Hi,
Screwfix did well and the three new blades were waiting for collection as promised. It did make a difference to the cut quality but not as big a difference as I would have liked. For this kind of work an 80T blade would be much better but Screwfix didn't stock such a blade with a 25mm bore although now I've bought the new blades I could buy an 80T blade as spacers were supplied with these blades taking the 25mm up to 30mm; normally I would simply turn a spacer but both my engineering lathes are in bits.
This Evolution mitre saw is excellent for general work but for high precision it leaves a lot to be desired as there is play in the saw mounting head that would be difficult to eradicate. I don't like compromise in my projects but unfortunately if I want to progress I'll have to accept it; the saw cut is a lot better than it was but compared to my previous industrial Wadkin it demonstrates the difference between made to a high standard and down to a price. The Wadkin was cast iron whereas this Evolution is aluminium. I'm not grumbling about the Evolution saw; far from it because for the price it is a decent bit of kit and it would be grossly unfair of me to compare it on the same level as the industrial Wadkin.
I spent ages yesterday just cutting the four mitre joints for the desk top oak surround (frame). I did my best and the joints although not perfect would suffice. This morning I was keen to make a start so was in the garage just after 9 o'clock. It was cold and windy outside so I was in my coat again which I dislike whilst playing around with machinery.
After all the preliminary work; dreaming up the desk design; gathering information then buying the materials and setting up the garage once again for cabinetwork I've finally reached the interesting part where results can be seen. I've spent the day fitting the oak surround to the desk top and this has been bad on my nerves but before I show the results of my labour I would like to introduce members who have never seen or heard of a biscuit joiner to the delights of such a power tool.
Bron bought me this biscuit joiner from “Sargents Tools (Mail order) Ltd trading as Tabwell Tools in Bakewell. It was my Christmas present from my lovely Bron and it was an expensive one at the time costing £99.99 with 1,000 free biscuits. The power tool is a Freud JS 100A and was bought when we visited Tabwell Tools on 29- 12- 92. The details supplied with the tool describe it as a Freud Joiner Machine which uses “splines” these splines are also called biscuits or plates.
Freud JS100A in its case and close up.
Bron asked me what I would like her to buy me for Christmas and at that time I was installing our solid hardwood kitchen which was incredibly slow going as we had little money; a huge mortgage and I was scrounging lots of Meranti offcuts. £99.99 was a great deal of money to us at that time. I had only just completed cutting the joints for the upper wall unit doors; 7 doors giving 28 mortice and tenon joints. For cutting the mortices I had set up a 3/4HP 3.000rpm 2 pole electric motor with a metal sleeve to fit snugly onto the motor shaft and the other end of the sleeve to accept an engineering four flute end milling cutter (£11 cutter). The motor was mounted upon a sturdy wooden box and a wooden worktable was added allowing freehand feeding of the timber to be jointed into the revolving cutter. This worked very well considering it was home made and gave good accuracy. The tenons were all cut by hand using a tenon saw and the shoulders were trimmed to exact size using a Stanley shoulder plane; I'll never ever forget how laborious my first attempts at woodworking were; I used to suffer blisters to my hands and these 28 joints occupied me fully for two days.
I had already bought scrap machinery and was restoring these during evenings and weekends. The machines were cast iron industrial types with flat belt drives. Working at Brook Motors I obviously was in the perfect place to either scrounge single phase motors from our No8 Spares & Repair Department or at times would buy motors at reduced prices I also received a works discount from our Wakefield factory that made control gear; on top of this I was forever raiding the scrap bins and one of the electricians would occasionally put together a motor NVR (No volt release) starter for me from scrap. £1 in those days was a lot of money to us so anything I could get my hands on that wasn't smoking and free I grabbed. I converted a 9” cast iron surface planer from 3 phase to single phase as I did with a very big cast iron saw bench; both these machines were also converted by me from flat belt to “V” belt drive and rigged up with proper starters; all this didn't happen overnight; our friends were going abroad on holiday and we remained at home working on our home.
