Domino question

[ddishman]

I have been saving money in order to buy me a domino. Now that I am almost there I have been wondering if I should buy the domino or more tools for the woodshop. I currently have Grizzly table saw, 8 inch jointer and 15 planer. I have some cheaper routers dewalt miter saw and bench top drill press.

So question is in everyones opinion should I move forward with the domino or be looking at a bandsaw, nicer routers etc?

 

[copcarcollector]

[welcome] to the FOG. I think the first question people will be asking you is, what do you intend to build?

 

[justaguy]

I have a Domino and think it is a great machine.

However, what to purchase next depends on what you plan to build and what techniques you use when building. I use a router a lot and as a result I have several. You might want to consider a good router and router table combination. The bandsaw I only use infrequently.

 

[RussellS]

I'm not even going to ask what you build.  I don't think it really matters what you build.  The Domino can easily and quickly provide the right joint to build anything and everything.  Birdhouse, shelves, drawers, end tables, dressers, cabinets, chairs.  Doesn't matter.  The Domino joint can be used to assemble all of them.  You already have the basic tools to build all the parts and add decoration with the routers.  Now you need a JOINT machine to assemble all the parts you made with the saw, jointer, planer, router.  Domino does this.  For curved parts the bandsaw would be nice.  Or cutting veneer or cutting multiple boards out of one thick piece of wood.  But that can wait a little longer.  You "need" the Domino to assemble everything.  I put "need" in quotations because obviously you do not need it.  You can assemble things with many other methods too.  But the Domino makes it quick and easy to assemble everything.  Everything needs to be assembled from parts and needs joints.  The Domino does this.

 

[ddishman]

My next large project will be a crib for upcoming baby. I thought the domino would make all rail assembly a breeze.

 

[Stone Message]

[member=13115]RussellS[/member]  is right, the Domino can be used to make just about anything, including a crib - congratulations on the new baby !

Peter

 

[ddishman]

Does festool have re manufactured products they sell?

 

[Birdhunter]

Made with Dominos. Tricky to do the curved top rail.

 

[ddishman]

Did you go off plans? Looks great.

 

[Holmz]

I have been saving money in order to buy me a domino. Now that I am almost there I have been wondering if I should buy the domino or more tools for the woodshop. I currently have Grizzly table saw, 8 inch jointer and 15 planer. I have some cheaper routers dewalt miter saw and bench top drill press.

So question is in everyones opinion should I move forward with the domino or be looking at a bandsaw, nicer routers etc?

Do the current tools work?
If so then why change them?

A bandsaw versus domino depends on what you make. If you pick one, then I can argue for the other.
- A good jigsaw can somewhat replace a bandsaw...
- and a dowel can somewhat replace a domino.

One thing I know for sure is that buying another router can magically neither become a domino, nor a bandsaw.
And the routers being old, means that they have been built to last, or you just got lucky.

 

[nclemmons]

Dishman -

Welcome to FOG.  The Domino is a great machine if you want to do a lot of mortise and tenon type joinery.  Great for cabinets, desks, tables, chairs, chests, etc.  It's one of the best tools I have after the basic power tools if I don't want to do traditional mortise and tenon joinery with hand cut tenons on a bandsaw and mortises with a drill and set of chisels.  It will definitely make you more productive and likely more confident in your work across many projects.

You may know that have some guidelines on spacing that I'd be mindful of that for child safety.  Seehttp://kidshealth.org/en/parents/products-cribs.html

I'd also consider the look you are thinking about for the crib.  While you could make the the entire crib with slats top to bottom rounded over to the size of a domino, I think a more classic look would require a larger rectangular slat with a smaller domino in the end and then going into the rails top and bottom.  So I'd probably start with a design you like and then investigate if the domino would be the right tool.

With slats likely to be 24" plus in length, a routed slat that would fit in a 10mm domino mortise would be about the smallest I'd go with a top-to-bottom oval slat for strength.  I generally like a tenon with a shoulder which is why I was thinking the rectangular slat might be a better choice.  Birdhunter's crib looks to have substantial slats and would give strength and space for a domino in each end.  If you want a crib with less robust slats, the Domino might not be the best choice.  The minimum domino size is So I'd think about those considerations and start with a design to determine if the Domino is the right choice for your crib.

