Can’t use the base of the Domino to end grain mortice a 1/2″ board
Hello. I am building Libby Schrum’s Mid-Century Modern Credenza from FW May/June 2017. Have the article, have the plans. Read and re-read the instruction “the rest of the mortices for the center divider and drawer box are straightforward and can be cut by registering on the base of the Domino” (top of page 61).
So I have my 1/2″ drawer pocket board with the reference side clamped to my table saw, ready to cut the 4mm mortices in the end grain. But when I slide the Domino up, the bit is too high, and would cut outside of the board. So, a non-starter there.
The only solution that I can see is to shim the board a sixteenth to get the bit in the middle of the end grain, and then slip the reference lines on the bottom and side carcase board by exactly that sixteenth. Not impossible, but scary.
I’m just wondering if I am missing a more straightforward method for making these critical cuts? Has any one built this piece and encountered this issue? If so, how did you solve it?
FWIW, I have the older model Domino with the spring pegs instead of the fold up, lockable plastic ones? Ms. Schrum is using the newer model. Bit height from base difference?
Thank you for any and all help!!
Replies
I'm not familiar with older Dominos, but on my 4 year old or so one, this is what I would do:
1. Loosen the lever on the right side of the Domino fence.
2. Slide the fence down and use the scale on the left side to adjust it somewhere below 10mm.
The key is using the top fence, now parallel to the board, as the reference surface on the board face. That way, lowering the fence brings the cutter closer to it, and therefore within the limits of the end of the board.
Does that not work for you?
Hi, and thanks for the quick response. Yes, using the top fence would work for the end grain cut that I described. But then how does one precisely translate that offset to the corresponding cross grain cut on the bottom and side boards, since that requires folding the top fence up to 90 degrees? There are very clear photos in the article, again on page 61, of the author using this successfully on a 5/8" board. This works, but on 1/2"? Not that I can see. Thanks again for your input.
I see your point, but in general I've done OK matching the Domino to layout lines. That's what I would do with the second board. I see you have a plan using precision shims. I guess that would be more precise, so go for it.
I assume you cannot use the fence on the carcass side since it has to lay flat?
If so, then yes, you already have the answer. Use a 1/16" spacer block to center the domino on your thinner board to cut into the end grain.
Three options for the bottoms and sides.
1 - If you haven't drawn them yet, just draw them 1/16" off.
2 - If you have then just clamp a board on that line and use the same 1/16" spacer block.
3 - My preference is to make an indexing board and reference off one of the fixed ends - ie if a divider needs to be, say, 16" off one end then I rip a board 16" wide, clamp it with one end on the reference end and then domino off the other end. Do the same on the opposing face and you have two sets of domino cuts perfectly parallel.
(I assume you cannot use the fence on the carcass side since it has to lay flat there)
You are exactly right.
My plan is to rip several 1/16" slices off a 2x4, lay them out on my table saw, put the work piece on top, reference face down, and clamp firmly enough to hold it still but not flex. Then, by putting the domino base on the table saw surface, the bit is effectively lowered to roughly the mid point of the end grain.
For the carcase bottom and side cuts, my line is already marked, so I'll sandwich the same 1/16" shim to my fence board, set it to the line, clamp, then remove the shim. The Domino base on the fence in this position is now again "dropped" toward the reference edge as it was for the end grain cut.
Will test this out on scrap first.
I had forgotten about indexing boards. I use them once setting drawer slides. Great idea!
Thanks for your help.
I've used set-up blocks for this exact situation a handful of times and have had no issues as long as I take my time and think it through (maybe a given for you pros, but for me, it is always a challenge)
It sounds like you had the answer all along, and we're just confirming.
The only risk I see is moving too fast and missing something.