WWA Info Exchange

Ok, just because I tend to freak out over cutting sliding DT's doesn't mean everybody else does.

So, just out of curiosity, what specific joinery operation makes you the most nervous (generally resulting in a need for an adult beverage following said operation) ? And why? Difficulty?, Safety?, Fitting?, Other?

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I bring to life, I bring to death:
The spirit does but mean the breath:
I know no more. (Tennyson, In Memoriam)

I HAVE TWO....
First, thru or full dove tails. Even with a Roclker jig they give me the hebejebes as far as safety (of the wood) and making them fit properly. They look real nice when done properly but, getting there can be a real BEAR!
Second, 45* miters on picture frames. Making them fit nice and tight is the first problem and then there is the mater of strength after the fact.
I know that picture frames should not have alot of stress but, It keeps me awake at night wondering if the bottom piece will fall out while the picture is hanging on the wall at some point!

Rog

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Dont badmouth no strangers, they just friends you aint met yet.

An ounce of responsibility is worth a pound of State and Federal laws.

I spent most of my money on woodworking
tools and beer, the rest I just wasted.

Long splined miters in corner stiles. There's usually 4 of them for the carcass and getting them all built and aligned can be a real bear. Took me several ordeals to finally learn to make the splines a little thinner than the slot because it will swell with glue and ruin the whole joint before it is assembled completely. But....I doubt there is a stronger joint known to man. I'm doing it on the sideboard I'm building now (for class at Palomar) and tomorrow I cut the slots.
don

EXACTLY what Rog said!

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Uncle Fester WWAMDAUX#3
La Plata, Maryland
Does Anyone Have A Comb?
Home Of A Beautiful DJ 20
I Say.... BUY DELTA!!
10,000 posts--Easter Sunday, 2008--7:43pm

Sometimes I have to take 2 pieces of wood and glue them together!

It really freaks me out!!!

Maybe you should just do carving. No joinery required.

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I bring to life, I bring to death:
The spirit does but mean the breath:
I know no more. (Tennyson, In Memoriam)

cutting the miters on the ends of a piece of base molding for a piece of furniture...............DON'T CUT IT SHORT RON, DON'T CUT IT SHORT!

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"To all those who work come moments of beauty unseen by the rest of the world." Norman Maclean

Mortice and Tennon for me. Not that I'm particularly nervous about them, just that I've only tried them on one project and that was tough. The tennons were easy but the morice was a boogger when you don't have the right tools for the job.

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Frank
WWACOAUX#1
"I love the smell of Sawdust in the morning, it smells like, victory."
WWA'ers I've met: Popeye, Ed Avery, Stephen Wolf, Rockfish, Rodedon

Miters. Yuck. I have a bear of a time getting them to line up right...

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I'm a little surprised at the number of folks who list miters. They are all about saw setup (Wixey or other accurate setup tool/jig ), and having a accurate shooting board for clean up if needed.

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I bring to life, I bring to death:
The spirit does but mean the breath:
I know no more. (Tennyson, In Memoriam)

Yea, well that is more or less the easy part.
How do you join them?
Glue?
Glue and brads?
Staples?
Biskets?
Dolwels?
Splines?
Half lap miters?
?????
Just courious and being devils advocate. My problem is the strength in the joint when you have two end grains to join. And keeping all the corners square and clamped while the glue drys. I'm mostly talking about picture frames.

Rog

_________________
Dont badmouth no strangers, they just friends you aint met yet.

An ounce of responsibility is worth a pound of State and Federal laws.

I spent most of my money on woodworking
tools and beer, the rest I just wasted.

Lots of ways to join them. Glue of course, but I've also used splines, keys, biscuits, half laps, and inside corner blocks to reinforce them depending on what works for the project both visually and structurally. Inside and/or outside corner blocks can also be used temporarily to keep the thing square (wrap with clear plastic packaging tape to avoid gluing them to the piece) while the glue sets and to give the clamps something to grip . I also use a band clamp with plastic corner pieces frequently.

With picture frames, the main problem (for me) seems to be torquing/twisting from uneven or too much clamp pressure. Bricks (or bags of lead shot ) help with that . Or you could build a simple glue-up jig to clamp the pieces on to keep it flat.

One of the best guides on complicated joinery that I'd suggest for anyone's library, is Gary Rogowski's book "The Complete Illustrated Guide to Joinery". I use my copy so much I've had to tape the spine.

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I bring to life, I bring to death:
The spirit does but mean the breath:
I know no more. (Tennyson, In Memoriam)

Butt joints...

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Mango
The land some where in the middle
20 47 00N -156 26 00W

Most of this:
http://patwarner.com/images/798m.jpg

Oh, Pat, you are just too good Love 'em, would love to try them after I retire and have more time.

Thanks for the inspiration

Verna

Perfect 45* miters used to be a problem - but no longer.

All you need is one of these (or similar)

http://www.recordpower-thetoolshop.com/ ... ander.html

and one of these

http://www.screwfix.com/prods/57342/Han ... ter-Square

First set the mitre guide at 45* using the rafter square. Do a rough 45* cut on your stock with a saw and then push it into the sanding disk for the final trim. You end up with a perfect mitre every time.

I am usually content with dowels if I feel the joints need more strength than the glue alone.

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FoggyTown
Woodworkers' motto: "Cut to shape - Pound to fit."

Hey foggtown!!! It is good to see you post!
Havent seen you around for a while.

OK, now I get it, I just need more money and tools!!! Well that shouldn't be a problem,,,,,,,,but, it is!!
I just built a rather large picture frame not long ago out of "barn" wood. (old, weathered, fur that I had laying around) It was about 27" tall and 32" wide and I was worryed about strength so, I used half lap joints for more glue surface. It came out fairly strong. I'll try to post a picture of it. l



See ""



See "Frame for jigsaw puzzle"



See "Frame pieces"


It still freaks me out!!

Rog

_________________
Dont badmouth no strangers, they just friends you aint met yet.

An ounce of responsibility is worth a pound of State and Federal laws.

I spent most of my money on woodworking
tools and beer, the rest I just wasted.

Finger joints and dove tails. I have never tried dove tails and I am a little afraid. Where is the best place to learn how to make them by hand or is there a good jig on the market?

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Thank you,
Jon

Unless you have somebody handy who can give you some hands on instruction, I'd recommend Gary Rogowski's book; The Complete Illustrated Guide to Joinery (Hardcover) http://www.amazon.com/Complete-Illustra ... 154&sr=1-1 regardless of whether you do machine or handcut since he covers several ways to do it.

Leigh jigs are probably the best and most versatile for machine dt's, but they are pricey.

Lee Valley sells a nifty little guide and saw for hand cutting DT"S, http://www.leevalley.com/US/wood/page.a ... 2884,41718 . I use one and it's very helpful, although you are limited in the angles available.

For hand cutting you'll need to get a good dt saw - either English or Japanese style, and appropriate chisels, and marking gage. You can also cut through DT's with a bandsaw if you are careful.

The hardest part for me is wrapping my head around the design and set up, rather than the actual cutting of them. Practice is essential, so don't start out on a project until you've put in a few hours on scrap.

_________________
I bring to life, I bring to death:
The spirit does but mean the breath:
I know no more. (Tennyson, In Memoriam)

Dovetails, to the point I have avoided them completely and have a couple of drawers for the MIL I have put off for a couple of years. I just picked up a Leigh 18 Superjig, so I am now willingly going to start doing dovetails.