When making furniture or any structure made of wood, sometimes it is necessary to connect parts with a tongue-and-groove connection. There are many ways to make this compound. I want to talk about one of the possible ways - making this connection on a milling table. I think that a table is not necessary, it’s enough to attach some kind of cunning board to the router, but your imagination is enough for that. But, we have at our disposal a table with a built-in router. True, it looks terrible, but it is quite functional.
So let's start with a more detailed review.
First, you need to determine the depth of the groove; accordingly, the projection of the tenon will be known from here. In our case - 20mm. To obtain the tenon overhang, set the milling table stop at a distance of 20 mm from the edge of the cutter opposite the stop. For your understanding, as shown in the photo:
The overhang of the cutter determines the thickness of the tenon. In our case, the thickness of the tenon should be 10mm, the workpiece has a thickness of 20mm. Accordingly, a layer of material equal to 5 mm needs to be removed from both sides. So the overhang of the cutter is determined.
For ease of handling the workpiece, a pusher is visible on the table - a rectangular piece of plywood. With its help, the workpiece is positioned and pressed during processing. This ensures more stable operation and speeds up the process. The photo below shows the process of obtaining a spike:
In the photo, blue arrows show the directions of pressing forces when processing the workpiece.
In several passes, the plane of the tenon is formed in a horizontal plane, then we turn the workpiece over and obtain the ends of the tenon in the same way.
In this way, we run through all the parts on which it is necessary to make a tenon.
The next stage is making a groove in the workpiece. In our case, the groove is the width of the cutter, that is, 10mm. depth - 20mm. To do this, we change the offset of the cutter to the required groove depth, but a little more than the calculated one by 2-3 mm, so the groove depth will be a little larger to ensure a tight connection of the parts. We install and fix the router limiter to this position.
On the table itself we apply risks - orientators. They determine the position of the extreme marking points relative to the cutter. To apply marks, stick masking tape on the table (I didn’t have tape, I used electrical tape). And we draw perpendiculars relative to the stop of the milling table and the diameter of the cutter, as shown in the figure:
Then we set the cutter overhang to a small overhang for the first pass, 5-7 millimeters...
And we place the workpiece in the center, between the marking marks. After cutting the cutter into the workpiece, we guide it, as shown in the photo below, until the marks on the workpiece and on the table (insulating tape) align - this will correspond to the position of the cutter at the extreme point of the groove. Then we take the workpiece to the opposite end and do the same until the marks are aligned. The first pass is ready.
Then we increase the overhang of the cutter, also by eye for the second pass and do the same. Third pass - set the maximum reach of the cutter, i.e. according to the previously set limiter on the router. The third pass is the final one, it forms the required groove depth and at the same time the groove width is finally calibrated. The photo below shows the final finishing of the groove.
For your own safety, the work progress is shown on a part that has already been processed and with the router stopped!
Then we prepare the tenon for connection. Because the shape of the grooves is formed by a milling cutter, respectively, the edges of the grooves are rounded. We carefully trim the rectangular ends of the tenons with a chisel. And here is the result - a test assembly of the unit...
A hand router is a universal mechanical tool in the home workshop. To use it correctly, you need to get basic lessons in working with a wood router. There are many Chinese-made milling cutters on the market, they are all of the same design and differ only in engine power. Experts recommend purchasing a more powerful tool, since the list of work performed will expand significantly. The craftsman will be able to cut out a pattern, make a quarter cut, cut tenons and perform other operations related to the manufacture of furniture.
Creativity without limits
Milling equipment is indispensable when processing wood. With its help, you can turn a wooden blank into an elegant decorative product. This equipment is most often used by professionals, but experienced amateurs can also master it. Using machinery is not an easy task, therefore, before you start working with them, you need to ensure your comfort and safety. Organization of the workplace is very important. The home craftsman must remember that during work there is a possibility of damage not only to the cutter or mechanical device, but also to health.
