American Woodworker - 121 (May 2006)

7/30/2019 American Woodworker - 121 (May 2006)

1/63


2/63

UJ\Z=LIJlNJcocoE.t-lJco>=( 4zFz=-)t-E,vLU\Z

coLUa(J\Zco-o-E.t 4

-o-E.LUO

FeaturesBookcaseEntertainment enterBuild a sleek cabinet arounda giant flat-screen TV.12TipsorBetterBiscuit oiningCut corner splines, store biscuitsin kitty litter, make double-thickslots for added strength and more.HowToHang nsetDoorsDoors ook bestwith a small,evengap all the wayaround.ToolTestBiscuit oinersThe latest models havea terrific new fence grip.

5 Steps oFoursquare oardsHere's the classicwayto make rough boards straightand square.8Tips or Mill ingRough umberThe least-expensive ype oflumber poses some unusualproblems.

#121,MA Y2006

626672

B6


3/63

DepartmentsOuestion AnswerRemove stuck pulleys, select drill-pressspeed for small bits and discover the beautyof unsteamedwalnut.WorkshopTipsMake your own dowels, turn a cutting boardinto economical tablesaw nserts,stretcha board using a scarfjoint and more.20Well-EquippedhopJet's cyclone dust collector, Thin Ai r Pressvacuum bag, Kreg andJessEmmiter gaugesand a huge Starrett Protractor.ModernCabinetmaker10EasyWaysTodd Roll-OutsRoll-out drawers make cabinet storagespacea lo t more versatile.BuildYour ki l lsBentWoodLaminationDramatically curved parts adda new dimension to your work.ToolTalkTheFestoolTS 5EOA precision circular sawand guide-railsyJtem makes slrper-smooth cuts in pl;'r'vood.SmallShopTipsSuspendedai r comPressorand bandsaw-blade hanger.

FreePlansJoin ou r online panel to receive5 favorite shop-projectplans.Oops!Shoehorn anityBig cabinet vs. small door: The door lost.

B ,813

28 20,34

e29496

L34 American Woodworker- MAY 2ooo

{tr


4/63

'T!iD,tT!$sts$m[u,fiilcureaeffilnncsat"It's neu) Gorilla line deliuers toqperformance at a competitiuepriin."

3hpSuper ustGorillahown.iat0rtl0insGGS,,ooffiGGt]iJCMTM

AmericanWoodworkerJanuary006"l ustwantedoexpressow leasedamwith ourcfclone.usedoown n mportedyclonenduirgradedo he3hpDustGorilla.ll can aysWdwtWhat namazingifference.heamountfsuction'mgettingteachmachines unreal,asilydoublehatgotwifimyold achine.ouns

t*13,=&ezItf'lllt

isbuiltike ank,fsquiet,ndt'sapleasureto use.Hopefully,'ll never eed nothercyclone,ut f I do,youguys avemYbusinessor ife.Somanymanufacturersclaimhat heir roductilldo hisandhat,thent ums utobenothingut dud. ourmachines every itasgood sadvertisedandhenome,hankou."- Lou Miller,North Wales,PAShowni$topUonalAngleronStand.$159.00Upgnade.hRustEodllr$t&1.002hR uRotlllstGorllla$895.00Shnurerlu$tGulllr $tl$000

Our3hpGortilaesfedn a classby itselfwith hemostairflow(CFM). ur2hpGorillaesfedwithmoreCFMhan he3,2.5,andZhp ompetitorsxceptforone3hp nit.SeeAmerican oodworkererformanceesu/fson ourwebsite..4F6IlMnds|n[B rFliolUsedo$cluot!Turnsourshop acuumintoa cyclonicvacuum.and50 lA0xlongabetwxnfilterclnningsl

Deluxe rumandHosePackagesOptional.

Dedieated o Dust CollectionSince19%!teufi-lo-$hhuoluotfiFREE hippingn$100+48StatesSome estrictionsApply.

Order On-Line! CaII Today or Your FREE Brochure!rilttutil.6n"eilu-ull.com,8 0.13.4005

Prclrgos$tlffng etUnilel 100

F-c!z0);a

Erlitor Ken Collierllxecrrtivc Etlitor RandyJohnson

Senior lltl itol Tom CasPar.{ss,rr ;rtc l-rlit, rls TimJohnsonDave Munkittrick

Tools aucl ProrlLrctsLclitol George VondriskaIirlitorial Intenr Luke HartleDcsign l)ircctor SaraKoehler

At-t Dittctols VernJohruonJoe GohmanC)opv '-rlitor Jean Cook

F:rc t . l r t 'ck i rrgSpt r : r l i : t r Jenni fer Fe is tNina Childs;ohnsonPlrcluction Nlanagcl Judy Rodriguez

Procluctiotr At'tist Lisa Pahl KnechtC)flicc Arlnrinistrative i!{an:rge Alice Garrett

Fitr;rncialAssistatrt Steven Charbonneau'lt'c ltnical \'latlaser Shannon HoogeRc:rclcr Scrvicc Spccialist Roxie Filipkowski

Arhninistr-atilc .\ssistant ShellyJacobsen(i ro t tp Dircc to t.Homc & (iarilcn (iroup Kerry Bianchi

PLrblishcr- Rick Straface()roup \[arkcting Dirc


5/63

PuLLEYPnoBLEMSI am trying o swapcutter-headson my jointer ( l 'm

You don't need a new pulley. You do need a pulley puller.You can buy or rent one at most hardware stores (see

going carbide),but l can' t get the Source, below). Expect to pay around $5 to rent and as much as$30 to buy one. A puller is designed to hook onto the back of thepulley. A threaded rod screws down onto the shaft center' As therod tightens against the shaft, the jaws pull on the pulley. Thereare two- and three-jaw pullers. Threejaw pullers cost more but areeasier to use because the pulling power is distributed at threepoins around the pulley instead of two. A twojaw puller can fit

into tight spacesbetter. We found a combo nvo- and three-jaw

pul ley of f the old cut terhead.Do Ineed to get a new pul ley?Wil l I beable to get i t on the shaf t of thenew cutterhead?

puller (seeSource).You may face the same problem in reversewhen you try to put the pulley on the newcutterhead shaft. Here's an old machinist'strick for getting tight-fitting pulleys orbearings on a shafu Bake the pulley. Ironexpands with heat, which should open upthe hole in the pulley enough to get it on

the shaft. There's no need to get the pulleyred hot. Just pop it into an oven at300 degreesF for 10 minutes or so. (Don't for-

get to use oven mitts!)Bakea tight-f it t ingpulley.The heatwil l expand he pulleyso it f i tseasilyon a shaft. Source Enco,

800)873-3626,www.use-enco.comCombo21 3 aw puller, 891-4057, 34 .

If you have a question you'd like answered, send it to us at Question & Answer, American Woodworkel 2915 Commers Drive, q"if 799, Eagan,VfN SSfZt or imail o ilanda@readersdigesrcom. Sorry, but the volume of mail prevents us from answering each question individually.

z-IJJ--)Io_E8(F :-o_ozzF()[!oFE.

I American Woodworker MAY 2ooo


6/63

Dnt l -PRESS SpEeo^n\ f Do real lyneed o change>aJmy dri l l -press peed orsmall-diameter i ts?They seemto drill OK ata slow speedand t' skindof a hassle hanginghe belta l l he ime.

On the road or in the shop,it's best to obey the speed

limit. In the case of nvist bis, thesmalldiameter bits rely on high rpmrates to clear the flutes of wood chips.At high speeds, the flutes are betterable to carry the chips up and out ofthe hole. At slow speeds, the flutestend to jam up with material, whichleads to slow cutting and high temper-atures that will dull bits prematurely.There's also a tendency to push hard-er to overcome thejammed bit, whichcan result in a broken bit.

Sreevrro vs. UrusreAMEDWelruurls it true that air-driedwalnut ooksa lotbetter han kiln-dried?

AA Kiln drying acrually has little effect on walnut's Unsteamed walnut, whether it's dried by kiln or aiq preI l-colof but steaming does. Steaming blends the servesthe purples, reds, greens and browns that naturallynatural colors and distributes them wenly throughout the occur in walnutwood fibers. The result is a rather drab, grayish-brown As an individual crafisperson, you may sometimes wantboard.I0ndriedwalnutisrxuallysteamedbecausefurni- to avoid sifting through boards for good color matches.

. . ture manuhcturers like the uniformityitgives to theirfur- That's the time to picksteamedwalnut Forspecial projectsniture. That's why marry people have been led to believe in which you really want the rich, true colors of walnut disit's the kiln that kills walnut's natural beauty. played, go for unstafiied.

10 American Woodworker MAY 2006


7/63

editedDyTimJohnsonMakelburOwn DowelsJr,.u., seem to have the right dowel. If it's the correct diameter, it'sIthe wrong kind of wood. Rather than stocking dowels of every sizeahd species, make my own, using a tool that's probably been aroundsince the Iron Age.

My dowel maker is a l/4-,in steel plate with holes that decrease ndiameter by l/64.in increments. Driving a square blank through theseriesof holes produces a round dowel that matches he smallestdiam-eter. The blank should be no larger than the largest hole; shaving oneend to a point makes starting easier. The dowel is roughly shaped atfirst; successive assesefine it. Dowelsmade this wayare perfectly sized,but they often show some tear-out. They also have to be made in shortsections; hammering slender blanks that are longer than 12 in. causestoo much deflection.

Each hole is drilled through from the top and then counterboredl/64-,in. oversize rom the bottom. Stop the counterbore L/L6 in. short,so all that remains of the original hole is a l/l&in.-wide lip at the top.This lip provides the cutting edge.The counterbore provides clearancefor the dowel.

To drill accurately sized holes, you must firmly clamp the plate toyour drill-press table and your drill bits have to be sharp. Use a center-punch to locate each hole and keep the drill bit from wandering.Operate the press at 1,000'rpm (slower for 7 lG:in. or larger bits) anduse cutting oil while you drill.

. Flattening and polishing the top surface creates cutting edgesaround the holes. For this step,you can useyour sharpening stones orsandpaper adhered to a flat surface'

shrannonHooge


8/63

EcoNoMrcAL ruseHTSCommercially made

zero-clearance inserts costabout $20. I make my own for lessthan $3 from 3/8-in.-thick polyeth-ylene cutting boards, which are flatand rigid. A 14in. x 17-in. cuttingboard ($10 at a discount depart-ment store) yields four inserts.14 American Woodworker MAY 2006

After rough-sawing theblank on my bandsaw, I attach thesaw's insert with double-faced tape.Then I rout the blank to final sizeusing a flush-trim bit. I drill 71/64.in.pilot holes and install the adjust-ment screws, which are 3/8-in.-long #10-24 Allen-head set screws

(about 40 cents each at ahardware store).

Raising the blade through the poly-ethylene to cut the zero


9/63

Boanp-SrnETcHlNG JotrurI bought a planer/molder so I

could make my own moldings. My liv-ing room required one 28-ft.-long

molding, but all I had to make itwerel2-ft. boards. I didn't want to settlefor separate lZ-ft. molding sectionsNITS+l

mitered during installation.I wanted this molding to beone continuouspiece.Joiningthe board$with diagonal scarfjoints beSrg molding themwas he scilution.To mafre a scarf oint, layout the afigtressing at least a4to-1 rafl 4 in. of run forevery l-ih. rise. Increasingthe ratib- ,strengthens theglue joidt. The joint will be

if you matchgrain directionUse your band-

saw or d*sabersawo cut theangles. fio" joint the edgesby attaching a fence and

lncotheand

the

routingWth u flush-trim bit.GlueJ$peboards together

o n a rface. Install theclamps ndicular to the

the pieces fromslidingnotch

u may have toedges of the

old the clamps atangle.

