Last reviewed 16 Sept 2026 · 10 min read
Carpentry and joinery
- Carpentry — the structural use of timber: roof frames, floors, partitions, formwork, centering, scaffolding.
- Joinery — finer work involving accurate joints: doors, windows, cupboards, staircases, furniture, panelling.
Carpentry hand tools
Marking and measuring tools
| Tool | Use |
|---|---|
| Steel rule, folding rule, measuring tape | Measuring lengths |
| Try square | Marking and checking right angles and squareness |
| Mitre square | Marking and checking 45° angles |
| Sliding bevel (bevel square) | Setting and transferring any angle |
| Marking gauge | Marking lines parallel to an edge (single spur) |
| Mortise gauge | Marking two parallel lines at once (two spurs) — mortises and tenons |
| Cutting gauge | Marking across grain with a small blade |
| Marking knife, scriber, pencil | Precise lines |
| Straight edge, spirit level, plumb bob | Checking straightness, level and plumb |
| Dividers and trammels | Arcs and circles |
Cutting tools — saws
| Saw | Use |
|---|---|
| Rip saw | Cutting along the grain (teeth shaped like chisels) |
| Cross-cut saw | Cutting across the grain (knife-like teeth) |
| Panel saw | Lighter cross-cut saw for boards and plywood |
| Tenon (back) saw | Fine straight cuts for joints — stiffened back keeps the blade straight |
| Dovetail saw | Very fine back saw for small joints (dovetails) |
| Compass saw / keyhole saw | Curved cuts and internal cuts starting from a hole |
| Coping saw / fret saw | Intricate curved cuts in thin wood |
| Bow saw | Curved cuts in thicker wood |
Planing tools
| Plane | Use |
|---|---|
| Jack plane | General-purpose planing, rough surfaces to size |
| Trying (jointer) plane | Long plane for straightening edges and long surfaces |
| Smoothing plane | Short plane for final smooth finish |
| Rebate plane | Cutting rebates (recesses along edges) |
| Plough plane | Cutting grooves parallel to edges |
| Router plane | Levelling bottoms of grooves and housings |
| Block plane, bullnose plane, spokeshave | End grain, corners, curved edges |
Boring tools
Brace and bit (auger bits, centre bits, countersink bits), hand drill, gimlet (small holes for screws), bradawl (starting holes for nails and screws), auger (deep large holes), Forstner bits (flat-bottomed holes).
Chiselling tools
| Chisel | Use |
|---|---|
| Firmer chisel | General purpose — paring and light chopping |
| Bevelled-edge chisel | Fine work, dovetails and corners (bevelled sides reach into acute angles) |
| Mortise chisel | Heavy, thick blade for chopping mortises with a mallet |
| Paring chisel | Long thin chisel for fine paring by hand pressure |
| Gouges | Curved blades for grooves and hollows (firmer and scribing gouges) |
Striking, holding and other tools
- Striking: claw hammer (driving and pulling nails), Warrington (cross peen) hammer, wooden mallet (striking chisels), nail punch.
- Holding: carpenter's bench vice, G-clamps, sash (bar) clamps (gluing frames), bench hook, holdfast.
- Others: pincers (pulling nails), screwdrivers, rasps and files, scraper, sandpaper, oilstone (sharpening chisels and plane irons), saw set (setting teeth), triangular file (sharpening saws).
Power tools
Circular saw, jigsaw, band saw, table saw, power planer, router, electric drill, orbital sander, mortising machine, nail and staple guns.
Timber joints
Lengthening joints (increase length)
| Joint | Description / use |
|---|---|
| Lap joint | Ends of two pieces overlap and are bolted/nailed — rough work, scaffolding, temporary structures |
| Fished joint | Ends butted together and connected by fish plates (timber or steel) on both sides with bolts — beams and ties in tension or compression |
| Scarf joint | Ends tapered/splayed and overlapped to maintain the same cross-section, glued/bolted (plain, tabled, hooked scarfs) — neat lengthening of beams, rails and wall plates |
Widening joints (increase width)
| Joint | Description / use |
|---|---|
| Butt joint (rubbed/glued) | Square edges glued together — table tops, panels |
| Rebated joint | Edges rebated to overlap — floor boards, cladding |
| Tongue and groove joint | Tongue on one board fits groove on the next — floor boards, panelling; allows shrinkage without gaps showing |
| Dowelled joint | Wooden dowels glued into holes in both edges — table tops, furniture |
| Splayed joint, slip feather joint | Bevelled edges or a loose tongue (feather) |
Bearing and framing (angle) joints
| Joint | Description | Use |
|---|---|---|
| Mortise and tenon joint | A tenon (projection) on one member fits into a mortise (rectangular hole) in the other, glued and wedged or pinned; through, stub (blind), haunched, twin, barefaced and tusk tenons | Door and window frames and shutters, furniture, framing — the most common framing joint |
| Bridle joint | Open mortise (slot) on one member receives a reduced portion of the other | Frames, junctions of rafters, tables |
| Housing (dado / trenched) joint | End of one member fits into a groove (housing) cut across the other | Shelves, stair treads in strings |
| Halving (lap) joints | Half the thickness removed from each member so they overlap flush — cross halving, corner halving, T-halving, dovetail halving | Frames, crossing members, wall plates at corners |
| Dovetail joint | Fan-shaped dovetails interlock with pins — resists pulling apart; through dovetail, lap (half-blind) dovetail (drawer fronts), secret dovetail | Drawers, boxes, cabinet carcasses |
| Mitre joint | Ends cut at 45° (for a right angle) and joined, often with splines/dowels | Picture frames, architraves, mouldings |
| Birdsmouth joint | V-shaped notch in a rafter seating it on the wall plate or purlin | Rafters on wall plates |
| Notched joints | Members notched to sit over each other | Joists over beams, purlins |
| Cogged joint | Small cog on one member fits a notch in the other | Joists on wall plates (prevent sliding) |
| Tusk tenon joint | Tenon passes through the member and is secured by a wedge (tusk) | Trimmer and trimming joists in floors |
| Oblique mortise and tenon / bevelled joints | Inclined members | Struts, braces, rafters to tie beams |
Joints in timber roof trusses
- Principal rafter to tie beam — oblique (bridle/mortise and tenon) joint with bolts or straps (the joint resists the thrust).
- King post to tie beam — stub tenon with a stirrup/strap (king post hangs the tie beam).
- Struts to king post and rafters — oblique tenons or birdsmouth joints.
- Purlins on rafters — held by cleats.
- Rafters on wall plate — birdsmouth joints, spiked or strapped.