He must also manage to obtain a carpenter's-bench, which he cannot very well do without, and then he may begin carpentering with expedition.
USES OF THE VARIOUS TOOLS.
The Saw.—Before a saw can be used after it is purchased, it generally has to be "set," as it is termed; that is, its teeth are to be sharpened and placed a little outwards from the plane of its length. There are several kinds of saws, namely, the common hand-saw, the key-hole saw, and the small-toothed saw. The first is to cut planks and thick pieces of wood; the second is to cut holes in planks or boards; the third is to cut small pieces of wood, or those that require to be very nicely divided.
The Plane.—The plane is used to smooth boards with. There are several kinds of planes. The long plane and the short plane are the principal ones. Within the plane is the knife, which is fastened in by a knock of the hammer on the wedge inside, which is made so as to fix the edged knife at any distance from the bottom of the plane, either for thin or thick shaving. A very little direction from the carpenter will enable the young carpenter to fix his knife properly; and a knock on the end of the plane with a hammer will loosen it in a moment. The knife should be sharpened from time to time on the stone or hone. This should be done with great care, so as to preserve a proper angle at the edge and great evenness in every part, otherwise, the planing will be very imperfect.
In planing, the wood to be planed is either laid flat on the bench, with its end against the little pin, to prevent its moving, or fixed in the screw of the bench, and the plane being brought upon the top or edge of the wood, is pushed carefully, but somewhat sharply along. The shaving comes through the hole in the plane, and must be cleared away, from time to time, out of the way of the knife. Everything planed should be planed perfectly level, smooth, and even.
The Chisel.—The use of the chisel is to cut square or sharp-cornered holes in wood, especially mortices. A mortice is the hole cut in a post or other piece of wood, in which another piece of wood cut to fit it, called a tenon, is put. The tenon and mortice should both be cut exactly, and so that they fit at right angles, firmly and securely. Tenons and mortices are of perpetual use in carpentering, and the young carpenter should learn as quickly as possible to make them.
The Mallet is to be used instead of the hammer for a variety of purposes. In cutting mortices, it is the mallet and not the hammer that is used, and in almost all cases where the chisel is employed, the mallet should be used. Were we to use a hammer to knock the end of the chisel, we should soon split its handle, or so bruise it, as to make it unservicable.
The Gimlet and Bradawl.—The gimlet is used to bore awls with, so that nails when they are driven in may not split the wood. Bradawls are used for the same purpose, before smaller nails, called brads, are put in. A bradawl is sometimes called a nail-piercer. There is a thread gimlet now come into use, but this requires much care in handling: it must be very gently put in, and very gently taken out, or it will snap like a piece of glass; but it is a very useful tool, and is a great improvement upon the old gimlet.
Pincers and Plyers.—Pincers are used to take loose nails out of wood, to wrench off staples, or other things that have been attached to wood. Plyers are a smaller kind of pincers, and are used for small work in the same way. They are very useful tools, and it is impossible to do without them.