Woodworking Training Course

Lesson 1 • Selecting and Purchasing Lumber

Guides students through lumber yards, board-foot calculation, and species selection for specific projects. Connects material knowledge to practical purchasing decisions.

Lesson 2 • Workshop Safety and Organisation

Establishes safe working habits, personal protective equipment use, and shop layout principles. Safety compliance underpins every hands-on activity in the course.

Lesson 3 • Measuring and Marking Techniques

Teaches precise measurement, layout, and marking using hand tools. Accuracy at this stage directly affects joint fit and finished dimensions throughout the course.

Lesson 1 • Hand Saws and Cutting Techniques

Covers rip saws, crosscut saws, and back saws for precise manual cutting. Proper grip, stance, and stroke mechanics reduce error and improve cut quality.

Lesson 2 • Hand Planes for Surface Preparation

Introduces bench planes for flattening, smoothing, and dimensioning stock. Plane setup and technique directly affect surface quality before finishing.

Lesson 3 • Layout and Marking Tools in Practice

Applies marking gauges, bevel gauges, and dividers to real layout tasks. Reinforces measurement skills from Chapter 1 in a tool-use context.

Lesson 4 • Sharpening and Tool Maintenance

Establishes a complete sharpening workflow for chisels, plane irons, and saws. Sharp tools are safer and produce cleaner results across all woodworking operations.

Lesson 1 • Router Fundamentals and Bit Selection

Teaches fixed-base and plunge router operation, bit types, and climb-cut awareness. Routers enable edge profiles, dadoes, and template work used in later projects.

Lesson 2 • Sanders and Surface Preparation Power Tools

Covers belt, random-orbit, and detail sanders for efficient stock removal and surface prep. Proper sanding sequence prepares surfaces for finishing introduced in Chapter 7.

Lesson 3 • Drill Press and Portable Drills

Covers accurate hole boring with a drill press and handheld drills using various bit types. Precise drilling supports joinery and hardware installation in later chapters.

Lesson 4 • Table Saw Operation and Safety

Covers blade selection, fence setup, and safe ripping and crosscutting procedures. The table saw is the most versatile and commonly used stationary tool in the shop.

Lesson 1 • Dado, Rabbet, and Groove Joints

Covers housing joints cut with a router or table saw dado stack for shelving and casework. These joints appear in nearly every furniture and cabinet project.

Lesson 2 • Box Joints and Mechanical Jigs

Introduces router-table and table-saw jigs for cutting uniform box joints. Jig-based joinery bridges hand-cut precision and production efficiency.

Lesson 3 • Dovetail Joints by Hand

Covers tails-first layout, sawing, and chopping for through and half-blind dovetails. Dovetails represent the highest standard of hand-cut joinery and drawer construction.

Lesson 4 • Butt Joints and Reinforcement Methods

Teaches the simplest joint form and how to reinforce it with dowels, biscuits, and pocket screws. Provides a baseline for understanding joint strength and glue surface area.

Lesson 1 • Bent Lamination Techniques

Teaches slicing thin strips and gluing them over a curved form to create stable bent parts. Lamination offers more control than steam bending for complex curves.

Lesson 2 • Steam Bending Principles and Setup

Covers steam box construction, species selection, and bending form design. Understanding wood plasticity under heat and moisture is the foundation of this chapter.

Lesson 3 • Spokeshave and Drawknife Work

Introduces edge tools for shaping curved and tapered surfaces by hand. These tools complement steam bending and lamination for refining organic shapes.

Lesson 1 • Tabletop and Leg Assembly

Teaches apron-and-leg joinery, tabletop attachment methods, and levelling. Tables require managing wood movement across wide panels joined to a rigid base.

Lesson 2 • Casework and Cabinet Carcass Assembly

Covers plywood and solid-wood carcass construction, squaring during glue-up, and back panel installation. Carcass skills apply to kitchen cabinets, bookcases, and storage units.

Lesson 3 • Frame-and-Panel Construction

Teaches grooved frames with floating panels to accommodate wood movement. This method is fundamental to cabinet doors, sides, and traditional furniture panels.

Lesson 4 • Door Hanging and Hardware Installation

Covers hinge mortising, door alignment, and installing catches and pulls. Proper hardware installation determines the functional quality of finished casework.

Lesson 1 • Shellac and Lacquer Application

Teaches brush-applied shellac and spray lacquer for faster film-building finishes. These finishes dry quickly and sand easily between coats for a smooth final surface.

Lesson 2 • Surface Preparation for Finishing

Covers final sanding, scraping, and grain raising before any finish is applied. Thorough prep is the single greatest factor in finish quality and adhesion.

Lesson 3 • Stains and Dyes for Colour

Teaches oil-based, water-based, and gel stain application for consistent colour. Colour control allows students to match existing pieces or achieve design intent.

Lesson 4 • Polyurethane and Water-Based Topcoats

Covers brush and wipe-on polyurethane and water-based finishes for durable protection. These topcoats are widely used for tabletops and high-wear surfaces.

Lesson 1 • Furniture Design Principles

Covers proportion, scale, visual weight, and style in furniture design. Design literacy allows students to create original pieces rather than copy existing plans.

Lesson 2 • Creating Shop Drawings and Cut Lists

Teaches orthographic drawing, dimensioning, and cut list generation for project planning. Accurate drawings prevent costly material errors during construction.

Lesson 3 • Capstone Project Planning and Execution

Guides students through selecting, planning, and completing an original furniture piece. The capstone synthesises every skill developed across all eight core chapters.

Lesson 4 • Troubleshooting Common Woodworking Problems

Addresses joint gaps, finish defects, warped panels, and misaligned assemblies with corrective strategies. Problem-solving skills distinguish competent craftspeople from beginners.