Actually, the only "breadboard" I know about is for prototyping electronics. My question was honest and I don't care for your suggestion. As far as I'm concerned you (RicodJour) can lose the attitude and cut up some plywood and put it up your ass.
Might look up "breadboard" via google but the simple answer is it's the generic name for the typical breadboard construction (hence the name, obviously) of a lengthwise piece across the end of a piece at cross-grain direction. Owing to the tendency of wood to move preferentially perpendicular to grain direction as opposed to with grain, this "cross-grain" joint is prone to failure if attempt to glue it the whole length. Hence, one will find many techniques to get around the problem--pinning only in the middle, tenons w/ oversized mortises, screws in slotted holes, etc., etc., ... The unglued biscuit would be similar in concept to the loose M&T.
Gee, you're a sensitive thing. Any particular word can have different meanings based on context. Breadboard is one such word. Please note that the group you are posting to is alt.home.repair not alt.computer.*, which should indicate Phisherman wasn't talking about a computer component. Your apparent inability or unwillingness to DAGS is scary. I would have said stupid, but you're sensitive, and I don't want to upset you any more.
There is unanimous consensus that the main purpose of the biscuit is to aid in alignment. You've already been told that the glued joint is plenty strong on its own. You've already been told that there is some dispute whether the biscuit adds any strength at all. You apparently don't understand that a biscuit slot is appreciably bigger than the the biscuit and that woodworkers glue does a piss poor job of filling gaps.
Your gut feeling that a biscuit has *got* to add strength means exactly nothing. You obviously don't know about biscuits or you wouldn't be asking. You don't know about the strength of edged glued joints or you would realize the inanity of trying to make a joint that is already stronger than the wood even stronger.
If you had asked about the additional strength in a biscuited edge to end joint, that would be a different matter. That question has also been answered.
Perhaps you aren't aware that you can Google specific newsgroups and that such questions as yours have already been asked and answered repeatedly. You can get your question answered and all of the background with competing viewpoints in an easy to digest thread without waiting for replies.
I'm sorry if you feel I've been rough on you, but I'm all out of the little Gerber's bottles and bibs. I don't particularly feel like spoon feeding. Your question has been answered. If you don't like the answer, you've been given more than enough information to search to your heart's content until you find an answer that meets with your preconceived notion.
Eh? No. Modern wood glues and good clamping produce a joint who's strength exceeds the strength of the wood around it. So failure will occur in the wood not the glue joint. -- Doug
Breadboard ends are cross-grain with the table. Without some movement the table would split or crack. I use a tongue and groove joint but you could use loose biscuits. Shorter (maybe less than 10") cross-grain joints usually don't present an issue with seasonal wood movement.
That is not correct. They are made from solid wood with the grain running at
45 degrees to their length. They are compressed as part of the manufacturing process so that when water based glue is used, they expand to make a tight fit. When used it long grain to long grain joints, they do not add significantly to the strength of the joint, but in but joints or joints where one surface is end grain, they do add considerable strength.
Those I have are clearly laminated (and compressed) -- one can see it on the edges. Who manufactured these I don't know; they were a generic
3000 mixed selection of 1000/1000/1000 0/10/20 and I couldn't even say where I got them anymore. I don't use biscuits much so this is the only stash I've had in years so made assumption they all are.
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