Daae Okon

16 American Woodworker MAY 2ooo


10/63

DErp-REACH HnTvDSCREWRecently, a friend asked me to reglue the buck-

led veneer in a tabletop. The problem was ocatedtoo far from the edge to clamp with my longesthandscrew, so I added wooden fingers to nearlydouble is reach. I made the fingers of 3/4in.hickory though you could use anyhard, stiff wood. I fastened themwith 1-1l2-in.Jong No. 14 screws.The fingers reduce thejaw capacirybv l-1,/2-in., down to 3 in. on my8-in. handscrew. Longer fingers on alarger handscrew should be thicker tominimize deflection. To screw on the fin-gers, I open the jaws wide, like a yawningcartoon alligator.

Leif Scott

18 Arnericau Woodworker MAY 2006

\,t/e'll giveyou $150, this greatlooking shirt and a durable shop apron for your Worlshop TiplSend your original tip to us with a sketch or photo. If we print it , you'll be woodwork-ing in style. E-mail your tip to [email protected] or send it to Workshop

Thr, A,merican Woodworker, 2915 Commers Drive, Suite 700, Eagan, MN 55121.Submissionscan't be returned and become our property upon acceptanceand payment.

We may edit submissionsand use them in all print and electronic media.

lDfiGL DA . R AA S I L Y , , , ,F i N G A G E S O n " R E L . E A SVoted "Best New Tool" for its tremendously nnovative an d easy to use features, he all-new JET@ arallelClampsimplif iesclamping action with its exclusiveClutchDesignan d S/ide-GliderM rigger.Se e your next set of clamps inactionat a qualityJE Twoodworkingdealernearest ou or at ettools.com/aw


11/63

SEPARATIONCYLINDER

collectors.One unique feature is the pressure tube

that allows you to use a plastic bag in the bar-rel. The tube runs from the cyclone down tothe collection barrel. It uses the negativepressure from the cyclone to pull the bagtight against the inside of the barrel, whichkeeps the bag from being sucked into thecyclone.

Jet's unusual inlet design is an 8-in. roundport that flares to a rectangular shape. Therectangle's height almost equals the separa-tor cylinder's height to enhance airflow andseparation performance.

The JC-3 combines a 14in. backwardlyinclined steel impeller with a 3-hp motor toproduce excellent airf low performance.Airflow is measured in cubic feet per minute(CFM); see our test results in the chart,below.

The separation performance on the Jet isexcellent. A neutral vane inside the separator .cylinder promotes smooth airflow and aids inseparating the debris from the air stream.After this cyclone "ate" an entire barrel ofdust from our workshop, only a trace of dustmade its way to the collector bag under thefilter. While working, it produced a noiselevel of 87 decibels.

Jet uses a snap ring for quick, easy changesof the plastic collector bag. The cartridge filterfeatures a built-in paddle wheel that allows youto clean clogged pleats with the turn of ahandle. TheJetJG3 comes in two models: theJG3CF (shown above) with a 2-micron-ratedcartridge filter and theJG3BF with a standardfilter bag.

The collector includes a sturdy tripod standand a dolly cart for the dust barrel. The collec-tor will fit under an 8-ft. ceiling.

Source Jet Tools, 800) 74-6848, ww.iettools.com et cyclone ust collector ith cartridge lter, C-3CE 1,700.Jet cyclone ust collector ith bag ilter, C-3BF, 1,400.

Jer'S Nrwesr 'l-nfi1+o

Fl*'if*ffi$ore thanjust a me-too entry theJet -7offers features not found on other1I:+ .EF

,iIIIIIrlICARTRIDGEFILTER

--.rx(FILTERCLEANERHANDLE

tUccfF(JLlz

ol!zaaUIzl2IoUa'l-Io-(r(,=ozzFU(roF(razazI-oz(rEFoU

DyGeorge Vondriska

2500

2000

= 1500tlo1000

500

00 3 6 9 1 2 1 5Srerrc PnrssuRE rNcHEs20l



12/63

Multi-Sander

ONESANDERDOESITALL!

lrctuper

lVAttaqtncnts

o Finish hard to reach suffaceswith 8 contour attachmentso Built-in work light - increasesvisibility in dark comers

o Dust canister for keeping aclean work environmentSoft gnp handle for comfoftand better control

i "*--*'-ij-S,i

HnruD-PUMP acuuM BncA vacuum bag is a great way to press veneer onto a substrate.

It exerts uniform pressure across the surface-something thatcan be especially tricky to do on large or curved parts. Avacuum-bag system usually involves a specialized vacuum pump andcan cost several hundred dollars. For a less-expensive option,try a Thin Air Press kit, $55 to $60. It uses a hand-operatedpump and saves you a bunch of cash. It's also an economicalway to try out vacuum veneering.

In addition to the hand-operated pump, the kit includes a20-mil bag with a one-way valve, breather netting and tape to sealthe bag's mouth. Kits are available with either a 14in. x47-in.bagor a 2Gin. x 28-in. bag.

When your project has been prepped and slipped into thebag, pressing it closed against the tape seals the opening of thebag. The breather netting, draped across your project, allowsair to evacuate evenly so you get uniform pressure on theproject. Start pumping and you'll see the vacuum bag slowlycompress against your work. It takes about one minute ofpumping to empty the air from the bag. The bag providesplenty of pressure to flatten veneer and holds the vacuum longenough for the glue to dry.

Two 14in. lengths of sealer tape are included with the kit.You'll want to keep some spare tape on hand, since the tape isthe Achilles seal, er, I mean, heel in the system. One piece willwork for a few applications, but any particles, like sawdust, thatget on the tape will interfere with its ability to seal.Replacement tapes are available at $4 for two 14in. pieces.Source Roarockitkateboardo. . 416) 38-4588,ww.roarockit.comThinAi rPress itwith14-in. 47-in. ag, 01300,55 . hinAi rPress itwith26-in. 28-in.ag, 01301,60 .



13/63

NEw Mrrun GaucESA good-quality, accurate miter gauge can

greatly improve your tablesaw'scapabili-FLtp ties. With a gauge, you

examples of well-made miter gallges.The Kreg Precision Miter Gauge System,$160, offers

lots of value for the buck. Commonly used angles, 10,22.5,30 and 45 degrees left and right, are located by anindex pin. Additional angles can be set trsing the pro-tractor and vernier scale built into the head.

The flip stop is very con-

STOP \ may even find you\ ^t don't need to ea t,^ t Lrp more shop space

INDEXPI N

by adding a miter saw.Two new models

-o }1 from JessEm Tool.*\ and l(reg Tool

i \ ar e great

Knrc Pnecrstorv t r rn Gnuce

venient. It s curved .. _.g:t",,,.""..-).-- shape allows it to. - -.,,-/ ' pivot up, out of theway, when you slide in your

material for your first sqlraring cnt.--tt For yottr final cut, simply butt the sqtlare.!'-- end of your board against the side of the stop.It's a slick system that rarely needs to be flipped

!_ completely out of the way.The head pivots 60 degr-eesj in both directions. Its crosscut capacity is 24 in.Setting the fit of the bar to the rniter gauge slot

is a little fussy. You need to remove the bar frotnthe table slot and turn each of five bar adjusters tocustomize the fit. After that's done, this proved tobe a simple-to-use, accllrate miter gauge.

24 Anrericart Abodnorkcr '


14/63

The JessEm Mite-R-Excel, fi220, is a beautifulpiece. It uses an unusual nvo-pin system to effective-ly and precisely adjust the miter gauge head to theproper angle. One pin positions the head to within5 degrees of the angle you want. The second pinlocates the head to the last half-degree that youwant. If you'd like to go beyond that, a vernier scaleallows you to dial the head into 1/10-degree accura-cy. It's extremely easy to hit a precise angle with thismiter gauge. The head pivots 45 degrees in bothdirections. The fence has a flip stop for repetitivecuts and a 3Gin. crosscut capacity.

Miter gauge bars rarely fit miter gauge slotswith much precision. The Mite-R-Excelba r is conveniently adjustedfrom above. while the baris in th e mitergauge slot.It 's very sim-ple to do.

Sources KregTools, 800) 47-8638, ww.kregtools.comPrecis ion i terGauge ystem, KMS7102, 160. JessEm ools,(8661 72-7 92,www. essem. om Jes sEm M te-R-Excel,220.

FLIPSTOP

ANGLESETTINGPINS

JessEv Mrrr-R-Excel

American Woodworker MAY 2006 25

(


15/63

0e otr

Su prn-AccuRATEPnornAcroR. fust nhett I think I ktrn'al l th ean{rlcs, gc t bafl lecl. Especiallv rvht 'n i t

colnes to ctt t t ing uriters. Nc l c


16/63

bl Brad Holden

H,as,rk tclA{gn oll,Outstt {5 goll-out shelving is one ofthe most popular featuresof new kitchen cabinets.

Mounted on standard drawer slides,these shelves give you easier access oboxes, jars and kitchenware. Yott caneasily add roll-outs to existing cab-inets as well. If you do, takethree things into accottnt: First,determine whether you mlrstbuild out the inside of the cabi-net so the roll-out and slide clear thedoor or face fratne, including thehinges. Second, choose rvhich kind ofdrawer slide to use: partial- or full-exten-sion. And third, decide what shape andsize to make the roll-ottt drawer box.These 10 tips cover tnost of the options-whether you're retrofitting or buildingnew cabinets.

fff'

$, 1

tffi#-: z-LU-tTccFI

ozzF(JUccoFccEIU)

Fozz

: ' o-fi2 8 - \ rn t ' r ' i t r t t r \ i ro t l u o lk t ' t - MAY 2 o o o


17/63

Use Zeao-PnornusloNHlrucesZero-protrusion hinges (see Source, page 32) swing the

door completely clear of the opening, allowing a rollout tobe pulled out.withouthitting the door's edge. These hingeslet you mount the drawer slides directly to the cabinet sides.Zeroprotrusion hinges may be awkward to install in an oldcabinet, because they might require new holes.

Arrncu St-lors ro A PnrurlMount drawer slides to a new panel so the roll-

outs clear the existing hinges or face frame. Thenscrew the panel to the inside of your cabinet. Makethe panel full height to create a finished look on theinside of the cabinet.

flMourur Sltoes oru Plnsrlc SPAcERSThese spacersprovide an eznyway to move out your

slidesso they clear face frames, hinges or doors. They'reavailable n 1/8-in., 3/8-in., l/Z-in' and 3/4-.in' heights(seeSource,page 32). After screwing he spacers o thecabinet sides,attach the slides to the spacerswith No' 7wood screws r Pozi-systemcrews seeSource).

Use MoururlrucBnncrETSON FNCC-FRAME CNEINT-rS

Mount one bracket on the face frame and theother on the cabinet back. The slides simply snapinto place. This cabinet has a l/*in. plywood back,which is not thick enough to hold screws- An easysolution is to installS/hin. mounting strips on theback using construction adhesive.