With these machines fully restored then I could visit our local timber yards for offcuts and I could get a car load of sawn Meranti for £20 this Meranti being in lots of different sizes looking like firewood. Put through the saw and planer though and the Meranti came to life; I obtained a very crude attachment to fit the planer; this was an adjustable metal plate turning the planer into a rough and ready thicknesser which worked but it was incredibly hard labour forcing the Meranti through by hand.
So I had a basic selection of machines enabling accurate dimensioning of timber but I still spent forever cutting mortice and tenon joints. Even with the new set up it took two days to cut the door joints and as I was next going to make 7 similar doors for the base units I gladly accepted Bron's offer of a Christmas present and she kindly bought the biscuit joiner for me.
I had all the Meranti for the 7 doors dimensioned and cut to length ready for the joints adding and I'll always remember Bron popping into the workshop saying dinner will be ready in about an hour. In that hour I cut all 28 door joints using the biscuit joiner and even tidied up before dinner was ready. What a revelation this power tool was and at the risk of being boring I'll add details of this remarkable tool.
http://www.right-tool.com/freudfixfenb.html
There are two types of biscuit joiner; sliding and pivot head; mine is a sliding head. It is a dedicated single function power tool which only cuts half oval shaped slots into timber or board materials. It is best described as an angle grinder fitted with a small TC blade of a very precise thickness. The sliding head is fitted with an adjustable fence up or down only and for some jobs such as I've done today the fence section can be removed completely. In use the blade at rest is totally retracted from the front face and this affords a great deal of safety to the operator. The motor unit is spring loaded so that when not in cutting mode the spring retracts the blade. To each end of the blade fitted into the face are two very sharp points which engage the material being cut to prevent the blade deflecting the tool as the cut is brought on. Depth of cut on the slide head is fully adjustable to accommodate three different sizes of biscuits. The depth of cut needs to be adjusted to give just over half the maximum depth of the biscuit chosen; this ensures the biscuit doesn't bottom out before the joint fully closes.
Aligned ready to cut.
The tool is simplicity itself to set up and use and I must add; mistakes can be made as I've made the usual ones over the years. These mistakes are not safety related but due to the sheer ease of using the tool as only two small marks are required for each joint and believe me it is incredibly easy to cut a slot in the wrong face or edge.
As I'm using this tool throughout this project I can expand on cutting a joint and also give pictures in the hope that this clarifies what I'm trying to explain. Take for example this desk top. It has a centre panel of 18mm MDF but this is faced with 0.7mm thick Formica. The heavy oak panel surround (frame) is much thicker than the panel at around 30mm thick. The frame members are 3” wide (75mm). These oak frame members are bowed due to sresses being released during dimensioning which is normal but cause a number of problems.
Showing amount of lift due to bowing.
It is imperative to ensure everything is accurately aligned then the positions of the joints need marking. Two pencil lines are all that are required to mark each joint but here is the problem; it is ever so easy to misinterpret these pencil marks once the parts are removed from the whole; I've cut joints in the edge when in fact they should be cut in the face; clear identification is needed or for sure this mistake will be repeated many times; I can still get caught out. Now for the actual cutting. I set up a large sheet of 18mm MDF onto the Startrite combination machine allowing me to use it as a table with full access to all four sides. For my own sanity I decided to cut the joints with the parts upside down (Inverted).
Biscuit slot cutting.
The joints had been clearly marked and the parts clearly identified for quick positioning during assemble; no ambiguity is allowed here or trouble will ensue once assembly begins and everything is wet with glue. The MDF panel was easy to press into close contact with the table. The blade height of the joiner didn't need adjusting as it was perfect without the height fence attached; the tool would be used sitting on the table whilst being plunged into the material. The panel was clamped to the table to prevent it sliding around and within a few minutes one row of slots had been cut. I did spend ages checking and double checking that the panel was face side down as would be the oak. The slots in all four edges of the panel were cut then once again the frame was placed back in position but this time ensuring the face side of the frame was down onto the table. I checked this many times because a mistake here would cost oak and a lot of time.
All slots cut in frame and showing how biscuits are installed.
