Avoiding an end-grain glue up?

[mttt]

So, I'm tinkering with what's essentially going to be a lid on a box.

The lid is 3/4" oak about 11x17". Due to a screw-up, I've decided I'd like to surround the lid with about a 1" or 1.5" hardwood band/edging of a contrasting color. Mebbe' using some mahogany or maple scraps. Gonna try to mitre the corners too. I figure if it's gaudy enough, it'll distract them from seeing the eighty-eight other mistakes.

Since I'm (1) a royal newbie and (2) pretty much an idiot -- I'm thinking two of the four edges will be long to long grain glue ups and the other two will be end grain to long grain.

I don't own a Bizz-cut Joiner and would prefer to put off that purchase for another couple of months. I do own a simple dowel jig.

Am I right in assuming that I want to avoid gluing the hardwood band to the edge grain of the oak lid? Or will it be OK? And is it only end to end grain glue ups to avoid? If I should avoid this - would a couple of dowels add sufficient strength to the joint?

Or is now the perfect time to admit failure, sell all of the tools and take up skeet shooting?

Muchas Thanks! mttt - More Tools Than Talent

[Gfretwell]

Use verneer plywood for the lid?

[Andy Dingley]

Yes, not because of end-grain glue-ups being weak, but because it's nearly a foot long and moisture-based movement will be enough to break it.

Look at making a frame and panel structure. The ends get their strength from being attached to the other frame members, and the panel floats in a groove.

[Bob Bowles]

[Sam Krenov]

Your oak panel is going to move ~1/4" seasonally. You would be better off turning it into a floating panel inside a frame.

[Bill Wallace]

On the side grain to end grain you can do a mortise and tenon joint. Make a long slot in the edge band and rabbit top and bottom edges of the top. This gives you great face to face grain gluing inside the joint. You can add one or two pins (dowels) on the bottom side but I would only put one at the center or two an inch off center each. You could even slot the internal holes in the tenon to allow for movement and put them farther out.

Use yellow glue (it is flexible) and with the glue at the miters this will be very strong. You could also do a spline or loose tenon (a home made biscuit joint) at the miters and make this thing bullet proof.

The edge grain to end grain like this is very common in furniture making and is called bread boarding.

BW