Methods for edge jointing

[fobos8]

Hello all

I'm about to make a oak table top out of 8x2 planed to 40 x 195mm.
There will be seven boards to join together. My question refers to edge jointing.

The option I see that I have open to me are;

1) Get the mill from the timber yard to joint the edges true.

2) Use my Festool TS 55 to joint them. Will probably leave slight saw marks though.

3) After doing (2) use a router on a guide rail.

4) Use a jointer hand plane. I don't own one at present.


What methods do members use?

Any comments on what you do and what you think is the best method would be greatly appreciated.

Best regards, Andrew

 

[Ironballs]

Andrew

I would recommend getting the latest edition of British Woodworking, John Lloyd has a substantial article in there on just this topic.

Personally, with the tools you have I would hand plane after sawing. But read that article

Cheers

Damian

 

[Mr Ed]

I would cut with the TS55 and then hand plane, as Ironballs says. Forget the router its not worth the effort for edge jointing. The saw will get it substantially straight and then the plane just finesses the fit of one board to another.

Ed

 

[fobos8]

which hand plane would you suggest? The only one I have is a block. Gonna get a smoother (probably 4 1/2) soon cos I need it for cleaning up various jobs. Will this be okay - length of boards will be approx 1.5m.

The reason I thought a router would be okay is that I tried it with a couple of 25mm hardwood flooring boards and the results seemed fine.

 

[Mr Ed]

First plane to buy in my opinion is a 5 1/2 or something the same length such as the Veritas LAJ. That would be fine for the operation you are proposing here.

Ed

 

[crazylilting]

I would plane them and then use a reversible glue joint bit in the router. A fellow woodworker i know in these parts does some very high end work and this is what he uses, and have seen the brilliant results he gets. I'm keeping my eye out for a reversible glue joint cutter for the spindle moulder as i have some worktops and a table to do in a couple of months for a client.

 

[Paul Chapman]

I would use a hand plane but for something 1.5m long I would use a #7. However, if you've not done this sort of thing before, I'd practice on some scrap stuff first.

For a table top like that, if you have a router (or biscuit jointer) I'd rout some slots and fit some loose tongues (or biscuits) to aid alignment and for a stronger joint. For this table top I used a double row of biscuits

When cramping the boards together, I use shaped cramping blocks which help direct the pressure to the centre of the boards and help to give a nice, tight joint

Here's the top all glued up

If you do it this way you should have a minimum of cleaning up to do

Hope this helps.

Cheers :wink:

Paul

 

[woodbloke]

I would use a hand plane but for something 1.5m long I would use a #7. However, if you've not done this sort of thing before, I'd practice on some scrap stuff first.

For a table top like that, if you have a router (or biscuit jointer) I'd rout some slots and fit some loose tongues (or biscuits) to aid alignment and for a stronger joint. For this table top I used a double row of biscuits

Cheers :wink:

Paul

I'd use a No7 as well for hand planing after sawing, John Lloyd's article in BW is also well worth a read. As Paul says, it's worth having a little practice on some scrap and then edge joint the actual job. It's usual practice to try and make each surface concave in the centre by the thickness of the traditional fag paper...easily done by using a couple of 'stop shavings'
Paul's pic shows the joining surface located with a couple of rows of biscuits which is good practise but not really necessary if you don't have a biscuiter, a long/long grain glued joint without biscuits is absolutely fine.
On the other hand, if you don't have a biscuiter but do have a Domino... - Rob..hat, coat>>>running for cover :lol:

 

[Mr Ed]

Using a no.7 is all very well if you have a generous battery of planes to select from, as you 2 gents do. Given that the OP only has a block plane at present I don't think a no.7 would be the most versatile first plane to buy. If you have made the material substantially straight by machine methods I would contend that a plane the length of a 5 1/2 would do the job and would be a more useful first buy.

Ed

 

[Chris Knight]

I always use a handplane after machining but if the blade is new, the TS55 might well leave a good enough edge for jointing without further work. Mine just about does.