Mnrcr AolusrABLE SUPPoRTSMake supports from 3-in.-wide boards that are

thick enough so the roll-outs clear the face frameand door. Space dadoes at l-in. intervals. Mountthe cabinet part of the slide to a3/4-,in. square stripof wood that is the same length as the cabinet'sinside depth. Slip the strips into a set of dadoes andadd the roll-out.

sker MAY 2OOo


18/63

Use n Renov-To-lrusrauSvsrEMThissystemisasimple,quickwaytoaddadjustableroll-

outs. It uses small blocks called hook dowels that attach tothe slide. They fit into square holes spaced at l-in. inter-vals in the standards. The mounting strips stand offeitherI or l-l/4in. from the cabinet side to clear hinges' faceframes or doors (see Source, below) '

n

PnrverurDoonDavtacE wlrHBuwPERS

Install drawer bumPersto prevent slides fromscratching a door. Thesebumpers extend beYondmost bottom-mounted

epoxy-style slides, butyou may need to add aspacer, such as a wash-er or cardboard shim,

behind the bumPer tokeep a full-extension

ball-bearing slide fromscratching he door.

Bult-o Our FoR MrrelSraruoARDsHere'sasimplewaytoinstallroll-outsincabinets

that have metal shelf standards: Mount your slides toplastic spacer blocks that have shelf clips on theirtacks. The system is quick and adjustable but is onlyrated for 35 pounds per roll-out (see Source, below)'

Connel SrurF wlrHTall BacrcsAND SIOTS

Buitd your roll-outswith tall backs and sidesif theywill carrytall orstacked items.Make the frontlow to keep itemseasily accessible. Full-extension slides Provideeasy access to the con- ---tents at the roll-out's back (see Source, below)'Th.y cost about twice the price of threequarter-extension, bottom-mounted, epoxy-style slides'though.

Htor THE St- loEsFor a refined look, extend rollout fronts to cover

the ends of the slides. Use dadoes to attach an extend-ed front on shallow roll-outs. For taller roll-outs, usebiscuits.

Source WoodworkersHardware,800) 83-0130'www.woodworkershardware.comereprotrusion inge'#B071 7500'$8 ea.3/4-in. 19-mm) lastic pacers, 8060'275, 0'58ea' Face-frameslide-mountingrackets, KV8404, 0'80ea' Rear lide-mountingrack-et, #KV8401, t "u . Adjustable upport ets,#TN8520,$17 a set'Shelf-standardountingSystem, KV1303, 3 ea. Full-extension|ides,#KV8400822, g13a sei. Dta*"r bumpers, 8X1926WH' $0'30 ea'pori-tytt"t screws or S-mmholes, arious izes, 3 to $4 per 100'

32 American Woodworker MAY 2ooc


19/63

:$

s your woodworking ready to break free ofthe box? Check out bent laminations.You'llfind a whole new world of possibilities toform to create the desired shape (see photo above).

Bent laminations don't take a lot of specializedequipment. You probably already have all the toolsyou need: a bandsaw or tablesaw to cut the thinplies and a planer to take offsaw marks and adjusteach ply's thickness. You will also need a bunch ofsmall bar clamps, two-part urea-formaldehydeglue, a glue spreader and some sheet stock tomake forms.

Here are 10 tips to get you started making yourown bent laminations. Start small-try somethinglike drawer pulls-and have fun. With a little prac-tice, you'll be ready to handle any curve.

explore. Woodworkers usebent wood laminationsfor everything from chair rockers to drawer han-dles. Bent laminations do more than give yourproject a graceful look; when used as a structuralelement, such as a table leg, tfrey are actuallystronger than if the piece were cut from a singleblock of wood. That's because he grain nrns par-allel with the shape; here is no weak short grain.A bent lamination is simply a board sliced intothin, flexible plies and glued back together in a

zI

LUf>-o_(EoF-(LozztrUJoE

34 American Woodworker MAy 2006


20/63

36 American Woodworker MAy 2006


21/63

Usr rHE RlcHr GlurUse a two-part urea-formaldehyde glue for bent laminations. It sets hard

but slowly. The hard set helps the lamination hold its shape. The long opentime takes the frenzy out of glue-up. I recommend Unibond 800; it's a urea-formaldehyde glue with three shades of powdered catalyst to better matchthe wood you're using. It also cleans up easily with water'

Epo*y is also a good choice for bent laminations, but it costsalmost twiceas much as urea-formaldehYde.Standard wood glue is not the best choice for bent lamina-

tions. Yellow glue sets soft and fast. It is also prone to gluecreep, a phenomenon in which the cured glue creepsout of the laminations over time, resulting inunsightly, raised glue lines.

LIGHTCATALYST

DARKCATALYST

38 American \A/oodworker MAY 2006


22/63

LrnreHE Fonv Wrpr ConrApply alayer of self-stick cork liner (available at

home centers, 12-in. x 4ft. sheet, $6) to the form.This liner helps even out irregularities in thesawn form. Cork also creates a nonslip surfacethat aids in holding the lamination to the form asyou apply clamping pressure.

Panr FonvrsSHanpCunvrsa one-part form for curves in excess of

180 degreesor for complex shapes.A one-part form is easier to make than a two'partform, but it does require numerous clampsand that can make glue-up more challenging.Becausepressure s applied only where theclamps are located, using a one-part form canresult in some crushed wood fibers,anuneven surface and gaps n the glue lines.Most of theseproblems can be avoided bysimply not overtightening the clamps. Useclamp blocks and plenty of clamps to helpspread the clamp pressureevenly.

Twg-PaRT FoRMsAPFLYEVrn PnrSSUne"', IJse a two-part form whenever possibleto clamp the plies together. Two-partforms are the best choice for gentlecuwes under 180 degrees. The two partsapply even clamping pressure along thelamination's entire length.

Llsing glued-up sheet stock is a quick,easy way to make a form blank. Waxedpaper protects the form from gluesqueeze-out.

American Woodworker


23/63

-tirr frs-r'ooiL:fs 55F',,2J \ \\\ \

\

THts PRECrsroNAWA N D G U I D E - R A I LSYSTEM MAKES

EXTREMELYC L E A N C U T S

I N P L Y W O O D .

{f'.w6='s*::'-

\Ik\.f!

P O o?

BuYTNGAnvrcE FoR SHop Grnn

42 Anrerican \\bodl'or-ker'


24/63

T A /hat's your trick for cutting up a tull sheet oft/ l/ ply'vood? Do you flop it onto your tablesawY Y and wrestle it past the blade? Do you use a cir-

cular saw and gnash your teeth over chipped veneer anda wandering, burnt edge? If so, help is on the way.

The Festool TS 55 EQ plungecutting circular saw andguide rail ($430) make cutting plywood as easy as one,two, three. The results are alrrazine (Photo 1). You won'tget ragged edges, even with such chipprone materials asmelamine or oak plywood. And every cut will be right onthe money (Photo 2). You can also use this system for cut-ting solid wood as thick as 1-15116 n.

Best of all, you can do all your cutting on a pair of saw-horses. This system is a good alternative to a panel saw ora sliding table for your tablesaw. It's more portable, takesup a lot less space and costs less.

HrcH-OuaLrrYursThe Festool TS 55 EQsaw and guide rail work togetherto reduce chipping to a minimum. Both have replaceable

zerodearance splinter guards (Photos 3 and 4).The saw s engineered to minimize run-out in the arbor

and blade. The result is a smoother cut than other sawscan make. The blade that comes with the TS 55 EQis sim-ilar to a highquality tablesaw blade designed to cut ply-wood. A riving knife helps prevent binding in solid woodand scoring plywood as the blade exits the cut (Photo 5).

The Festool TS 55 EQ has a lGamp motor with elec-tronic variable speed (EVS). EVS keeps the motor mn-ning at a constant rate under load. This produces asmoother cut than cuts made by sawswithout EVS, whichcan bog down under load. Variable speed is particularlybeneficial for cutting aluminum or plastic.

The TS 55 EQs guide rail is an aluminum extrusionthat's engineered to track the saw in a perfectly straightline. The guide rail has a raised bar that fits into a grooveon the saw's base. The fit benveen the guide rail and sawcan be fine-tuned by a couple a{ustment knobs on thesaw. Once a{usted, the saw travels very straight. There'svirtually no play. A low-friction tape on top of the guiderail helps the saw glide easily.

Ensv SerupAccurate cuts are a cinch to make with this system. You

just line up the guide rail with your pencil marks, or a line,and start sawing. Your cuts will be exacdy on the line.

The guide rail has rubber strips on the bottom to helpthe plywood stayput. Although the strips do a pretty goodjob, it's best to clamp the guide rail, too. You can usespring clamps, but the Festool guide-rail clamps ($30 fortwo) are more convenient. They engage in a T:track on

1


25/63

the bottom of the guide rail, so there's no chance of theminterfering with the cut.

This saw gives you a lot of flexibility in how you planyour cuts. The spring-loaded plunge mechanism allowsyou to start and stop a cut anywhere on a sheet of plywood.Start the saw with the blade retracted and depress themachine to make the cut. Allow the machine to retract byspring pressure at the end of the cut. This plunging abili-ty is helpful for getting the maximum yield from a sheet,especiallywhen the cuts don't line up with each other andyou have to start or stop in a corner. It's very easy o presetthe saw'sdepth of cut (Photo 6).

The one drawback to this system occurs when makingidentically sized pieces. With the Festool TS 55 EQ youmust lay out each cut and accurately position the guiderail each time. Ifyou're not careful, you could accumulatea lot of error. Identical pieces are much easier to maker,r'ith a tablesaw.

WHnr Elsr Dors lr Do?Mitering a pair of very long 24in.-wide pieces for acountertop would be tough to handle on a tablesaw, but

it's a snap with the TS 55 EQ.Just position the guide railright on the cutline.

The TS 55 EQ also works well sawing long bevels formitered corners. Again, all you have to do is position theguide rail on a pencil line. Even when tilted, the saw cutsright on the line.

With the addition of a longer guide rail and new blade(see Source, below) the Festool system is a great way tostraight-line rip solidwood. The TS 55 EQhas amaximumcutting depth of I-15/16 in. For thicker work, Festool willintroduce the TS Tslater in 2006 ($450 to $500, includinga guide rail). It will have a2-3/4,in. depth of cut.

The guide rail is also compatible with the FestoolOF 1010EQplunge router ($325,Photo 7) .

AccrssoRtESThe TS 55 EQs standard guide rail is 55 in. long. An

additional 10Gin. guide rail ($190) is available.To prevent the power cord and vacuum hose from

catching on the guide rail's end, Festool makes an acces-sory called the Deflector ($11). I heartily recommend it.Festool also offers a large protractor-like Angle Unit ($62)for setting up diagonal cuts.

