Sunday

Ted's WoodWorking Review - An Honest Customer Opinion

I was at first very skeptical of Ted's Woodworking but then I changed my mind.
Here's why.

My name is Ryan Riley and I am a woodwork hobbyist, just like you, and I spend some time on the internet every week reading up on my favorite hobby.
Over the past few months I have been constantly bombarded with ads which promote downloadable woodworking plans.  I was very attracted to the plans on offer as I find the hardest and most time consuming part of  my woodworking is the actual design stage of my projects.  I much prefer the "hands-on" stuff.  So at first, I was very excited by, but at the same time very skeptical about what these ads were offering. But in the end curiosity got the better of me and I decided that I would purchase these plans so that I could delve in and see what all the fuss was about.  One of the sets of wood project plans was from  a woodworker named Ted McGrath. And on his website he promised me 16,000 woodworking project plans and some bonuses.  Now after a bit of online searching I had heard quite a lot of bad things about Ted's woodworking and was a bit apprehensive about buying.  The offer seemed a bit too good to be true but the way I was going to find out was, of course, to purchase them.  Which I did. I haven't looked back since.

The video below will show you what you will get when you purchase Ted's woodworking plans.  I go through each aspect of the product and give you my honest opinion.   I am very thorough with my analysis so if you do not have 45 minutes to spare then please enjoy my written review which is beneath the video.



I went and bought the deluxe version of Ted's woodworking plans ($67) and although the product did have some downfalls I was largely pleased with the quality of the product and also of the bonuses that were delivered.  
Below is my personal review.  I hope this review will help you come to a decision as to whether buying these woodwork plans is right for you and your woodworking hobby.
Introduction
If you have looked at the Ted’s woodworking website and are considering purchasing Ted’s woodworking plans then please read this review before you purchase.  I have purchased the deluxe plans package and I will provide you with what I think is an accurate description and personal opinion of the product offered by Ted McGrath.  I also have created a video, just for visitors of this blog, where I show you exactly what lies in wait for you after you make the plunge and purchase Ted’s Wood Working.

First of all, I would like to say I was pleased overall with the quality of the plans provided by Ted McGrath.  All the plans were well detailed although some were more detailed than others.  But at least each plan was complete.
Most of the bonuses were good but some of the bonuses I felt weren’t quite up to scratch.  I will go through them one by one towards the end of this blog post.
When you fill in your billing details located here you will be then issued a membership number and a password login which brings you into a section of Ted's website where you can access all the plans.  Ted then offers you to upgrade to the "Deluxe Edition" (for an extra $37).  The "Deluxe Edition" is basically some extra plans and software.  


Ted also offers you the opportunity to purchase a DVD which contains all the plans available in the member's area.  The DVD costs an extra $20 (inclusive of worldwide shipping) but if you do not feel like manually downloading all the plans (which does take quite a bit of time :/) this might be the option for you.  I didn't bother though.

Break Down of the bonuses

Ted’s Bonus #1 DWG/CAD Software
Basically this software that allows you to view and edit CAD files.  It is quite good and if you have experience with software and you are kind of technically savvy then you will not have any problem using this software.  Although I feel that a lot of folks may have difficulty using the software which is why I have created a special bonus for you guys if you visit Ted’s website via any link on this page and make your purchase.  I will them email you the videos and ebook.  Only visitors of this blog can avail of this unique opportunity.
I would give this bonus 3.5 out of 5.  I would have it "4" but the software isn't all that user friendly

Ted’s Bonus #2 150 Videos Members Area
The videos collection is quite a handy resource which does provide many “how to” woodworking videos.  I think the majority of these videos are hosted on YouTube and other video sharing websites.  So these are already available on the web!  I have not watched each individual video but the ones I have seen are good, packed with lots of tips, and I guess it is handy to have them all located in the same place.  The videos are organized in order of the type of wooden object being made in the video e.g. cabinets, bookcases, tables etc.
I am going to give this bonus 3 out of 5

Ted’s Bonus #3 How to Start a Woodworking Business
This 20 page e-book does contain good information but at the same time it is kind of common sense knowledge that most people would know already.  The book goes through the main areas needed to start a woodworking business like tools needed, where to find places to sell your self-made items, how to evaluate your competitors and how you can get them to work with you. The concluding chapter of the book discusses some other important factors you may need to consider when staring up a wood working business.
To be honest I think the book was thrown together at the last minute and even though the information in the book is good I think Ted could have provided more information and more resources.  Information concerning the legal obligations of the woodworker who wishes to sell his products should have been covered and also maybe things like the tax information.  It does tell you about business licenses but just tells you that you need one, lol.
I would give this bonus 2 out of 5.

Ted’s Bonus #4 Complete Woodworking Guides
This bonus is a series of ebooks which gives you tips and advice on how to work well with wood.  Some of the topics covered include sawing techniques and how to finish your wooden projects i.e. what finishes are suitable for what kind of finishes are suitable for different projects.
I would this woodworking guide bonus 3 out of 5.

WoodWorkingPlansReviewed.blogspot.com  BONUS!!!
When I decided to write a review for this product I thought of the ways in which I could make it a much better deal for my blog readers.  I feel the Ted’s woodworking product is good on its own and fantastic value for $67.  But I thought if I could “fill in the gaps” of the product then this would make it an altogether better product.
So I have made an ebook and a series of tutorial videos which will teach you how to successfully install and use the CAD/DWG viewer software (It’s kind of tricky).  I really want you to get the most out of your purchase and I feel you may be put off using the software if you are unsure as of how to start using it.  So I have gone through all that “annoyance” for you and made videos and wrote an ebook.
Now this offer is only available to the readers of this blog and it doesn’t matter if you are new to this site or if you have been following it for a while.
If you wish to purchase Teds Wood Working and you want to avail of my special bonus then you must visit Teds Wood Working from any of the links on this site then and make the purchase.
When you purchase Ted’s Wood Working you will be issued a receipt number.  If you send me this receipt number I can verify that you did purchase TWW from this site and then I will email you a download link where you can download my videos and ebook.


Final Word


I am sure that you stumbled upon my blog because you were unsure as to whether "Ted's woodworking" was right for you.  I mean any successful woodworking project relies on a good plan and if you are the sort of person that doesn't want to spend time designing projects then I would definitely recommend Ted's WoodWorking plans for you!  The product does have its flaws but then so does every product you buy.  If you eager to start turning out beautiful wooden projects, one after another then these are the plans for you.  I am not telling you to buy these plans but if you are looking for a library full of decent plans then I would urge you to at least consider buying them.


Feel free to comment on this blog post if you have any questions and I WILL answer each one!
Happy WoodWorking,


Ryan Riley

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