Page 3 - Center for Furniture Craftsmanship

A sliding dovetail is a woodworking joint that allows two separate pieces to be slotted together without the need for glue or other fasteners. They are assembled by sliding the tail into the socket. Typically, sliding dovetail joints are used for shelf support or cabinet drawer construction. A sliding dovetail joint may look intimidating but, it’s relatively easy to cut. This video was produced for its free video library by The Center for Furniture Craftsmanship in Rockport, Maine. The Center is a nonprofit, international woodworking school dedicated to providing the best possible education in wood craftsmanship and design.

Grooves are used primarily for inserting panels, such as with a frame and panel. A groove is a "groove" that runs with the wood versus a dado is a groove that goes across the grain, and a rabbet is on the edge running with the grain. This video explains the various forms of grooves, as well as the different methods and tools to create the right groove for the application. This video was produced for its free video library by The Center for Furniture Craftsmanship in Rockport, Maine. The Center is a nonprofit, international woodworking school dedicated to providing the best possible education in wood craftsmanship and design.

A drop-in dovetail is a joint that is often at the top of a table when there is drawer at the front, connecting the legs. The reason for using a dovetail versus a tenon, is to provide a stronger mechanically locking joint where there is little space due to the other joints cut into thin stock such as legs. This video was produced for its free video library by The Center for Furniture Craftsmanship in Rockport, Maine. The Center is a nonprofit, international woodworking school dedicated to providing the best possible education in wood craftsmanship and design.

There are many methods of cutting tenons, they have their pluses and minuses, all have their place in furniture making. The standard method of tenoning on a table saw is a good, solid, first method to have. This video was produced for its free video library by The Center for Furniture Craftsmanship in Rockport, Maine. The Center is a nonprofit, international woodworking school dedicated to providing the best possible education in wood craftsmanship and design.

A dado stack is an interesting way to cut a tenon, because it makes clean cuts to the shoulder and cheeks at the same time, meaning only one set up is needed for the majority of cuts. It can be a rougher cut, but that can be an advantage if using certain adhesives like epoxy. This video was produced for its free video library by The Center for Furniture Craftsmanship in Rockport, Maine. The Center is a nonprofit, international woodworking school dedicated to providing the best possible education in wood craftsmanship and design.

Of all the methods to cut tenons, using a router table gives one of the cleanest shoulders, and allows for the cheek and shoulder to be cut at the same time. Using a wide diameter mortising bit in the router table is a simple and efficient method of cutting straight joinery. This video was produced for its free video library by The Center for Furniture Craftsmanship in Rockport, Maine. The Center is a nonprofit, international woodworking school dedicated to providing the best possible education in wood craftsmanship and design.

In many opinions, the surface preparation of the components is the most important aspect of furniture making. What people see, and feel, in the end is the surface of the wood. Surface preparation and finishing go hand in hand; lack of preparation will lead to a bad finish. This video was produced for its free video library by The Center for Furniture Craftsmanship in Rockport, Maine. The Center is a nonprofit, international woodworking school dedicated to providing the best possible education in wood craftsmanship and design.

The advantage of making a tenon on a table saw with dado blades is a consistent tenon cut over and over, regardless of stock thickness, without a specific setup dialed in each cut. This video was produced for its free video library by The Center for Furniture Craftsmanship in Rockport, Maine. The Center is a nonprofit, international woodworking school dedicated to providing the best possible education in wood craftsmanship and design.

A well-tuned band saw is a versatile tool for cutting tenons, whether they are single tenons, double tenons. This video will run through set up of the band saw, band saw blade and fence, as well as a few ways to make tenons on the band saw. This video was produced for its free video library by The Center for Furniture Craftsmanship in Rockport, Maine. The Center is a nonprofit, international woodworking school dedicated to providing the best possible education in wood craftsmanship and design.

A horizontal mortiser is found in many medium to large scale shops. It is designed to cut round flat-bottomed mortises and is wonderful for chairmaking and mortising into odd shapes, as well as general cabinetmaking. This video was produced for its free video library by The Center for Furniture Craftsmanship in Rockport, Maine. The Center is a nonprofit, international woodworking school dedicated to providing the best possible education in wood craftsmanship and design.

Router boxes are one of the most accurate methods of cutting mortises. A router box is a simple plywood parallel box that allows a plunge router to rest on the surface and cut mortises into the wood that is held into it. There are a few variations; in size, added end stops and even hinges for angled mortises. This video was produced for its free video library by The Center for Furniture Craftsmanship in Rockport, Maine. The Center is a nonprofit, international woodworking school dedicated to providing the best possible education in wood craftsmanship and design.