Domino vertical alignment

[nikev]

Hi,

I recently got a Domino jointer, and am generally very impressed. However, I have been having weird problems with vertical alignment of the mortises, where I am getting mortises that are cut at an angle to the face of the board, or at slightly inaccurate heights. I am pretty sure this is user error, since it doesn't happen every time, so I am wondering whether anybody has any tips about using the Domino correctly, or whether there are any common user errors I should know about.

For what it's worth, I seem to be having the most trouble with mortising end grain for T-joints, using the trim stop.

Thanks in advance,

Nike Vatsal

 

[Mirko]

Nike,

Make sure to firmly hold the T handle, this will allow the machine to hang on the work piece, this will insure you are not lifting up on the fence.

Mirko

 

[nikev]

Mirko -- thanks for the tip. I will try it. But is the fence strong enough to hold the weight of the machine? I would worry that it would break or get pulled out of alignment, no?

-- Nike

 

[Mirko]

Nike,

You still have to hold on to it while your plunging, its not like its entirely supported by the T grip handle.
IMO, the fence constructed is superb, I'm sure it can tolerate its own weight.

Mirko

 

[Mirko]

In another thread Rob McGilp explains a way to hold the Domino, that reduces strain while you plunge, by holding the machine closer to the plug-it cord end. His technique works quite well, thanks Rob.

Mirko

 

[HowardH]

I have learned a lot about how to use the domino by reviewing the differents posts.  I look for these things and don't ever have a problem.

1.  If the board is relatively thin, make sure it is hanging off the edge of your table or MFT so the fence rests securely on top of the board and not on the table itself.  This insures the proper height of the mortise from any given referenced surface.

2. Hold the domino machine tight against the edge.  I found by holding the end by the plug it like Rob suggests works well. 

3. Hold the front knob at the same time down tight against the reference surface.

4. Take your time.  Don't rush the cut.  Make a smooth entry and continue at a steady pace.  make sure your mark is lined up.  I also generally make two plunges to make sure the mortise is cleaned out. 

 

 

[Dave Ronyak]

I have learned a lot about how to use the domino by reviewing the differents posts.  I look for these things and don't ever have a problem.

1.  If the board is relatively thin, make sure it is hanging off the edge of your table or MFT so the fence rests securely on top of the board and not on the table itself.  This insures the proper height of the mortise from any given referenced surface.

2. Hold the domino machine tight against the edge.  I found by holding the end by the plug it like Rob suggests works well. 

3. Hold the front knob at the same time down tight against the reference surface.

4. Take your time.  Don't rush the cut.  Make a smooth entry and continue at a steady pace.  make sure your mark is lined up.  I also generally make two plunges to make sure the mortise is cleaned out. 

Howard,

Excellent advice!!  You have correctly identified addressed all of the few problems I experienced when I first used my Domino.  Point 4 was most important lesson for me to learn in order to achieve good, consistent results, especially when working with inexpensive Chinese birch plywood from HD.

Dave R.

 

[Steve Jones]

Dave,

Nicely summed up, those thoughts should be printed on cards inserted into every domino systainer!

Since we can't do that.....

Mathew, how about some area, like a FAQ or something to transfer the soundest, simple, but really usefull gems like this one to. (also those workshop rules I saw recently). it would be nice to have an area to point folks to instead of searching or wading through all the sidetracking and gossip we old ladies can't seem to avoid. (oops, did I say that out loud?)

 

[Spike]

All good advice but none of it has a thing to do with the slot mortise being out of parallel with the edge or face of the material.  Mine is WAY out. Regardless of how I hold the router, what size bit, type of material, feed rate of plunge, depth of cut, referencing from fence OR Domino base plate.....on and on. Nothing helps, the machine is not right, something is askew.

 

[nate858]

On Bob Marinos on line store, there is a very helpful tip section for the domino.  Helped me work out the bugs in my technique.

 

[Bill Wyko]

If you don't mind my adding to this. I was not getting a cut that was centered left to right so I used a piece of 3/4 and drew a lign around 3 sides then I made a shallow cut then flipped it over and did it again. Now I determined the offset and corrected it. Now it's dead on. When this tool is dialed in it really makes life easy ;D

 

[phill-k]

Taking Bills left / right alignment issue, can you adjust the vertical position of the cut, I'm working with 16mm mdf, taking to pieces, if I cut in to each and dry fit, one side has the surfaces absolutely smooth, whilst if I flip one piece and re fit there is a "mis alignment of about .5mm. Does this make sense
Do you need to be side specific when joining to pieces of stock with the Domino?

 

[Zaphod]

Taking Bills left / right alignment issue, can you adjust the vertical position of the cut, I'm working with 16mm mdf, taking to pieces, if I cut in to each and dry fit, one side has the surfaces absolutely smooth, whilst if I flip one piece and re fit there is a "mis alignment of about .5mm. Does this make sense
Do you need to be side specific when joining to pieces of stock with the Domino?

Theoretically, if you cut your mortise exactly in the center of your stock and all of your stock was exactly the same thickness, sides should be symmetrical.  In reality, it's rarely achievable, or even necessary.  If you reference your cuts off a chosen face, the referenced sides should be flush.

