Once in a while I make a few interior & exterior doors. I have a Powermatic floor model chisel mortiser. It takes up space & just sitting there & is a waste of money. I would use the Domino on other projects & was wondering if it's usable for doors & would have the same strength that a mortise & tenon would.
Can the Domino replace a hollow chisel mortising machine
- Thread starter charlesj
- Start date
Charles,
I read a study that tested the strength of biscuit joinery for exterior doors www.woodworking.org/WC/GArchive98/Abstract/abstract1.html . The study concluded that a four panel door constructed with biscuit joinery could withstand a weight of 1,784 kg. hanging off the end of the door.
I think we can all agree that domino joints are stronger than biscuit joints. So I say, dominos for doors!
Eiji
I read a study that tested the strength of biscuit joinery for exterior doors www.woodworking.org/WC/GArchive98/Abstract/abstract1.html . The study concluded that a four panel door constructed with biscuit joinery could withstand a weight of 1,784 kg. hanging off the end of the door.
I think we can all agree that domino joints are stronger than biscuit joints. So I say, dominos for doors!
Eiji
I recently made a bunch of wooden gates with multiple dominos and they are holding up well even with kids swinging on them. Didn't want to use screws (these days stainless is pretty suspect) in a harsh marine environment. I've made some really large wooden gates using a combination of two dominos and a timberlock screw st each corner. How's that for a combo?
I think the domino is enough for doors too but time will tell. It would be nice if Festool could make a larger and a smaller domino machine wouldn't it?
Maybe a "timber framers model" and a "model makers model"? Then we could all really go broke.
dreaming is cheap, festool is expensive, both are necessary.
I think the domino is enough for doors too but time will tell. It would be nice if Festool could make a larger and a smaller domino machine wouldn't it?
Maybe a "timber framers model" and a "model makers model"? Then we could all really go broke.
dreaming is cheap, festool is expensive, both are necessary.
Thanks for the replies....Considering the size of the tenon that should be made for a door I didn't think that the dominos would be long or big enough. Anyone interested in a almost new chisel mortiser 
& wants to come to an Island off of Maine to get it :....Thanks again for the replies.
& wants to come to an Island off of Maine to get it :....Thanks again for the replies.Dixon Peer
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I make doors for the homes we build; the last one being a 3-0 X 6-8 X 2 1/4" walnut door with two walnut burl panels over Medex. The door weighs a lot...I don't know exactly how much but it took two men to hang it in the jamb. It's constructed with 4 1/2" dowels in addition to the 1/2" X 3/4" stub tenons that fit the groove machined into the stiles and rails to accept the 1X that the panel molding is pinned and glued to. I don't think I would use even the largest Domino for a job like that, but as someone said earlier in this thread, it all depends on how large and heavy the door is.
I'll post pictures of this door at www.peercon.com shortly.
I'll post pictures of this door at www.peercon.com shortly.
brandon.nickel
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I've come up with a scenario in which the mortiser is still the best way to go:
Imagine a bed endpiece with a straight top end rail with a curved underside. Stiles are mortised into the underside of the bed rail. We (this group) couldn't come up with a solid method to align the domino referencing off a curved surface and create straight/parallel mortises. Using a chisel mortiser you simply lay the piece on the machine with the bottom facing up. As the top is straight, this works fine.
That said, I own a domino, but I do not own a chisel mortiser. I borrow a friend's for the very rare occasion that my domino isn't the better tool for hte job.
Imagine a bed endpiece with a straight top end rail with a curved underside. Stiles are mortised into the underside of the bed rail. We (this group) couldn't come up with a solid method to align the domino referencing off a curved surface and create straight/parallel mortises. Using a chisel mortiser you simply lay the piece on the machine with the bottom facing up. As the top is straight, this works fine.
That said, I own a domino, but I do not own a chisel mortiser. I borrow a friend's for the very rare occasion that my domino isn't the better tool for hte job.
Your PM is a very nice piece of equipment. I have the bench top Delta mortiser and a Domino.
The Domino can do a great many of the things a mortiser can do, but not all. For example, thru mortises with exposed tenons or cutting large mortises. Yes I know you can use multiple dominos, but sometimes a big mortise and tenon is better.
All that said, I love the Domino and use it a lot. The mortiser sees less & less duty, but I'll still keep it.
hth. karl
The Domino can do a great many of the things a mortiser can do, but not all. For example, thru mortises with exposed tenons or cutting large mortises. Yes I know you can use multiple dominos, but sometimes a big mortise and tenon is better.
All that said, I love the Domino and use it a lot. The mortiser sees less & less duty, but I'll still keep it.
hth. karl
Dixon Peer
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Medex is mdf that we have successfully used in exterior applications.
The Woodentop
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If I had access to a the proper equipment I would use it. For me the domino is a GREAT alternative but NOT as good as the real thing........please don't shoot me down! I love my Domino but I think there are limits. Just the eye of experience tells me.
Loren Woirhaye
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I don't own the Domino - nor a hollow-chisel machine.
I cut mortises with a 3HP slot mortiser. Killer tool. It can handle heavy cuts
with little effort.
If you are contrasting something like the Domino with a benchtop
hollow-chisel machine, its very different from comparing it to
a serious, stationary machine.
The fact is that the Festool runs on a little-bitty motor and a
big mortiser runs on a big-ol' motor.
No doubt the Domino is a pleasure to use. Is it a lifetime tool?
That depends on the demands of the work you intend to do.
A $200 benchtop machine may break-down on you, too... and it
may have parts (especially clamps) that flex too much for production
work. Hollow-chisel machines have a tendency to burn wood,
too... which is unpleasant.
If you have trhe physical strength to build massive furniture you
may find you want the capacity of a bigger mortising machine...
but if you tend towards lighter work the Domino is probably just
fine.
And if you want to get into reproduction furniture you will need to
be cutting traditional mortise-and-tenon joints anyway - which
the Festool machine may or may not be appropriate for.
I cut mortises with a 3HP slot mortiser. Killer tool. It can handle heavy cuts
with little effort.
If you are contrasting something like the Domino with a benchtop
hollow-chisel machine, its very different from comparing it to
a serious, stationary machine.
The fact is that the Festool runs on a little-bitty motor and a
big mortiser runs on a big-ol' motor.
No doubt the Domino is a pleasure to use. Is it a lifetime tool?
That depends on the demands of the work you intend to do.
A $200 benchtop machine may break-down on you, too... and it
may have parts (especially clamps) that flex too much for production
work. Hollow-chisel machines have a tendency to burn wood,
too... which is unpleasant.
If you have trhe physical strength to build massive furniture you
may find you want the capacity of a bigger mortising machine...
but if you tend towards lighter work the Domino is probably just
fine.
And if you want to get into reproduction furniture you will need to
be cutting traditional mortise-and-tenon joints anyway - which
the Festool machine may or may not be appropriate for.
