Like other woodworkers, I’d had problems with glue squeezing out of mortise-and-tenon joints as they’re clamped up. So I came up with the idea of chamfering or rounding over the top edge of the mortise. As the tenon is inserted, excess glue collects in the channel created by the chamfer, instead of oozing out. The tiny chamfer will not weaken the joint. You can make the chamfer with a carving knife or a roundover router bit with a small pilot bearing. I use a 1/4-in. roundover bit with a 3/16-in. pilot and adjust the height to give a roundover between 1/16 in. and 1/8 in. Miniature brass-pilot roundover bits as small as 1/16 in. are available from www.pricecutter.com  and other suppliers.

Drawings by Jim Richey

Drawings by Jim Richey

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