TUE FrrunlArunlYslsThe TS 55 EQ produces impressively clean cuts in ply-

wood. It easily reduces large pieces of plywood into fin-ished pieces. When it's connected to a shop vacuum,there's almost no dust. For an installer working away fromthe shop, this system provides an accurate way to field


26/63


27/63


28/63

Materials:Foursheetsof 3/4-in.veneer-core herryplywoodOn e sheetof 114-in.f ibercore herryplywoodFoursheetsof 3/4-in.veneer-core irchplywood

45 bd. f t . of 414 herrylum ber

Sevenpai rsof no-mort ise oor hingesTwo pai rsof fu l l -extension rawersl idesGlass or door andshelvesStainand opcoat

Router nd routert ab leTablesawClam psDadoblade

Rai l -and-st i leouterbit set

Hardware:She l fp insConnector oltsAssorted screwsMagnetic atchesGlass etainer l ipsThreaded nseftsNo. 20 biscui tsGost:Approximately 1,100

Dowel ing igBiscui toiner Edge-bandron andBradna i l e r t r im m erCompoundmiter aw 2- in .holesawCordless r i l l Rabbet ingouterbi tJointer 45-degree hamferPlaner routerbi t

UPPERCENTERCABINET

UPPERSIDECABINET

LOWERCENTERCABINET

I(Jcocc-EYzE.I2o=EFalIJFE.v.Uv=Io_cc

oIo_zIa9U-2F(JL!rroFE.

rhinct, rlakcs lr:rq**,yhpqdlinsduring assemblyand in'stallatlon. \/

Tv OPENING'SBACK PANEL

50 Anreric:rn \4loodrvor-ker - MAy 2006


29/63

1 Startby assembling he base.Brad-nail ingmakesquickI work of fasteningpanels o the frame,Along th e frontedge,however, use clamps o avoid nail holes,which wouldotherwise ho w when the lower cabinetdoors are open.Q AO O he solid-woodbaseboard o the base rame usingQ glueand clamps.No need or nails here.Themiteredcornercontains s inglebiscui t hat helpswith al ignmentand strengthens he oint.

Th e cabinetside overlaps he baseboard(AB)by 1/16 n. o hide he oint where hebaseboardmeets he baseassembly'soppanel A5).

Lnv Our Youn PlYwooo FlnsrPick the best looking sheets or the sides of the lower side

cabinets and sides of the upper side cabines (C2, D2).These pieces are arranged on the plywood layout (see Fig.M, page 59), so the grain matches when the cabinets areassembled. I used birch plywood for the inner parts of thelower cabinet rather than cherry plywood and saved about$250 on materials. When stained, the color of the birch ply-wood becomes very similar to the stained cherry plywood.

Bur lo rHE Base ASSeMBLYl. Assemble the base frame with biscuits and brads (Fig.

B, above). The front and back frames (A1, A2) need to bespliced with patches (A3), because the base is more than 8ft. long. The double stretcher boards (A4) provide supportfor the ends of the top panels (A5, A6, Photo l).

2. When the frame is assembled, add the cherry base-board (A7, A8, Photo 2) .

3. Rout the chamfer on the baseboard (Fig. B, Detail 1,above).

American \Abodworker MAY 2006 51


30/63

STILE---;:r-/STILE -zLOCATION

PARTITION

. . , * T r im a wa y th e e d g e b a n d in g wh e re th e s t i l e s a t ta ch o" "3 " t f r e to p a n d b o t to m p a n e ls .Th is a l l o ws th e s t i l e s o bet i g h t l y g l u e d t o t h e p a f t i t i o n s .

e ,p Ch e c k hat your cab ine t boxes a re square . Bo th c o rn e r -. , . , $o - c o r n e rd i a g o n a l m e a s u r e m e n t ss h o u l d b e t h e s a m e . ft h e y ' r en o t , r a i s e h e c l a m p s o n t h e c o r n e r w i t h t h e l o n gd i m e n s i o n a n d a p p l y p r e s s u r eu n t i l b o t h d i a g o n a l m e a s u r e -me n ts ma tc n .

Dernt 1 CourureRTopRoNT DG E nnuren{-..i " .

- '- 1- P-6---,--"'*114" 114"cHAMF-EI

\i...sEEDETATL-_}ii-':"; '"'

Dernr 2 Bncr Pnruer noove /'a(;;;{i'' / f/>318"/OPTIONALGROMMETHOL E 82B4' - " ' r , - ' - '- \ i i . - .r\li i114" *--r'"-'OVERHANGL

\.IRON.ONEDGEBANDINGI\.\J,::fl'l; \i!-:].\

\i,,:-OPTIONALHOLESFOR ,4+,..'zri '\':+4+''- f' tFn.


31/63

Bur lo rHE LowrnCrrurEn CaerNET4. Cut out the cabinet bottom, top, sides and partitions

(B1, 82,83, F ig .C, page52) .5. In the side panels, cut a groove for the back (B4, Fig.

C, Detail 2) .6. Cut slots or the biscuitjoinery.7. Edge-band the front edge of the top, bottom and sidepanels, but no t the partitions (seeSources,page 59).8. Sand the inside surfaces of the plywood parts-it will

saveyou time and hassle ater on.9. Assemble the parts with biscuits and screws.Use mask-

ing tape next to the joints to catch any glue that squeezesout.

10 . Check that the cabinet is square. Use offset clamps topull it square, f needed. (Photo 3). Slide the back in andsecure t with screws.

11. Trim the edge banding (Photo 4) so the stiles (B5)can be glued tightly against the partitions (B3). First tracethe location by holding the stile in place. Then cut on theline with a knife, heat up the cut section of edge bandingand peel it off.

12 . Glue and clamp the stiles o the partitions.13. Glue the edge strip (86) to the countertop (B7) and

rout a chamfer on the top edge and ends (Fig. C, Detail 1).14. Attach the countertop to the lower center cabinet

with screws.

Bun-o HE Lowrn Sror CnerNrETs15 . Cut out and assemble he parts (C l through C4) forthe lower side cabinets (Fig. D, page 54). Note that the cab-inet sides (C2, D2) facing th e TV opening have a groove onboth sides (Fig. F, page 54). One groove is for the backs ofthe cabinets and the other is for the TV opening's backpane l (E1).

16. Add edge strips (C5, C6, C7) to the countertop (C8)and chamfer the top corners. Also notch the inner cornerof the countertop for the tongue of the TV panel (Fig. F)

17. Use connector bolts to oin the lower side cabinets othe lower center cabinet (Photos 5 and 6); see Sources,page 59).

18 . Next, join this trio of cabinets to the base with con-nector bolts and threaded inserts (Photo 7). The side cabi-nets should overlap the baseboard by L/I6 in. (Fig. B,Detail 1, page 51). This overlap hides the seam benryeen hebaseboard and the top panel (A5) of the base assembly.

19. To accurately ocate the threaded inserts n the base,I found it best to drill through both the bottoms of thelower cabinets and the base at the same time using a I / 4.in.drill bit, which is the right size for the coupler bolt. Thenslide the cabinets asideand enlarge the holes in the base o3/B in. for the threaded inserts.

f , nttactr he lower cabinets o eachother and then to ther .- , tbase.Connector olts make t easy o disassemble ndreassemblehe cab ine t o r f in ish ing nd mov ing .

CONNECTOROLT

CABINETSIDES

A,Use connectorboltswith \V"" connectorbolts andLJnuts for the cabinet-to- / threaded nserts or thecabinetconnection. cabinet-to-baseonnections.

Bur lo rHE TV OpENtNG'sBncrc Pnrurl20. Because he TV opening's back panel (El) is 60-114 n.

wide, you'll need to edge-glue nvo pieces of plyw ood togeth-er (Photo 8). When carefully biscuited, these wo pieceswillglue up flush and only require a little sanding to knockdown any ridge between the pieces.

21. \Arhen he back panel is the correct size, out a rabbetalong the top edge and two sides (Fig. E, page 54). Theresulting tongue fits into the grooves on the sides of the sidecabinets and the bottom of the upper center cabinet. Thistongue-and-grooveoint holds the TV opening's back panelin place and prevents any gaps around its perimeter thatmight be causedby it or the side cabinetsbeing slightly outof square.

22 . Slide the TV opening's back panel into place betweenthe lower side cabinets.

CABINETEA6F.-.,,!ri{L

CONNECTORNqr coNNEcroR/ BoLr



32/63

Q Asse-b le the cen te r back panel . l t ' s so wide that 's i t ' s( J made o f tw o p ieces of p lywood edge-g lued toge the r .B iscu i ts he lp w i th a l ignment . Mask ing tape keeps g lue of fthe face o f the p lywood and s impl i f i es c leanup.

f ) Useconnector o l ts o a t tach he uppers idecab inetsoJ/ t f te owers idecabinets.The ounte f tops sandwichedbetween hem.

54 Anre l icau \\ 'oorl rr 'o lke l MAY 2ooo


33/63

-l n Glue'the ace frame to the upper center cabinet.TheIIJ sti lesoverhang he cabinetby a small amount.Thisensuresa tight joint between hesestiles and the stilesofthe upper side cabinets.

BUILDTHE UppEn Sroe CasrNtETS23. Cut and assemble the parts for the upper side cabi-

nets (Dl through D5, Fig. D). Only the front edge of thebottom (D1) needs edge banding. The edgesof the cabinetsides (D2) and top (Dl) are covered by the three-sided faceframe.24. Use coupler bolts and nuts to attach the upper sidecabinets to the lower side cabinets. Sandwich the counr,er-top betrueen them (Photo 9).

BUILD THE UPPERCerurrn CaerNter25. Cut out and assemble he para (Fl, F2, Fig. G above).26. Slide in the back panels (F3, F4), and attach with

| | lnstall he upper centercabinet.Use support boards oI I hold the centercabinet n position. oin i t to the upperside cabinetsusing connector bolts and nuts.

screu/s.The back is in nuo parts so the grain can nrn vertically.27. Assemble the face frame (F5, FO) using dowels.28. Attach the face frame to the cabinet. The face frame

should overhang by 7/32 in. on each end (Photo l0). Thisensures that these stiles pull up tight to the upper side cab-inets' stiles when they arejoined together.

29. Position the upper center cabinet between the upperside cabinets. (Photo 11). The groove on the bottom of theupper center cabinet (Fig. G, above) fits onto the tongue onthe top of the TV opening's back panel.

30. Clamp the upper center cabinet to the upper sidecabinets and drill for the coupler bolts.

31. Install the coupler bolts and remove the clamps.

American Woodworker MAy 2006 55


34/63

1 q Rout h'e ailsand sti les or the doors.FeatherboardsLe keep he partssnug against he fenceand table oraccurate outing. useda rail-and-sti leouter bit set with achamferprofi le o match he chamferson the baseboard ndcountertops.

BurLD HEDoonsAND DNAWERSThe doors and drawer fronts are all inset flush with theface frames. Inset doors are more work to fit and install, butthey provide a nice clean look to the final cabinet. For acomplete description of how to fit and install inset doors,see "How to Hang Inset Doors," page 66.

32. Rout the rails and stiles (B8, B9, B11, B12, C10, Cl1,D7, D8, Photo 12 and Fig. H). I used a router bit with achamfered profile to go along with the chamfered detailson the baseboard and countertops (see Sources, page 59).

33. Cut. out the panels (B10, B13) for the lower centercabinet doors and drawer fronts and assemble them.56 American Woodworker MAY 2006

1 2 Routa rabbet n the back nsideedge of the doors hatI \, receiveglass.Chisel he roundedcornerssquare,

34. Build the drawer boxes and install them on full-extension slides (seeSources, page 59). Add the drawerfronts.

35. Assemble the door frames for the upper andlower side cabinet and rout out the back lip to makeroom for the glass Photo 13).