Woodworking is not just about working at the machine, but also preparing the workplace, planning the sequence of work performed. Before you start milling, you need to select the appropriate type of cutter for a specific task, taking into account its shape and size. You should select the speed of the machine and the cutting depth and do not forget that the material being processed must be securely attached to the table.
Depending on the specific type of milling device, the rules for their use are different in many aspects. Today, vertical milling machines in which the spindles are located above the work table are widely used. They have proven themselves to be excellent in operations such as wood milling, processing the edges of shelves and round table tops, making a groove, and joining wooden parts. When processing round structures, an indispensable addition is a special compass with a support plate, which ensures precision processing.
When working with a router, you need to learn how to move it calmly and smoothly. The key is to move the material being processed correctly and safely. This should not be done too slowly, as burn marks may appear on the wood, which can lead to damage to the material.
Chips appear when milling woodworking against the direction of the wood grain. In one pass it is necessary to mill to a depth of up to 8 mm; some models allow adjustment with an accuracy of 0.1 mm. Deep grooves and quarters need to be milled in several passes.
Processing of wooden parts
The first thing you need to learn is to correctly set the milling depth. To do this, you need to set the zero point. It is impossible to set it rigidly, because it changes every time the cutter is changed. The zero point is the position of the tool when the end of the cutter touches the material and is fixed with a special device called a clamp.
It is necessary to pay attention to the fact that each router has a different position when fixed. To control the depth of immersion of the cutting tool into the body of the material, a stop pin with a coarse adjustment scale is used.
When milling with an end mill, the counterforce from the cutting force moves the router to the side. To prevent this from happening, you need to use a rip fence. The milling process is as follows. Place the cutter along the marking line and secure the position of the stop with a special screw. Set the milling depth and turn on the machine. If the rip fence is installed on the left side, you need to pull the router towards you, when on the right side - away from you.
In order to select a quarter on a beam, you need to set the cutting edge of the cutter at the very edge, fix it, set the depth of the quarter, turn on the router and pull it towards you (if the stop is on the left edge of the beam). Milling the surface of narrow bars has its own peculiarity. The problem is that it is very difficult to hold the router on the narrow side of the workpiece. If it wobbles during operation, the groove will be inaccurate.
To avoid this problem, the block must be clamped with a clamp, and a block of exactly the same size must be placed in parallel. Then the milling machine will acquire two points of support and will not wobble.
Can replace the work of a planing machine. To do this, you will need several accessories for the milling mechanism. It looks like this: attach a milling mechanism to two equal-sized slats and use it as a planer, where a large-diameter milling cutter is installed instead of a shaft.
Useful DIY crafts
In order to make something useful, for example, a box, it is not necessary to have a whole arsenal of complex equipment and expensive tools. You can get by with a minimum of tools and mechanisms . To perform carpentry work you will need:
Absolutely anything can be used as a material - for example, scraps of parquet boards, pieces of plywood and waste chipboards, but always at right angles. To simplify the work, you need to make a simple milling table. To process workpieces, you will need a large-diameter straight groove cutter. The process looks something like this. On a makeshift table, plan the ends of parquet board scraps. Mark the sides of the box and use a jigsaw to remove all excess.
The resulting blanks must be processed with a thicknesser to maintain the size of all sidewalls. If you don't have a surface planer, you can use a milling table. To do this, set the stop to the size of the workpiece and move the part between the stop and the rotating cutter towards you. The next operation to calibrate the sidewalls in length is performed with a jigsaw.
You can connect the sidewalls together with a mustache. To do this, you need to mill the ends of the sidewalls with a conical cutter with an angle of 90 degrees. This can be done using a router. Thus, the ends of the sidewalls have the same bevels of 45 degrees. Next you need to make grooves in the sides for the bottom. For this, an end mill with a diameter of 6 millimeters is used, equal to the thickness of the plywood. The parts are connected using glue. The product looks neat and beautiful both outside and inside. What else can you do with a hand-held wood router? Anything: for example, a shelf for things, drawers for storing vegetables or tools, kitchen furniture.
