Replies

1. 
   Steinmetz | Nov 16, 2004 04:25am | #1

   Stehelin, with a matched set of tongue and groove cutters, it can be done. Be sure to use the correct table blade insert and construct a close fitting jig to the rip fence

   It should look like a rectangular 'Tunnel'.  Feed the material right through the tunnel and push the last section with the next length etc etc

   Do the grooves first and the tongues last 

   Orient all  the wood strips with the better looking grain towards the same side

   Practice at first with a few short pieces and check for fit

   With the correct set up, a two foot completed length cut in two should fit

    with a slightly loose fit and the top and bottom surfaces should lie level on a flat surface   Steinmetz.

2. 
   nikkiwood | Nov 16, 2004 07:21am | #2

   Steinmetz has covered all you need to know. However, if you are using a power feeder, I don't think you will need the tunnel he suggests.

   Come to think of it though, you'll have to cut these boards on edge, right? If so, will a power feeder work in that kind of set-up?

   Rather than making a tunnel from boards, I would argue for feather boards pushing the piece against the fence, and another feather board mounted on the fence pushing down (which will no doubt require a fence extension).

   I haven't used such cutters a lot, but I do know it is best if you start the job with a set that is very sharp.

   Good luck.

   
   

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   Edited 11/15/2004 11:32 pm ET by nikkiwood

3. 
   Garry | Nov 16, 2004 11:04pm | #3

   Again I have to agree with Nikkiwood about starting out with sharpe cutters. The molding heads that are typically used on the table saws are not usually carbide. I recently did a run of custom moldings in my entryway using ash( http://www.superwoodworks.com/Projects/Stairs.htm and http://www.superwoodworks.com/Projects/BiFoldDoors.htm )
   which did not envolve many running feet of molding and the cutters did need honing by the time I was finished. You will appreciate the quality though. The heavy cutter head works well.
   Garry

4. 
   JohnWW | Nov 16, 2004 11:31pm | #4

   It can be done, and it is a good way to make moldings, but I'm not so sure about T&G flooring.

   Unless you have a fair amount of horsepower driving the head, you will have to make the tongue part, which involves removing more wood than the groove, in multiple passes.  This along with the dulling of the steel cutters might make running a large batch of flooring a tedious job. 

   You can get a Magic Molder cutter head that uses carbide cutters but the expense would be hard to justify unless you were making a considerable amount of flooring.

   Another point to consider is that the setup will have to be precise, since the tongued edge is also being jointed by the cutter, so that any wooble or shifting of the stock as it is being cut will result in seams that won't close up tight. 

   This job could also be done on a router table or with a dado set on the table saw.  In both cases you would have the advantage of having carbide tooling and it might be possible to make the cuts in a single pass, but this would take some experimenting to prove out.

   John W.

   
   

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   Edited 11/16/2004 3:35 pm ET by JohnW

5. 
   HWG | Nov 17, 2004 01:10am | #5

   I used the T&G moulding head cutters on an old underpowered Delta tablesaw a few years ago to create some T&G pressure treated pine for my fathers back porch, and was pleased with the results.  As I recall I did it in a single pass, although I would do multiple pass if I were working in hardwood.  I used feather boards to hold alignment, and hand fed.

   While on the subject of T&G, has anyone worked with 3/4 inch T&G flooring (Sturdi Floor as I recall)?  I recently built a new shop and used this for strength, and was amazed (appaled actually), to find that the tongue was cut from the edge of the 48 inch sheet of plywood, resulting in coverage of 47 1/2 inch per sheet, not the full 48 inches.  This would have really become a problem if my shop had been larger, but I was able to manage since it was only four sheets wide.  This will really blow the 16 or 24 inch joist spacing plans though if you are not aware of it ahead of time.  Just thought I would through that in.