Jointing with a festool router

[nsc]

hey all

got a question, i have my own ideas how to this but im looking for suggestions.  I have 2 1/4 thick cherry that i need to join together to make a counter top.  I was thinking of using a router and the track to run a straight line with a double 2 1/2 flute bit.  Any suggestion, this is my weekend project...

thanks in advance

 

[Kev]

Are you describing a groove that you're going to put in each side, with the intention of putting a tongue in for glue up?

If so, I'd be making a guide jig to fit to the base of the router, that meets both sides of the stock.

 

[mouppe]

I think the OP is simply planning to joint two edges using his router, not by using a spline. By running the router along his guide rail, he is hoping to leave a straight glue-ready edge.

I don't believe this would leave a satisfactory edge. At the minimum you should clean up the milling marks with a hand plane or sandpaper, but my main concern is that your edge may not be square enough or straight enough. If you do go through with this technique, flip the second board over before you do the glue-up as any discrepancies in the squareness of the edges after routing will cancel each other out.

For example if your router leaves an edge which is 85 degrees off the face side, by flipping the second board you will have 85+95= 180 i.e. a flat face side.

 

[bwiele]

A trick that I learned at the Doors & Drawers class in Indiana was to use the TS 55 on the track in the usual way to joint 2 boards.  The technique is to line up the 2 boards side by side so their edges to be jointed are right under the cut line of the saw.  Plunge and make your cut being sure that the blade is cutting through the edges of BOTH boards at once.  After doing so, you will have 2 edges which should be absolute mirror images of each other, hence the name "Mirror Cut" for this approach.  We did this in class to joint and glue 2 boards to make a wider panel for the center field of the door.  It worked surprisingly perfectly for each of us on the first try.  It is quite simple.  I recommend giving it a try!  And if it doesn't work perfectly, you will only have sacrificed a tiny bit of the wood in the attempt.  (Full credit to Brian Sedgeley, the instructor at Festool in Indiana).

 

[sancho57]

Great tip. Ill keep that in mind

 

[Sparktrician]

A trick that I learned at the Doors & Drawers class in Indiana was to use the TS 55 on the track in the usual way to joint 2 boards.  The technique is to line up the 2 boards side by side so their edges to be jointed are right under the cut line of the saw.  Plunge and make your cut being sure that the blade is cutting through the edges of BOTH boards at once.  After doing so, you will have 2 edges which should be absolute mirror images of each other, hence the name "Mirror Cut" for this approach.  We did this in class to joint and glue 2 boards to make a wider panel for the center field of the door.  It worked surprisingly perfectly for each of us on the first try.  It is quite simple.  I recommend giving it a try!  And if it doesn't work perfectly, you will only have sacrificed a tiny bit of the wood in the attempt.  (Full credit to Brian Sedgeley, the instructor at Festool in Indiana).

You can do the same thing with a router set to the guide rail to make the mirror cut.  With material this thick, I'd use the OF2200.  Be sure to anchor the two slabs such that the router bit just kisses both edges to be jointed.  There will be a gap between the edges.  It's also advisable to use the extended foot on the OF1400 or the offset base (or the extended foot) on the OF2200 to keep the router properly aligned with the surfaces and perpendicular to the guide rail.  You can see the concept of how to accomplish this here.  All credit for applying this concept to the router goes to Sedge and Steve Bace. 

[smile]

 

[MrMac]

wow what a cool technique. I have got to try that!

 

[fritter63]

Will give that a try for joining the soundboard (Sitka spruce) for the guitar I'm about to start.

 

[RONWEN]

A trick that I learned at the Doors & Drawers class in Indiana was to use the TS 55 on the track in the usual way to joint 2 boards.  The technique is to line up the 2 boards side by side so their edges to be jointed are right under the cut line of the saw.  Plunge and make your cut being sure that the blade is cutting through the edges of BOTH boards at once.  After doing so, you will have 2 edges which should be absolute mirror images of each other, hence the name "Mirror Cut" for this approach.  We did this in class to joint and glue 2 boards to make a wider panel for the center field of the door.  It worked surprisingly perfectly for each of us on the first try.  It is quite simple.  I recommend giving it a try!  And if it doesn't work perfectly, you will only have sacrificed a tiny bit of the wood in the attempt.  (Full credit to Brian Sedgeley, the instructor at Festool in Indiana).