Toolbox
In order to make a tool box, it is necessary to strengthen the carpentry joint of the sides by inserting additional tenons. The operation is called cutting tenons with a hand router. It is very difficult to do it manually, so you need to make a simple device - a milling table . The principle of its manufacture is simple:
A device for cutting tenons in a board works as follows. Mark the place to be milled and, pressing the board against the stop bar, move the carriage, directing it towards the cutting tool. The resulting finger joint between the parts will be strong and reliable.
How to make a panel
One of the most frequently performed carpentry operations is making paneling. It is performed with a special cutter. To perform the work efficiently, it is necessary to make a simple device for the tabletop of the milling device. To do this, you will need thick-layer plywood measuring 500 x 300 x 10 millimeters. To exit the cutter, a hole with a diameter of 100 millimeters is cut. The parallel stop is attached to the table with clamps. The cutter is set taking into account the distance from the table surface to the sharp edge of the cutting tool of one millimeter. All sides of the workpiece are processed sequentially. The thickness of the panel is adjusted by lifting the cutter.
Using a hand router, it is very easy to create a furniture facade on the doors. To do this, you will need a shaped end mill, a copy sleeve and a plywood template. The technological process is very simple:
- attach the template to the workpiece using thin nails;
- set and record the depth of immersion of the cutter into the wood;
- install the copy sleeve on the milling mechanism;
- press the milling machine against the template and follow its contour.
The result is a neat design of the furniture facade.
Cheap and cheerful
Wood carving is always beautiful, rich and expensive. This is done by talented people, artists or sculptors. But there are ways of carving that anyone can do. For example, cutting patterns on wood with a hand router is very easy. The work is performed with a small diameter end mill along the contour of the pattern. To do this, you need to select a hardwood board, nail a stencil cut out of cardboard, and mill it according to the template.
A milling machine of any power is suitable for the job. It is desirable that it be light and comfortable, then it will be easier to copy the drawing. Therefore, you don’t need to worry about which router to choose for beginners; the main thing is to choose cutters with a diameter of 2 millimeters or more. When working, you need to be diligent in order to evenly pass the thin cutter along the contour of the design and not break it. The next step is to deepen the background; for this, a large-diameter flag cutter is used.
Hazardous factors
Milling machines require complete safety and high qualifications of the worker. When using electric machines, accidents may occur due to material ejected during milling. Therefore, the performer of the work must have special work clothes.
If heavy dust is generated during the milling process, you must wear safety glasses. Maximum safety in this situation is provided by special clamps and vices that effectively hold the workpiece, preventing it from being thrown out. Do not hold the workpiece in the rotation zone of the cutter with your hands or directly touch the rotating tool. It is necessary to use special clamping devices to advance the part during milling.
Once you've mastered carpentry skills, it's great to show off your homemade furniture to family and friends. What could be more pleasant than touching a razor-sharp blade, inhaling the smell of wood, feeling its texture, and then making a clean, fresh cut!
This article covers basic carpentry techniques. How to use carpentry tools to achieve different shapes, joints and textures in wood. If you're unsure of a technique or type of wood, it's worth experimenting with scrap wood. Put your workshop in order and maintain it. Some craftsmen sharpen hand tools, clean out their workshop, and clean all their tools and machines before starting a new project.
Wood preparation and marking
Once you've decided what you'll be doing, separate your carefully selected and planed lumber into groups. Mark each piece according to its future location in the product, marking the top, bottom, front surfaces and best edges. Using a pencil and tape measure, mark the sections of the required length, and use a square to mark the cut lines. Use a compass to draw arcs and circles. Using a dividing compass, transfer the dimensions from the drawing to the wood.
If you need to make the board narrower or mark a joint, set the thicknesser to the desired division and scratch the mark by moving the thicknesser along the edge of the workpiece. Use a small pencil to mark lines running at oblique angles. If you need paired parts, mark them at the same time and remember that one part should be a mirror image of the second. Use a knife to mark connections.