The oak was clamped to the table and again with the tool sitting on the table the slots were quickly cut ensuring the blade cut to full depth each time. I was worried about the bow in the oak and took a lot of trouble pressing the oak onto the table before commencing each cut; any lifting from the table by the oak would give a slot at the wrong height. I was now settling to the job of cutting the slots and all was well in my world until a neighbour decided to knock on the garage doors destroying my concentration. No I hadn't seen the two fox cubs but I would keep a look out for them and thanks for letting me know; I showed the neighbour what I was doing after all this is what he came to find out in the first place having heard me running the machines and seeing materials being delivered. This completely shattered my concentration and the last few slots took a lot of time because it is usually at such times I make stupid mistakes. Today I didn't make a mistake and cut all the slots perfectly.
Inverting the panel and frame onto the flat table allowed me to use the table with the utmost confidence that the slots would all be perfectly aligned for height. Please note the slots in the frame are off-centre; this is the area where silly mistakes creep in and must be guarded against.
At last I could proceed to glue up. Biscuits are made from compressed beech with an hatched embossed pattern across both faces; these are very dry and must be stored dry. In use; water based wood working glue is used; the glue is spread liberally into the slots and onto the joint butting faces; biscuits are inserted and if tight will need gently tapping home with a hammer ensuring they are centred in the slot then the joint is closed and securely clamped until the glue fully dries which takes about four hours but is better left if possible overnight as I am doing with the desk top. The wet glue expands the biscuits creating a very strong joint indeed
I used my home made sash cramps and applied a great deal of pressure to pull the mating faces up tight; protection was added to the oak to prevent damage. I hope I've covered most of the relevant details. These biscuit joiners are absolutely brilliant for this type of work and indispensable for anyone serious about making and installing their own units whether they be for a kitchen; wardrobe or even furniture as in this case. I can highly recommend a biscuit joiner; it might sit in its case for a couple of years unused between jobs but boy is it a valuable tool when needed in earnest. More joints will be shown as work progresses.
Glued and clamped waiting for glue to dry. fingers crossed.
The desk top is looking OK and although the joints are not perfect I think the desk once completed will be worth all the TLC involved in making it.
Kind regards, Col.
Screwfix did well and the three new blades were waiting for collection as promised. It did make a difference to the cut quality but not as big a difference as I would have liked. For this kind of work an 80T blade would be much better but Screwfix didn't stock such a blade with a 25mm bore although now I've bought the new blades I could buy an 80T blade as spacers were supplied with these blades taking the 25mm up to 30mm; normally I would simply turn a spacer but both my engineering lathes are in bits.
This Evolution mitre saw is excellent for general work but for high precision it leaves a lot to be desired as there is play in the saw mounting head that would be difficult to eradicate. I don't like compromise in my projects but unfortunately if I want to progress I'll have to accept it; the saw cut is a lot better than it was but compared to my previous industrial Wadkin it demonstrates the difference between made to a high standard and down to a price. The Wadkin was cast iron whereas this Evolution is aluminium. I'm not grumbling about the Evolution saw; far from it because for the price it is a decent bit of kit and it would be grossly unfair of me to compare it on the same level as the industrial Wadkin.
I spent ages yesterday just cutting the four mitre joints for the desk top oak surround (frame). I did my best and the joints although not perfect would suffice. This morning I was keen to make a start so was in the garage just after 9 o'clock. It was cold and windy outside so I was in my coat again which I dislike whilst playing around with machinery.
After all the preliminary work; dreaming up the desk design; gathering information then buying the materials and setting up the garage once again for cabinetwork I've finally reached the interesting part where results can be seen. I've spent the day fitting the oak surround to the desk top and this has been bad on my nerves but before I show the results of my labour I would like to introduce members who have never seen or heard of a biscuit joiner to the delights of such a power tool.
Bron bought me this biscuit joiner from “Sargents Tools (Mail order) Ltd trading as Tabwell Tools in Bakewell. It was my Christmas present from my lovely Bron and it was an expensive one at the time costing £99.99 with 1,000 free biscuits. The power tool is a Freud JS 100A and was bought when we visited Tabwell Tools on 29- 12- 92. The details supplied with the tool describe it as a Freud Joiner Machine which uses “splines” these splines are also called biscuits or plates.
