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Waney

Sawed lumber with it's natural (bark) edge intact. Produced by flitch (through-and-through) sawing

Warp

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

Wash Coat

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

Waste

What is left over, the off-falls, the drop-offs, the parts you can't use. Waste Side is the side of the line to which you cut or work.

Water Stain

A clear, permanent aniline dye stain that uses water as its solvent. It will raise the grain of the wood because it uses water.

Water-Emulsion Varnish

Commonly called latex varnish, it is a water-based product that produces a varnish-like finish. The resins are emulsified in water much like they are in latex paint.

Wax

A fatty substance that may be animal, vegetable, or mineral in its origin. Beeswax is obtained from honeycombs. Paraffin wax is a petroleum product. Carnauba wax is from the Brazilian wax palm, and ceresin is a synthetic wax. Wax is used to polish and protect a finish. Some antique finishes use wax as the only protective coat.

Ways

The bed rails for a lathe.

Wedge

The piece of wood used to hold the iron in wooden plane in place to prevent the iron from slipping backward during use.

Wedge Mortise

In a wooden plane, the opening in the stock into which the iron and wedge fit.

Weft

In weaving a chair seat, the strands that are woven across the weft (from side rung to side rung) forming a pattern.

Western-Style Saw

A saw that cuts on the push stroke. Western-Style saws with thinner blades to make narrower kerfs are generally reinforce with a strip of metal on the spine and called back saws. See Japanese-Style saw.

Wet-or-Dry Sandpaper

Sandpaper that uses waterproof glue to attach the abrasive particles to a water-resistant paper backing.

Whetstones

Abrasive stones used to sharpen edge tools.

White Shellac

The most highly refined grade of shellac. It is bleached to remove all of the orange cast of the raw shellac.

Whitewood

Wood that has not yet been finished. Even if the natural color of the wood is quite dark it is called whitewood in this respect.

Winding

Wind=twist. An item which is out of wind should be able to sit on a perfectly flat surface without rocking.

Winding Rods

A pair of parallel strips of contrasting wood which are placed at each end of a surface. Sighting across the tops of the rods will reveal whether the surface is twisted or not.

Windsor chair

A chair form based on a solid wood seat, with independent leg and back support systems.

Witness Marks

These are marks put on boards or pieces to keep them in order during gluing, joining and assembly.

Wobble Dado Head

A single blade dado cutter where the blade is adjusted to wobble the width of the cut. Produces a slightly curved bottom.

Wood Butcher

A term no true craftsmen cares to be called.

Wood Putty

A doughy product used to fill nail holes and defects in wood.

Workbench

The most important tool in any hand-tool workshop. Generally taking the form of a table supported by legs, stretchers or a tool cabinet, work benches also are generally equipped with a variety of methods to support or hold a workpiece. These generally consist of one or more vices, and holes for bench dogs and holdfasts.

Working Life (Pot Life)

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

Wormholes

Holes and channels cut in wood by insects.

Wrap Around Hinge

A style of hinge where the plates of the hinge are formed around the back edge of the door and/or the face frame. A partial wrap around hinge will wrap around the door and have a plain flat leaf for the cabinet so it can be used on a frameless cabinet. A full back-to-back wrap around hinge with wrap around on both halves of the hinge so it can be used on a face frame cabinet.

Wrinkles

A finishing defect that occurs when the underlying finish dries more slowly than the top surface. This causes the top surface to have a wrinkled texture.

WTB

Wanted To Buy - oldtools list abbreviation.

WWS

The Woodwright's Shop. A woodworking television show on PBS, featuring Roy Underhill (former housewright at colonial Williamsburg) making things using old tools and techniques.

RD Glossary by Run Digital