Curved cuts
Can be done with an electric hacksaw, jigsaw or band saw. The hacksaw is good for large radius cuts and thick wood, when the cutting line goes away from the edges.
Hacksaws are equipped with rotating bases that change the cutting angle, and depending on the type and thickness of the material, different saw blades should be used. For curved cuts of small radius and with wood thickness less than 50 mm, use a jigsaw or jigsaw.
Install the new file and tighten it until it rings when you click it with your finger. If you need to cut an opening, you can do two things: either start cutting from the edge, or, if you do not need to touch the edge, first drill a hole in the part to be removed, then release one end of the file, pass it through the hole made and clamp and tighten again.
Use a drill press and Forstner bits to drill large holes accurately and accurately. Mark the center of the hole, attach the corresponding drill bit and set the depth gauge. Then press the workpiece with clamps to the workbench (this will take some time, but it will be completely worth it). If the hole is deep, lift the drill bit several times as you work to remove waste and keep overheating to a minimum. If you have to drill a lot of holes in identical parts, it is useful to make a template from scraps of wood, which is attached with clamps to the work table of the machine.
To drill holes for screws and installation holes for nails, you should use a drill, and it is more convenient to use a cordless drill. If you need to screw in a lot of screws, install the screwdriver included with this tool into the drill chuck.
Planing by hand
Planing is a lot of fun when the blade is sharp and you have enough time. The jointer is ideal for planing along the grain. Don't forget to secure the workpiece on the workbench. Make a test pass, make sure the blade is set to the correct depth, and then get to work.
A face plane is good for finishing sharp edges and for cleaning up ends. Position the blade so that it cuts the finest chips. When processing the end sections, try not to stray to the side and avoid chipping.
Selecting grooves manually
Mark the groove using a pencil, ruler, square and possibly the point of a knife, transfer the workpiece to the workbench of the drill press and use a suitable size drill bit to drill out the main part of the unnecessary wood.
Remove the shavings, clamp the workpiece in a vice and remove the remaining unwanted wood with a chisel, holding the tool vertically. By the way, there is an excellent one.
The groove can be selected using a cutter, and the working technique depends on the size and location of the groove. The router can be held in your hands and moved along the workpiece; when selecting an open groove, attach it to the work table and move the workpiece. In this case, the accuracy of the work will depend on the position of the guide bar (stop) and the height of the cutter. Always make a test pass using scrap wood. It is best to select a groove in stages and make several passes. After each pass, remove sawdust to avoid overheating the cutter.
Carving a tenon by hand
Mark the shoulder lines (the length of the tenon) with a square and a knife, then use a thicknesser to mark the height and width of the tenon. Remove any unwanted wood with a tenon saw. First, make cuts along the grain to the shoulder line on all four sides of the tenon. Then trim the tenon along the shoulder line across the grain. Clean the tenon with a chisel.
If you have a lot of tenons to cut (or if you just like working with machines), a table router is the ideal tool. If the large size of the workpiece does not allow it to be placed on the milling table, it is better to press it with clamps to the workbench and process it while holding the router in your hands. Set the fence to the length of the tenon and the router to the desired height, then, holding the workpiece firmly against the fence, remove the excess wood in several passes. When the end of the tenon rests against the stop, turn the workpiece over and repeat the procedure on the other side. If you stop before the cutter reaches the shoulder line, trim the tenon with a chisel.
To select a groove 6 mm wide and 4 mm deep at a distance of 10 mm from the edge of the board, do this. Attach the router to your workbench and install a 6mm router bit. Set the guide bar to 10mm. Adjust the height of the cutter so that it is 2mm above the table. Make a pass along the guide to create a 2mm deep groove. Turn off the router, raise the cutter another 2 mm and repeat the pass. You will get a groove 4 mm deep.
