Workshop Day 2

Today we moved onto some more complex joints including housing and bridal joints. A bit trickier and sometimes frustrating, but I'm getting more confident with what I am doing and really enjoying it.

I'm starting to get better at the problem solving part of this, when things aren't coming together quite square or flush, working out which part to adjust and how to adjust it to make it work.

The picture above is an example of a through bridal joint which we did today.

Workshop Day 1

Great to be in the workshop after 3 days on the computers. Today we worked on the different joints, using hand tools and practicing our hand skills. Here are the steps involved for one of the joints we did:

1. Collect timber and plan.
2. Choose face side and edge and mark.
3. Mark out the joint on the timber according to the plan.
4. Cut (or chisel) out joint.
5. Fit and and adjust if neccessary.


Tools Used:

• Tenon saw


• Chisel


• Hammer


• Dove tail saw (for dove tail joint)


• Vice

Safety Equipment:

• Clear safety glasses


• Long trousers


• Steel capped boots

Safe work practices followed:

• Keep the floor clear of offcuts to avoid tripping hazards.


• Chisel away from the self and keep two hands on the chisel.

Some hand tool techniques to remember:

• Use long saw strokes


• When cutting timber down vertically, angle in vice so you can see two lines then reverse. See picture below.

What we did today

The focus of today was to set up and familiarize ourselves with email and blogging. Throughout the course the idea is to use these tools for communication between teachers and students and to log our activities and share ideas and information. The activities we did and logged were directly relevant to our work and studies (ie. attributes employers look for in a new apprentice and working in a team). We also had a quick math sesion which I found quite helpful, and looked at learning styles and effective communication.

Team Work

We defined teamwork as working together towards a common gaol. We decided on some guidelines an effective team should follow:

• co-operation and agreement on all decisions


• respect and listen to each other


• each team member must contribute

The Challenge

Our challenge was to work together to create a structure from straw and tape stong enough to hold a six pack of 400ml water bottles.

First we agreed upon a simple design and then began the construction. While we all worked together reasonablly effectively, there could have been more communication when it came to allocation of tasks.

What Employers Want?

Based on three interviews with employers of apprentices in Perth.

Steve Cook
Looking for apprentices with a desire or passion for a particular job, not just people who want a job just for Jobs sake. He wants apprentices that are willing to learn, understand the cost of training to the company and puts in appropriate effort to meet labor costs.

Ray Hall
Places value on knowledge of maths, drawing and experience in the trade. Adequate school marks in areas relevant to the trade is important as is politeness and puctuality.

Rod Slater
Wants people who are commited to strengthening weaknesses through further education. He also believes an apprentice should have respect for both themselves and the employer and who are honest about mistakes.

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