I found the antique hammer that is on top in an old abandoned adobe hut over here in Iraq. It is probably over a hundred of years old. There are swaging and forging marks on the claws and the side of the face. A master blacksmith made this hammer for it is balanced and equal. It could have been made in a number of different countries. They manufacture hardly anything here in Iraq except people. We have a lot of them around. The other hammer is a 10oz Vaughan hammer my wife sent me to use over here and you can tell I am not doing a lot of framing over here. I usually only drive nails in a wall to hang something on. I have an old handsaw made by Henry Disston himself, "and sons" is not on the label, only him, made in the middle 1800's, probably about the time this hammer was made. Since I'm considered an antique carpenter (age 63) by a lot of young carpenters I can pursue my love for antique tools. I also have a brace (and bit) made in the 1800's by Smith and Wesson.

I had so much response about the "Bridging" article I wrote that I decided to go ahead and list all the framing articles I have written over the years in a section. I listed them in Framing Procedures under 50 Procedures. Framing is so important to the construction of a building as it affects all the trades that follow. Even the tile layer, cabinet maker, carpet layer, drape hanger, wall paper hanger are affected by the framework you do. Trades you don't even think about will be using your frame, and I will guarantee you, if anything and I do mean anything, goes wrong with anything on the job after you leave your frame, even if the paper hanger spills some glue, you will be blamed. So you may want to look at some of the articles and you may pick up something that could help you. If you have any comments about any of the articles email me and let me know. Nobody, I know of, makes more mistakes than I do on a job, but in over 50 years of carpentry I have become a master at hiding my mistakes.

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I have a lot of engineers that watch this site, some I know, most I don't know. I have thousands of carpenters, homeowners and handymen that use this site. I get some emails that say that I have too many complicated and "not needed" procedures on this site, such as the "bridging" brace some tried to figure out, and I've already got some about the statements I made above about the cobbler carpenters. To me that is what they are. I have been addicted to carpentry for 56 years. I have standards that I build by that usually exceed the IBC and other codes, as I mention in the framing section, Dirty Dozen, below. I am certain all of you have your standards. I got pretty nasty in the Carpenters Book talking about incompetant building inspectors, I meant every word of it. I just posted a new article "Plywood Callouts" and in this article I insult a few but mainly, if you think about it, I am only trying to help you. If you are screaming and hollering at your men on the job usually means that they or you don't understand the callout or procedure. Crop Cuts was just like this one, correct callouts. If I offend any of you about inferior construction, as to my standards, you can rest assured, I mean every word.  Bob

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After seeing a couple of near misses with table saws I decided to rewrite the "Table Saw Procedures" article. My quest for material and incidents for my articles is flourishing over here as we have hundreds of carpenters and construction workers that make will make you laugh sometimes and then at times I am wondering how they lived so long. I quote one of my and America's alltime favorite heroes, John Wayne, in this article. He "called'em like he saw'em", as he once said in an interview.

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If you use Plexiglas for some of your projects you know all about the problems taking the paper backing off. Read what I do in Tips and Techniques.

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Not all the emails I get are good but most of the time they are positive. I got one a while back from a large drywall contractor in Houston Texas and he said "after reading and using your techniques in "Hanging Rock" I cut my labor cost/time per sheet of rock by a third, I improved the quality of my butt joint finish by 100%, my rockers said thank you." Those are the ones that keep me posting articles.

I received one from one reader "you probably saved me from cutting my leg in half, I had a habit of pulling my wormdrive out of a cut and laying it on my leg, one day the guard hung up and it cut my pants, I thought of you and your article and I've never done it again, I let the saw stop now".

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I just posted a new one "Deadly Drills" for the simple reason that some of you are getting injured and killed using them. Well worth the 5 hours I spent creating it and you taking the 5 minutes it takes to read it. Thanks for the emails, Bob

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If you will take the time to teach and have your carpenters learn the procedures in "Circular Saw Procedures" and "Ladder Procedures" and then enforce these procedures (make all of them use the procedures or leave the job) you will decrease the chances of having a job related injury by over 90%. On the hundreds of jobs I have been on, you will only have to fire one person for not following your orders and then the others will usually listen to you. At least that has been my experience. An employee that rebukes or refuses to follow even the smallest order from his employer is absolutely not going to listen when he is given instructions pertaining to safety and procedure. A lot of carpenters think safety is a joke, especially when someone like me tries to tell a 30 year veteran carpenter he is using and operating a circular saw wrong, sometimes dead wrong. 