To select a rebate with a width of 10 mm and a depth of 4 mm, proceed as follows. You will need a straight cutter that is smaller than the width of the rebate (for example, 5mm in diameter). Set the stop at a distance of 5 mm from the rear edge of the cutter, and the cutter at a height of 2 mm. Place the board against the stop and select a 5 mm wide fold. Repeat the pass, still resting the board against the stopper, to obtain a 10mm wide fold. Switch off the router, set the bit to a height of 4 mm and repeat the procedures to complete the fold.
Press the workpiece with clamps to the workbench. Select a cutter that matches the width of the groove or a smaller size and set the depth stop. Using clamps, press a wooden strip parallel to the groove onto the workpiece, which will serve as a guide. Lower the router, press its base against the guide, turn it on, wait until the router reaches full speed, and make a pass. If the cutter is narrower than the groove, move the guide and repeat the procedure until you get the required width and depth of the groove.
Milling shaped edges
Cutting shaped edges with a router is very simple. Attach the router to its table and insert the cutter of your choice - round, radius or shaped. Use a cutter with a support roller.
Move the stop so that it is not in the way. Press the workpiece against the table and make several passes with the cutter from left to right. Continue milling until the workpiece begins to press against the support roller - at this point the cutter stops cutting. If the shaped edge looks burnt, it means either the cutter is dull or you were pulling the workpiece too slowly.
Milling according to template
Use a template if you need to make several parts with the same edges. First, cut out the approximate shapes with a saw, leaving no more than 4-5 mm of excess wood on the edges to be milled. Install the guide roller on the base of the router. Cut a template from plywood with an allowance for the edges and nail it directly to the surface of the workpiece. Turn on the router and guide it along the edge of the template.
As a template, you can take an already made part and use a straight-cut cylindrical cutter with a support roller (it can be on top or bottom of the cutter).
This saw makes it easy to make cuts at any angle. Place the cutting blade on the frame at the required angle (90, 45, 36, 22.5 or 15°) and fix it. Set the depth gauge to the desired mark. Place the workpiece on the saw table, press it against the fence, and then make the cut using smooth back and forth movements.
Inspect the workpiece and decide where exactly you need to drive the nail. If this area is near the edge and there is a danger of splitting the wood, use an electric drill to first drill an installation hole using a drill bit whose diameter is smaller than the diameter of the nail. Then use a suitable sized hammer to drive in the nail. If the nail is crooked, pull it out with a nail puller or pliers. If you are driving very small nails that are difficult to hold with your fingers, use pliers to hold them.
Driving screws
You have a choice of mild steel, stainless steel, brass or aluminum screws with straight or Phillips slots and countersunk or pan heads. Semicircular heads stand out clearly on the surface of the wood, countersunk heads are either flush with the surface, or edged with brass washers, or hidden by wooden plugs. The screws are screwed in with a hand screwdriver, a drill with an appropriate attachment, or a screwdriver.
When using a drill, install the locking mechanism so that the screw is screwed in to the required depth. If the wood is soft, the installation hole can be made with an awl; if it is hard, drill it with a drill of a smaller diameter.
To be able to hide the screws under the wooden plugs, you will have to drill a hole for the plug with a countersink drill and a corresponding cutter for the plug. Don't use steel screws on oak - they react with the wood and moisture and cause stains. Instead, choose plated steel, brass, or stainless steel screws.
If you want to make round parts (chair legs, bowls, plates), you cannot do without a lathe. Buy the most powerful and heaviest machine your budget can afford - with an adjustable chuck and faceplate set. Spindle-shaped and cylindrical parts are turned by securing the workpiece between the front and rear centers of the machine, bowls or plates - on the outside of the spindle.
The best lathes are equipped with a device that allows you to turn large workpieces on the outside of the spindle. You will need a variety of turning tools - a chisel, a cut-off cutter, an oblique chisel and a radius scraper.
