Overview
Get incredibly strong, totally concealed joints with just your hand drill and the Beadlock Pro Kit. Beadlock® Pro does everything Beadlock® Basic does, but adds greater capacity and adjustability, plus the ability to create traditional smooth-sided mortises. Just pop the included paring block into the jig to provide an accurate guide for your chisel. With a 3-1/2" width capacity, it will easily handle the large joints found in tables, chairs and big casework. Slide the guide block along the rails to place your mortise precisely where you want it. Includes Beadlock® Pro Jig, 3/8" drill bit, 3/8" stop collar, 3/8" Beadlock® guide block, 3/8" mortise paring guide block and a molded plastic case with added space for the optional accessory kits. All Accessory Kits include corresponding guide block, mortise paring guide block, HSS drill bit and stop collar. Storage case is molded with additional spacing for optional 1/4" and 1/2" drill block sizes (#39882 and #36546, sold separately).
Features:
- Beadlock® system overlaps drill bit holes precisely to accept a special Beadlock® loose tenon
- Creates an extremely strong, totally concealed joint
- Integral clamp
- Infinite adjustability
- Constructed of heavy-duty 3/8" anodized aluminum with
- All adjustments are made with easy-grip knobs
- Index lines on the guide block allow you to precisely align the jig with your reference marks
- Index lines on the ends of jig, allow you to line up mortise width-wise on the piece
- Handles stock thicknesses of 3/4" and up
What's included
(1) Beadlock® Pro Jig(1) 3/8" HSS Drill Bit
(1) 3/8" Stop Collar
(1) 3/8" Beadlock® Guide Block
(1) 3/8" Mortise Paring Guide Block
(1) Molded plastic case with space for Accessory Kit
(1) 3/8" Stop Collar
(1) 3/8" Beadlock® Guide Block
(1) 3/8" Mortise Paring Guide Block
(1) Molded plastic case with space for Accessory Kit
Technical Details
- Brand: Beadlock
- Manufacturer Part Number: TAMPJ-38K
- Weight (lbs): 7.9500
Product Warnings
WARNING This product can expose you to chemicals which are known to the State of California to cause cancer and birth defects or other reproductive harm. For more information go to www.P65Warnings.ca.gov/product Technical Downloads
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Questions and Answers
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Can the Beadlock Pro jig be clamped on to stock 5.5" by 5.5" wide to create a tenon in the middle of the stock?
BEST ANSWER: No, the best you will be able to do is 3.5". The jaws are 3 7/8 inches but the screw down clamp uses about a 1/4". It MAY BE POSSIBLE to replace the guide rods (silver rods held to the jaws with cap screws in the photos) with longer ones, but I am pretty sure that would void the warranty and I am not going to take mine apart to try it.
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- WILLIAM F on Oct 6, 2015
- Purchased on Jan 31, 2015
I am building a dining room table out of walnut. I am fairly new into woodworking, but I have put in a ton of time on this project, and it been turning out great. I decided to buy and use the beadlock pro with 1/2" dowels/tenon stock. After measuring over and over I still ended up not lining up two of my leg to apron connections. They are centered, but the holes and off very minimal, maybe 1/8" at the most. That little of an off measure makes to table to line up and sit flat. Any suggestions on what I can do without keep drilling holes with the danger of the same problem?
BEST ANSWER: Perhaps put a shim of walnut or a carpet type material on the bottom of the leg.
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- James N on Oct 8, 2016
- Purchased on Jul 28, 2016
What is the minimum board size that can be used?
BEST ANSWER: Refer to http://go.rockler.com/tech/RTD10000432AA.pdf for info on material sizing.
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- Steve Staff on Jun 9, 2015
Can Beadlock be used for face to edge joint?
BEST ANSWER: In principle yes, but you may have to get creative how to hold/clamp the fixture to the face board as you will undoubtedly exceed the width capacity of the Rockler jig. You may have to remove the blue clamp/side plates and attach angle iron brackets and clamp the angle iron brackets to your face board so you can drill the beadlock holes
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- Glen R on Sep 23, 2016
- Purchased on Jan 7, 2015
Can this be used on 45 degree miters?
BEST ANSWER: In principle yes, but not with the current clamping plates.
You will need a special mounting system to position the drilling block on the 45 miter face.
