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Born in Budapest, Hungary, Sandor
Nagyszalanczy (pronounced Shawn-door Not-sa-lon-see) escaped with his family
during the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 and immigrated to America, eventually
ending up in Los Angeles, California in the early 1960s. After working as a
metal smith and sculptor, Sandor reset his sights on functional woodworking
after completing a degree in design at the University of California, Santa
Cruz. Sandor maintained a business as a craftsman/designer of high-quality
woodwork for ten years, creating custom furniture and cabinetry for both
residential and commercial clients. His work has been displayed in nearly two
dozen woodworking exhibitions on the west coast and has also appeared in
numerous publications, including The
Best of Wood Boxes (A. Blake; Popular
Woodworking Books). Sandor was recruited to join the editorial
staff at Fine Woodworking magazine in 1986.
During his six-and-one-half year tenure with the magazine, Sandor authored
nearly three dozen feature articles. Editorial work demanded extensive travel
in North America as well as occasional trips to Europe and Asia, where he
attended trade shows and visited woodworkers of all specialties to develop
articles and take photographs. Sandor worked as an editor on Taunton Press’ Design Book Four, Design Book Five, and Design Book Six. After leaving Fine Woodworking Magazine in 1993 as Senior Editor, Sandor returned to his home and
workshop in Santa Cruz, California to complete a major commission for the
Minneapolis Institute of Art replicating an important Prairie-style dining
set for the Purcell/Cutts House in Minneapolis, MN. He served as a
contributing editor for Fine Woodworking from 1993 to 1996 and West Coast Editor for American Woodworker magazine in 1997 and 1998. For the past 6 years, he has been a regular
contributor to Woodworker’s Journal magazine. In the past 13 years, Sandor has written
and photographed 13 books published by the Taunton Press: Woodshop Jigs and Fixtures, Fixing and Avoiding
Woodworking Mistakes, Woodshop Dust Control, The Wood Sanding Book, The Art of Fine Tools, Setting Up Shop, Power
Tools; An Electric Celebration and Grounded Guide, The New Woodshop Dust
Control Book, The Homeowner’s Ultimate Tool Guide, Tools Rare and Ingenious,
The New Built-In Ideas Book, Taunton’s Complete Illustrated Guide to
Jigs & Fixtures, and The Updated Setting Up Shop book (coming in winter 2007). He also authored Dust Collection and Control (2003, WMH Toolgroup). Sandor has served as photographer of Router Joinery Workshop (Lark Books), The
New Woodfinishing Book, Wood Finishing Fixes and Build Like a Pro: Painting & Finishing (Taunton Press). To date,
Sandor’s books and magazine articles have received eight Home Workshop
Writer’s Association/Vaughan Bushnell awards, including six consecutive
first-place “Golden Hammer” awards (2000-2006). Sandor has presented innumerous seminars
and workshops at woodworking shows & exhibitions, guilds and association
meetings around the country. He’s consulted on powertool design for several
major woodworking tool manufacturers. Sandor has judged several major woodworking exhibitions in the
U.S. and Canada, and served as an expert witness in two woodworking liability
cases. Sandor has appeared in two videos produced
by the Taunton Press, including Short
takes: Sliding Compound Miter Saws. He’s also appeared as
a tool expert on numerous television programs including: Peter Jennings World News Tonight (ABC Television Network); Modern Marvels: Hand Tools and Tool Box (The History Channel); Collectible Treasures (Home & Garden Television); DIY Tools & Techniques (DIY Channel); as well as on an
infomercial for The
Drill Doctor (various networks). |