To cut a door handle or latch, you won't need anything more than a good, sharp knife (not stainless steel). Hold the workpiece in one hand, the knife in the other and cut the wood, pressing on the back of the blade with your thumb. The rest is a matter of skill. To practice, first experiment with soft linden wood, for example.
Installing hinges
The two most common types of hinges are decorative brass overlay hinges (attached with countersunk screws that are screwed flush to the surface) and steel mortise hinges (attached into sockets with steel countersunk screws). In the latter case, outline the hinge flap with the point of a knife, cut the outline with a chisel, and then select the wood with a chisel to the desired depth. The sash should fit tightly in the socket. Always buy suitable screws along with the hinges.
Sanding wood
To obtain smooth surfaces, numerous types of sandpaper (sandpaper) are used. The skin can be used either on its own or wrapped around a block of wood. It is best to sand the wood several times - after sawing, after the glue has dried and after final finishing.
For the first sanding, use regular sandpaper, for finishing - fine sandpaper based on aluminum oxide (it is more expensive, but lasts much longer). For sanding large flat surfaces, use a cylindrical grinder. Work in a well-ventilated area and be sure to wear a dust mask.
Natural wood finish
Originally the term "natural finish" meant that the wood was sanded and left in its natural state, but now also includes oiling or waxing. Danish or teak oil is applied in a thin layer with a lint-free cotton cloth or brush.
Allow to dry and sand with the finest sandpaper to remove the “ridges” (the rough texture of raised wood fibers that occurs when the first coat of finish is absorbed), then apply a second thin coat. If you want to make the surface less hard, rub it with wax mastic.
When finishing items that will come into contact with food, use a vegetable oil, such as olive oil, instead of teak or Danish oil. Rub it in with a cloth.
You have a choice between mineral spirits oil paint and waterborne acrylic paint. Both types of paint are applied with a brush. The visual difference between surfaces painted with one paint or another is very small, however, after working with oil paint, brushes should be washed with white spirit, and after using acrylic paint, with running water.
Oil paint fumes can cause dizziness and nausea, while acrylic paint fumes can cause a dry throat. Regardless of the type of paint you use, wear a respirator and work outdoors if possible.
Special types of wood finishes
When working with American oak, you can get an interesting texture by wire brushing the wood. The texture is pleasant to the touch, and the resulting rough surface means you don't have to worry about damage from pets' claws.
The brush is moved along the fibers until there are no untreated areas left on the surface, after which it is rubbed with oil.
A candle flame finish helps hide the imperfections of low-quality wood. Oil varnish is applied to the painted surface with a brush. After a while it dries out and becomes sticky, and then a burning candle is passed under the surface. Be sure to wait until the surface becomes sticky (it should show fingerprints) and keep the can of polish and brush away from the candle. It is better to do this work together somewhere away from the workshop. Practice on scraps before you get started with any serious work.
How to make a tongue and groove connection?
Tenon and groove - what is it?
First of all, you need to define what a tenon and groove is. This is nothing more than a way of connecting parts.
It is used most often in carpentry, as well as in other types of production. There are many types of grooves and tenons, but we'll talk about that another time.
Properly executed tenons and grooves are sufficiently firmly connected to each other. This connection is considered one of the strongest.
Tongue and groove connection method
First you need to determine for what purpose this connection method is needed. If this is a table, then the jumpers in it are usually connected to the vertical legs.
Consequently, the wood fibers run vertically and horizontally. If this is a wall table or a bedside table with drawers, then the jumpers here will be located a little differently. They will be horizontal relative to the legs.
In any case, such a connection will be the most reliable. When making a large number of tongue-and-groove joints, special machines are used. If you need one or more tongue and groove joints, and there is no carpentry equipment at hand, then it would be advisable to do this manually. To do this you will need a set of carpentry tools, including:
- hacksaw;
- clamp - 2 pcs;
- measuring instrument;
- pencil for marking.
First we will make a spike for the future connection.
To do this, you need to take a bar and mark the dimensions of the future tenon on it.
