Router Table Box/Finger joint jig

[transatlantic]

but it has to be quicker than using the tablesaw.

IMHO a table saw cuts much quicker. With the RT you can pick the cutter width to suit the slot width, but then you can also pick a groover for the same reason, so only one pass needed.

The finger joint jig will be essentially the same regardless of which machine you use.

With regard to jig type, one references each slot from the previous slot using a peg type insert on the jig [to match the saw kerf]. Steve Maskery's jig is very good in that the relative peg position is adjustable to remove any build error, but this type of jig still allows a compounding error which can throw the finger alignment out with longer runs.

The leadscrew type jig references all cuts from the same metal screw thread, you don't get alignment errors unless you use it incorrectly.

groover?

 

[MattRoberts]

I'd still recommend this - it uses a threaded rod for accuracy but no need to mess around with gears like the matthias one.

http://www.ibuildit.ca/Sales/sales-2.html

 

[monkeybiter]

groover?

Wide blade for the table saw that cuts a flat bottomed slot, picked for it's width. I chose a 6mm, but I can't find the web page to link to at the moment.

 

[monkeybiter]

I'd still recommend this - it uses a threaded rod for accuracy but no need to mess around with gears like the matthias one.

http://www.ibuildit.ca/Sales/sales-2.html

I've considered making a tweaked version of this, using a threaded bar for accuracy instead of his wooden reference piece and wooden locating key.

Mine currently [almost falling apart] just has a graduated handwheel on the end of the leadscrew, allows me to use any kerf as the travel is accurately set. Matthias Wandell's gears seem to me to be a bit of a gimmick in that application.

 

[Moonsafari69]

Mine currently [almost falling apart] just has a graduated handwheel on the end of the leadscrew, allows me to use any kerf as the travel is accurately set. Matthias Wandell's gears seem to me to be a bit of a gimmick in that application.

monkeybiter, any chance of a photo of your set-up?

Cheers.

 

[MattRoberts]

Matthias Wandell's gears seem to me to be a bit of a gimmick in that application.

Grooving blades here http://bivenmachinerysales.co.uk/index. ... =Grooving+

I don't think the gears are gimmicky, but you need to have different great combinations for different widths, which seems fiddly to me...

 

[transatlantic]

Matthias Wandell's gears seem to me to be a bit of a gimmick in that application.

Grooving blades here http://bivenmachinerysales.co.uk/index. ... =Grooving+

awesome! didn't know these existed. It's no dado set, but 6mm is alright and they're cheap!

 

[Moonsafari69]

Something like this perhaps, with a threaded rod for referencing?

http://www.instructables.com/id/How-To-Build-a-Variable-Box-Joint-Jig/

 

[MattRoberts]

awesome! didn't know these existed. It's no dado set, but 6mm is alright and they're cheap!

A word of caution - be very careful to check that the blade has full clearance at all heights in your saw - the last thing you want is to raise the blade and catch a tooth. Also, it's well worth making a zero clearance insert specifically for it, and using a sacrificial backing board to avoid tear out

 

[custard]

Can anyone recommend a 'good' Box/Finger joint jig that they've used on a router table?

I've used the Gifkins Jig to cut finger joints on a router table. The downsides are that you can't size the fingers to suit the workpiece (so you have to design the workpiece around the jig), there are limitations to gang cutting so it's slower than I'd like, and it's not particularly cheap.

On the plus side with sharp cutters and a carefully set up jig it's extremely accurate, producing consistent and tear out free joints that are finish ready and fully up to professional standards.

https://www.classichandtools.com/acatal ... ndard.html

I don't cut that many finger joints, if I did more I'd certainly invest in the dedicated tooling to machine them ganged up on the spindle moulder, but for the two or three times a year I need it I'm reasonably happy with the Gifkins Jig.

 

[Eric The Viking]

Thanks Custard. It looks like a sensible idea (if pricey!). I can see how you might get much better results than with a simple sled.

 

[Moonsafari69]

I've used the Gifkins Jig to cut finger joints on a router table.

That's a tad outside of my budget but interesting as I've never heard of it before.

 

[Steve Maskery]

Just to be clear, the jig I show on YouTube is not on any of my Workshop Essentials DVDs, it's just a freebie out of the goodness of my heart.

TBH, I don't understand the concern about tearout. You can get tearout on any cut if it is not supported, SM, TS or RT. In all cases the cutters need to be sharp and the workpiece should be supported by a sacrificial board to prevent it.

BTW, if you make one using a lead screw, M6 has a thread of 1mm per revolution.

 

[Moonsafari69]

Just to be clear, the jig I show on YouTube is not on any of my Workshop Essentials DVDs, it's just a freebie out of the goodness of my heart.

How much have you used the sled Steve? Would you still consider it worthwhile for box joints?

Cheers.

 

[Steve Maskery]

Just to be clear I was talking blokes previously. Apparently I included it on one of the tablesaw DVDs. Why I put a RT jig on a TS DVD I cannot say, but I was losing my marbles by then anyway, so nothing I did surprises me very much.

I don't have that particular jig anymore, it was amongst the stuff that got stolen, but anyway most of my MDF jigs didn't survive the barn very well and have had to be remade. Plus, I made a new RT top, which would make the original jig useless, even if I still had it.

But having said all that...

I shall have no hesitation in making a new one when I have a need for it, and I shall change nothing at all about its design. It worked perfectly then and so why change it?

I do take the point about cumulative error, but I never found it to be a problem. Of course, if you are using it to make a blanket chest or something large like that, then that aspect becomes more important, but for smallish work, like drawers and boxes, it was never an issue. It just worked.

 

[Moonsafari69]

...but I was losing my marbles by then anyway, so nothing I did surprises me very much

Glad said marbles have since been successfully recovered. Good feedback actually so thanks for that. If you've had a jig, lost it, and would build another that says plenty. The threaded rod approach does seem to be the way forward.

Cheers.

 

[Steve Maskery]

Ah. I should point out that mine just not use a threaded rod, it uses a peg incrementally. I know that many people like the threaded rod principle for its accuracy, but personally I think it is just a bit unnecessarily complex. I prefer the simplicity of mine. Once it has been correctly adjusted, it doesn't move and will always work (in that RT, with the same cutter).

I'm not knocking the threaded bar route, I just think mine is easier and quicker, that's all. Both are capable of producing excellent results.

 

[monkeybiter]

Hi Steve, it was me who referred to the cumulative error; due to the widespread adoption of the method you have used it clearly must work, and the fine adjustment you added makes a jig-saving amount of difference, however I think I must have been pushing the timber against the peg inconsistently because I did get alignment errors hence my choice of the leadscrew method to engineer ME out. It also means there's less to do when swapping finger spacing/kerf.

 

[wcndave]

I would have thought the pertinent part is that the jig was good enough for someone to choose to steal it!

 

[memzey]

I've done box joints using a very simple home made jig and dado stack in the saw bench. Does anyone else do the same?