Varnish.—See Finishing.
Veining-Tool.—See Carving-Tools.
Vise.—See page 65. For vise for metal-work, see page 70.
Warping, To Remove.—Of course the simplest way to straighten a warped board is to put a weight on it, but the difficulty here is that it usually will stay straight only while the weight is on it, unless you leave it longer than the patience of the average amateur lasts. To do this (or to warp a straight board either) with some chance of success, (1) heat one side, or (2) wet one side, or (3) wet one side and heat the other, or (4) wet both sides and expose one to the fire (Fig. 687). But do not be too sure that the result will be lasting. Sometimes it will and sometimes not. Another way is to thoroughly soak the board, press it into shape between clamps or under a weight, and leave it until dry; a week or more is none too long, and boiling water is better than cold. Simply laying a board down on a flat surface will often cause it to warp, because the two sides of the board will be unequally exposed to the action of the atmosphere. Planing off one side only, or planing one side more than the other, often produces the same effect. See pages 50-53 and [Appendix].
Fig. 687.
Wedges.—Wedges are in constant use for lifting or separating heavy bodies, as doubtless you know, and the principle of the wedge comes in in using the axe, hatchet, chisel, knife, and the other edge-tools (see page 25). Besides this use of the wedge you will often find it valuable to tighten or clamp objects of various kinds, or to hold them firmly in place.
If you wish to split objects or tear them apart, use a single wedge, for the increasing thickness of the wedge applied at one point tears or splits the wood apart. But if you merely wish to squeeze, or press, or hold firmly, or move, without damaging the shape of the wood, use double wedges,—that is, two wedges having the same inclination or taper and pointing opposite ways. You will see that the sides of the double wedge (that is, the outsides of the wedges) will be parallel no matter how hard you drive the separate wedges, so that the pressure will be exerted without injuring or jamming the surfaces against which the wedge bears (see Fig. 333). Short, flaring wedges do the work more quickly, but require harder blows to drive, and are more liable to slip. Long, tapering wedges work more slowly, more easily, and are not liable to slip. You will also use wedging to secure tenons and dowels (see Mortising, etc.).
Whittling.—See Knife.
Winding-Sticks.—Two straight-edges, each of equal width throughout, can be laid on edge, one across each end of the surface to be tested. Stand back a little and look across the top edge of one to the top edge of the other, and if these edges agree you may know at once that there is no winding where you have placed the straight-edges (Fig. 688). By putting them in different positions you can finally determine whether the whole surface is true or not.