First, mark the length of the spike. We do this on all surfaces of the workpiece.
After this, we place the workpiece on the table, place an even bar on it along the transverse line of the length of the tenon and secure it with a clamp. This is necessary in order to obtain a perfectly perpendicular cut.
We make cuts along the marked perimeter of the length of the tenon, rearranging the bar with the clamp.
We proceed to cutting out the cross section of the tenon.
Using a clamp, we secure the workpiece to the table in a vertical position.
To obtain a straight cut, we will use a pre-prepared T-shaped template. It is a plate of plywood with a strip attached to it, as in the photo. We attach the template to the workpiece with a clamp. Next, we make cuts on the wide sides of the tenon.
On the narrow sides of the section, if it is small, cuts can be made without using a T-shaped template. It is important to control the position of the hacksaw blade; it must be strictly parallel to the workpiece.
As a result, we obtain a high-quality spike according to the specified dimensions.
Let's move on to making the groove.
Again, we start with the markup. On the workpiece at the tenon-groove joint we mark the cross-sectional dimension of the tenon.
We fix the workpiece on the table with a clamp. If the workpiece is thin, then for ease of fastening we take several parts or a board of the appropriate size and fasten them with a clamp, as shown in the photo.
First, we cut a hole in width; to ensure perpendicularity, the chisel is placed at the corner.
We make a recess to a given size according to the tenon length mark, having previously applied it to the chisel tip.
After the specified depth is reached, we clean the groove and insert the part with a tenon.
The tongue-and-groove connection is ready.
How to make a tongue and groove connection correctly? A few more subtleties
Not being able to make a tongue-and-groove joint on a special machine, it can be done with high quality at home, using the method of Yu. A. Egorov.
To do this, you need to calculate the cutting width of the saw, which can be determined by the size of the teeth. You only need to make just a few cuts on any piece of wood.
Getting to work directly, we measure the thickness of the first part (the future tenon) and draw a line on the expected location of the groove on the second part.
Now we apply both parts to one another so that their ends coincide. Along the side edges, relative to each other, we shift them by the width of the cut.
We fix the parts in the workbench and make cuts evenly across the width. In the case of different thicknesses of parts, the thinner part contains deeper cuts and vice versa. We pay special attention to ensure that the cuts do not create cone-shaped tenons.
If the shift is less than the width of the cut, the parts will fit tightly. This will be important for any kind of furniture fastenings.
By making the shift greater than the width of the cut, the normal operation of detachable fasteners (on a pin) is ensured.
Observing the depth and length of the cuts, we make new ones in the middle of the tenons we don’t need. After this, we carefully remove the tenons that are unsuitable for us with a chisel, making grooves out of them, and clean them.
If the connection is supposed to be permanent, it is glued on and the entire product is sanded.
How to make a tenon and groove joint with a router
The tenon and groove connection, as we see, can be done manually. However, if there are a lot of tenon and groove joints, it is better to use a router. A router with a work table will be especially useful in such cases.
To facilitate the process of obtaining a hole in a workpiece for a tenon-groove connection using a milling cutter in large quantities, for example, making stools, you can make a jig.
Then making the grooves will take you just a few minutes.
To do this, initially limiters in the form of slats are installed on a sheet of plywood and holes are cut to the size of the required groove for the drawer and leg. Two slats are attached along the width of the router, limiting the transverse shift, the other two are set taking into account the length of the device and the size of the groove.
We attach two bars to the table, the dimensions corresponding to the workpiece, so that it can move freely along its length.
We set and secure the stop.
Then we fasten the device with self-tapping screws to the bars on the table.
We take equipment equipped with a straight cutter and set the milling depth. We do this using a ready-made sample.
We set the milling depth taking into account the thickness of the jig.
A prerequisite for milling is to secure the workpiece with a clamp, otherwise it may move under the force of the cutter.
Then we directly process the groove.
The groove hole is ready.
Let's move on to making the spike. In small-scale production, it is convenient to do this on a circular saw.
