How tight should a mortise and tenon be?
Some say hand tight as above - that is the tenon should slide easily into the mortise, and some say it should be tight enough to require some kind of pounding to get it together. Most will argue that it should be at least snug. Visible gaps are not good.
How to make a wedged through mortise and tenon?
Make Super-Strong Through Mortises & Tenons
- Joint-sizing pointers. Through-mortise-and-tenon joints typically go together one of the two ways shown above. ...
- Begin with the mortises. Tenons can be fine-tuned easier than mortise widths, so cut your mortises first and match the tenons to them.
- Cut tenons to fit. ...
- Finish tenon and assemble. ...
How to cut a through mortice and tenon by hand?
Step – by – Step Instructions
- Prepare all the things you will need for the project. Make sure that everything you need is at hand and have been carefully maintained. ...
- Mark the wood in close approximation where the mortise hole is going to be placed and where the tenon joint will be. ...
- Use a square to make sure that everything lines up. ...
How to cut a mortise by hand?
The first tool you’ll need when laying out a mortise cut by hand is a mortise gage. A mortise gage has two pins that you can open and close their relationship to one another and a fence that will set the position of the pins. Cutting the Mortise A drill press is used to bore out the bulk of the waste. A Brad point drill bit works nicely for this.
Is a mortise and tenon used for joinery?
A mortise and tenon is a popular woodworking and traditional joinery technique to joint woods. Every woodshop and wanna be carpenter can assemble two-pieces of wood together using either machines or hand-tools such as a hammer and a chisel.
What type of joint is mortise and tenon joint?
A mortise and tenon is a type of joint that is made up of two parts. The tenon portion of the joint works as a peg, and the mortis is the hole or slot into which the tenon is inserted. The pieces are then glued together during assembly.
Why is the mortise and tenon joint the strongest?
The mortise and tenon joint is another one of the strongest and most appealing woodwork joints able to be made because of its flush fitting design. Like the dovetail joint this woodwork joint can be difficult to properly construct but it is incredibly strong and aesthetically pleasing if constructed well.
How strong is a mortise and tenon joint?
The mortise and tenon joints were found to be the strongest at a tight fit of 0.1 mm (Elek et al. 2020).
Why is it called a mortise and tenon joint?
A mortise and tenon joint is a means of joining two pieces of wood at an angle (usually 90°) to each other. A protruding tenon, cut at the end of one piece, fits into a corresponding recess, called a mortise, in the other.
What is the strongest joint in carpentry?
mortise and tenon jointWhat is the strongest woodworking joint? For excellent stability, the mortise and tenon joint is a great choice. It's a relatively simple joint, yet it holds well. Woodworkers have been using it for generations because of its strength, versatility and simple design.
What is the weakest wood joint?
A butt joint is the easiest of all simple wood joints but also is the weakest. The cut end of one board butts-up against the edge of another piece at a right angle. The key to every type of wood joint is having smooth, square cuts on the boards, and the butt joint is no exception.
What is the strongest joining method for wood?
Mortise and Tenon Joint The mortise and tenon is a classic wood joinery method. These joints have been used since the early times of woodworking, and are still among the strongest and most elegant methods for joining wood.
What do mortise and tenon joints look like?
0:001:52What is a Mortise and Tenon Joint? | Rockler Skill Builders - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipIt typically has four shoulders that wrap all the way around it they're these horizontal portions.MoreIt typically has four shoulders that wrap all the way around it they're these horizontal portions. And the vertical portion of the tenon is called a cheek.
What are the two types of bridle joints?
There are two configurations of a Bridle Joint : the Corner Bridle and the Tee Bridle. The Corner Bridle can have one or both of its faces mitred and the Tee Bridle can be stopped if it is necessary to hide the End Grain.
What's a rabbet joint?
Definition of rabbet joint : a joint formed by fitting together rabbeted boards or timbers.
What is a housing joint?
The Housing joint. Also known as a Dado or Trench joint, this is when a through or stopped section is cut out against the grain of one piece, in order to fit into another. It's a very common, straightforward joint used extensively in carpentry, especially for shelving.
What is the difference between a tenon and a mortise?
The specific name of the mortise/tenon piece depends on its use or function and its orientation. Most commonly, the mortise piece is usually an upright piece like a stile, while the tenon piece is usually a horizontal piece, such as a stretcher, rail or apron.
How many parts are in a mortise and tenon?
While it may seem a bit over the top, there are at least nine parts to label when it comes to a run of the mill mortise and tenon. Do you need to know all these terms to make a successful mortise and tenon? The answer is no, but the nomenclature helps you to understand the geometry of the joint and how it can vary from use to use. For lack of a better term, we call this the anatomy of the joint, and some of the names are actually derived from our human anatomy. The specific name of the mortise/tenon piece depends on its use or function and its orientation. Most commonly, the mortise piece is usually an upright piece like a stile, while the tenon piece is usually a horizontal piece, such as a stretcher, rail or apron. This drawing will illustrate the various parts and where they occur.
Is the nomenclature of a joint derived from human anatomy?