36. Mill out strips for the grilles (D9, D10) and cutthe lap joints using a dado blade (Photo 14).

37. Fi t the grilles into the upper side doors and gluein the filler strips (Dl1 through D14, Fig. H, left; Photo15). Don't glue the grille to the door frame. Leavingthem removable makes final sanding and finishing ofthe doors and grilles much easier. The glass will holdthe grilles in place after it has been installed with retain-er clips (seeSources,page 59).

38. Drill for door and drawer pulls (see Sources).

Burlo rHE Cnowru ASSeMBLY39. The crown molding attaches to a mounting board

and glue blocks, creating a single assembly (Fig. L, page58), that is than attached to the top of the other cabines.

40. A lip on is bottom side fits over the top of the cabinets the way alid restson a shoe box (Fig.J,page 58). Forthis reason, it's important that the mounting board (madeof Gl and G2) be correctly sized. I've provided "in a per-fectworld" dimensions in the Cutting List on page 60, butyou should take a measurement off the top of your cabi-net and adjust the size of your mounting board according-ly. The length is the most critical measurement. If it's tooshort, the crown assembly will simply not go on, and youwill have to do some creative chiseling or scraping to makeit to fit. In fact, I recommend making your mountingboard 7/32 in. to L/16 in. longer than the overall meas-urement at your upper cabinets.

41. When you have the mounting board cut, add the


35/63

I I Cutthe ap oints n the gril le partsusing a dadoI-f blade.A notchedstop blockguarantees he locationofth e la p oint wil l be the same on all the gril les.The otchalso holds he gril le part against he saw table.front and back fi:ames (G4, G5, G6). Payspecial attention thatthe distance between the frames and the mounting board'sends and front isl-1/2 in. (Fig.J, page 58). Anyvariation herewill afiect the position of the angled glue blocks, which can beadded next (Photo 16). Attach them by rubbing them into agenerous squirt of glue and letting the glue dry completelybefore you attach the crown molding.

42. While the glue is setting, cut out the crown molding(G9, GlO).

43. The compound miters on the crown molding are mosteasily done on a compound miter saw.A tablesawwould work,but you will need to build a holddown jig for your mitergauge to hold the long front molding firmly while sawing.And you will also need to support the long end that hangs offyour tablesaw.

M. Onyour miter saw,set the miter angle to 35.26 degreesand the bevel angle to 30 degrees. Make some test cuts andsee how the pieces fit. You may need to a{iust your anglesslightly to get a perfect fit.

45. After you've fit the miters, it's time to slot the ends forbiscuis (Photo 17).

46. Glue and clamp the crown molding to the mountingboard and angled glue blocks (Photo 18). Hooked clampingblocks (Fig. K page 58) greatly simpli$ this task by grvingyoua flat place to clamp against and by app\ang even pressure tothe molding.

47. When the glue has dried, the crown assembly can be lift-ed into place and screwed down (Photo 19).

CovTPLETETHE FIITIISHINGOUCHES48. Drill grommet holes in the cabinets and cut wire andventilation openings in the TV back panel and cabinetbacks as needed for your specific TV and other equipment.

Now that you've built your cabinet, it's time to take itapart for final sanding, staining and finishing.

1 K Glue iller strips nto the rabbet n the backof the upperL..t door frames.The iller strips are he same hicknessasth e gril leand wil l leavea shallow abbet or th e glass.



36/63

1 A, Attach he angledglue blocks o the inner rame an dIU mount ingboard .The ng ledblockswi l l suppor t hecrown mold ing .1n Slot he endsof the crown molding or b iscui ts . is-I J cuits' versati l i ty eallybecomesapparentwhen yo uhavea challengingoint, such as his compoundmiter, oassemble,

114"LIP >-1"I+

1 " I

Tips for cutfing . .compound mTterJolnts:o If the miter is open on the face or the back side, along the entire length of thejoint,you need to a{ust your saw'sbevel angle.o If thejoint is open atjust one end of the oint, you need to adjust the miter angle.I Getting a perfect fi t usually requires fine-tuning both angles.58 American Woodworker MAY 2006


37/63

1 a Glue he c rownm o ld ing o t he m oun t ing oa rd , TheILJ hooked lamp blocksmake t easy o hold he crownin place.Use he end crown molding o check he al ignmentof the ront molding.1 O Sc re w th e c ro wn a s s e mb ly to th e to p s o f the upperLJ c a b in e ts .A f te r a l l the doors . d ra we rs an d h a rd wa rehave been f i t ted , ake the cab ine t sec t ions apar t fo r a f in a ls a n d i n g ,s t a i n i n g a n d f i n i s h i n g .

Sources Amana, 800) 45-0077, ww.amanatool.comeversib leevel t i le-and-ra i louter i t assembly,55370, 100. Glass ource,800) 88 -7435,www.theglasssource.netlass or dooran dshelves, pprox. 200. Rockler ardware,800) 79-4441, ww.rockler.com -1l8- in.onnectorbolts or oin ingwo 3/4- in. ieces, 31831, 3.29 er pack f e ight. -314-in.onnector o lts or ornrnghree3/4- in. ieces, 31856, 4.39 er pack feight.Ca pnuts or connector o lts, 31815, 3.49 er pack f e ight. 14-tn.-20ex drive hreadednserts, 31872, 3.39 er pack f e ight.No-mort isehinges, tatuary ronze, - in. veral length, 90431, 3.29 er pair. -mm elf-center ingi l ,#22515, 20 . Woodworkers ardware,800) 83-0130,www.woodworkershardware.comlass anel l ips or upper oors, /1 - in. f fset, rown, LAN262, 4 pe r20 .Glass anel l ips or owerdoors,5/16-in. f fset, rown, LAA 264, 4 pe r20. Belwith oorpul ls , 8WP2151WOA,$4.38 a. Be lwi th rawer andles, BWP2153WOA,$5.13 a. Fu l l -extension rawer l ides, 8- in., KV840081, $11 5 0a set.s-mmspoon helf upports, nt ique rass, H821 , 52.20 er pack f 20.Cherry regluediron-on dge ape/bandrng,/8 n.x 25 t. , #ET078PCH25,7 pe r ol l . 164-in.e lf-center ingi t or h inges, V83,$7 .American \\bocll'ol ker- MAy 2006 59


38/63

Note: lf your plywood for thefrorit and back rames (A1,42 )is less han 3/4 n. thick,adjustth e lengthof the stretchers(A4)so the final width of th eplywood frame assembly,without the baseboard, quals20-15/16n.

A1A3A4A5AOA7AB

NameLong ront,back rameShort ront,back ramePatchStretchersI nnn tnn nenolQh n r t fn n n a n a lFrontbaseboardEn dbaseboard

MaterialBirchplywoodBirchplywoodBirchplywoodBirchplywoodBirchplywoodBirchplywoodCherryCherry

D i m e n s i o n s ( T x W x L )3/4"x 3-3/4'x96 '314" 3-314" 11-118"3 l4 ix3-314"x12"314" 3-314" 19-7116"314'x 20-15/1 " x 84-718"3 1 4 " x 2 0 - 1 5 1 1 6 " x3 '13/1 " x 4-112" 109-112'13/1 " x 4-1 2" 21-314"

otv.I22A11

Tnn hnffnm, v } J , v v r r v , | |SideParti tionBackFace-frameti leF d n o e i r i nCountertopBoor ai lDoorsti leDoorpanelDrawer ront rai lDrawer rontsti leDrawer ront panelShe l fDrawer ideDrawer ndDrawerdividerDrawerbottom

314" 19-911" x 58-1 2'314" 20-3116"17-114314" 19-911" x 15-314'114" 17 114" 59"13/1 "x 1-112" 17-1143/8 x 1 "x 60314" 21" x60"314" 2-114" 14-1 8"314" 2-114" 17'114 " 13-311' x 14- 1 16 "314" 2-1/4"x15-112"314" 2-114" 8-112"114" 15-7 1 ' x 4-11116"314" 19-7116'x 8-3/4314" 7" x 18"314" 7" x 16-314"314" 6-318" 16-112"1 1 4 " x 1 7 " x 1 7 - 1 1 4 "

2z212114A24A2z4

B 182ttJQ AB5B687B8B98 1 0B 1 181 2R 1 e8148 1 5D t o8178 1 8

BirchplywoodBirchplywoodBirchplywoodBirchplywoodCherryCherryCherry lywoodCherryCherryCherry lywoodCherryCherryCherryplywoodBirchplywoodBirchplywoodBirchplywoodBirchplywoodBirchplywood

Note: l f your plywood for thesides(82) s less han 3/4 n.thick,adjust he length of thetop and bottom B1 ) o thefinal width of the lower centercabinet quals60 n.Also, fyour plywood fo r the top andbottom (81) s ess han 3/4in.thick,adjust he lengthof th epart i t ions B3 ) o the f inalheight of the lower centercabinet,excludingcountertop,equafs17-1/4in. hen meas-ured at the pani t ions.

314'x19-9116"22-112314" 20-316" x 25-314"114" 23" x25-314"13/1 ' x 1-1 2" 25-314"3/8"x 1"x20-518"3/ 8 x 1 "x24-314"3 /8 "x1"x21-318"3 1 4 "2 1 " 2 4 "314" 19-7 16" x 22-318"314" 2-114" 17-114"314" 2-114" 25-112"1 /8 "x1 l -118"21 -518 '

C 1(^,)a?C4c-1

C9c l 0c 1 1c 1 2

Top, bottomSideBackFace-frameti leInner dg estr ipFrontedgestripouter edgestripa n r rn + o r fn nShel fDoor ai lDoorsti leG l a c c n e n a l

BirchplywoodCherry lywoodBirchplywoodCherryCherryCherryCherryCherry lywoodBirchplywoodCherryCherryTempered

Note: l f your plywood fo rthe sides C2 ) s less han314 n. thick,adjust helengthof the tops and bot-toms (C1) o the finalwidthof each ower side cabinetequals24 n.

Top,bottomSideBackFace-frameti leFace-frameai lGlass hel fDoorsti leDoor ai lVertical ri l leHorizontalr i l leShort ertical i l lerShort orizontali l lerLongvertical i l lerLonghorizontali l ler

CherryplywoodCherry lywoodCherryplywoodCherryCherryPol isheddg eCherryCherryCherryCherryCherryCherryCherryCherryTempered

314" 15-9116" 22-1 2"314" 1 6-3116" 46-314"114" 23" x 46-314"13/16 x 1-1 2" 46-314"13 /16 ' x1-314"21 "114" 15-7116'22-318"314" 2-114" 45"314" 2-1 4" 1l -114 "114" 314" 41-114"114" 314" 17-114"114" 318"x 3-5/8"114" 318" 3-114"114" 318" 32- 112"114" 3lB" x8-112"1 /8 ' x 17 -112 "41 -118 "

n' rD2n?D4UOD7D8nqD 1 0D 1 1D1 2D 1 3Dl4

444I844I15 Glass ane l

Note: l f your plywood fo rthe sides D2 ) s es s han3/ 4 n. thick, adjust helength of tops and bottoms(D1) o the finalwidth ofthe upperside cabinetsequals24 n.

