Geoff's Woodwork

for Students of Woodwork                                          

Learn how to set out your project and reduce error!

Woodworking, cabinet making, foundation carpentry and joinery articles :    all downloadable !

Foundation Subjects

Planning starting with the "Brief" followed by Preparation then Setting Out is probably the most important part of any project.   Preparation includes a talk on when to use machinery and when we use the hand tools.

The following papers should be carefully read and followed no matter how simple the task appears to be.  It is appropriate to joiners and cabinet makers alike.  If you don't get the preparation and setting out correct you will find errors and omissions creeping into your work.  Take time and get it right it will pay you great dividends............

Nearly every time I am approached to help because of difficulties it is attributable to faulty setting out or incorrect order of operation!  Think it out well first.   If you change your mind because of a difficulties you must also change the drawing and re-consider the concepts of design.

The processes of cabinet making

The Brief  ~  preparing your project

Hand crafted versus machinery

Order of work *  what do we do next ?

Preparation *   we start with the rough sawn board

The Mortise and Tenon joint  * 

Basic setting out 1 *  dimensions & joints

Basic setting out 2 *  using the mortise gauge

The Cutting List *    the materials for the project

Carcase ~ construction techniques

The Cuttings plan ~  economical cutting out

Orthographic ~ FAP drawing lay out

The Rod  *   dimensions,  shapes, bevels and  curves

Dovetails ~ Setting out ~ general  ~ now with Sequence of operations 

Problem solving ~  flow chart 

Dovetails ~ Setting out ~ drawers

How to do it  ~   by   Stanley Tools

Dovetails  ~  dealing with grooves and rebates with   dovetailed corners

Timber Technology subjects:
adhesives, abrasives, Timber Growth, Conversions, Defects, Costing, etc

You need a copy of Adobe Acrobat Reader at least Version 4.0 on your system to read PDF downloads.   You may down load it from the following link:

Acrobat Help file which may give you some good tips to navigate my pdf files.

File won't open?   Sometimes especially if you have opened a number of pdf Acrobat files you get an error and the latest pdf file wont open   This is because good old Windows has not closed the previous one.  If you press Cont/Alt/Delete together and get the taskmaster, highlight Acrobat and press End Task.   It might take a little time for this to happen and you must repeat it for multiple entries.