Domino trim stop or MGS-20 or ...?

[estesbubba]

Long story short, a Festool user bought all the tools from a Festool "collector", then sold the Domino and tenon/cutter kit on CL since he already had the newer version and systainer. So I'm the third owner of a Domino that had never been used. It is the older style with pins, which after doing some searches, seems to be the preferred version. It came with the cross stops but not the trim stop.

I make furniture and some cabinets so I will have a need for putting tenons on the ends of narrow stock. Should I get the trim stop or will the MSG-20 do everything it does and then some? Will the MSG-10 do everything the SCG-10 does just not as efficiently?

 

[Trosey]

Will the MSG-10 do everything the SCG-10 does just not as efficiently?

Not in my opinion.

The SCG excels at putting a mortise in the end of narrow stock.

 

[Rick Christopherson]

The trim stop isn't really designed for what you expect to use it for as a cabinet maker. It is strictly for morticing the end of a narrow board, and does not readily set up for creating the mating mortice on an L-butt joint. The MGS and SCG guides were specifically designed for being able to make right and left mating mortices on joints at adjustable locations. The MGS guide is intended for when you need more than one position at a time, or frequently used positions, but don't need to change them frequently. The SCG guide is for when you need only one location at a time, but can change that location quickly without tools.

I haven't updated the website yet, but as of midnight last night, I am out of stock on the MGS guides (SCG guides are in stock, though). In a pinch, I do have 3 baseplates left to build a guide, but they are flawed. One of them has cosmetic scratches on underside of the guide. The other two don't have the "captive" function for the thumbscrews, meaning the thumbscrews won't stay attached to the guide when removed from the Domino. Neither of these conditions affect the function, but I can't sell them as normal guides.

P.S., What Trosey said is correct. The SCG guide will also easily put a tenon into the end of narrow stock in the same manner as the Trim Stop does, with the added benefit that the mortice will be automatically centered.

 

[estesbubba]

So is there anything the trim stop can do that the MGS can't? It seems like the MGS would be good for face frames since you mentioned L-butt joint.

Do dealers selling the MGS like Bob Marino stock them or have them drop shipped from you? If dropped shipped when are you expecting inventory?

 

[grbmds]

I own the SCG and have used it very successfully to Domino drawers together. It works well placing Dominos the same distance from the edge a drawer side. I don't know if that is the best use for it, but it worked well for me and was extremely accurate on my Domino. I haven't used the SCG for anything else to date since I am a hobby woodworker and just haven't had time to get into my workshop lately. However, I think it excels when you either want to center a Domino in a piece within it's width capacity or want to place a Domino the same distance from an edge/end (with one stop flipped up out of the way) in multiple pieces. Just my opinion. If you aren't doing a lot of repetitive Dominoing (if that is a word), you can probably get by with marking. The SCG does take a little of the guess work out of Domino placement within its capacity.

 

[Rick Christopherson]

So is there anything the trim stop can do that the MGS can't? It seems like the MGS would be good for face frames since you mentioned L-butt joint.

To the best of my knowledge, there is nothing the trim stop can do that either model guide cannot. Yes, The MGS guide was specifically designed with doing faceframes in mind, because I was a cabinetmaker in a past life. Afterward, I realized how invaluable it would also be for doing drawers, where the sides are taller than the front/rear. This is where the close offsets can really come in handy.

I need to repair a broken link on the website for the video showing the MGS for building a drawer. But in the mean time, the video is below.

Do dealers selling the MGS like Bob Marino stock them or have them drop shipped from you? If dropped shipped when are you expecting inventory?

Yes, some dealers do stock the MGS guides, so you should check with them. As a matter of fact, some of the last guides that shipped out last night were for dealer inventory (Tool Pro). Bob is also a stocking distributor, but I do not know what inventory he has on hand.