A machine designed to filter fine dust from the air in a workshop. A blower moves air past a series of filters to capture the airborne dust.

Lumber that was dried, usually outside, to an equilibrium moisture content with the air it was exposed to.

A design for a circular saw blade where four alternately beveled teeth are followed by a raker tooth to remove debris from the cut.

The layer of growth that a tree puts on in one year. The annual growth rings can be seen in the end grain of lumber.

A shaft, driven by the tool's motor that turns blades or other cutting tools.

A short rectangular saw with fine teeth and a rigid "spine" along the top of the blade. A backsaw is used for fine joinery work such as cutting dovetail joints. Also see Dozuki.

The outermost, protective layer, of a tree composed of dead cork and other elements.

A small rounded, raised profile, routed along the edge of a board.

A metal or wooden peg that fits into a hole in a workbench and is used to hold a work piece in place. The peg can be round or square and sometimes fitted with special springs to hold them in place.

An angled cut through a board.

A figure on wood, usually maple and a few other species. The figure is composed of many small BB size rounded areas resembling a birds eye. The figuring is most common on plain and rotary sawn lumber.

A butt joint that is reinforced with a football shaped "biscuit". The biscuits are usually made from compressed pieces of wood, usually birch. When a biscuit comes into contact with glue in the joint it swells creating a tighter joint. Also called a Plate Joint.

A special fitting designed to control the flow of air in a whole shop dust collection system. By opening the blast gate on a machine suction is allow to occur.

A form of wood measurement, where one board foot equals the volume of a board 1 inch thick, 12 inches wide, and 12 inches long.

A term in veneering, where successive pieces of veneer from a flitch are arranged side by side. A properly done book match will resemble a mirror image of the opposite side.

The hole for the arbor in a circular saw blade.

A defective piece of lumber that has warped along its length.

A corner joint made up of interlocking "fingers".

A small finishing nail up to 1" long.

Bulges and irregular growths that form on the trunks and roots of trees. Burls are highly sought after for the incredible veneer they yield.

A raised ridge of metal used on a scraper to remove wood.

A woodworking joint where the edges of two boards are placed against each other.

A leg used on Queen Anne furniture. The cabriole leg is characterized by graceful curves and a shape that resembles an animal leg.

The live, actively growing, layer of a tree. The cambium is one cell thick and resides between the sapwood and the phloem. It repeatedly divides itself to form new wood and causes the tree to grow and expand.

A beveled cut along the edge of a piece of furniture. (Usually 45 degrees)

The body of a piece of furniture with a box like shape. (i.e. a kitchen cabinet)

A defect in the lumber caused by improper drying. Case Hardening is caused when a board is dried too fast. The outer layers in a case hardened board are compressed while the inner layers are in tension.

The smallest, microscopic, structure in wood.

A lumber defect caused by uneven shrinking of the wood during drying. A checked board has splits which develop lengthwise across the growth rings.

A board which is free of defects.

A piece of sandpaper with a surface completely covered with abrasive particles. This type of paper tends to clog easily with sawdust and is generally not used for woodworking. See also - open coat

In a router, the sleeve that grips the shank of a bit.

Lumber with obvious defects.

An angled cut to both the edge and face of a board.

Reaction wood that forms on the lower side of a leaning softwood tree.

A cut made perpendicular to the grain of a board.

A defect in the lumber where the face of the board warps up like the letter U.

A rectangular channel cut partway into a board.

Trees that shed their foliage annually. Commonly referred to as hardwood.

An abnormality in a piece of lumber that lowers its strength and commercial value such as a check or knot.

The amount of sag in a shelf, floor, joist, or counter caused by the weight it's supporting.

A method of joining wood at corners by the use of interlocking pins and tails.

A cylindrical wooden pin that is used to reinforce a wood joint.

A cylindrical metal pin with a raised point that is inserted into a dowel hole and used to locate the exact center on a mating piece of wood.

A type of Japanese woodworking saw that is used for fine joinery work such as dovetails. Its Western equivalent is a back saw.

A device installed in a cabinet to limit the drawers travel.

Shaping the cutting edge of a chisel to correct the bevel.

The first part of the tree's rings to form after winter hibernation. Early wood is often characterized by larger cells and a lower density.

A straightedge that is used to guide tools, such as a circular saw or router, along a work piece.

Smoothing and squaring the edge of a board so that it can be glued up squarely to another piece.

In a dust collection system - a fitting used to turn corners.  

When the level of moisture in a board is equal to the moisture in the surrounding air.

In cabinetmaking a face frame is a flat frame attached to the front of a carcase. The face frame is used to conceal the exposed edges of the plywood panels used to build the carcase.

High quality veneer that is used for the exposed surfaces on plywood.

A piece of wood with thin "fingers" that hold a board against a fence or down against the table of a power tool, usually a table saw or router..

A straight guide used to keep a board a set distance from a blade or other cutters.

A decorative wood figure caused by wavy grain. Fiddle back veneer is prized for it's character and often used for musical instruments.

For dust collection - Accessories that are used to connect hoses, pipes, and tools within a dust collection system.

