JC Wood Technology study plan

Draw and label a transverse section of a hardwood and a softwood (pith, heartwood, sapwood, cambium, phloem, bark) and state in one sentence the function of each part.

Describe the cell-wall layers (middle lamella, primary wall, S1, S2, S3) and explain how the high microfibril angle of the S2 layer governs longitudinal shrinkage and strength.

Contrast earlywood with latewood and ring-porous with diffuse-porous structure, and predict which of two named species will be denser and stiffer, giving the reason.

Calculate moisture content for three sample data sets using (wet mass minus oven-dry mass) divided by oven-dry mass, and convert the results to percentages.

Explain the fibre saturation point (about 28-30% MC) and equilibrium moisture content, and state why timber stops shrinking once it dries below fibre saturation.

Compare air drying with a kiln schedule and identify the drying faults case hardening, honeycomb, collapse and surface checking, stating the cause of each.

Calculate expected movement in a 200 mm flat-sawn board drying from 18% to 10% MC using a tangential shrinkage figure, and explain why quarter-sawn stock moves less across the width.

Classify twelve defects, including live and dead knot, shake, cup, bow, twist, waney edge and blue stain, as growth, seasoning or handling faults, and give one prevention measure for each.

Justify in writing why the terms hardwood and softwood describe botanical class rather than hardness, using one counter-example species of each.

Sketch and dimension a through dovetail, half-blind dovetail, stopped rebate, housing (dado) and mitre with spline, and state one furniture application for each.

State the mortise-and-tenon proportion rules (tenon thickness about one third of stock, shoulder and haunch sizing) and explain what a haunch prevents in a frame.

Describe good practice for dowel joints, including spacing, diameter against stock thickness, and why dowels need a reference face and edge.

Produce a cutting list with saw-kerf and planing allowance for a 600 x 400 x 300 mm carcass built from 18 mm board, showing rail, stile and panel sizes.

Sharpen a bevel-edge chisel and a plane iron through a grit sequence (rough stone to about 8000 grit), producing a 25-degree primary bevel with a 30-degree micro-bevel and a flat back.

Cut a through dovetail and a 40 mm mortise-and-tenon, marking out from a face side and face edge, and measure joint gap and squareness against a 0.5 mm tolerance.

Tune a bench plane by checking sole flatness, seating the chip breaker close to the edge and setting the cap iron, then test the setting on end grain.

Describe the safe stance, hand position and body movement for ripping and crosscutting with a handsaw, and state the storage and carrying rules for chisels.

Set up a table saw by adjusting blade height to tooth projection, aligning the riving knife and fence and checking the guard, and list three causes of kickback and the push-stick rule.

Set up a router table for a rebate and a bearing-guided template cut, and explain feed direction relative to cutter rotation for safe climb-free cutting.

Set up a planer-thicknesser, explaining snipe, knife projection, feed-roller pressure and the minimum safe stock length.

Write a short risk assessment for a circular saw and a router covering the hazards, who is at risk, existing controls and further action.

Compare the safe working envelope of the band saw, table saw and router table and state which PPE is required for each.

Build a material-selection matrix for three briefs (kitchen cabinet doors, an exterior bench, drawer runners), scoring stability, durability, machinability, finish and cost.

Draw a third-angle orthographic set (plan, front elevation, end elevation and a section) of a small cabinet with dimension lines, extension lines and a title block.

Apply datum and face-side conventions, and write tolerance notes stating how each critical dimension will be held to plus or minus 1 mm.

Interpret a tolerance and finish callout on a drawing and describe the sequence of operations that would meet it in the workshop.

Match five adhesives (D3 PVA, polyurethane, epoxy, urea-formaldehyde, contact adhesive) to five scenarios, justifying each with open time, water resistance, gap filling and clamping pressure.

Explain the abrasive grit sequence P80 to P240, distinguish stearated from non-stearated paper, and state why skipping a grit costs more finish work later.

Compare a film-forming finish (acid-catalyst lacquer, polyurethane, water-based acrylic) with an oil-wax finish on durability, sheen control, repairability and overcoating.

Describe preservative use classes UC1 to UC4 and the treatment methods pressure impregnation, double vacuum and dip, and state when treated timber is required.

Set out a dust and chemical control plan: local exhaust ventilation, extraction rating, RPE selection and face-fit, solvent vapour hazards and how to read a safety data sheet.

Compare FSC and PEFC chain-of-custody certification and describe legal-timber due diligence, explaining why certification alone does not guarantee legality.

Compare solid timber, plywood, MDF, particleboard, OSB and CLT on binder type, formaldehyde emission class, stability and best use.

Quantify the environmental case for timber against steel and concrete, covering embodied carbon, carbon sequestration and end-of-life reuse or recovery.

Complete a timed 90-minute mock paper covering all nine domains and mark it against the published domain weightings to produce a ranked list of weak areas.