 

[Mr Ed]

I always use a handplane after machining but if the blade is new, the TS55 might well leave a good enough edge for jointing without further work. Mine just about does.

Yes similar with the Mafell KSP55 that I use, but for the time it takes I always plane a couple of shavings to be sure.

Ed

 

[woodbloke]

Using a no.7 is all very well if you have a generous battery of planes to select from, as you 2 gents do. Given that the OP only has a block plane at present I don't think a no.7 would be the most versatile first plane to buy. If you have made the material substantially straight by machine methods I would contend that a plane the length of a 5 1/2 would do the job and would be a more useful first buy.

Ed

Agreed Ed...didn't see that the OP was bereft of planing hardware...No.5 or 5.5 would be a better choice of plane to go for - Rob

 

[fobos8]

Hello all

Yeah I don't really want to get a jointer type hand plane for now. I'm a site chipie but I do a bit of joinery on site. Door, basic cabinet making. I'm only just getting into the joinery so I just want to get the tools that I can't do without to start with.

What type of plane will I need to get to finish the table top up?. A smoother (4.5) or a jack (5.5). If I could finish it with a jack then I'll probably get it cos I could use it as Ed suggested to joint the boards aswell. If I get a jack what else in my joinery tasks could I use it for?

Why is nobody suggested I use a router to joint the edges? Kitchen fitters use them all the time for getting perfect joints in worktops.

I have a router and a festool guide rail so could use this but just wondering if there's a good reason why nobody is suggesting it..

Thanks again for you help, Andrew

 

[wizer]

Nothing wrong with that method Andrew. In fact whatever works is the best method for you. Which do you prefer ??

 

[Chris Knight]

A router will work fine as long as you don't rush the cut. Like any rotary machine it can leave ripples on the surface and these will be more noticeable if the cut is made too quickly (equally, don't hang about or you'll get burning).

Many moons ago, before I had a table saw, I used a router and special jig I made to edge two mating boards simultaneously (thus ensuring that even if the edges were not perfectly straight, they would still match on the glue line).

 

[Paul Chapman]

What type of plane will I need to get to finish the table top up?. A smoother (4.5) or a jack (5.5). If I could finish it with a jack then I'll probably get it cos I could use it as Ed suggested to joint the boards aswell.

It all depends When I finished my oak table top I used a scraper plane because there were a few areas where I was getting tear out

A scraper plane will give a really good finish on a table top made up of eight boards, because you will probably have grain going in different directions.

However, if you don't have one, you could use a #4.5 or #5.5 and finish off with a randon orbit sander.

Cheers :wink:

Paul

 

[OPJ]

If you do decide to go with the router, bear in mind that you'll need a cutter with a long shank to cope with the 45mm depth of cut. You could do complete each cut in two passes, using a trimmer cutter to finish off but, the may find the results then aren't perfect... Routing to a depth of 45mm would require good attention and a very steady feed rate. At that depth, it would probably make quite a racket as well! :?

If you went with your Festool saw, how many teeth does your current blade have? I've tried ripping 2in. beech with a 40t blade on my Makita saw and it didn't really like it.

 

[fobos8]

I was thinking of getting the Veritas bevel up smoother - have heard that it is good for reducing tearout and planing against the grain.

Was thinking about using my TS55 to get the boards straight and then putting a router on a sled on my guide rail and just taking 1mm of. I'd use a 1/2 router Dewalt 625EK and a thickish cutter to get the edge as smooth as poss.

Any comments?

 

[Paul Chapman]

Give it a go - it will probably be fine.

Cheers :wink:

Paul

 

[Mr Ed]

I was thinking of getting the Veritas bevel up smoother - have heard that it is good for reducing tearout and planing against the grain.

Its a brilliant plane. I sharpen mine to 43 deg plus the bed angle of 12 deg gives an effective pitch of 55 degrees which seems to handle most things. I wouldn't buy it as a first bench plane though, because its too short to act as an all-rounder. The Veritas LAJ would be best of both worlds in that respect.

Ed