Q 01/05

Which joint, prized for resisting being pulled apart, classically attaches a drawer front to its sides?

A) Dovetail

B) Mortise and tenon

C) Finger joint

D) Lap joint

Answer · why

A) Dovetail

Dovetail joints use interlocking trapezoidal pins and tails that cannot be pulled apart along the drawer's length, so once glued the drawer front need...

Q 02/05

In the classic joint where a projecting tongue fits into a matching hole, what is the hole called?

A) The tenon

B) The shoulder

C) The mortise

D) The haunch

Answer · why

C) The mortise

The mortise is the hole and the tenon the tongue that fits it; one of the earliest known examples, about 7,000 years old, comes from the Hemudu cultur...

Q 03/05

Wood from flowering, broad-leaved trees is called what?

A) Softwood

B) Heartwood

C) Sapwood

D) Hardwood

Answer · why

D) Hardwood

The label is botanical, not about hardness: balsa is a hardwood softer than most softwoods, while yew and Douglas fir are softwoods harder than many h...

Q 04/05

In woodworking, what does the term 'kerf' refer to?

A) The slot cut by a saw blade

B) A wedge driven into a tenon

C) A loose knot in a board

D) The shavings left by a plane

Answer · why

A) The slot cut by a saw blade

The slot cut by a saw blade is the kerf; its width depends on the set of the teeth, so a careful cut is laid out to the waste side of the line.

Q 05/05

Which Caribbean wood, so dense it sinks, is used for 'heavy' cricket bails and bearings?

A) Ebony from Gabon

B) Lignum vitae

C) Burmese teak

D) Cuban mahogany

Answer · why

B) Lignum vitae

Lignum vitae, from the Guaiacum genus, is the national tree of the Bahamas and the national flower of Jamaica; its self-lubricating resin made it the ...