Freud JS100A in its case and close up.
Bron asked me what I would like her to buy me for Christmas and at that time I was installing our solid hardwood kitchen which was incredibly slow going as we had little money; a huge mortgage and I was scrounging lots of Meranti offcuts. £99.99 was a great deal of money to us at that time. I had only just completed cutting the joints for the upper wall unit doors; 7 doors giving 28 mortice and tenon joints. For cutting the mortices I had set up a 3/4HP 3.000rpm 2 pole electric motor with a metal sleeve to fit snugly onto the motor shaft and the other end of the sleeve to accept an engineering four flute end milling cutter (£11 cutter). The motor was mounted upon a sturdy wooden box and a wooden worktable was added allowing freehand feeding of the timber to be jointed into the revolving cutter. This worked very well considering it was home made and gave good accuracy. The tenons were all cut by hand using a tenon saw and the shoulders were trimmed to exact size using a Stanley shoulder plane; I'll never ever forget how laborious my first attempts at woodworking were; I used to suffer blisters to my hands and these 28 joints occupied me fully for two days.
I had already bought scrap machinery and was restoring these during evenings and weekends. The machines were cast iron industrial types with flat belt drives. Working at Brook Motors I obviously was in the perfect place to either scrounge single phase motors from our No8 Spares & Repair Department or at times would buy motors at reduced prices I also received a works discount from our Wakefield factory that made control gear; on top of this I was forever raiding the scrap bins and one of the electricians would occasionally put together a motor NVR (No volt release) starter for me from scrap. £1 in those days was a lot of money to us so anything I could get my hands on that wasn't smoking and free I grabbed. I converted a 9” cast iron surface planer from 3 phase to single phase as I did with a very big cast iron saw bench; both these machines were also converted by me from flat belt to “V” belt drive and rigged up with proper starters; all this didn't happen overnight; our friends were going abroad on holiday and we remained at home working on our home.
With these machines fully restored then I could visit our local timber yards for offcuts and I could get a car load of sawn Meranti for £20 this Meranti being in lots of different sizes looking like firewood. Put through the saw and planer though and the Meranti came to life; I obtained a very crude attachment to fit the planer; this was an adjustable metal plate turning the planer into a rough and ready thicknesser which worked but it was incredibly hard labour forcing the Meranti through by hand.
So I had a basic selection of machines enabling accurate dimensioning of timber but I still spent forever cutting mortice and tenon joints. Even with the new set up it took two days to cut the door joints and as I was next going to make 7 similar doors for the base units I gladly accepted Bron's offer of a Christmas present and she kindly bought the biscuit joiner for me.
I had all the Meranti for the 7 doors dimensioned and cut to length ready for the joints adding and I'll always remember Bron popping into the workshop saying dinner will be ready in about an hour. In that hour I cut all 28 door joints using the biscuit joiner and even tidied up before dinner was ready. What a revelation this power tool was and at the risk of being boring I'll add details of this remarkable tool.
http://www.right-tool.com/freudfixfenb.html
There are two types of biscuit joiner; sliding and pivot head; mine is a sliding head. It is a dedicated single function power tool which only cuts half oval shaped slots into timber or board materials. It is best described as an angle grinder fitted with a small TC blade of a very precise thickness. The sliding head is fitted with an adjustable fence up or down only and for some jobs such as I've done today the fence section can be removed completely. In use the blade at rest is totally retracted from the front face and this affords a great deal of safety to the operator. The motor unit is spring loaded so that when not in cutting mode the spring retracts the blade. To each end of the blade fitted into the face are two very sharp points which engage the material being cut to prevent the blade deflecting the tool as the cut is brought on. Depth of cut on the slide head is fully adjustable to accommodate three different sizes of biscuits. The depth of cut needs to be adjusted to give just over half the maximum depth of the biscuit chosen; this ensures the biscuit doesn't bottom out before the joint fully closes.
Aligned ready to cut.
The tool is simplicity itself to set up and use and I must add; mistakes can be made as I've made the usual ones over the years. These mistakes are not safety related but due to the sheer ease of using the tool as only two small marks are required for each joint and believe me it is incredibly easy to cut a slot in the wrong face or edge.