For lack of a better term, we call this the anatomy of the joint, and some of the names are actually derived from our human anatomy.
What is the function of a mortise and tenon joint?
The mortise and tenon joint functions by inserting one end of a piece of wood into a hole in another piece of wood. It's that simple. The smaller end of the wood is the "tenon," and the wood with the hole in it is referred to as the "mortise.".
How long have mortise and tenon joints been used?
There's a reason the mortise and tenon joint has been used for thousands of years —it can be carved using basic woodworking tools and it'll last for ages. The mortise and tenon woodworking joint has been used around the world for thousands of years —for good reason. It's considered one of the strongest woodworking joints for attaching two pieces ...
What is the strongest joint?
The mortise and tenon woodworking joint has been used around the world for thousands of years—for good reason. It's considered one of the strongest woodworking joints for attaching two pieces of wood at 90 degrees. While not as visually appealing as dovetail joints, the mortise and tenon joint can be used by woodworkers ...
What tool is used to cut mortise?
A router with an upspiral bit is the preferred power tool for cutting a mortise, and an edge guide attached to the router base ensures a straight cut. A woodworking work bench with a vise makes this process much easier.
How thick should a tenon be for mortise?
A rule of thumb for cutting tenons is that they should be equal half the thickness of the board, and tenon length should be 4 to 5 times the thickness of the tenon.
What blade do you use to cut tenons?
For cutting tenons, a table saw with a dado blade and tenoning jig can cut the tenons quickly and accurately each time. This is essential when building larger pieces of furniture that need exact cuts each time.
Can you cut mortise and tenon by hand?
Like the dovetail joint, a mortise and tenon can be carved by hand, but that requires a certain skill level and aptitude for using a wide variety of hand tools. The easier and less time consuming way of cutting mortise and tenon joints is by using power tools.
What is a mortise and tenon joint?
A mortise and tenon joint is a means of joining two pieces of wood at an angle (usually 90°) to each other. A protruding tenon, cut at the end of one piece, fits into a corresponding recess, called a mortise, in the other.
What is a tenon cut?
The tenon, cut on the end of the mating piece, should be marked out to the same dimensions as the mortise, but cut a little “fat”, then pared down with a shoulder plane or wide chisel to fit the mortise exactly. The mortise and tenon joint is also commonly cut by machine.
What is a tenon shoulder?
The plain mortise-and-tenon joint has a tenon set back from the edges of the material. This setback, or ledge, is called a shoulder. The shoulders add strength to the construction and prevent wracking. They also cover up any flaw in the mortise. A mortise and tenon could have one, two, three, or four shoulders.
How many shoulders does a tenon have?
They also cover up any flaw in the mortise. A mortise and tenon could have one, two, three, or four shoulders. This variation on the joint might be employed when a smaller, narrower member is set into a larger member, surface or panel. The haunched tenon has a short projection in place of a short end shoulder (a portion of the tenon is cut away).
How thick should a mortise be?
Usually, the mortise is centered on the thickness of the material and is 1/3 its thickness. It should be set in 1/4 in. to 1/2 in. from the end of the workpiece. This “set-in” prevents the end of the mortise from splitting.
What makes a drawbored joint extra strong?
Pegs driven through offset holes make this drawbored mortise and tenon joint extra strong.
Who wrote the book Woodwork Joints?
Well-read woodworking author Charles H. Hayward claims in his book Woodwork Joints that the variations on the mortise and tenon joint would number into the hundreds.
What Is a Wedged Mortise and Tenon Joint?
Before we go over what this type of joint is, it might help to know what a basic mortise and tenon joint is.
When making a mortise and tenon joint, is it better to cut the mortise first or?
When creating any mortise and tenon joints, it’s always better to cut the mortise first and the tenon second. It’s a lot easier to adjust a tenon to fit a mortise; you can always cut a tenon smaller if it’s too big or use larger wedges to compensate if it’s too small. A mortise can only be adjusted to make it bigger, not smaller.
How many wedges are used in a tusk tenon joint?
This is basically the same idea as the standard tusk tenon joint, except instead of one large wedge inserted through the tenon, this design uses two smaller wedges inserted from opposite sides of the wedge mortise.
What is the advantage of a wedged mortise?
The advantage of wedged mortise and tenon joints over basic ones is that because the pieces of wood are not glued together, you can easily disassemble the joint by removing the wedges.
How far should a tenon stick out from a joint?
As for how far your tenon should stick out from the joint, that’s up to you. For a basic wedged mortise and tenon joint, the tenon can either be flush with the joint or stand out. For other types of wedged mortise and tenon joints, the tenon needs to protrude a little bit from the joint. We’ll discuss these other types later.
How many kerfs do you need to cut a tenon?
After cutting the basic shape of the tenon, you need to cut two stress-relief holes and two kerfs. The kerfs allow you to slide wedges into the joint, while the stress-relief holes allow the tenon to flex without splitting.
What is a mortise in woodworking?
The mortise, which is a hole carved into one of the wood pieces. The mortise may be square-cut, or it may have flared edges depending on the type of tenon being used.