You can do the same thing with a router set to the guide rail to make the mirror cut.  With material this thick, I'd use the OF2200.  Be sure to anchor the two slabs such that the router bit just kisses both edges to be jointed.  There will be a gap between the edges.  It's also advisable to use the extended foot on the OF1400 or the offset base (or the extended foot) on the OF2200 to keep the router properly aligned with the surfaces and perpendicular to the guide rail.  You can see the concept of how to accomplish this here.  All credit for applying this concept to the router goes to Sedge and Steve Bace. 

[smile]

Did you intend for the link to show using a router?  It shows Bob Marino using the saw trick which I always use when edge joining & it works great.  I would like to see the router setup.

 

[Sparktrician]

A trick that I learned at the Doors & Drawers class in Indiana was to use the TS 55 on the track in the usual way to joint 2 boards.  The technique is to line up the 2 boards side by side so their edges to be jointed are right under the cut line of the saw.  Plunge and make your cut being sure that the blade is cutting through the edges of BOTH boards at once.  After doing so, you will have 2 edges which should be absolute mirror images of each other, hence the name "Mirror Cut" for this approach.  We did this in class to joint and glue 2 boards to make a wider panel for the center field of the door.  It worked surprisingly perfectly for each of us on the first try.  It is quite simple.  I recommend giving it a try!  And if it doesn't work perfectly, you will only have sacrificed a tiny bit of the wood in the attempt.  (Full credit to Brian Sedgeley, the instructor at Festool in Indiana).

You can do the same thing with a router set to the guide rail to make the mirror cut.  With material this thick, I'd use the OF2200.  Be sure to anchor the two slabs such that the router bit just kisses both edges to be jointed.  There will be a gap between the edges.  It's also advisable to use the extended foot on the OF1400 or the offset base (or the extended foot) on the OF2200 to keep the router properly aligned with the surfaces and perpendicular to the guide rail.  You can see the concept of how to accomplish this here.  All credit for applying this concept to the router goes to Sedge and Steve Bace. 

[smile]

Did you intend for the link to show using a router?  It shows Bob Marino using the saw trick which I always use when edge joining & it works great.  I would like to see the router setup.

No, Ron.  It was intended to show the concept of locking two pieces together as Bob did.  The difference is that unlike Bob using the TS55, the person uses a router joined to the guide rail, and also leaves a gap between the pieces to be jointed, slightly smaller than the diameter of the router bit, so that the router bit cleans off just enough of both boards to give a smooth joint. 

[smile]

 

[RONWEN]

A trick that I learned at the Doors & Drawers class in Indiana was to use the TS 55 on the track in the usual way to joint 2 boards.  The technique is to line up the 2 boards side by side so their edges to be jointed are right under the cut line of the saw.  Plunge and make your cut being sure that the blade is cutting through the edges of BOTH boards at once.  After doing so, you will have 2 edges which should be absolute mirror images of each other, hence the name "Mirror Cut" for this approach.  We did this in class to joint and glue 2 boards to make a wider panel for the center field of the door.  It worked surprisingly perfectly for each of us on the first try.  It is quite simple.  I recommend giving it a try!  And if it doesn't work perfectly, you will only have sacrificed a tiny bit of the wood in the attempt.  (Full credit to Brian Sedgeley, the instructor at Festool in Indiana).

You can do the same thing with a router set to the guide rail to make the mirror cut.  With material this thick, I'd use the OF2200.  Be sure to anchor the two slabs such that the router bit just kisses both edges to be jointed.  There will be a gap between the edges.  It's also advisable to use the extended foot on the OF1400 or the offset base (or the extended foot) on the OF2200 to keep the router properly aligned with the surfaces and perpendicular to the guide rail.  You can see the concept of how to accomplish this here.  All credit for applying this concept to the router goes to Sedge and Steve Bace. 

