Rockler Beadlock® Pro Joinery Kit

I recently picked up the Beadlock Pro and was impressed from the moment I opened the hardshell case. The jig itself is very sturdy and exeptionally well made. The instructions are clear and easy to follow and I was making perfect loose tenon joints in a matter of minutes. At the time I was half way through a project of 4 tables that I was making for my living room. The first two tables had incorporated traditional mortise and tenon joints using my table saw and a plunge router to make. I used the Beadlock system on the final two endtables and had all of the joints completed in half the time it would have taken to do them the traditional way. I used the pre-made tenon stock and it fit perfectly. I do plan on getting the router bit that will allow me to make my own tenon stock. If you find yourself using a mortise and tenon joint fairly often, this is a must have for your woodshop.

I would give this tool a 4.5. Makes great, tightfitting Tenon Joints with little fuss. I would recommend that the star style tightening nobs be replaced with larger nobs. After about 20 setups the hands begin to get pretty sore. Like any other jig practice is necessary to make the fit perfect. After practicing on scrap I was able to get the alignment of all joints to within 1/32 or less every time. I would suggest the clamping screw be re-engineered. I also use sandpaper to assist in the hold down. I built an aluminum jig which replicated the length and width of the beadlock. This gives me better control of the alignment than using a beadlock to mark your beadlock locations. Perhaps the manufacturer could add this type of jig to the pro kit. The kit case could be set up to allow quick adjustment of the depth stop. Similar to the depth stop jig used in the Kreg tool kit. A better drill bit which extracts the cuttings would be helpful.