TV Opening'sback panelE1 Backpanel 2 Cherryplywood 3la" x30-118" 40-118"

CherryplywoodCherry lywoodCherryplywoodCherry lywoodCherryCherryCherry

zA11411

F 1f zrJ- A

F5TOt t

Top,bottomQi r {o n r r t i t i n nShortbackpanelLongbackpanelFace-frameti leFace-frame ottom ailFace-frameop rail

314" 16-3116' 59-1 /1 "314" 15-9/16'x13-314114"x19-5 /8"x14-114"114" 40-5116"14-11413/16" 1-1/2" 12"13/16"x -112"60 "13/16"x -314"x0"

Note: l f your plywood for thetop and bottom F1 ) s lessthan 3/ 4 n. thick,adjust helength of the sides and pafti-t ions (F2) o the f inal heightof the upper centercabinetequals15-114n.

BirchplywoodBirchplywoodBirchplywoodBirchplywoodBirchplywoodBirchplywoodBirchplywoodBirchplywoodCherryCherryBirchplywoodBirchplywood

314" 17 "x 13 '3 1 4 " x 1 7 9 53 1 4 " x 1 4 " x 1 4 "3 1 4 " x 1 - 1 1 2 " x 1 6 "314" 1-112"95 "3 1 4 " x 1 - 1 1 2 " x 1 2 "3 1 4 " x 1 - 1 1 2 " x 1 4 "314" 1-112"3"314 "x4 "x19 -718 "3 1 4 " 4 " x 1 1 3 - 1 1 / 1 6 '114" 18-112"x 5-718"114 " 18-711" x 95'

Shortmounting anelLongmounting anelJointpatchShort ront,back rameLong ront,back rameJointpatchEn d rameAngled lu eblockEndcrownFrontcrownShort op panelI n n d t n n n i n 6 l

Crown sectionL r lG2G4G5\JOG7G8G9G 1 0G 1 1G1 2

111222142111

Note: l f your plywood fo rthe front and back rames(G4,G5) s less han 3/4 n.thick, adjust he length ofth e end frames (G7)so theoutside measurementofthe front and back ramesequals17-1/2n.



39/63

Mnrr ConNER SpLINESDecorative corller splines sure make an ordinarv box look great. But they cau be a

bit dicey o cut on a tablesaw. et your plate oiner corne o the rescue.A simple ig holdsthe box and the oiner so you can cut slotsquicklv rvitl'r ninirnal setup hassles. he ji g isr-rothing nore than a piece of scrap plpvood rvith nvo wood strips set at 90 degrees creach other. A cradle fits aroturcl he plate.joir-rer aseand keeps t from t-ockins on th ebox corner. Tl-recradle is indexed to thejign'ith a couple dowels. Use spacer blocks toadjust the splir-re pacing. Plturge tl-re.joiner nto the rvood slowly to preverlt teaf-or.lt

where the blade exits the wood. Witl-r his box, you only need one spacer block;jtrst flipthe box over to ctrt the upper slot.

JOINERBASECRADLE

, ' - - \ ,SPACERBLOCK

62 Arneric:rn \Akxrcll, olker MAy 2006


40/63

PnESERVE oURBrscurrswrrHKrry LlrrcnNothing is more aggravating than a bis-

cuit that won't fit into a slot-except maybea whole bag of biscuits that won't fit.Biscuits swell as the1, 25ro.5moisture, whether from glueor the air. To prevent swollenbisctr its, store them with a 'Idesiccant,such as kitty litter. The ..1*.[.:,,'ffi:;:::i::,il."i':'""i#oiX,i?;,ilhl'#;il:T:,:;is lessmessy)onto a cloth, tie it up \*:urd toss t ir-rto he container. No more '"ct\fa t biscuits and thev'll always smell nice.

nrn a glue bnrsh, sometimes called an acid brush, through theslot until the glue is evenly coated on both sides andthe bottom.Source Highland ardware, 80CJ41-6748,www.highlandhardware.comluebrushes, 166025, 3 for 10;#107792,1 0 or50 .

Casr-|ruMnnrcsON YOUR JOINERThe cast-in alignment marks on ajoiner can be difficult to read. Ifyou're tired of squinting, use a per-manent marker to highlight th emarks. The difference it makes willamaze you.

ApPLYGlur wtrH AN Acln BnusHGlue must be evenly applied throughout the biscuit slot ro ger

joint possible. The easiestway?Squirt some glue into the slot andthe strongestther-r

HrcHLrcHT


41/63

Hom rHE FrrucrFOR ACCURACYIt's easy to misalign a slot with

both your hands on the joiner'shandles. Working that wa1', votrcan't feel whether the fence is firllvin contact with the stock. Theslightest shift up or down on thehandle can callse he biscuit slot tobe cut \^,'rong.Use one hand tohold the fence down onto theboard and you'll eliminate errors.

64 Amer-ican \\Ioodrvork er MAy 2006

FIRSTSLOT

RuwBrscurrsLoNGrNNannow FnavrrsYou don't have to own a mini-biscuit

joiner to assemblenarrow frames. fpossible, simply shift the slots

' i ,

:,.. . ",,... jd extends into areas, '..}.* -\r ff i where it won't be seen,t, ff i for example, the top orbottom of a face frame.After the glue has

Usr GaucEBlocKsFOR DOUBLEBrscurrJoTNTSflauge blocks are l-randy fbr cutting-

dotrble biscui t io ints. Cut the f i rst s lotwitl 'r tl 're .joiner base ref'erenced ofl ' thework srrrface. Then, use i l spacer block

turder the .jo iner base fbr the seconcl cut.Th e satrse block el i rninates the h:rssle ancl

conftrs ion of ' f l ipping votrr stock or resett ine th efence. Make a u'hole set ancl vou' l l be covered fr l r 'any biscui t-spacine need.

QutcK, AccURATEFrrvcESrrrNGSGauge blocks work great for quick, accu-

rate fence settings.Al l you do is pinch theblock between the fence blades. This tech-nique will also ensure the fence is set parallelto the blade. Joiners with rack-and-pinionfence adjustmentsautomatically set the fenceparallel with the blade. For this type ofjoiner,Lrse pacerblocks between he fence and a flatsurface-l ike your benchtop-for rapidfence settings.

,' ./\* -/

\G"gi' dried, cut the protrud-

ing biscuit with a hand-saw. Then flush-trimwith a router or sander.

"*J" *t"+"-'oe!T:"*':*

**!fr_.\_

h


42/63

Tarcr A OurcK Trsr FoRTHERtcHTFrDon't use a biscuit that fits loosely n the slot. All yor-r'll

ge t is a rveak oint. Drr,.fit biscuits in their slots beforegltre-up,The biscuit should slide into the slot n'itl'rhandpressure.Then, hold the board so the biscuits are hans-

ing. A biscuit that is too loose u'ill fall otrt. Don't forset totest the other side of the oint in tl-re arneway.

If vou have a slot that's too bis for an1'biscuit, gltre ashim into the slot and then recut the slot.

JLOOSEBISCUIT .. '

ArrrnNATEGnnrrrtDrnrcroN WHrnrUsrrvcDouelr BrscurrsBisctri ts are r-nade frorn colnpressed beecl 'r

noocl . The qr:r in nrns diagonal lv ACr()ss he bis-cui t. T l ' rc bisctr i t is rveakest r lons this gr"ain ine.\A'l 'rer-rou instal l nvo biscuit.s n :r.joint, pu t thenr in

r r i t l t t l t t ' r . t r i t i r t sr t tu t i t t g i t t oppos i tecl i lectiorrs.This rv i l l c()untel '

/ "1 \ - '\-/x'tx

!l\ GRAIN\ orRecronI\I\ ,I

:lct the sh()r-t-q..r-i l i l rrle:rkness n eaclr

l t iscrr i t .

Cur ADoUBLE-WInr 'LSlor FoR AnDEn STnTNGTHUsine tr lo l>isctr i ts n:r clorr l>le-r l ic le lot is u gr-ei r l \ 'av () i r tc ' r ' t ' rrsr '

j o in t s t r cng th rvhcn the s tock i s too th i n Io r -1 \ \ ' o ep: l l -a te lo ts .Th isi s espcc i i r l h ' usc l i r l rvhen . jo i r r ine a l3 / -1- in . - th i ck : rb l t ' i r l ) l ' ( )n ( ) l II eg . S o r r re r r r : r r r t r { : rc t r r l e rsnc l r r c l e o r o l l ' e r -a J -n rn r s l )1 r ( ' ( ' l - t l r a tl tsrrnclel the f 'enccr i r l th is 1:rsk, rrt \ 'orr ( 'an t ' : ts i l r r t t : tkc orte r 'ottt 'sc ' l lf) 'orrrsc'r- l r1r'ootl . ( l re i rte t l te ckrrr l>le-rvic lelo t l l i t tset ' t i r tg hc sp:tt ' -e r ' : r l i e r h c I l l s t c r r t . - l ' h i s v i l l a i s e ' t h e b l a c l e t r s t h e r i g h t u r t t o r r r t tto ( ' l 'eate 'ooln f i l r ' : t seconcl biscrr i t .

Trsr rHE Slor DrPTHBiscrrit skrts thut :rre t(x) sh:rl lorr'\\'on't :rl lorv the btxrrcls to

go togcthcr'. (lrrt thc skrls too clccp ancl rrrost ol 'tlre biscrri t is btrriecl in one sicle, n'eirk- uo"*.i

en ins the . jo in t . Her-e 'sa q t r i c k , ' " *test to see n,hether vour icl iner a& -is set r-iqht. lu t :r test slot,

sl ip n zrbiscuit urcl h-zuv pencil ine. T:rke he bisctr itorrt, rrrrt t]-*-o_*_" arorrncl lncl reinscrt t. A sc-conclencil line sliotrlclbe l / l (i" 'S,,r* in. beroncl he first ine. This rvi l l proi ' ic le r l/i l2- in.--t) '"-,h*. cle:rr ':rnce:rrorrnclhe bisctr it or-exc'ess lrre.

Relcl t( ) \'()rrr ou'ncr-'s nrantutl to acl irrstthe c l ep tho { ' c r r t ; r t g i re r r se l t i ng .

, \ r ' n t ' r ' i c i r r r \ \ i ro r l r r ' o l k t ' r ' MAY2ooo 65

+\:*.,: ! , , *


43/63

Install butt hinges perfectlyand establishconsistent,slender margins.

othing signals skillfulcraftsmanship like aninset door with elegant

hinges and eye-pleasing margins. Thischallengingjob leaves no room for error:Uneven surfaces and unsightly gaps willtell the tale if the hinges, door and framedon't fit precisely. Like mastering hand-cut dovetails, successfully hanging insetdoors on mortised butt hinges is a wood-working milestone.

I'll show you a three-step method forinstalling inset doors that produces greatresults every time. First, you match thedoor to the opening. Then you rout mor-tises for the hinges. And finally, you cre-ate uniform, attractive margins betweenthe door and frame. Of course, you canskip the mortising step altogether bychoosing different hinges (see "No-Mortise Hinge Options," page 70).

To complete thejob, you'll need a cou-ple simplejigs, a mortising bit, and a lam-inate trimmer. A laminate trimmer is acompact router that's a really handy addi-tion to any woodworking shop. (If youdon't own a laminate trimmer, this is agreai excuse o buy one.)