In softwoods, a method of sawing lumber where the log is cut tangential to the growth rings. Also called plain-sawn.

Moisture found in the cell cavities of wood.

The distance around a tree; the circumference.

A special interlocking grooved pattern that is used to join two pieces, edge to edge, securely.

The size, alignment, and color of wood fibers in a piece of lumber.

Freshly cut lumber that has not had time to dry.

A measure of the size of abrasive particles used in the manufacturing of sandpaper. Grit can also be measured as the number of particles in an square inch of sandpaper surface.

A dovetail joint where the cut does not go all of the way through the board. The ends of a half-blind dovetail are concealed. (see through dovetail joint)

A type of manufactured board similar to particle board but with a much smoother surface. A common brand of hardboard is Masonite.

In a sawmill, the large band saw or circular saw used to size the log into lumber.

The dead inner core of a tree. Usually much harder and darker than the newer wood. Also see sapwood.

In veneering, a hearing bone pattern is formed when successive layers of veneers are glued up so they form a mirror image. Usually this pattern slants upwards and outwards, like a herringbone.

The tendency of wood to absorb and excel moisture as humidity levels change.

The direction a work piece is fed into a blade or cutter.

A device used to make special cuts, guide a tool, or aid in woodworking operations.

The groove left in a board when cut by a saw blade.

When a work piece is thrown back, in the opposite direction the cutter is turning.

In lumber drying, a kiln is a room or building where temperature, moisture, and the amount of air circulating are controlled to dry wood.

Lumber that has been dried in a Kiln. (See Kiln)

A design feature that allows a piece of furniture to be easily disassembled by the use of special hardware or joinery.

A part of the tree where a branch has been overgrown by the tree and incorporated into its trunk.

A thin plastic materiel used to cover a board. The most common use of laminate is for counter and table tops. It is often referred to by the brand name Formica®.

The portion of a tree’s rings that forms after the early wood and is often characterized by smaller cells and a higher density.

A measurement of the length of a board.

Logs which have been sawn, planed, and cut to length.

Plywood where thin sheets of veneer are glued to a core of narrow boards. Lumber-core plywood differs from regular plywood in that regular plywood is made up of successive layers of alternating grain veneer.

A tool resembling a ruler with a handle at one end and a hood at the other which is used to calculate the board footage of a piece of lumber.

A special type of tempered hardboard characterized by a very fine, smooth finish. MDF is used in cabinet making.

A joint with two mitered surfaces connected by a Spline. (see Spline)

A tool that slides in a slot on a power tool such as a table saw, router table, band saw, etc. A miter gauge can be adjusted to different angles and is used to slide the stock past the blade.

A measure of the amount of water in a piece of lumber.

A rectangular hole cut into a piece of wood to accept a Tenon. (see Tenon)

A joinery technique where the Tenon from one board fits into the mortise of another.

The rough-sawn size of a piece of lumber. When purchasing planed lumber it is sold by its nominal, rough-sawn, size. For example a 2"x4" is the nominal size for a board whose actual dimension is 1.4" x 3.25".

A router bit without a guide bearing. (see piloted bit)

A decorative molding profile with a S shape.

Old, naturally established trees often characterized by dense straight grain and a lack of knots and defects.

A piece of sandpaper with abrasive particles that are spread out to prevent clogging. See also - closed coat.

The side of a power tool where the board exits. (see infeed)

The weight of a piece of lumber that has been dried, under high temperatures, in an oven until it is devoid of all water.

A type of manufactured plywood that is made from ground up and glued scrap wood. Particle board is very dense, heavy, and flat.

Plywood that is made by gluing a thin layer of veneer to a piece of particleboard.

The inner part of a tree's bark that delivers water and other nutrients.

A process that plants use to synthesize nutrients from water and minerals using sunlight.

A class or group of plants. Phylum is a botanical term used by botanists to classify plants.

A router bit fitted with a bearing above the cutter which rides on the edge of a board or template keeping the bit a fixed distance from the edge. (see Non-piloted bit)

A router that is fixed above a table with its bit point down. A pin in the table is aligned with the bit and used to route the work piece.

A pocket of resinous sap confined within the grain of many conifers.

The soft core in the center of a tree trunk.

A method of sawing lumber where the log is cut tangential to the growth rings. Also called flat-sawn when referring to softwoods.

A butt joint that is reinforced with a football shaped "biscuit". The biscuits are usually made from compressed pieces of wood, usually birch. When a biscuit comes into contact with glue in the joint it swells creating a tighter joint. Also called a Biscuit Joint.

A router mounted on a spring loaded base. The router can be turned on and plunged down into the work piece.

Wood with larger than normal pores and vessels

See Working Life

Small trees and saplings that will be ground to produce paper. Lumber farmers often over-plant their acreage and remove smaller trees for pulp as the crop matures.

A fine abrasive powder that is made from volcanic ash. Pumice is used with a a felt block in woodworking to rub out (polish) a finish. (Pumice is also the gritty additive in Lava soap.)

A tool used to safely push a board through a table saw or other power tool.

A method of cutting lumber where the annual rings are relatively perpendicular to the face of the board. Quarter-sawn lumber tends to be more dimensionally stable than other forms of lumber, such as plain-sawn.

