The accompanying form indicates clearly what is expected of the boys in figuring their cost of material. Since these costs are figured before the articles are made in wood, no account is taken of material wasted. With a carefully planned course of projects and an instructor who knows the possibilities of requiring a boy to reduce the size of his piece when one member has been reduced under size there is very little use for extra stock. As a rule what stock is so returned can be used for other smaller parts. If a boy is unnecessarily wasteful, he should be required to figure extra stock. This is to be done only in justice to the other boys, not as a check to the wasteful boy. Such boys, as a rule rather glory in their wastefulness. The best check for such a boy is to require him to use his original stock, reducing the sizes of all affected pieces as may be necessary.
As this is, in all probability, the first problem in which the boys deal with approximate rather than mathematically exact results, the instructor should not become discouraged with their first attempts. No better opportunity exists for introducing the boys to problems such as will confront them after they leave school. The instructor will do well to check the boys’ results by means of his own previously figured results after the boys are all thru their figuring. There is a difference between figuring for an answer previously given and figuring as they must after leaving school.
In order for the boy to figure his bills he must have a Price List. A form for a price list such as is needed for the materials that are to be used in “Projects in Beginning Woodwork and Mechanical Drawing” is appended. The prices given are neither retail nor wholesale but about midway between what the boy would have to pay for his stock bought in the limited quantity he needs and the cost to the school in quantity lots. Only the best of lumber is used. Money might be saved by buying short lengths but none is saved by buying “cull” stock with the expectation of cutting out the defects. The prices are for Chicago, 1911-1912, and are inserted for comparison only. On lumber, 15 to 25 per cent has been added for waste in cutting up. Since all of the stock used in the grades is in board form, wood finish is figured only for the two broad surfaces. The price will be found sufficient to cover the material used on edges. The price will also cover such waste as ordinarily comes thru the inexperienced handling on the part of the boys—they will not “spread out” the materials to as good advantage as will a mechanic, of course.
(Form, reverse side of a Stock Bill)
ESTIMATE OF COST OF MATERIAL
| 2 | square feet of 3⁄4 inch stock @ 7c | $ | .14 |
| 3⁄10 | square ft. of 3⁄8 inch stock @ 5c | .02 | |
| 4 | 1 inch, No. 10, flat head, bright screws @ 1⁄4c | .01 | |
| 5 | square feet of finish @ 1c | .05 | |
| $ | .22 |
INSTRUCTIONS
Base your lumber estimate on the Cutting Sizes. All prices of lumber in your Price List are per square foot, therefore your stock should be figured by surface measure, only width, length, and number of pieces being considered.
Fractions of an inch and fractions of a cent are not considered, except in the price per foot, and in the number of feet as noted in the next paragraph. If the fraction is 1⁄2 or over, use the next higher whole number; thus, 21⁄2 or 23⁄4 becomes 3. If the fraction is less than 1⁄2, drop it; thus, 21⁄4 becomes 2.
In figuring, find the number of square inches in all pieces that are the same in price per foot. Reduce this to square feet by dividing by 144. Reduce it decimally and do not carry the result beyond tenths place. Dispose of any fractional figures beyond tenths as directed above. Always write your decimal as a fractional form in the bill—otherwise a decimal point might be overlooked and the result be greatly changed. In the form above note that .3 is written 3⁄10.