Thread: How do you cut your mortices?

SilentC.

I currently use the "Drill & Chisel" method, with the aid of a (Sorby) corner chisel.

I think it's the best thing since sliced bread and highly recomend it.

Ben.

Most of the above -- it just dependswhat mood i am in

I don't !!!!!!!!

LONG LIVE THE BISCUIT !!!!

Gumby,

shhh...I've got a whole bag of "shhh" back their with your name on it!

Ben.

I use the Trend Mortice & Tennon jig that I bought in a moment of stupidity at the Melbourne WW show. Don't get me wrong, it works, it's just that it takes a bit of time to setup and cost a lot. Knowing what I know now I'd build a template for the mortices and a table saw jig for the tennons.

SilentC,
I suppose I am prejudiced, but I still think my router morticing jig is the best thing since sliced bread. When my old one gave up the ghost recently, I spent a few hours building another more robust version. My jig enables me to cut accurately positioned and precisely sized mortices in a couple of minutes. Set-up is quick and easy, and marking out consists simply of making a single registration mark on the workpiece to be aligned with the centre line of the jig. My jig costs well under $100, including the dial gauge, whereas commmercial jigs that can produce comparable results cost anywhere between $800 and $3500 dollars, and some of these, as Grunt has pointed out, require tedious set-up procedures.

If you are considering building projects which need a number of M&T joints, the few hours spent in making the jig are well worthwhile. Admittedly you can get away at a pinch with using biscuit joints in tables and dowels in chairs, but the resulting pieces are never going to last as well as they would if made with M&T joints.

Rocker

Experience now tells me that there are better ways to join MDF.

Cheers,

P

Drill & chisel is my favourite, although if I had a lot to do (and if I had one) a dedicated chisel & bit morticer would be the way to go.

Dedicated Chisel Mortiser for me - fast, accurate, dead simple to setup, etc.

Drill & chisel is the go when I have the time to spare. I find it relaxing and enjoyable to work with hand tools BUT if I'm in a hurry the router and homemade jig are used. My jig is fairly basic so will soon be looking for a better design to build.

hi , i use my mortsing machean it work very well and is easyer that doing it by hand (what a pain)
woodymarts

How come this thread keeps coming up in New Posts, when the last post was back in June? Looks like there is a bug somewhere.

Rocker

I think the thread keeps coming to the top when someone votes on the poll regardless if they posted a reply.

I usually try the last option, go Uri.
When that inevitably fails I stick a dirty great screw through the two bits of wood and slap a bit of bog over the screw head, then paint over it with paint from a tin opened with a Robert Sorby Chisel sharpened for the task with several hundred dollars worth of waterstones.(which were flattened with a duosharp diamond stone.(??????)