Fig. 39.
There is no necessity for illustrating the planes used for beading and moulding after the description already given of others. The irons, instead of being flat, are filed into grooves and hollows of the required pattern, and of course transfer their own form to the wood upon which they are used. They are held on the slope of the moulding to be cut. When blunt, they have to be sharpened with slips of oilstone, which can be had for the purpose, of square and round section; sometimes they are sufficiently soft to be filed into shape, but a keen edge cannot thus be obtained. Mouldings, however, are generally finished off with fine sandpaper. They are always planed lengthwise of the grain in long strips, and are cut to the required lengths (generally with mitres). When very broad, they are made up of several narrower ones, glued side by side. The young mechanic had better get them cut for him by some friendly carpenter, as it is hardly worth his while to buy planes for which he will have comparatively little use.
I shall conclude these papers on carpentry by describing the method of making such a door as would suit the cabinet already described, especially as it will explain the way in which all panelling is done, whether for doors, shutters, or other similar articles. Panelling is indeed of very general application in every household, and it is well worth while even for the young mechanic to learn how it is accomplished. It is absolutely necessary, however, that he should be possessed either of a plough or match-planes for routing out the grooves in which the panels slide.
Nearly all panels have a beading or a moulding running round them as a finish.
Fig. 40.
Fig. 40 illustrates the method of panelling. A, B, C are the styles, D, E, F, G the rails. The mortices and tenons are cut as usual. The inside edges of C, B, D, G are then grooved with the plough, and both edges of the other pieces. The panels are carefully squared up, and then bevelled off at the edges so as to fit the grooves. To put such a door together, A, D, G, E, and F would be first arranged, then the panels slid in from the outside, and afterwards the styles B and C put in place. The part beyond the outer mortices in the latter pieces, which are left for safety in cutting these mortices, and to prevent splitting when D and G are driven home, are not cut off until the glue is dry. The process is simple, but it requires great care, both in setting out the various measurements, and in squaring up the different pieces composing the whole. After the whole is dry, strips of moulding, cut to mitre-joints at the corners, are nailed on with brads round the panels to give the whole a finished appearance.
In the above examples, in which I have gone from the more simple to the more complicated, are comprised the main principles of the art of carpentry. At any rate, when the young mechanic can do as much, he will be able to accomplish a great deal more.
