A Framing Guide and Steel Square (Revised Edition)

A Framing Guide and Steel Square
by D. L. Sigmon — Revised Edition
First Printing from Sigmon Heritage Press

Originally compiled by D. L. Sigmon, a North Carolina woodworker trained in the quiet, disciplined craft traditions of the Catawba Valley, A Framing Guide and Steel Square served for decades as a practical reference passed hand-to-hand within the Sigmon family. It was never widely circulated. It lived mostly in workshops, tool chests, and family shelves — a working document meant for real use, not commercial distribution.

This Revised Edition is the first time the text has been carefully prepared for a broader audience. Developed from surviving copies, notes, oral accounts, and preserved tools, the revised version restores the original clarity while adding structure and context for today’s builders. The result is a compact, durable reference that presents a century of lived craft practice with respect and precision.

More than a manual, this edition stands as a heritage object — a record of a regional woodworking lineage that persisted outside institutions and trends, grounded instead in repetition, accuracy, and modest, reliable work.

A Collector’s Edition of a Working Tradition

Designed for both use and preservation, this edition reflects the real methods the Sigmons relied on throughout the 20th century. It documents the proportions, measurements, habits, and tool relationships that defined their approach to making strong, simple wooden frames with the aid of the steel square.

Inside you’ll find:

• D. L. Sigmon’s original framing instructions, prepared for modern readability
• Detailed use of the steel square as a framing and measuring instrument
• Updated diagrams, proportion tables, and workflow notes
• Historical photographs and drawings from the Sigmon family archives
• A restored framing sequence that reflects a century of practice

Specifications

• Hardcover, perfect-bound
• 312 pages
• 3 ⅝ × 5 ⅝ in. format
• Revised Edition, 2025
• First printing from Sigmon Heritage Press
• Printed in small batches in the United States
  

About Sigmon Heritage Press

Sigmon Heritage Press publishes and preserves the practical knowledge carried through the Sigmon family of North Carolina — woodworking, framing, hand-tool methods, and regional craft traditions that endured through lived practice rather than formal instruction.

Shipping & Availability

• Ships worldwide
• U.S. orders ship from North Carolina
• First-printing quantities are limited