D'oh! How NOT to screw and glue...

[John Moorhead]

Hey All -

I kinda got my ass in the buttermilk yesterday. I am building a small cradle out of plainsawn red oak. It's a simple shaker design and I was planning on butt joining it with screws and glue, and then plug the screwholes with face grain black walnut. Piece of cake, right? Anyway, after I got it all cut and did the test fit, the cradle looked clunky with the end grain and thickness of the sides (3/4) Rose had a look, and agreed, and I decided to cut a rabbet on the ends to set the sides in about half way or so. Ha - Ha.... Textbook no-brainer... and it turned out that NO BRAIN is exactly what I had. I had already cut the pilot holes for the screws, and after I was done, I saw the off-cuts held what had been the previously counterbored seat for the screws. I was lucky I found enough dowels... Jeez... It turned a simple, small task into an afternoon of trouble.

I got it all glued up and plugged last night and will sand it, again, and start finishing it today. Pics to follow... Ah well...

John Moorhead

[Cherokee-LTD]

I won't be having buttermilk at your place in the near future! Dowels have saved my butt on several occasions. I often wonder "why didn't I use them in the first place?".

-Brian

[Andy Dingley]

It's the spirit of Mother Anne Lee telling you that The Shaker Way would have been to use treenails to hold it (aka dowels), not a metal fastener.

I'm not sure what the Millennial Laws would have to say about contrasting timbers for a plug either. Smacks dangerously of Worldly Vanities....

[John Moorhead]

Hello, Dear Brother in Christ:

Correct you are! I was wondering if anyone was going to call me on the walnut plugs and screws... Mother Lee won out though, didn't she... Not a screw to be found in the cradle....

Thanks for the laugh!

Brothah (and Mutha) John

[Andy Dingley]

At weekends you can call me Tabitha

[G.E.R.R.Y.]

Can anyone tell me what kind of handsaw (Lee Valley or otherwise) is best for cutting off the little bits of dowel standing proud of the surface? I want to be able to make the dowel end flush WITHOUT damaging the surface or being forced to sand forever to make it flush.

Gerry

[DC]

A reversible offset dovetail saw is what I would recommend. They are designed for flush cutting as there is only tooth set on the topside of the saw blade.

A google search will reveal sites with photos of these, so you know what to look for.

[John]

Flexible saw with NO SET to the saw teeth.

I know Lee Valley has such a beast as well as many of the Japanese style saws are also appropriate

No matter what saw you use, you will still need to sand it down till totally flush with the work piece

John

[Andy Dingley]

Low angle block plane with a tiny mouth, IMHO (and Lee Valley's is the best around).

There are magic dowel trimming saws around. These are sometimes flat and have a one-sided back, but generally they're flexible instead. LV make one, there are Japanese versions too. An expensive tool for such a rare task, IMHO.

Don't use a standard Japanese saw for this. They might be flexible enough to lay flush, but they also have enough set to the teeth that you'll scratch the surface.

[mac davis]

I use my handy-dandy $10 veneer saw from HF... fairly short, no set and fairly ridged...

Please remove splinters before emailing

[Andy Dingley]

My veneer saw is finely tuned for working veneer. Knife edge (in section) teeth mean that it's a fragile little flower, and I'm not going to start hacking through dowels with it. _Another_ veneer saw might be just the job, but I'm not risking the good one.

Besides which, many of my dowels are made from awkward materials like bamboo, bog oak, african blackwood and the like. They're pretty tough going !

[Larry Jaques]

On Tue, 21 Dec 2004 22:49:29 -0500, "G.E.R.R.Y." calmly ranted:

I have a Lee Valley flush trim saw. Saw the dowels with that and then take 2 or 3 passes with a very finely-set low-angle block plane and you're ready for finishing.

-- Music washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life. ---- --Unknown