Why do I keep doing it?

[whit3rd]

Years ago, I made a track saw. 'Twas a torsion box with some slick rails screwed to the side, that engaged a vertical rib fastened to as long a straight edge as I could rip with a table saw.

My Skilsaw clamped into the box, and a plunge-cut through the 'back' of the box revealed the blade to the workpiece.

To keep the box stable, lacking a suitable jig for making a box joint, I hand dovetailed the corners, tnen planed the bottom surface accurately flat and affixed a thin hardwood plywood 'back'.

But the side of the box with the guides, had to stay absolutely straight or the guides would bind, so... that side was good seven-ply plywood.

It's a TERRIBLE nuisance chiseling a dovetail in plywood.

Years later, I wanted a weather-resistant cover for a saw on my back deck, and got some yellow cedar for the frame, and dovetailed those joints, too.

It's a TERRIBLE nuisance chiseling a dovetail in soft yellow cedar.

And now, with a flimsy wire antenna to mount to a frame, I've got the same yellow cedar, and am making mortise joints (so some water-resistant glue will hold). Not only is it a nuisance to chisel it, it doesn't even take a Forstner bit for a straight hole.

It'll last decades, but takes two days to finish six mortises. Because it's a TERRIBLE nuisance chiseling in soft yellow cedar.

[Puckdropper]

whit3rd wrote in news: [e-mail]:

What you need to do is heat that soft yellow cedar up to the currie point, then drop it in a bucket of oil or water. Heat it again, probably to a straw yellow, maybe a blue and quench again.

Now it should be much easier to work with! :-)

Puckdropper

[Leon]

Get a Festool domino. It should pay for it self shortly if it takes you

2 days to cut 6 mortises by hand. ;~)

[Jack]

At what, $1000 a pop, he'd have to cut a lot of hand mortises in short order to quickly pay for itself, particularly since the domino can't cut dovetails and standard mortises can be cut many ways faster and better than by hand, without the need for a domino.

Of course if he cuts mortises for a living, or, has an oil well in his back yard, he might want to look into getting one, or the whole set for $1500...

[Leon]

I see $1,000 being paid for in about 2~4 days, regardless of how many mortises are cut. Time is money and it will not take long to recoup the expense than 3 mortises per day is your speed. ;~)