Round out your door-installing iirsdnalwith a pair of secret weapons-a plasticlaminate sample swiped from the homecenter and a double-bearing flush-trimrouter bit. This great new bit should be afixture in everywoodworking shop.


ryHthset Dby TimJohnson


44/63

CuoosE HlrucESYour first task s to choose between extruded (also referred

to as drawn or cast) or stamped hinges (see photos, above).Extruded hinges are machined and drilled, so there's virtuallyno play between the knuckles or around the hinge pin.Stamped hinges are made from thinner stock. Their leavesarebent to form the knuckles that surround the pin. Extrudedhinges will last onger, because heir knuckles have more bear-ing surface.

I often use stamped hinges because hey cost about one-third as much as extruded hinges and they're available atmost hardware stores. They work fine in most situations.Examine stamped hinges carefully before bupng. If younotice large gaps between the knuckles and verrical playbetween the nvo hinge leaves,keep looking. Be aware that

some stamped hinges are brass plated rather than solidbrass. Hinges with loose pins make it easy o remove andreinstall the door, but they aren't widely available.Before you install the hinges, make sure the screws'heads recess fully in the chamfered holes in the hingeleaves. Amazingly, the brass screws supplied with brasshinges often don't fit. If that's the case,you'll have to deep-en the screw-holechamfers or use smaller screws.

Brassscrewsare delicate. The heads strip easilyor breakoff, leaving the shaft buried in the wood. Avoid trouble withbroken brassscrewsby threading the pilot holes with steelscrews, which are much more durable. Install the brassscrewsonly once, after the piece is completely finished. Orforget brass screwsaltogether and leave the steel screws n.

I make each door about 1/32 in.larger than its open-ing. Then I trim it to fit squarely and snugly. First I jointthe latch stile until the door slips betrveen the face frame'sstiles without binding. Then I check rhe door's fit: Whileholding the hinge stile flush against the face frame, I buttthe door's top edge against the frame's upper rail. If nogap appears, the door and opening are square. Then Ijoint the door's top and bottom until the door wedges ntothe opening-I want a friction fit, so the door staysput.

If the door or the face frame are out of square, I truethem by tapering the door's hinge stile. I mark the end thatneeds to be tapered while I hold the door in position(Photo 1) . If the gap along the top appears above the

hinge stile, as n the photo, the side's aper increases romtop to bottom. If the top's gap appears above the latchstile, the side's taper runs in the opposite direction. Thetaper increases rom zero at one end to the width of thetop's gap at the other end. If the top's gap is wider than7/76 rn.,I taper both the side and the end, removing onehalf of the gap from each edge.

Routing is one way to taper the stile (Photo 2) . Youcould alsouse a hand plane or yourjointer.Just make surethe taper runs the full length and the tapered edge is per-pendicular to the door's face. \Arhenboth the hinge stileand top edge fit properly without any gaps, trim the bot-tom edge so the door fits snugly in the opening.

IcoE-a)cc\ZzEL2FEFaf).-JzLUEzE.-EFIo-zI

LIJ-2trUccoFE.

I frue an out-of-square oor by tapering he side, ather. I - than he end.The ide s longer, o the taperw i l l be moregradual nd essnot iceab le .n th is case,mak ing he hingesti le narrowerat the markedend wil l el iminate he ga p atth e top.

Qtaper the side with a straightboardan d a flush-tr imbit.4q Position he board so it's offset by the width of the gap atthe markedend and lushat the otherend.Rout ing histaper eliminates he guessworkassociated it h creatingtaperswith a jointer.

se**STAMPEDHINGE J

FnrcrroN-FlrHr Doon

American Woodworker MAy 2006 67


45/63

GUIDE LOCK112" 1-314" 3-5/8"

{}Use the hinges o makeyour mort is ing ig .Th isguaran-u, ltees that the hingeswill perfect ly it the mort ises.Afterinstal l inghe guideblocks, dd he f i l l b lock o provide on-t inuoussupport or the router .

1 ' P IN NAIL

f Locate he hingeson a test piece,using a project ion-Tguide to posit ion he centerof the barrel 1132n. out fromthe board's ace.Dr i l lp i lo tho lesus inga sel f -center ingi t .

ROUT THE MORTISESMake two jigs, one for routing the hinge mortises

(Fig. A, left; Photo 3) and the other to position thehinge in the mortise (Fig. B, left; Photo 4). Then routtest mortises to dial in the depth of cut (Fig. C, left;Photo 5). Laminate samplesmake perfect gap testers orframe-and-panel doors with stiles and rails up to 2 in .wide; these samplesare usually slightly ess han 7 \6 in.thick. Doors with wider frame parts should have slightlywider gaps, because they'll exhibit greater seasonalmovement.

Rout mortises n the door first (Photo 6) . Make surethey go in the correct stile! It's easiest o rout hinge mor-tises all the way through. If you want to rout half-blindmortises, to shoulder the hinge leaves along theirlength, simply modi$ your mortising ji g by moving thefill block forward to meet the hinge leaf. This modifica-tion eliminates the need for the hinge projection guide,but it requires squaring the mortise corners by handafter routing.

No hard and fast rule exists or locating the hinges onthe door. One method is to align the hinge with thedoor's rails. However, this doesn't work if the top andbottom rails are distinctly different widths. Anothermethod is to divide the door's length by six or sevenandcenter the hinges one unit from the ends. Use your eyeand trust your gut.

Carefully transfer the mortise locations to the faceframe (Photo 7). Your marks have to be perfectly locat-ed, because he hinges fit the mortises so precisely.Usethe door's top-to-bottom friction fit to hold it in posi-tion, and make sure the door's hinge stile is flush withthe face frame's stile.

Rout mortises in the face frame (Photo 8) . If youdon't have a laminate trimmer, your options are to chopthese mortises by hand or to change your entire proce-dure and rout these mortises first, before you assemblethe face frame.

(2') BOTTOMRAIL1.1/8"OVERHANG 11/16'x2-112"5-112This ig requiresa mortisingbi t with a top-mountedbearing(Photo6; Sources, age 70).Both guide blocksar e per-pendicular o the bottom rail.Thedistancebetween heguide blocks s th e lengthof the hinge.The i l l blocksetsthe monises'width; ts setback nsures hrough mort ises.

This guide posit ions he hinge so thecenter of the barrel projects1132n.beyond the frame and door. Deter-mine the exactoverhangby tr ial anderror. t dependson thethicknessof your stockandth e width of the hinge eaf(Photo4) .

Your moftisesshouldcreate ga p of 1/16 n.orslightly essbetween hedoor and he frame.Usu-ally, his means he hingeleaves must be recessedslightly below he sur-face. f they're lush, hega pwill be oo wide. fthey're oo deep, he gapwill disappear nd he door wil l bind.Calculatehe hinge mortisedepthby subtracting /16 n. romthe hingebarreldiameterand dividing he remainder n half.68 American Woodworker MAY 2006

,HINGELENGTH


46/63

f i fest the mortisedepth by mounti ng hingeson scraprlstock.The gap should equal he thickness f laminate. fth e ga p is too wide, he mortisesaren'tdeep enough.Widena ga p that'snarrow by ointing he door sti le.

\Transfer the mortise ocations rom the door to the faceJ frame usinga straightedge.Theoor'ssnug op-to-bottomfit holds t in position.

MoUNT THEHrrucES ND CnEnrEAfter mounting the hinges on the face frame, temporarily

install the door by pressing the mortises onto the mountedhinges' loose leaves.Then mark the door's ends and latch stilefor trimming (Photo 9).

Remove the door, clamp on a straight board and rout theends to final length using a flush-trim bit with two bearings(Photos 10 and ll). Clamp the board so is straight edge bare-ly covers he line; the line indicates the laminate sample's thick-nessand the goal is to remove exactly that thickness.

If you build during the summer's high humidity when yourlumber is at its widest seasonal dimension, a one-laminate-sample gap benveen the door's latch stile and the face ffame issufficient. But ifyou build during the winter, it's wise to provideextra room for the door's seasonalmovement (Photo 12).

SMark the door's inalsize, singa laminate ample or.f establishuniform gaps.Slightlyrecesshe door in theopening,using he hingesand the top-to-bottom riction it tohold it in position.Markwith a mechanical encil,so there'snoga p between he laminate nd he ine.

:F-ffi* - lf,Rout mortises n the door sti le.Locate he mortiseatuleast one hinge ength rom the top. Because f its smallsize,a laminate r immer worksgreat or this delicate ob .

QRout mortises n the face-frame ti lesusing he mortis-LJ ing j ig .You ' l l eeda laminater immer or th is ob,because he mortises are so close o the corner.

EvrruManctNS

MAY 2006 69


47/63

INo-MortiseHinge Options

f mort is ing inges sn ' tyour deaof woodwork-ing un, consider ne of these wo opt ions ormount ing nsetdoors.

Euro-sty le ingeson ly requiredr i l l ing o les orh ingecups and mount ing crews.They also havethe advantageof adjustabil i ty:Once the door isinstalled, ou can easilymove it up or down, sideto side and n or out-whatever i t takes o even upthe margins. hesehinges ake up a lot of spaceinside he cabinet ,hough, nd somevers ions n lyswing open to 95 degrees.

No-mort ise inges requ i tes imple o ins ta l l ndthey leave an acceptablynarrow gap. Some no -mort isehingeshaveelongated lots or adjustabil i-ty. St i l l , he door must be carefully it ted to theopening nd he h inge ocat ions ave o be careful-ly aidout. t' sa good de a o use a project ion uide,l ike he one shown in Photo4, to ensure hat thedoor and f rame faces wi l l be f lush. No-mort isehingesare avai lablen a var iety f f in ishes, nc lud-ing pol ishedand sat in brass, but they 're of tenmade of platedsteel nsteadof solidbrass.

NO.MORTISEHINGE

CU P

70 . \ rrrc l ic : t rr \ \ i roc ln t . ' r 'k t ' r ' MAY 2ooo

tI

-i*

Ro u t th e d o o r to f i n a lt r im b i t w i th to p - a n d

a v o id b lo w in g o u t t h e b a c kt h e t o p b e a r i n g .

l eng t h . sea f ence nda f lush -bot tom-mounted ear ingsoedge.First , out hal fwayusing

F l ip h e d o o r o v e r , a d ju s t th e b i t t o u s e th e b o t to mb e a r i n g a n d f i n i s h r o u t i n g .

Allow for seasonalmovementbetween he door's atchs t i leand he rame.Make he gapwider f you bu i lddur ing he winter ,when he humidi ty n your heated hop sprobably igni f icant lyower han dur ing he summermonths,Sources Woodcraft, (800)-225-1l53, www.woodcraft.com Drawn brass cabi-n e t h i n g e , tn .x1 - 1 1 2 n , # 1 6 R5 9 , 1 8 a p a i r . o l i d - b r a ssu t t h i n g e , tn x1 - 3 1 8r n , # 8 5 1 1 2 ,$ 4 ap a i r . e l f - c e n t e r i n gi n g e - d r i l l i n gi t , 5 1 6 4 t n .o r No .3 a n d N o . 4screws, #16143, $1 1. . Anrana Tool, 800) 445-0077 www.amanatool.comMortising brt, #45460-5,$23. . Freud Tools, 800)334-4107,www.freudtools,comTop-and bot to r r -bear inglush- t r im r t , 1 /4 - rn . hank,#50-501,$3 0


48/63


49/63

PannLL"*,r" F.Nc:rYou might think all biscuitjoiner fencesautomat-

ically ock down parallel to the blade, but they don't.If you inadvertently tighten a fence in a crookedposition, the slots on mating boards won't line up.In addition, t he pieceswon't slip together as easilyasthey should. This can spell real trouble ahead.

