Popular Woodworking 2005-04 № 147, страница 56

TIPS & TRICKS

PRO JIG:

Joinery Dividers

Once you've mastered the lock joint, put it to work for the inside of the drawers as well. The same joinery technique can be used to add fixed dividers to any drawer or box. Simply space off the locations for the dado cuts, running both sides at the same time (to make sure they're even). Then run the tenon cuts on as many dividers as you need. This same concept can be used for curio shelving.

PRO TIP:

Spline Grain Direction

The grain in a corner spline should run across the joint for maximum strength. For a hidden spline, this means the length of the piece will be only about ³/4", while the width will be considerably more. Rather than try to cut such a short, wide piece, make the splines from fairly narrow pieces and use as many as necessary to fill the groove. - Excerpted from Cutting Edge Table Saw Tips & Tricks, by Kenneth Burton (Popular Woodworking Books).

Lock Joints

Similar to half-blind dovetail joints, lock joints (or locking tongue-and-dado joints) cannot be seen from one direction and are often used to assemble drawers. They're much easier to make than dovetails - you can cut them with a single setup on a table saw. The trade-off

is that they don't withstand shear stress as well as dovetails (the wood in front of the dado will shear off if you pull too hard on the drawer front). However, they are still a good choice for small drawers or drawers that won't see much use.

To make a lock joint, mount a dado cutter on your saw and adjust the depth

The first cut for the lock joint is made with the inside face of the drawer part flat against the table saw. The piece is slid snug against the fence to locate the dado V4" in from the end. The miter gauge must be set accurately at 0° and the fence exactly parallel to the blade to avoid binding.

A V4"-thick step-off piece is used to cut the tenon on the end of the drawer fronts and backs. Not only does this simple block add a bit of safety against binding, but it also allows you to make this second lock joint cut without having to reset the blade or fence.