As I'm using this tool throughout this project I can expand on cutting a joint and also give pictures in the hope that this clarifies what I'm trying to explain. Take for example this desk top. It has a centre panel of 18mm MDF but this is faced with 0.7mm thick Formica. The heavy oak panel surround (frame) is much thicker than the panel at around 30mm thick. The frame members are 3” wide (75mm). These oak frame members are bowed due to sresses being released during dimensioning which is normal but cause a number of problems.
Showing amount of lift due to bowing.
It is imperative to ensure everything is accurately aligned then the positions of the joints need marking. Two pencil lines are all that are required to mark each joint but here is the problem; it is ever so easy to misinterpret these pencil marks once the parts are removed from the whole; I've cut joints in the edge when in fact they should be cut in the face; clear identification is needed or for sure this mistake will be repeated many times; I can still get caught out. Now for the actual cutting. I set up a large sheet of 18mm MDF onto the Startrite combination machine allowing me to use it as a table with full access to all four sides. For my own sanity I decided to cut the joints with the parts upside down (Inverted).
Biscuit slot cutting.
The joints had been clearly marked and the parts clearly identified for quick positioning during assemble; no ambiguity is allowed here or trouble will ensue once assembly begins and everything is wet with glue. The MDF panel was easy to press into close contact with the table. The blade height of the joiner didn't need adjusting as it was perfect without the height fence attached; the tool would be used sitting on the table whilst being plunged into the material. The panel was clamped to the table to prevent it sliding around and within a few minutes one row of slots had been cut. I did spend ages checking and double checking that the panel was face side down as would be the oak. The slots in all four edges of the panel were cut then once again the frame was placed back in position but this time ensuring the face side of the frame was down onto the table. I checked this many times because a mistake here would cost oak and a lot of time.
All slots cut in frame and showing how biscuits are installed.
The oak was clamped to the table and again with the tool sitting on the table the slots were quickly cut ensuring the blade cut to full depth each time. I was worried about the bow in the oak and took a lot of trouble pressing the oak onto the table before commencing each cut; any lifting from the table by the oak would give a slot at the wrong height. I was now settling to the job of cutting the slots and all was well in my world until a neighbour decided to knock on the garage doors destroying my concentration. No I hadn't seen the two fox cubs but I would keep a look out for them and thanks for letting me know; I showed the neighbour what I was doing after all this is what he came to find out in the first place having heard me running the machines and seeing materials being delivered. This completely shattered my concentration and the last few slots took a lot of time because it is usually at such times I make stupid mistakes. Today I didn't make a mistake and cut all the slots perfectly.
Inverting the panel and frame onto the flat table allowed me to use the table with the utmost confidence that the slots would all be perfectly aligned for height. Please note the slots in the frame are off-centre; this is the area where silly mistakes creep in and must be guarded against.
At last I could proceed to glue up. Biscuits are made from compressed beech with an hatched embossed pattern across both faces; these are very dry and must be stored dry. In use; water based wood working glue is used; the glue is spread liberally into the slots and onto the joint butting faces; biscuits are inserted and if tight will need gently tapping home with a hammer ensuring they are centred in the slot then the joint is closed and securely clamped until the glue fully dries which takes about four hours but is better left if possible overnight as I am doing with the desk top. The wet glue expands the biscuits creating a very strong joint indeed
I used my home made sash cramps and applied a great deal of pressure to pull the mating faces up tight; protection was added to the oak to prevent damage. I hope I've covered most of the relevant details. These biscuit joiners are absolutely brilliant for this type of work and indispensable for anyone serious about making and installing their own units whether they be for a kitchen; wardrobe or even furniture as in this case. I can highly recommend a biscuit joiner; it might sit in its case for a couple of years unused between jobs but boy is it a valuable tool when needed in earnest. More joints will be shown as work progresses.
Glued and clamped waiting for glue to dry. fingers crossed.
The desk top is looking OK and although the joints are not perfect I think the desk once completed will be worth all the TLC involved in making it.
Kind regards, Col.
Happiness is a wreck of a cabinet to restore.
