Popular Woodworking 2004-04 № 140, страница 50
Shoulder planes are capable of extraordinarily precise work. Just try to set your table saw to remove .001". It's not possible. For a shoulder plane, it's simple. Final Tweaks No matter how careful you have been, some of your tenons might fit a little too tightly. This is where the shoulder plane shines. Make a couple of passes on both face cheeks and try fitting the joint again. Be sure to make the same number of passes on each cheek to keep the tenon centered on the rail. If your parts aren't in the same plane when assembled (and they're supposed to be), you can take passes on only one cheek to try to make corrections. If the joint closes up on one face but not the other, you might have a sloppy shoulder. The shoulder plane can trim the fat shoulder to bring it in line with its twin on the other side of the tenon. If the tenon still won't seat tightly, try chiseling out some meat at the corner where the edge shoulder meets the face cheek - but don't trim the outside edge of the edge shoulder itself. Finally, get a sharp chisel and clean out any gunk at the bottom of the mortise. Keep at it - a tight joint is worth the extra effort. Assembly You really don't want any glue squeeze-out when you assemble your mortise-and-tenon joints. The trick to this is learning where to put the glue and how much to use. I run a thick bead of glue at the top of each mortise wall and then paint the inside of the mortise wall with glue using a little scrap piece. I try to leave the glue a little thick at the top of the mortise wall. Then, when the tenon is inserted, this paints the tenon with glue but drives the excess to the bottom of the mortise. When clamping any frame -regardless of the joinery you used - you don't want to use too much pressure or you will distort the frame. Tighten the clamps until the joints close and no more. You also want to alternate your clamps over and under the assembly to keep the frame flat - no matter how fancy your clamps are. Once you do this a couple of times, I think you'll find a whole new level of woodworking open to you. Web frames for dressers (or Chippendale secretaries) will seem like no problem. Morris chairs with 112 mortises will be within your reach. And your furniture is more likely to stand the test of time - and maybe even the occasional anvil. PW Editor's Note: Now that you know the basics to producing this extraordinarily strong joint, you should give it a try yourself on a project. We've included plans in this issue for a Stickley Ottoman on page 57 -it's a great introduction to the world of mortise-and-tenon joinery. A thick bead of glue at the top of the mortise wall makes the joint strong without squeezing out a lot of glue. Use a small piece of scrap to paint the mortise wall before inserting the tenon. SUPPLIES Freud 800-334-4107 or freudtools.com • Dado stack set #SD208 (check online or call for nearest retailer) MORTISERS Bridgewood 800-235-2100 or wilkemach.com • Bench mortiser #HM-11,$235 Woodstock International 800-840-8420 or woodstockinternational.com • Shop Fox mortiser #W1671, $230 (check online or call for nearest retailer) Jet (WMH Tool Group) 800-274-6848 or jettools.com • Jet mortiser #JBM-5,$200 (check online or call for nearest retailer) Fisch 724-663-9072 or fisch-woodworking.com • BTM99-44252, $240 (check online or call for nearest retailer) SHOULDER PLANES Lie-Nielsen Toolworks 800-327-2520 or lie-nielsen.com • Large shoulder plane #073,$225 • Rabbet block plane #601/2R,$150 Lee Valley Tools 800-871-8158 or leevalley.com • Veritas medium shoulder plane #05P41.01, $139 Price as of publication deadline. 48 Popular Woodworking April 2004 |
