further advice needed with biscuit joiner

[Marcjwebb]

so have been podding along today trying out the methods discussed, but still dont seem to be getting any kind of consistancy.


for example if i am doing 3 biscuits in one joint, the left one might be bang on, middle slightly out, then the right one well out,
i only really see this on the bigger pieces for some reason, i have checked to make sure that the l jig i am using is at a 90 which it is, but just dont seem to be getting anywhere with it,

so my question, are there any ways of calibrating or any kind of set up i can do for my joiner?

also what jigs do others use, and would you mind posting any pictures if the jigs you have?

Please help lol

Kind Regards

Marc

 

[Phil Pascoe]

How do you mean, "out" - at different depths?

 

[woodbrains]

Hello,

Some more info would be good. What make of jointer are you using? What do you mean 'jig'? Surely the jointer is self jigging with its fence, so what are you doing? Other than referencing off the work with the fence, a flat surface with the machines base, or a clamped on board for making tee joints, I don't know what you mean by using a jig, unless you are doing some unusual method of work.

Mike.

 

[Marcjwebb]

its a blackspur, ( not great i know ) i am using an L jig, just to get the panel up against it on its end, whilst reference it flat on its base.

 

[Marcjwebb]

if i am doing 3/4 joints, one might be on, then gradually the rest are slightly out to fairly out

 

[woodbrains]

Hello,

I assume you mean the tools fence, when you say jig? I'm afraid some of the cheap jointers suffer from the fence not being parallel to the blade. It makes these tools a nonsense, since the point of them is to cut a slot parallel to an edge and at a consistent distance, but I have seen many and heard of many more, that just cannot do this. I had an Axminster one that caused me endless trouble not being able to join veneered boards within the thickness of the veneer, so got binned. If you can modify yours to get the fence parallel to the sole and blade, then you need to do it. If this is not the problem, then it could be blade runout, again a cheap tool defect. It is not a hopeful situation, I'm afraid, but these tools are so simple to use, I doubt it is user error.

Also, could the fence lock be not gripping tight enough? Is the fence moving with vibration from one slot to the next, can you tighten the fence lock?

Mike.

 

[Marcjwebb]

no i have been informed to steer clear of the the fence so only been using the base of the joiner, the jig i am refering to is an L shaped brace for the workpiece to be supported against at a 90 from the base of the joiner, sorry i wasnt very clear on that bit

 

[woodbrains]

no i have been informed to steer clear of the the fence so only been using the base of the joiner, the jig i am refering to is an L shaped brace for the workpiece to be supported against at a 90 from the base of the joiner, sorry i wasnt very clear on that bit

Hello,

OK, someone has told you not to use the fence, perhaps because of the faults I just outlined. BUT if the fence is not at fault (check for yourself) then you should use it. If your fence is useless, then your clamped on 90 degree jig needs to be parallel to the edge of the work. How are you checking this? If your board is wide, a try square may not be good enough, since it references of an edge that may not be accurately 90 degrees from the end you are jointing. A fraction of a degree will cause quite a lot of runout of the fence. I would set your 'jig' from the edge you are jointing with a combination square set at the distance you require. Other than this, I'm just guessing what is going on without a photo or some more info as to what you are doing.

Mike.

 

[custard]

I'm still not clear what you mean by "out"?

Because you mention the "L" shaped jig I assume you're joining the edges of two flat boards at 90 degrees, and rather than turning out flush there's a bit of a lip. Is that it?

 

[Marcjwebb]

yes, spot on, some of them are dead flush while others can be out as far as say 2/3mm

 

[custard]

Okay. First thing, are your boards dead flat and with straight true edges? Get a straight edge on them and check. If they pass that test then, when you're biscuiting into an edge, with the workpiece and the biscuit jointer flat on the same surface, then is it a truly flat surface?

If you're sure about that then it's on to your technique, if the biscuit jointer isn't connected up to a good and powerful dust extractor then you have to plunge a bit slower or else the blade will get bunged up with chips and can twist slightly. Similarly, when you initially switch the machine on torque will tend to twist it slightly, you need to position for the cut with the motor running, check you're bang on your mark, then plunge.

Good luck.

 

[Marcjwebb]

thanks for the support, i reckon it could be the surface, i shall try mount the jig to a flat board tomo and see how i get on,

cheers guys, great help