Young green cub carpenters learn the correct or the wrong procedures from watching us old ones. Bob Johnston  

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I have personally framed or have been the supervisor of thousands of frame jobs. I had a framer friend of mine tell me I should post all of my framing articles as I did the Stair Articles. He and I supervised the framing of over 700 houses in Rio Rancho NM in one years time. It would take up the whole drop down menu to show all of the articles, so I decided to show you what he and I used to call the "Dirty Dozen", things that I, he and most of the framers I know never do on a frame job. I am not telling you that you can't do these, a lot of framers do, do your frame work any way you like, this is what we do not do on a frame job. They are all in the Carpenter Book (page number follows the sentence).

1. I never assume that a slab or a wood floor is square or at the correct elevation. pg 84

2. I never build a tee wall (wall joining into another wall) without using a back stud. pg 102

3. I never nail a straight cap plate to a crowned top plate. pg 100

4. I never start osb siding at the bottom (sole) plate for a exterior wall covering. pg 107

5. I never assume because a wall measures corner to corner square, that the wall is square. pg 108

6. I never drop flooring onto the floor joist that have adhesive on them. pg 74

7. I never install a truss on an exterior wall without a stud under it. pg 93

8. I never nail on osb siding with a frame nailer. pg 107

9. I never leave a gap between the trimmer (jack stud) and any other member. pg 92

10. I never shoot nails in a cap plate between studs. pg 102

11. I never install wood I-Beams without blocking 10% of the corners and centers.            pg 113

12. I never leave a gap on the butt joints of top plates. pg 102

And as far as tool procedure, I never let a person use a saw until I know that they know how to use one correctly. Circular Saw Procedures.

"The thing I do" every day is to have everyone (carpenters included) clean the job and put up the tools on company time and not their time. Having them do it on their time is cheating them and will cost you money in the long run.

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If you have ever hung a heavy door or you are a door hanger and you hang hundreds of hollow metal or wood doors you may want to look at this article "Hollow Metal Doors". I show you how I hang them and some other things pertaining to all door hanging. I'll take my ten cent door jack over the $300 ones you buy from the door companies any time. The store bought ones weigh 60 lbs. mine weighs 3 oz.

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I posted a new article "Joinery" in procedures. I show a couple of nearly forgotton joints that some of us older and newer carpenters use. I also tell you how I sharpen chisels and other tools to a get a razor sharp, 1500 grit edge.

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I have the Construction Comprehension Test in procedures. This is a test for construction carpenters/foremen/supervisors that I have give to hundreds of potential employees. The test really gives you a deep insight as to the person you are hiring. It will help you decide which field to put them in and also will tell you their education/experience level. With a medium level of construction experience they should get a least 15 of these correct. Most of you carpenters will answer all of them correctly within 3 minutes. Acting Supervisors/foremen should know these simple questions backwards and forwards, carpenters do. Answers are in CCT answers.

"If you are going to direct someone to do a task, it only makes sense that you have comprehended the task before you tell someone else how to do it". Bob Johnston

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 Click on the "Header titles" to go to the book or articles

 "200 Things every Carpenter should know"

A Carpentry/Construction Book by Bob Johnston

 183 page Ebook, 80 chapters, 100 colored instructional pictures. Over 200 carpentry procedures. This book is considered by many top Carpentry Officals in the USA to be one of the best carpentry instruction and procedurual books ever written. Read Quotes on the header bar.

 This book is in over 800 construction schools, 2000 high schools all over the world and over 20,000 contractors and carpenters are using it for information and training. Many carpentry instructors/teachers are using this book as their teaching guide and training information for apprentice carpenters. They download the lesson and print the lesson to use and some are using projectors to show the lesson on a screen. Many instructors have told me this is the most hands on construction book they have ever seen. The comprehension from teaching the procedures in this book are very high and the articles keep the students attention. I am always available to explain any questions the students or instructors have concerning anything written in the book or on this site. I have written several specific articles for instructors that have requested information on a certain subject or procedure. If I can ever help you, let me know. Bob Johnston

If you have an old version of this carpentry book you may want to delete it and load this new one, published in the new Adobe 9 the new one is 1500kb instead of older version of 3500kb. It has a lot of new updated procedures.

Free Download

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All procedures using tools and equipment that are posted on this site is my way of using power tools and equipment. Use the information at your own descretion. I accept no responsibility for anything you do on or off the job. When all else fails, follow the manufacturers instructions. Bob Johnston, May 2004