Additionally the depth of drilling will need to be precisely controlled so as not to cut through the opposing side.
You will need a special mounting system to position the drilling block on the 45 miter face.
Additionally the depth of drilling will need to be precisely controlled so as not to cut through the opposing side.
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- Glen R on Oct 28, 2016
- Purchased on Jan 7, 2015
I'm planning on using beadlock on the leg of a stand and the rails. The legs are splayed at 4 Deg. So the rail ends will be beveled accordingly. Can the beadlock system work on a bevel?
BEST ANSWER: I am going to make two assumptions based on your question. One, you are going to also bevel the tops & bottoms of the rails so that they also splay outward and are parallel, and Two, that the tops of the legs will be square profile and have a compound cut (the inside corner will be long, and the outside corner will be the shortest).
Yes, as long as you will be drilling parallel to the faces of the rail board, but you will need to be extra careful in your layout. The Beadlock tenon stock will travel perpendicular to the end of the rail, so, at an angle to the grain, but must travel parallel to the faces of the rail so that it doesn't come through the faces and show. The tenon stock will travel like normal in the leg of the stand, but you are not going to have a good reference face in the end grain due to the compound cut there. Layout is key, I suggest you layout the entire tenon on each piece on the outside so that you can visualize where it needs to be and how it travels, give yourself extra space above it and below it, because in the leg it will be traveling uphill towards the shortest corner, but in the rail you will be traveling downhill towards the lowest edge (which bevels backwards and is shorter on the inside face). It may make sense to not do the top & bottom bevels on the rail or the compound bevel on the legs until after you have done the Beadlock mortises and leave that board wider than necessary (you WILL need to cut the ends of the rails to properly do this, though). Since you are not going to be able to use an end or corner as reference like you can with a square project, after you do the layout, you will need to make yourself a reference point/lines to work from with the Beadlock. You will use that set of lines for all the mortises so all the mortises will be drilled from the same reference line. You will need to drill the rails slowly because you will be fighting the grain. Good Luck! In your case definitely Measure Twice and Cut Once!
Yes, as long as you will be drilling parallel to the faces of the rail board, but you will need to be extra careful in your layout. The Beadlock tenon stock will travel perpendicular to the end of the rail, so, at an angle to the grain, but must travel parallel to the faces of the rail so that it doesn't come through the faces and show. The tenon stock will travel like normal in the leg of the stand, but you are not going to have a good reference face in the end grain due to the compound cut there. Layout is key, I suggest you layout the entire tenon on each piece on the outside so that you can visualize where it needs to be and how it travels, give yourself extra space above it and below it, because in the leg it will be traveling uphill towards the shortest corner, but in the rail you will be traveling downhill towards the lowest edge (which bevels backwards and is shorter on the inside face). It may make sense to not do the top & bottom bevels on the rail or the compound bevel on the legs until after you have done the Beadlock mortises and leave that board wider than necessary (you WILL need to cut the ends of the rails to properly do this, though). Since you are not going to be able to use an end or corner as reference like you can with a square project, after you do the layout, you will need to make yourself a reference point/lines to work from with the Beadlock. You will use that set of lines for all the mortises so all the mortises will be drilled from the same reference line. You will need to drill the rails slowly because you will be fighting the grain. Good Luck! In your case definitely Measure Twice and Cut Once!
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- WILLIAM F on Aug 1, 2015
- Purchased on Jan 31, 2015
Which way is the best buying the Beadlock basic or buying the Beadlock pro.
BEST ANSWER: After research and thought about the the (2) beadlock fixtures I chose to buy the "Beadlock Pro" kit as it accommodates wider stock with greater ease, its kit box allows the user to purchase and store the other sizes and accessories.
While the plastic tri-wing knobs work well in many applications due to my larger hands I was skinning my knuckles too much and replaced the knobs with socket hex-head cap screws and use an Allen hex wrench to tighten those fasteners.
To insure that the beadlock fixture does not move during use I use an Irwin Quick Clamp for added insurance.
The sale price of $109.99 is a great offering and this system produces solid, well aligned joints in minimal time.
While the plastic tri-wing knobs work well in many applications due to my larger hands I was skinning my knuckles too much and replaced the knobs with socket hex-head cap screws and use an Allen hex wrench to tighten those fasteners.
