have been based on plans I did myself in SketchUp or downloaded specifically like from Christopher Schwartz or Chad Stanton.

 

[Willemjm]

Is this Ted operation the same one where you get on their website and there is a video about the plans/DVD set that you can get at an amazing low price if you order immediately after watching the commercial. If you don't order it then you'll never have the opportunity to buy it again. Detailed plans that tell you all the information unlike so many other plans, or that is what it claims. I saw this once a couple years ago when I was looking for plans but I don't like to buy things that I'm pressured into buying especially by that kind of advertising strategy. Most of my projects have been based on plans I did myself in SketchUp or downloaded specifically like from Christopher Schwartz or Chad Stanton.

This guy is one of the greatest con-artists around. He has also become an expert in ranking first in any Google search filling up more than one search page under different names.

http://www.tedswoodworkingplansdeal.com/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gr8K-Q2Y6wA

I do all my own plans in Solidworks 3D using parametric part and assembly models. While it helps me to make no mistakes in the shop during a build, I have to admit that as I go along, I normally don't even stick to my own plans. Imagine me sticking to the drawings and ideas of someone else.

 

[Richo B]

Yep that's what I saw. Glad I didn't bite on that hook. Not that I would, they were plans for things like bird houses and bookshelves which are two of the most used and useless plans out there. Pinterest has plenty of plans.

 

[daletx]

There are two sources that I have that are versatile for almost anything I want to build. The first was a special issue of fine woodworking magazine that has typical dimensions for almost any piece of furniture that you would ever want to build.

Man, I gotta ask: what's the name of the special issue, and how far back was that? I wonder if those might be obtainable on ebay or somewhere.

I'm new here, and just moving to the area. Y'all will hear more from me, as things develop. ;-)