We begin making the tenon by measuring the groove. The depth of the groove will be the length of the tenon.
We set the length of the groove on the machine taking into account the width of the tool. We set the circular saw at the level of half the difference between the width of the workpiece and the length of the groove from the table surface. Then we make two cuts along the length of the tenon. It is better to make test cuts when setting up a circular saw on unnecessary pieces of wood, otherwise you can ruin a good part.
The preparatory work has been completed. Let's start cutting out the tenon directly.
To do this, we set the circular saw to the length of the tenon, and the size from the cutting tool to the stop is half the difference between the width of the workpiece and the length of the groove. We make two cuts along the width of the workpiece on opposite sides.
The next operation will be to change the size from the tool to the stop. In this case, the distance will be equal to half the difference between the height of the workpiece and the width of the groove. We make the remaining two cuts.
Now take a carpenter's knife and round off the corners of the tenon.
The final processing is carried out using sandpaper, for convenience attached to a block.
We check how the tenon fits into the groove. It should fit snugly and not wobble.
Thus, we looked at some types of tenons and grooves that you can make either yourself or by ordering from the factory.
Although recently metal guides and all kinds of new fasteners have come into fashion, the tongue-and-groove connection still deserves respect and is one of the most durable connections.
Using it not only in woodworking products, various enterprises began to produce higher quality goods.
You can also watch a video of making tenons on a tabletop circular saw
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Now you will see how to make a strong and invisible connection of 100 x 100 mm pine beams.
The craftsman is going to cut a tenon that will fit 50 mm into the “receiving” block. To do this, he measures 50 mm from the end and draws lines on all the side edges of the bar.
Then he draws a midline on the longitudinal edge of the block and measures 1 cm from it in both directions. The total width of the tenon is 2 cm. In the transverse direction, measure 50 mm in both directions.
Now you can start filing the tenon. The easiest way to do this is with a hacksaw. Make cuts from the end to the previously drawn lines. Now cut off the excess material from both sides. Be very careful not to saw through the tenon itself.
Clear cut surfaces with a sharp chisel. When doing this, always hold the chisel with the chamfer towards you. Now you need to cut off 50 mm on the sides. For this, the master also uses a hacksaw.
The spike is ready. The master measures its exact length and width. Now these dimensions need to be transferred to the “receiving” block. The width of the tenon is 20 mm, the width of the groove for it should be the same.
To ensure that the tenon will sit exactly in the middle, the craftsman draws a 37.5mm line on a 75mm wide post. Then, using a 20mm drill, the craftsman drills holes exactly to the size of the protrusion.
So, four holes are drilled corresponding to the width of the tenon. Now they need to be combined and cleared with a sharp chisel, being careful not to go too deep. Once the groove is cleared, try pushing the tenon into it a little. It should fit into the groove quite easily.
Drive in the tenon and check that it fits well and sits correctly.
After this you will need some glue. It is best to use foaming polyurethane adhesive, which ensures reliable fastening of the parts. Apply glue only to the end of the tenon. Carefully push the tenon into place.
The connection is ready, the parts are firmly fastened. But you can make the connection even stronger. Make a mark on the outer middle and drill a hole for a wooden dowel.
The length of the through hole is 100 mm. Cut a piece of 16mm round pine batten about 120mm long, it should protrude slightly from either side of the piece. It is better to use pine rather than hardwood. Pine wood, when wet, expands slightly and reliably jams the structure. This does not happen with hardwoods. The drill bit should be the same size as the wooden dowel.
Slightly sharpen the dowel on one side and lubricate it well with polyurethane glue. Also lubricate the hole with glue. Insert a wooden dowel so that it sticks out slightly on both sides. Let the glue dry before continuing.
Now cut off the protruding end of the liner with a fine-toothed hacksaw on one side. Turn the structure over and cut off the other protruding end. The connection is ready. The junction can only be seen by the round insert. But it will not be visible after painting or applying another coating.