A style of furniture that was first made popular in England during the rule of Queen Ann. It was used almost exclusively by early colonial cabinetmakers. The Cabriole Leg is one of the primary characteristics of the Queen Ann style.

A cut partway through the edge of a board that is used as a part of a joint.

Shrinkage in a piece of lumber that occurs across the growth rings as it begins to dry.

(1) A horizontal board that runs along the underside of a table.
(2) The horizontal part of a raised panel door.

A piece of wood that is the center of a frame and panel assembly.

A ribbon like figure caused by the strands of cells which extend across the grain in quarter sawn lumber.

Abnormal wood formed in a leaning tree, often characterized by a dense hard brittle grain and propensity to react irregularly to seasonal moisture changes. In hardwood trees, it forms on the upper side of the lean and is called tension wood. In softwood trees it forms on the lower side of the lean and is called compression wood.

A cut made parallel to the grain of a board. See - Crosscut (crosscutting)

Veneer which was cut from a log in one long sheet. Rotary cut veneer is cut from a log like a roll of paper towels.

Boards having attached bark on both edges.

A ball bearing rub collar near the top or bottom of a spindle shaper that is used to keep the work piece a fixed distance away from the cutters.

A joinery method used in drop leaf tables where the tabletop has a convex profile and the leaf has a concave cut. The two pieces are joined by a hinge.

The amount of wobble in a shaper or router.

The water in a tree which is rich in minerals and nutrients.

The new wood in a tree that lies between the bark and the Heartwood. Sapwood is usually lighter in color and becomes heartwood as the tree ages. Also see heartwood.

A woodworking joint that is made by cutting or notching two boards at an angle and then strapping, gluing, or bolting them together.

The process of removing the moisture from green wood to improve its workability and stability.

In softwood, lumber which has been graded strictly for its appearance. In hardwood, lumber which is one grade below first and second.

A broad flat piece of wood cut directly from the log, often with bark on both edges.

A sliding dovetail joint is similar to a tongue and groove joint except the tongue and grove are matching dovetails.

Generally lumber from a conifer such as pine or cedar. The name softwood does not refer to the density of the wood. There are some hardwoods, such as Balsa, which are softer than some softwoods, like Southern Yellow Pine.

A term referring to a board which has no or very few defects which will effect its strength.

The ratio of the weight of wood to an equal volume of water. The higher the specific gravity, the heavier the wood.

Plants that reproduce by seeds. This includes almost all plant species.

The threaded arbor on a shaper that holds the cutters.

A thin piece of wood that fits in the mating grooves cut into two pieces of wood.

A bead or drops of glue that are forced out of a joint when pressure is applied.

See Early wood

1) A discoloration in wood caused by a fungus or chemicals. 2) A die or pigment used to color wood.

A poorly bonded joint caused by lack of glue.

A thin wood strip that is inserted between stacks of green wood to allow air to flow through the stack to ensure proper drying..

The vertical part of a raised panel door.

See Latewood.

A piece of wood that has been planed smooth on one or more surfaces.

The way a piece of lumber has been prepared at the lumber mill.

The amount of time it takes for an adhesive to set-up before it can form a bond.

A piece of wood that has been cut so that it is wider on one edge than the other.

The tendency for a blade to splinter the last part of a piece of wood during crosscutting.

Dense fiberboard that has been specially treated to increase its durability, strength, density, and moisture resistance.

A pattern. Often a template is made of hardboard and used with a pilot bit to route a shape in a board.

A jig mounted to the bottom of a router that is used to keep the router on the profile of a template when routing with a non-pilot beating bit.

A protrusion from a board that fits into a matching mortise to form a joint.

Reaction wood that forms on the upper side of a leaning hardwood tree.

A method of joining wood where the interlocking pins and tails of the dovetail joint go through the side of its mating piece.

An indentation designed into the bottom of a cabinet to provide room to allow the user to stand closer to the countertop.

A joinery method where one board is cut with a protruding "groove" and a matching piece is cut with a matching groove along its edge.

The amount of force that is needed to turn an object such as a screw or bolt.

Warping in lumber where the ends twist in opposite directions. (Like twisting a towel)

A waterproof foam like substance that forms in the pores of some species of wood. The tyloses helps to make the wood less permeable to liquids. It is common in White Oak and makes the wood excellent for wine barrels.

A layer of plywood or other manufactured board used as a base material under finished flooring. Underlayment is often used as a substrate to increase the strength and/or smoothness of the flooring.

A thin sheet of wood cut from a log.

Plywood made from three or more pieces of veneer glued up in alternating grain patterns.

See old growth

A measurement of the thickness of a liquid.

A defect in lumber characterized by a bending in one or more directions.

Typically uses as the first coat of a finish. The wash coat is used to change the appearance or porosity of a surface.

The amount of time after mixing that a glue or paint remains usable. Often used when referring to two-part epoxy and polyester glues.

Holes and channels cut in wood by insects.

The drafting symbol for a cross section of an object.

The cellular tissue inside a tree's bark - often called wood.

(Sorry, no definitions available)

(Sorry, no definitions available)