Never use biscuits on 1/2″ or thinner panels, because the position of the biscuit will be telegraphed to the surface. Randy, Central MN. The “Telegraphing” everyone complains about is simply a function of the biscuit absorbing water from the glue and swelling up a bit AND of someone surfacing that piece before the moisture equilibrated which would allow the swelling to go back down. “…in his brain, which is as dry as the remainder biscuit after a voyage, he hath strange places cramm’d with observation, the which he vents in mangled forms.” -Shakespeare, “As You Like It”. Have your say… Forum Topics Woodworking Skill ShareYour woodworking skills are displayed for several lifetimes in each project.
Larry, I always used to fill the biscuit slots with glue but I had a wood shop teacher tell me this was not necessary. On another note, the only time I even use biscuits is when there is some bowing in the stock. I cut slots where ever the stock is bowed and the biscuits help with alignment while glueing.
“To use”Z-clip” fasteners to secure tops to tables, desks, and dressers, you typically saw a blade kerf along the rails or aprons. To avoid any potential weakening that might result from the full-length kerf, cut slots with your biscuit joiner where the fasteners will mount. Set the joiner for the No. 10 depth slot, adjust the fence to cut the proper distance from the top of the rail, and plunge the blade.
Properly-cut biscuit joints are strong and accurate, particularly when cutting slots with a woodworking tool called a biscuit joiner. When glued into slots precisely cut by the biscuit cutter, and the moisture from the glue causes the biscuit to swell and tighten the joint. As a general rule, try to use the largest size biscuit possible, as this will provide the greatest amount of strength to the joint.
biscuit joiner for table top Related Question:
Are biscuit joiners worth it?
Biscuits joints serve best as a quick and easy way to keep glue-up parts in alignment, and that they add appreciable pull-apart to strength joints that would be otherwise too weak to stand on their own – like butt joints and miter joints.
What can I use instead of a biscuit joiner?
Some tests suggest a dowel joint will provide stronger joinery than biscuits. Tests also indicate that dowel joints are not as strong as tenon joints or dovetail joints. They do make solid and accurate joints, though. A dowel joint will be a better method than nails or screws and are much less susceptible to breakage.
What are the disadvantages of a biscuit joint?
Biscuit joints do not stand up well against other joinery methods. We won’t spend any time comparing with mortise and tenon joints because all other joinery methods pale in comparison when measuring strength. But, as an example, the use of dowels as opposed to biscuits is a step up in strength.
Is a plate joiner the same as a biscuit joiner?
A plate joiner is the same as a biscuit joiner and are used to create an oblong hole in two matching pieces of wood. After the joiners have created the hole, a biscuit is glued, inserted and typically clamped until the wood is dried.
Do biscuit joints add strength?
Some folks (including me) may use biscuits for alignment or “reinforcement”, but the truth is they do very little to strengthen the joint. In this long-grain situation, its really the glue that’s doing all the work. As you have heard me and others say many times, the glue joint is stronger than the wood itself.
Is wood glue enough for table top?
Those days are well and gone, though, because modern wood glue is plenty strong enough to hold a tabletop joint on its own. In fact, some types of wood glue are even able to hold more than 100% of the weight of the wood it is adhered to.
Can I use a router as a biscuit joiner?
If you want to make biscuit joints, you don’t have to buy a biscuit joiner. In most cases, a router equipped with a 5/32-in. slot bit can cut perfect slots to fit the biscuits. Mark the biscuit positions on both adjoining boards as you would with a biscuit joiner.
What is a rabbet joint?
A rabbet is basically just a groove or a dado on the edge of your wood piece that creates a lip. That lip can then fit snuggly into a groove. The rabbet joint is incredibly useful for furniture construction that uses panels, such as a small dresser. It’s also very useful for cabinet construction.
Can you join plywood with biscuits?
However, with a biscuit joiner, clean, unobtrusive joints can be made in plywood, with no visible hardware and clean edges coming together. Whether joined together at 0 degrees, 45 degrees or 90 degrees, all joints are clean and tight, as well as being strong.
Why biscuit joint is used?
A biscuit jointer, sometimes referred to as a biscuit joiner, cuts notches in both pieces of wood you wish to join, into which you insert and glue a biscuit. The resultant joints are strong and reliable, preventing any lateral movement in your workpiece.