We prefer biscuitjoiners whose fences travel on arack-and-pinion or screw-and-rod system, whichkeeps he fence parallel to the blade (seephoto, topright). With such a system, ou don't have to checkth e fence each time you adjust it up or down. Otherbiscuitjoiners require an extra step to avoid lockingthe fence in a crooked position. Thesefencesshouldbe set by placing a block of wood between the fenceand the blade or between the fence and a flat sur-face. This works OK; itjust takes onger to set up.

The rack-and-pinion and screw-and-rod fenceshave an additional bonus: You can micro-adjustthem up and down by turning a knob. It couldn't beeasier.Fo r joinery work, where a rail might be setback from a leg, for example, this fine calibration isvery useful. The set-it-with-a-block fences are moredifficult to micro-adjust. You must add a shim ormake a thinner block.FErucr rrvcrnMany woodworkers push down on a biscuit oin-er's fence to hold it tight to the workpiece. Thisensures that slots on opposing boards align witheach other and that they're square to t he edge.Longer fences are easier o hold down than shorterones (seephoto, center r ight).135*DHcRrHFr ruc rBiscuit joiners excel at aligning miter joints.There's very little room for error in positioning theslots,however. f the slots on one piece are a differ-ent distance from the edge than the slots on theother piece, you won't get a sharp corner. Instead,one piece will stick out past the other.

The adjustment range of some fences is 0 to 90degrees.To cut miter slots on these machines, youmust set your fence at 45 degrees and register theslots rom the miter's inside corner. The biscuitjoin-er may easily slip in this position. We prefer fencesthat angle another 45 degrees downward, to a 135-degree position (seephoto, bottom right). On somebiscuitjoiners, a clamp-on auxiliary fence also allowsyou to get to 135 degrees.With either fence, you canregister from the miter's outside corner. This methodis more accurate,and slipping is virtually impossible.

The most con-venient ype offence o adjustau tomat ica l lyremains aral-le l o theb ladeas ttravels p anddown.Tomovethe fence,yo uturn a knob.

The onger he fence, he moreeasi ly ou can ho ld t f i rmlyagainst he workpiece.Fencelength ar ieswidely rommodel o mode l .

#!,z-azIo-zEUIo-t(,-F--o_ozzoF(JUt-FccatoaOoFtnFoU

FENCE Y4 LENGTH

For cuttingaccuratemiter slots,we pre-fer a fence hatwraps around heedgeand hasa widesupportarea,Somebiscui t o inersdonot have his 135-degreesetting.

American \4loodrvorker MAy 2006 73


50/63

minimum of play.This i l l resul tin accurateslots of consistentsize.

Hooking p a b iscu i to iner o avacuum vir tual ly l iminatesdust. Most modelshave bags,which work OK, but we prefermodels hat can also easilyconnect o a generic-size ose.

Pnrctsr Sltnr Mrcn"rrNlsMEvery biscuit joiner has a slide mechanism that

controls the in-and-out movement of the motor andblade (see photo, top left). The less play in thismechanism, the closer slots will be to the oPtimum4mm thickness. That's crucial for precision align-ment, such asedge-to-edge gluing. The more play inthe slide mechanism, the greater the chance thatsome slots will be thicker than others. Extra-thickslots allow biscuits to wiggle up and down, so yourboards would be less ikely to align with each other.

It's possible to make consistently sized slots on amachine that has a fair amount of play; however, ittakes practice. You must lock your wrist and arm justso, both pushing and pulling the motor. This cocksthe machine up or down and, in effect, removes theplay.Machines that have ittle play are much easier ooperate. You can hold your arm and wrist any waythat's comfortable, so making consistent slotsdoesn'trequire as much concentration.Dusr CollrcrtoNBiscuit oiners make los of dust. Most machinescome with a dust-collecting bag. All machines have aport for vacuum hoses (see photo, left). We prefermachines whose round ports fit common hosediameters, although you may need a step adapter'Other ports have unusual-shaped openings that onlyfit the manufacturers' own hoses.Drpru-or-Cur SerrtrucsEvery biscuit joiner has depth-of-cut settings forthe three most commonly used biscuits, the No. 0,No. l0 and No. 20. Some machines have additionaldepth-of-cut settings for specialized biscuits (see"The Weird World of Biscuits," page 78).

The most useful of these unusual biscuits is thegiant No. 5-6. Its extra-deep penetration andincreased glue-surface area make avery strongjoint.The No. $6 biscuit setting is labeled M, or Max. Anodd thing about the No. S6 biscuit, however, is thatit requires two cuts made side by side. On allmachines, the M setting produces a slot of the cor-rect depth, but not enough width. You must maketwo plungesl/4to3/8 in . apart to make a completeNo. S6 slot.Somefencesautoman

74 American Woodworker MAY 2ooo


51/63

Ai,r i .Automaticallvoarallel ence YesLenqthof fence Lonq135o encesettinq YesDust baq ncluded YesM depth-of-cutsettinq No.lh. newest entries in the field are by far the most comfortable to use.I These Rvobi and Craftsman models have three features no othermachine has: a D-handle, a vertical motor and a very long fence with alarge front grip. The D-handle puts your hand and wrist in a natural posi-tion, unlike the barrel-grip on many other biscuit joiners. The verticalmotor has the blade directly attached to the motor shaft, which eliminatesnoise created by the bevel gears in right-angle motors. The large handleon the end of the fence provides the ideal position for your other hand tokeep the fence tight against the board. The fence is mounted on a rack-and-pinion system and is micro-adjustable with a knob.One shortcoming in these machines is the slide mechanism. It hasmore play than any other we tested,which can result in making some slotsmuch too thick. With practice, you can control the play and produce slotsof a consistent thickness, but they'll still be slightly thicker than the opti-mum 4mm size. f not for this inconvenience, the great features and thelow price ($100) would make these machines hands-down winners.Sources Craftsman,800],377-7414,ww.sears.com/craftsmanRyobi,800) 25-2579,

We love the ergonomics of these two similarmadrines. hey're he only biscuit oiners with alarge encegrip,which helpsyou maintaincontrolof the cut.TheD-handlesvery easyon the wrist.www.rvobitools.com

Automaticallvparallel ence YesLenqth of fence Lono135" ence settino YesDustbaq ncluded YesM depth-of-cutsetting Yes

Th" Porter-Cable biscuit joiner has every feature youI could ask for. The fence is quite long and easy o adjust,riding on two rods and a center screw. This fence's height-adjustment knob is more sensitive than knobs onrack-and-pinion machines. That makesmicro-adjustments easier but coarseThe Porter-Cable57 hasall the best ea-tures. n addition, t' s he only model thatcomes with two blades:a standard4-in.bladean d a 2-in.blade.The -in.blade s used or joining faceframesas narrow as 1-1/2 n.using Porter-Cable'sxclu-sive FFsizedbiscuits.

adjustments moretime-consuming. The fence-tilting mechanism has two ranges, 0 to 90 and 90 to 135degrees. The slide mechanism has very little play. The han-

FF-BtSCutTLADE dle located behind the moto r is easy for even smallhands to hold.The 557 has seven blade-depth settings, includ-ing one for small FF (face frame) biscuits uniqueto Porter-Cable. The large opening in the fencemakes it easy o view your mark on the board, but italso makes it difficult to balance the fence onnarrow stock. Sliding a plastic plate underthe fence solves his problem. It's includ-ed with the biscuitjoiner.

Source Porter-Cable.800) 87-8665,www.oortercable.com


52/63

* --PlNtoN"n cEAR. Or INSIDE

rfhis is a very user-friendl yI design. Th e front ends r

of both models are identical.They both have the same conven-ient rack-and-pinion system for adjust-ing fence height. The slide mechanism has verl little play. The tn'omodels have different motors, motor housir-rgs nd top grips. TheDeWalt has a comfortably sizedhandle behind the motor and a trig-

ger switch.The Craftsman's arger-diametermotor barrel and pad-dle switch is less comfortable, especially or woodrvorkers with small

hands. For a right-hander, we'd prefer more fir-rger ooln between themotor and the dust bag on the Craftsman. Both machines have fourdepth-of-cutsettings: hree for standard biscuitsaud otte for the M set-ting. We've got one small complaint: The knobs on the feuce ar e quitesmall. Larger knobs would make it easier to micro-adjust the fenceheight and lock the fence in place.

HEIGHT-ADJUSTMENTKNOBIi C

These wo models have a rack-and-pinionencethat'svery easy o adjust.The ence emainspar-a l le l o the b ladeas you move t up or down.Sources DeWalt, 800) 33-9258, ww.dewalt.com Craftsma, (8001 77 7 14, www.sea s. om/crafsman

Automat ica l lv ara l le lence N oLenqth of fence Short135o encesettinq lJS100A-NoS102-YesDustbaq nc luded YesM depth-of-cutsetting Yes

T) oth of these Freud models are basic, ow-cost,no-frills-f)machines. The only difference between the two is thefence: TheJSl02's fence ti l ts,while theJS100A's oe s not.The slide mechanism on both models has very little play.Both machines have six depth-of-cut settings.

The fence on both models is less user-friendly than aver-age. It's shorter than fences on all other models. Shortfences are harder to steady than long fences. It's awkwardto place your hand on this fence because of the fourstrengthening ribs cast into it. You mllst place a blockunder the fence when setting its height to ensure that it

remains parallel to , , qthe blade. Even when 44 ithe blade. Ilven wnenlocked down hard, the JS1o2fence slips out of position too easily.

The large diameter of the motor housing makes it awk-ward for woodworkers with small hands to hold themachine.Source Freud ools,800)34-4107,ww.freudtools.com

76 Arnerican \A/oodrvork er MAy 2006


53/63

Automaticalv parallel ence NoLengthof fence Medium135o encesett ino YesDust bas included I C3-No 20S3-YesM depth-of-cutsetting Yesprecise, smooth operation is the hallmark of bothI Lamello biscuitjoiners. They're ruggedly built machinesdesigned for daily production work. Their silky-smooth slid-ing mechanisms have virtually no play.The Top 2053 has an unusual feature that's not on the C3:You can dial the Top 20S3'sblade up or down to micro.adjustits height (seephoto, below right). This allowsyou to raise orlower the blade 2 mm (about 1/16 in.) from a cenrer

Th e auxil iary enceon both Lamellobiscuit oinerscan beattachedo the base or addit ional upport.

MtcRo-ADJUSTDIAL

CLASSICC3position withoutmoving the fence.Turning the dial onenotch raises or lowers the TOP20S3blade 0.1 mm (about .004in.). The Top 2053 has a fully electronic soft-start motor; rheC3 does not.Precision aside, both models have a fence that takes extratime to adjust. It doesn't automatically lock parallel to theblade. To be preci se, you should use a block to set it.Both models have six depth-of-cut settings. Their basesare e

Documents

American Woodworker - 121 (May 2006)