Here's the sizes of Dominos, so take that into consideration as you are working through the design -http://www.highlandwoodworking.com/festool-domino-joiner-model-comparison.aspx

The Domino is one of Festool's most 'breakthrough tools' and certainly has great utility for lots of other things, but if a crib is the first, think through your design and if the Domino can help you execute that design. 

Look forward to seeing your progress -

 

[semenza]

Does festool have re manufactured products they sell?

Every once in a while there is a sale of recon tools. But it is not regular at all and it is unknown if it will happen again. There have been various through dealer iterations and the last one was held at Connect.

Seth

 

[Holmz]

Made with Dominos. Tricky to do the curved top rail.

That ^Crib^ looks nice...

One could also do it with a plunge router... And at least a template would be used in 4-8 places.
That would not be as fast... but the design, cutting, and 'sanding and finishing' will probably be the majority of the time anyhow.
Or maybe use dowels?
A router and a template ado work well when there are enough cuts to spread out the template time. For single odd-ball tenons then the Domino is better as one does not need a template for each joint... But that crib has some repetitive elements which makes a plunge router a viable choice. (Only slightly suboptimal, not very suboptimal)

Naturally if you had a Domino then it seems a no brainer to make use of it.

Perhaps you could get everything ready for the Domino stage and find someone local that has one?
Even better would be some who does not have a bandsaw, and do some communal/coop tool use.
or decide at that stage whether a Domino is worthwhile or whether a plunge router works.

 

[Birdhunter]

I am WAY past the baby stage of life. A young father to be and I made the crib together. He found the plans on the Internet. I'm sure a highly skilled craftsman could have made the crib without using a Domino, but the tool made it far easier to build than hand cutting mortise and tenon joints.

 

[Bob D.]

Made with Dominos. Tricky to do the curved top rail.

I like the crib, very nice.

Did you save the offcut from the bottom and reapply that to the
underside, then use it to guide the Domino squarely into the rail?

 

[Jur]

Yep that Festool stuff is sure good for an instand GAS-attack (gadged acquiering syndrome  [wink]) I am also debating to get myself a domino... and then which one...

At the other end... to get a complete useful set, It takes an investment of over € 2000,-- including bits and guides and - oh yeah - domino's. For a non pro carpenter I am seriously scratching my head about it...

but yessss it is nice 8)

 

[monstrol]

My 2 cents.....time to get domino.  They will never go down in price. The domino will open up so many possibilities that you haven't thought of yet. Also I recommend getting the domiplate.  In my
experience it greatly decreases user error from slight mis-adjustments when plunging.  Also,also you need a vac for it tonwork effectively.

 

[Master Carpenter]

My view on the domino - it's a one trick pony. It makes loose tenon joints. For the same money, you could have several tools. I'm a firm believer in using the best joint for the project I'm working on. I have a domino, but probably only use it for a quarter of the joints I make. It's very useful for quick alignment of joints but I much prefer a real mortise and tenon joint for most projects.

I guess the question the op needs to ask himself, what is he looking for, fast and easy way to complete his projects, or enjoying traditional woodworking either for the challenge, the enjoyment of building, or the look when finished.

 

[sancho57]

Honesty it depends. Depends on what you want to use it for. Yes it can be used on many many projects. But can you get away with out one yes. But they do make life easier

 

[ChuckS]

I guess the question the op needs to ask himself, what is he looking for, fast and easy way to complete his projects, or enjoying traditional woodworking either for the challenge, the enjoyment of building, or the look when finished.

I cut joints using machines and/or by hand, but regardless of which approach I use, I enjoy my work the same. Machining joints is not necessarily easier than handcutting joints in many of my projects. To me, fixing a hand-cut joint gone wrong often is easier than repairing a blunder cut by a machine.

The DF500 has doubled my shop output in terms of paneling, cabinet work, and jig building as compared to the pre-DF500 days. I have sold my mortiser and have stopped using the router for joinery work since Dominoes found their way to my shop. If there were only one tool I could have from Festool, the DJ would be my choice without a second thought -- having tried or used almost every Festool tool available to the N.A. market (except its routers).