Select a chapter:  23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29

Chapter 23

Surfacing with the Jointer and Planer

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Lumber faces, edges, and end grain are surfaced to produce flat and smooth cabinet parts. A high quality surface is obtained through the proper setup, operation, and maintenance of surfacing machinery. Practicing these skills will reduce the time you spend smoothing the product with abrasives or scrapers. The surfacing characteristics of various wood species are found in Chapter 12. 

Jointers and planers are the principle machines for surfacing.  Suppose you begin with rough-sawn stock. One face is surfaced with a jointer. The other face is surfaced with the planer.

Jointing, followed by planing, brings stock to an even thickness. The amount of surfacing needed depends on the lumber. Lumber bought as S2S (surfaced two sides) may not need additional surfacing. Rough and warped lumber obviously will require much work.

Surfacing usually corrects lumber warpage. However, to eliminate warp, extra stock must be removed. Removing a cup or bow reduces the board’s thickness. Eliminating crook reduces the board’s width. The degree of warp limits the finished dimensions of both thickness and width for any given length of board.

Summary

Surfacing is a fundamental process in cabinetmaking. Creating flat and square cabinet parts is essential for producing high quality products. The jointer and planer are part of this process. One surface and both edges are jointed. The second surface is planed. The radial arm saw can also be used for surfacing.

Machines will work best when properly maintained. You should periodically inspect, clean, lubricate, and adjust machine parts. Knowing the function of machine parts will help you when maintaining and adjusting them for proper function.

All processing must be done safely. Many operations, in both processing and maintenance, expose you to sharp, rotating cutters. Keep a safe distance between you and any cutter, moving or stationary. You can replace push blocks and push sticks, but you cannot replace fingers.

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Chapter 24

Surfacing with Planes and Scrapers

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Though most surfacing is done with jointers and planers, hand and portable power planes remain valuable to the cabinetmaker. Hand planes are needed for very small cabinet parts that cannot be machine surfaced. Portable power planes are used for on-site architectural woodwork. Scrapers are used for removing dried glue from joints and smoothing surfaces. These tools, used properly, will reduce the time you spend sanding. The planing characteristics for various wood species are covered in Chapter 12. 

You must read the wood grain before planing, just as you did before using the planer or jointer. Hand and portable power planes also chip and tear the surface when the cutter moves against the grain.

Summary

Although most surfacing is done with jointers and planers, hand tools are useful for small cabinet parts and on-site architectural woodwork. Jack, fore, jointer, and smooth planes surface edges and faces. Block planes are used to surface end grain. Scrapers will remove excess glue and minor surface defects often caused by surfacing machines. Portable power planes make the work much easier. They can be used for face, edge, and end grain.

Surfacing tools and machines will serve you best when they are properly maintained. Periodically check for blade sharpness, rust, needed lubrication, and other items recommended in the manufacturer’s operation and maintenance manuals.

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Chapter 25

Drilling and Boring

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Drilling and boring are hole making processes as basic to cabinetmaking as sawing and surfacing. Holes are necessary for installing hardware, making joints, and producing various cabinet design features.

Summary

A broad range of bits, cutters, and drills are used in cabinetmaking. Some are designed for use in hand tools while others are limited to power equipment. For drilling smaller holes, use twist drills. For holes ¼” (6.3 mm) and larger, use boring bits, such as the auger bit, machine spur, and spade bit. For a smooth, clean, flat-bottomed hole, choose a Forstner bit. Larger holes can be made with expansive drills and hole saws. For deep holes, use a bell hanger’s drill or drill extension with your twist drill.

When drilling, clamp or hold your workpiece firmly. Select the proper speed when using power equipment. Too much speed will burn the wood and may ruin the bit. Also feed at a moderate rate. Feeding too fast will chip the wood and may break the bit. Feeding too slow will cause excess heat and will burn the wood.

Proper maintenance of drills, bits, and equipment is necessary. Most drills and bits can be sharpened by the cabinetmaker. Decide whether it is more efficient for you to sharpen the bit or have it professionally sharpened. In some instances, it may be more cost-effective to discard the old bit and buy a new one. Maintain hand and power machinery by removing rust and lubricating moving points. Parts of the machine which contact wood should be lubricated with silicone or paste wax. Gear housings and other internal parts are lubricated with oil or grease.

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Chapter 26

Shaping

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Shaping is the process of making contoured surfaces and edges for decorative purposes or for joinery. Cabinet cases, doors, and drawers may have shaped edges. Molding and trim are some examples of decorative products made by shaping.

Shaping equipment includes stationary power machines, portable power tools, and hand tools. Most shaping is done with stationary and portable power equipment because of accuracy, speed, and quality. Power tools rotate a cutter at high speeds to produce very smooth surfaces that require little sanding. Note the high speed of the cutter can make power shaping equipment dangerous, if misused.

Summary

Shaping meets many functional and design needs in cabinetmaking. Smooth contours and decorative effects are achieved by using the right tool, machine, and cutter.

Stationary shaping machines include the spindle shaper, overarm router, inverted router, and overarm router/shaper. You can also adapt the table saw, radial arm saw, and drill press for shaping. Portable shaping tools include the portable router, plunge router, laminate trimmer, and Moto-Tool. Hand tools include the spokeshave, circular plane, combination plane, Surform tools, draw knife, and contour scrapers.