To insure that the beadlock fixture does not move during use I use an Irwin Quick Clamp for added insurance.
The sale price of $109.99 is a great offering and this system produces solid, well aligned joints in minimal time.
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- Glen R on Feb 21, 2016
- Purchased on Jan 7, 2015
Will a 1/2" beadlock be "enough" to hold two 4x4's together for a 4x4 constructed workbench?
BEST ANSWER: I have done this but I also abuse my workbench. Saying that I also would recommend drilling and countersinking a lag bolt 90 degrees into the tenon. No matter what I am doing the bench does not move!
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- Andrew on Nov 30, 2016
Does headlock do half inch mortice ?
BEST ANSWER: The parts that come with the kit are for the 3/8" mortises, there are two additional parts kits available for 1/2" and 1/4" mortises that have the drill block, paring block for square mortises, drill bit, and stop collar for each size. I attached the Rockler items to this response.
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- WILLIAM F on Nov 15, 2015
- Purchased on Jan 31, 2015
Reviews
4.0 / 5.0
73 Reviews
Poor Design of Clamping Knob
Experienced a slight problem using the Beadlock Pro; the star knob used to tighten the clamp that holds your stock is made of plastic and without a metal insert. After just a few uses, the star knob's plastic threads stripped and I'll have to modify the tool to be able to continue using it. A shame as it's otherwise a nice tool.
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April 14, 2014
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I have now used the Beadlock...
I have now used the Beadlock Pro for a weekend and cannot give it more than a 3, which is a shame since it would take very little improvement to move it to a 5. When working with 3/4 material, my only complaint was that the drill block carrier was misaligned about 1/64 of an inch, so that while I could get aligned to the middle of a 3/4 mark on one side, the other would be off by about 1/32 to 1/64 of an inch. There should be some way to adjust it. The primary annoyance I had was with the clamping system. The clamp with the round cymbal on the end will move the piece while tightening unless you hold with two hands - then what do you use to tighten. This is particularly a problem if you are trying to clamp at the edge of a piece. However, the clamp is totally unacceptable if you are working with larger pieces. I was using the Pro for 1-1/2" legs for a nightstand and it required two hands to hold the material since as I tried to clamp down the clamp would move the material and result in bad alignment if you are not careful. This can be very annoying if you are trying to be very precise to have the end of the stile match the top of the rail. It is a shame that such a well thought out tool let's a cheap clamp reduce its effectiveness. If anyone knows of a better clamping tool or of a way to better align the drill block, maybe Rockler can make it available.
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March 27, 2011
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I have found the Beadlock a...
I have found the Beadlock a great device that needs some more development. The sandpaper on the side is a must. The clamp is not the problem as much as the alluminum sides are not strong enough and bend under pressure. This causes the drill to be slanted to one side slightly. I found that if you snug the clamp and use clamps on the sides the system performs fine. Not sorry I bought it, it does give nice joints it is just not strong enough. I should have bought the basic beadlock where you have to use clamps anyway.
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January 24, 2013
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Finally Got to try My Beadlock jig
Worked well on real project AFTER I practiced with it on some scrap. It does not always give you the most perfect fit with the tenons, but that can sometimes be if the tenors aren't perfect.
Here's what I found:
* As with so many things, patience. It's best to make absolutely sure it's well lined up. This might mean - especially to center the carriages - that you make sure to extend some center marking lines on your workpiece. Of course, if many pieces are the same width, you only have to do this once.
* Go slow on the drilling and back out the waste as you drill. Make sure as you get faster to not just do a 'hit and run' on the holes. Give them a good proper drilling, move the block and do it again. As long as you make sure the block is secure and in place, this should give you a nice fit with the tenon.
* Consider a corded drill. Like my pocket hole jig, I find it best to drill the holes with a reasonably well powered corded drill as opposed to cordless. Cordless works, and is - I find - great for driving, but for drilling a lot of heavy duty hardwood holes, it's sometimes better to go corded. Things get sloppy when a battery is running down.
* I found that this isn't just about using a full size or even partial tenon. I needed to attach some corbels to some side posts on a bookcase. So I cut some 1/4" width tenons just to line them up great before gluing and clamping. The tenons helped lock these in place so I could clamp these odd shaped parts without having them slip around or need to manufacture a temporary caul I'd only use once.