One feature I miss from my PC 557 biscuit jointer is the ability to pivot the fence 135 deg. which allows referencing off the outside edge of miters, any misalignment falls on the hidden (inside) face. 

 

[John2532]

I had a similiar problem with my domino cutting slots at a slight angle.  I thought it was operator error but after some checking found that the fence 90 degree stop wasn't set correctly. It was easy to fix (but was annoying as none of the adjustments were correct from the factory) To fix you need two flat surfaces. MDF will work. Set the domino on one piece making sure the base is resting flat. Slide another piece under the fence and with the fence loosened hold the fence and domino flat and lock the adjusting lever. This should be 90 degrees. Take a 2mm wrench and loosen the stop located by the locking lever and move it so it makes appropriate contact. You can check it again by sliding feeler gauges or a piece of paper under the fence and making sure there is equal contact under the fence.  I still get the occasional angled slot but now take the blame myself!

I'm writing this on the road so I hope my memory is good and this makes sense.  I'll try to post some pictures at a later date. Thanks for the great website!

John

 

[Sam Murdoch]

         I'm having the same problems as Nike and Spike, that is that the slots can end up angled. I am very careful as to how I hold the tool and have followed the advice from several postings. It is still a pretty new tool for me but I've assembled a dozen plywood boxes with great success with square and flush. Now I'm attaching face frames flush to the box sides as I have always done with the Lamello  and this is where the slope of the cut has proved to be problematic as I go from one orientation on the f.f to another on the ply sides. Finally I realized that the locking clamp on the right side was shifting the angle of the table from one side to the other. The reading (with an electronic caliper with a depth gauge feature) on the stop side would be 19.98 mm but at the clamp side 19.67 to 19.78 mm depending on how much I tightened or how I held the table as I tightened the clamp. There is no obvious adjustment for this. It occurs to me that I could add a shim at the clamp to keep it from pulling the table but that seems really bogus considering the cost of the tool. For now,  I have just manually set the height to be parallel by holding the table in position while I tightened the clamp. This was a satisfactory solution for the rest of that aspect of the job. Of course, as soon as I adjust the cutting height I need to reestablish the alignment. This is a real pain and severely limits the use of the tool as I don't readily move from one application to another. HELP! Can this be fixed?

Sam

 

[Brice Burrell]

Sam, call Festool's service dept. they will take care of you.

 

[Warrior]

Sam,
It may be your fence lock down procedure. When I first got my Domi I had some similar issues but figured out that if I press down on the side of the fence that has the height stepped selector and put no pressure on the locking side it will clamp parallel. when clamping the fence at a height different than any of the pre-sets just set the height and clamp the fence while putting no pressure anywhere on the fence but holding it at your selected height. If that does not work try adjusting the clamping mechanism so that it engages sooner in the swing of the lever. Remember that the clamping mechanism is very effective and does not need to much pressure to work properly.

Hope that helps.

Eiji

 

[Tezzer]

This is more common than most realise.

A great way to check if your Domi isnt suffering this problem, is to grab 2 scraps of timber around 600 x 50 x 25. Lay them on the bench (so it?s  600 x 100 x 25) And on one end only (using the index pins or a pencil mark - doesnt matter) plunge two 8mm mortises.  Slip in a Domi and close the join.

Now, way down the other end, the 2 pieces of timber should be perfectly flush. If they aren?t you have a problem.

It does depend on how much its out. Mine is usually around 1-2mm over a 600mm length and im ok with that. Sometimes its over 3-4mm, then I just take the fence off and give it a good scrub, and that seems to fix the problem. If it doesn`t, then back to the dealer it goes

 

[Sam Murdoch]

    When I first read Brice's response to my post I thought "that bad huh", but I'm using the tool everyday and so figured I'd call Festool next week. Then I read  Eiji's reply and figured I just need to review my procedure. Good idea about holding the table down at the step side as I clamp. Don't know why but that seems to help. Already had repositioned the clamp lock and still found that I really needed to crank on the clamp or the table would very easily slide up. Started all over today with a good attitude. Moved the clamp lock, held the step side of the table, tightened down, not to hard but tight enough, and worked along all day without a slip. Go figure! I'm still keeping a keen eye at the step. I have had a lot of problems with the creeping up of the table. NO, I don't push down to hard it really has been moving out of position quite easily. Today has given me hope. The new tool and I just need to synchronize I guess. I have done most of what I have wanted to do with it so far with great success. Next week I move into different operations so I will get more feedback from my Domino. Hope I won't need to be getting more feedback from you guys. Thanks much for your input.

Sam

 

[Brice Burrell]

  Hey, Sam, sorry didn't mean to alarm you. I just meant you should call Festool because they will walk you through the proper procedures, if the problem persists then you know you have a problem. Sometimes its best to call Festool first instead of seeing if someone happens to post the right answer here. I'm glad the guys here came through for you. But don't hesitate to call Festool, no one wants your tools working properly more than they do. Good luck.