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woodezine - Volume
III - Issue I - January 2005
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Feature
Sponsored by Klingspor
Jointer Station, Page 2
| Begin Construction with
the Deck I chose red oak for my jointer station because it's strong, easy to work and not terribly pricey. The first step in construction is to make up a hardwood deck (piece 1) to the dimensions shown in the Bill of Materials. Edge glue several narrow boards and, after the glue dries, run the panel through the thickness planer to clean both faces. Trim it to width and length, then remove the fence and the existing stand from your jointer. Place the jointer upside-down on sawhorses (you'll need help) and center the deck on the upturned machine. Now slide the deck so that the jointer is closer to the back than the front. This will shift the center of gravity back, reducing any chance of the stand ever tipping forward. A few clamps will hold the deck in place while you trace the outline of the machine onto it (Figure 1). Draw a pencil line 1/2" inside the traced outline, all the way around. This describes the section of the deck which will be removed so that chips can fall through. It also allows hands to access the underside of the machine for maintenance. Leave some material at either end where the bolt holes lie, so that you'll be able to bolt the machine to the deck. |
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In cutting the hole, you can make the
two long stopped cuts on a table saw by lowering the blade below the
table, setting the fence and placing the deck on the saw table. Then
turn on the saw and slowly raise the blade through the workpiece, as
shown in Figure 2. Make the first cut, turn off the saw, and repeat
the process to make the second cut.
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| Complete the cutout with a jigsaw (Figure 3). Then locate the tapped factory-drilled holes in the underside of the jointer and transfer their locations to the deck. Bore a slightly oversized hole at each location and secure the deck to the jointer with bolts and washers (pieces 2 and 3). |
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The Cabinet Ends |
| The joinery here is tongue and groove, and all eight pieces for the end panel frames receive a groove in their inner edge. None of the grooves needs to be stopped, so they can be milled on the table saw (Figure 5). Set your blade height to 3/8" and set the fence so the blade is centered on one of the edges to be milled. Run all eight pieces, and a length of scrap - about a foot long - with the same edge thickness through the saw, then move the fence a hair less than 1/16" away from the blade. Run your piece of scrap through, reverse it end for end and run it through again. This ensures that the groove is centered in the edge. Dry fit the scrap to the plywood you're using for the panels and adjust the fence accordingly for a good fit. It shouldn't be too tight: the panels need to float to accommodate any movement in the hardwood frame, due to changes in ambient humidity over the years. |
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The ends of the rails are milled for
tongues which will be housed in the grooves you just cut. To make them,
begin by setting the blade height to 1/4" and check the setting
by running a piece of scrap through.
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| Then clamp a short length of stock to your fence (Figure 6) and set the fence to make a cut 11/32" (which is a hair shy of 3/8") from the end of the workpiece. That 1/32" free space at the end of each tongue will allow the glue to flow around it and create a strong bond. Nibble away the waste toward the end of each rail to create the tongues (Figure 6 inset) As you work on the angled tongues, you'll have to swivel the miter gauge 38 degrees to make the create the second cheek on each tongue. |
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Then set it back to 90 degrees to mill
the square ends (Figure 7). Dry fit the stiles to the rails and make
any required adjustments for a perfect fit, then cut the panels (pieces
8) to size and shape. I suggest using a band saw for the angled cut
along the back edge of each panel. Assemble the ends of the cabinet
with glue and clamps, making sure the square corners are truly 90 degrees
as you apply pressure. Use a C-clamp and a couple of small scraps to
give your larger clamps something to butt up against, so they don't
slide along the angled edges.
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| After the glue dries, set up the router table with a 3/4" bit to mill a 1/4" deep stopped groove in the inside face of each end. This groove will house the cabinet's MDF bottom (piece 9). The cut is set up with pencil marks on the router table (Figure 8), indicating the beginning and end of each cut. |
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Line up the leading edge of the panel
with your "Start" mark, drop the workpiece gently onto the
bit and plow the groove until the trailing edge reaches the "Finish"
mark, as shown in (Figure 9).
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The last milling operation on the end subassemblies is to plow a 1/4" wide by 3/8" deep groove in the inside face of each rear stile. This is done on the table saw (Figure 10), nibbling away the waste in a couple of passes. As it's only 1/4" wide, it's hardly worth using a dado head. |
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