Take extra caution when setting up power equipment, install point-of-operation guards. Select the proper bit or cutter for the job. Check the tightness of the bit twice. If possible, avoid freehand shaping by using fences, starting pins, jigs, or other means of guiding the tool or workpiece.

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Chapter 27

Turning

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Turning processes produce round parts on a lathe. Stock is mounted between centers, or on a ­faceplate. A turning tool is held against and moved along the rotating workpiece to remove material. Spindle turning, or between-center turning, creates cylindrical, tapered, or contoured parts. These include table and chair legs, stair banisters, and bedposts. When the workpiece is mounted on a faceplate, you can turn the face as well as the edges. This produces products such as bowls, knobs, pulls, stool seats, and tabletops. Stock can be held by other methods as discussed later in the chapter.

Summary

Turning is the process of producing round ­products, such as table legs, bedposts, bowls, and knobs. There are two basic operations used to create turned products: between-center turning and faceplate turning.

Between-center turning is done on a standard lathe. Stock is held between a spur, or drive, center and live or dead tailstock center. The tool rest is positioned within 1/8" (3 mm) of your work. An assortment of turning tools is used to shape the wood. These include the gouge, skew, spear-point tool, parting tool, and round-nose tool. Each is appropriate for creating unique shapes.

Faceplate turning is done on a bowl lathe or on either the inboard or outboard side of a standard lathe. Stock is attached to a faceplate that is then threaded on to the lathe spindle. A backup board may be glued to the workpiece before the faceplate is attached. It prevents the screws from entering the workpiece.

High quality turning is done with properly sharpened tools on a well-maintained lathe. Tools should be honed often and ground rarely. Maintain the lathe by removing wood chips and rust. Check belt-driven lathes for belt wear. Make sure that all tool rest and tailstock clamps tighten properly.

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Chapter 28

Accessories, Jigs, and Special Machines

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Standard machines discussed in previous chapters will produce almost every product you design. Yet, there are times when add-on equipment makes a standard machine more efficient, more accurate, and often safer. On some occasions a special machine may be even more appropriate. This chapter covers accessories, jigs, and special machines. The coverage is not complete. Hundreds of vendors sell gadgets, attachments, and accessories that may make your work easier. The tools presented in this chapter indicate the wide range of equipment you might choose.

Summary

Accessories, jigs, and special machines often accompany standard cabinetmaking equipment. Accessories increase the convenience of a machine. Some examples are table extensions, gliding tables, power feed attachments, roller tables, and folding tables. Jigs hold a workpiece and guide the tool or workpiece. Some examples are the doweling jig, dovetail jig, tapering jig, and miter jig. Fixtures secure a part for processing or assembly. Clamps, discussed in Chapter 33, are one type of fixture. Others include vises and shop designed fixtures for drilling. Special machines include those engineered for only one purpose and those made for numerous operations. Panel saws easily cut large and bulky panel products. This is primarily a single purpose machine. On the other hand, the multipurpose machine performs a number of tasks. It saws, joints, planes, drills, shapes, routs, turns, and sands.

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Chapter 29

Joint Making

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One of the most important elements affecting the durability of a product is joinery. This chapter covers typical joints for assembling furniture and cabinets. Looking at a finished joint reveals little about its structure. The components you see are combined. It is the internal structure of the joint, either simple or complex, that affects the strength and stability of the product.

Summary

Joint making is a critical step of the furniture and cabinetmaking process. The type and quality of joint you choose greatly affects the stability and durability of a product. You have a choice of nonpositioned, positioned, and reinforced joints. Also important is the material. The grain direction of solid wood affects the strength of some joint types.

Throughout the design stages, there are many joinery decisions. It is best to choose the simplest joint that meets the strength requirements of the product. Equally important is the appearance of the joint. In some assemblies, the joint is visible. In others, it is hidden. Visible joints add a decorative effect to the product.

Butt joints are the simplest of all joints. The squared surface of one piece meets the face, edge, or end of another. In a dado joint, one component fits into a slot. The slot, or dado, provides a supporting ledge. The rabbet joint is much like the dado, except it is cut along the edge or end of the workpiece. With the lap joint, components fit into dadoes or rabbets cut in each. This forms a flush fit. To form a miter joint, the edges or ends of both components are cut at an angle. There are many variations of the miter joint to make it more secure. The mortise and tenon joint is a popular furniture construction technique. A tenon, or tab, fits into a mortise that provides a strong assembly. The box joint consists of interlocking fingers. The dovetail is like a box joint, except that the fingers are cut at an angle, forming tails and sockets. This gives a strong locking effect.

A number of joints consist of some standard joint with additional reinforcement. In a dowel joint, a wood or plastic dowel is used to provide a strong connection. Plate joinery connects parts with plates inserted into kerfs cut by a plate joining machine. This is a strong, fast, safe, and accurate method to join almost any material. The spline joint involves reinforcement by adding a spline into grooves cut in both components. A butterfly joint is a combination dovetail and spline that provides both reinforcement and decoration. A pocket joint consists of a butt joint reinforced with screws driven at an angle.

The primary purpose for the scarf and structural finger joints is to create usable stock from shorter material. A scarf joins several pieces of stock end-to-end to make longer material. Long lengths of molding usually consist of shorter lengths scarf jointed together. A structural finger joint is a multiple scarf joint, often found in dimensioned lumber.

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