I’m building a couple of gates to finish off my fencing project. They are cedar, with 2×6 rails and styles, a 2×4 rail through the top third to divide the fill, and 1×3’s and 1×6’s for fill. I am using mortise and tenon construction for the frame, but don’t want to cut mortises and tenons for all of the slats. I’m leaning toward cutting grooves in the rails to accept the slats, but wondered if the grooves would accelerate the decay of the gate in any way.
Thoughts?
Replies
Like you, I avoid leaving wells to hold water in outside furniture. For the joints between your slats and the rail below them, reverse your tongue & groove joint. That is, put the groove in the ends of the slats, and a tongue on the rail to stick up into the ends of the slats.
Wow, I just bought white oak for a gate between the pool area and the driveway, hinged off the garage. I've been mulling over how to hold the bottom of the infill boards without trapping water and had decided to do a rabet on the top of the rail and later put on a half round outside the bottom of the infill boards.
You just solved the problem much better than I did! I'll leave a tongue on the top of the bottom rail and put a groove in the (tiger sripe)redwood infill boards.
Thanks. That's why I visit knots!
There's two other details I like:
* I put a cap board on the top of the gate, to cover the end grain of the stiles and the joint between the top rail and the stiles. I hope that this reduces water wicking into those most-exposed joints.
* Like the original poster, I use 2x6 rails and stiles, and deep mortise & tenon joints. I use waterproof glue (urea formaldehyde) on the faces of the tenon -- that's what holds the joint together. The additional detail is that I put colored caulk on the shoulders of the joint before I shove it home. I hope the caulk will keep water from wicking into the joint.
Edited 6/8/2004 10:32 am ET by JAMIE_BUXTON
Use the traditional gate/door construction technique. Assemble a "Z" frame (a top and bottom rail connected by a single diagonal) and nail the verticals to the frame. Use copper nails and "kill" the tails (i.e. bend the tails over and hammer flush with the frame). For a bit more effort you could replicate a "nail studded" gate.
Ian
Ian, how do you make a nail-studded gate?
Janet
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