Overall, I'm happy with it. It's a bit faster than doing multiple dowels with a doweling jig, and while I've never made a traditional mortise and tenon - and don't really intend to - I can't imagine how much more time that would take.
Here's what I found:
* As with so many things, patience. It's best to make absolutely sure it's well lined up. This might mean - especially to center the carriages - that you make sure to extend some center marking lines on your workpiece. Of course, if many pieces are the same width, you only have to do this once.
* Go slow on the drilling and back out the waste as you drill. Make sure as you get faster to not just do a 'hit and run' on the holes. Give them a good proper drilling, move the block and do it again. As long as you make sure the block is secure and in place, this should give you a nice fit with the tenon.
* Consider a corded drill. Like my pocket hole jig, I find it best to drill the holes with a reasonably well powered corded drill as opposed to cordless. Cordless works, and is - I find - great for driving, but for drilling a lot of heavy duty hardwood holes, it's sometimes better to go corded. Things get sloppy when a battery is running down.
* I found that this isn't just about using a full size or even partial tenon. I needed to attach some corbels to some side posts on a bookcase. So I cut some 1/4" width tenons just to line them up great before gluing and clamping. The tenons helped lock these in place so I could clamp these odd shaped parts without having them slip around or need to manufacture a temporary caul I'd only use once.
Overall, I'm happy with it. It's a bit faster than doing multiple dowels with a doweling jig, and while I've never made a traditional mortise and tenon - and don't really intend to - I can't imagine how much more time that would take.
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Compared to the Domino, or the...
Compared to the Domino, or the expensive router fixtures for loose tenons, this is cheap. The tools finish is good, well thought out, and other than loose bolts was ready to work. I had to figure out the instructions, but it does excellent work.
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January 30, 2008
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Loved the jig
The joints made with the beadlock made the joints solid and sturdy even using 3/4"x 2" wood components at 12" o.c. in a 5'-0"x 5'-0" frame. I only nailed the frame at the studs to anchor it to the wall.
Added May 27, 2016
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Love my Beadlock Tenon Jig
I just like to build stuff and get it together. The craft is interesting to me, but I don't need to be struggling with mortising joints. (Same as I've got a jig for dovetails, I don't do them by hand.) Maybe it's cheating. Maybe the big kid woodworkers will tease me, but I've found this thing pretty sold once you get the hang of it.
I've used it to join long edges together for table tops and side panels, and dresser legs to rails, and so on. As with most woodworking, the key to getting this thing right is to measure well. And don't get complacent with which side you've done first when you have to loosen, move and tighten down the paring block. (If you're doing a lot of these, you tend to get into a zone - or I do - and can screw it up.)
Pics below are a couple of the projects where it came in handy.
I've used it to join long edges together for table tops and side panels, and dresser legs to rails, and so on. As with most woodworking, the key to getting this thing right is to measure well. And don't get complacent with which side you've done first when you have to loosen, move and tighten down the paring block. (If you're doing a lot of these, you tend to get into a zone - or I do - and can screw it up.)
Pics below are a couple of the projects where it came in handy.
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No More Wobble
Rock solid joints. But you need to take your time marking everything carefully. Follow the instructions and you will be fine. Here are my tips: 1 Use a corded drill 2 Drill slowly in and out 3 Check stop collar periodically as the pounding can make it move 4 Clean out the holes afterwards with a small chisel or flat-head screw driver.
Jeff Korbman
Jeff Korbman
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Buy one. It'll pay for itself in no time if you're a pro and time is money.
Simple, easy to learn, easy to use, mistakes happen but they are just because you're not taking your time.
This has enabled me to create amazingly accurate, clean and extremely strong floating tenon joints in a fraction of the time it takes to go the traditional route and with the added bonus that the shape of the tenons resist racking.
This has enabled me to create amazingly accurate, clean and extremely strong floating tenon joints in a fraction of the time it takes to go the traditional route and with the added bonus that the shape of the tenons resist racking.
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Slight learning curve, but worth it
My first set of beadlock holes ended up being done incorrectly - user error, but easy to make the mistake. Take special care to read the instructions thoroughly and do a couple test runs. Once you get the low down on how to do these right they really are nice. The product is very nicely machined - would recommend.
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