[smile]

Did you intend for the link to show using a router?  It shows Bob Marino using the saw trick which I always use when edge joining & it works great.  I would like to see the router setup.

No, Ron.  It was intended to show the concept of locking two pieces together as Bob did.  The difference is that unlike Bob using the TS55, the person uses a router joined to the guide rail, and also leaves a gap between the pieces to be jointed, slightly smaller than the diameter of the router bit, so that the router bit cleans off just enough of both boards to give a smooth joint. 

[smile]

That may be a little tricky getting the two edges spaced just right so just a skim cut is taken from each board.  With the saw they are butted edge to edge.

 

[semenza]

nsc will need the TS75 to make the saw method work..... 2 1/4" thick.

nsc, do you have a router table and a long straight bit?  You can edge joint on a router table if you have a split  fence that can be offset.

Seth

 

[jacko9]

In my humble opinion, get a Jointer at least 8" wide and stop trying to do the job of a Jointer with other tools.  The other option of using a Long Bed Jointer is a 24" Jointer hand plane.

 

[ccarrolladams]

There are jobs where using a fixed shop jointer is not appropriate or even possible.

One example is preparing the edges of solid surface material to be seamlessly bonded. That is when the Mirror Cut approach is appropriate.

During the Festool Solid Surface class I attended in February 2011, Steve Bace showed us the classic way he has been teaching solid surface Mirror Cutting for a long time. We positioned the two pieces to be bonded apart just slightly less than the diameter of the router bit we would be using. The material was clamped to the sacrificial surface securely. Then the guide rail was clamped in the correct position, so the bit in an OF1400 was centered on the gap. The result was a perfect Mirror Cut requiring no additional work.

During a Festool Door & Drawer class we used the TS55 Mirror Cut approach to prepare pieces of lumber to be edge glued to form a solid panel which would become a raised panel cabinet door. We securely clamped both pieces of lumber snug on the MFT/3 top. The guide rail was positioned so that the kerf would take some from both pieces. The result was excellent glue ready cuts.

Using a track saw to make Mirror Cuts is a valid approach for those who do not have a fixed shop jointer, as is true for many Festool owners.

Sure, in my cabinet shop I have a very sophisticated Felder jointer that is much wider than 8"  Because I have such a jointer which I know how to use with confidence, that is how I normally prepare solid lumber door panels. But I still practice the use of a TS55 to perform Mirror Cuts often enough I am also confident should I be making panels away from my Felder jointer.

 

[jacko9]

I don't disagree that a Jointer is not appropriate for solid surface material but, the poster asked about 2 1/4" cherry and that material would run over a Jointer very nicely.  My point is that a router is not a substitute for a Jointer in a woodworking or furniture home shop (IMHO).

 

[Sparktrician]

I don't disagree that a Jointer is not appropriate for solid surface material but, the poster asked about 2 1/4" cherry and that material would run over a Jointer very nicely.  My point is that a router is not a substitute for a Jointer in a woodworking or furniture home shop (IMHO).

All well and good if you have access to a jointer, but sometimes the field expedient works in a pinch.  I attended the solid surface class that Carroll mentioned (different date), and that's where I learned about using the router to make the mirror cut in solid surface materials.  It also works well in wood when one just doesn't have access to a jointer. 

[smile]

 

[ceddy]

A trick that I learned at the Doors & Drawers class in Indiana was to use the TS 55 on the track in the usual way to joint 2 boards.  The technique is to line up the 2 boards side by side so their edges to be jointed are right under the cut line of the saw.  Plunge and make your cut being sure that the blade is cutting through the edges of BOTH boards at once.  After doing so, you will have 2 edges which should be absolute mirror images of each other, hence the name "Mirror Cut" for this approach.  We did this in class to joint and glue 2 boards to make a wider panel for the center field of the door.  It worked surprisingly perfectly for each of us on the first try.  It is quite simple.  I recommend giving it a try!  And if it doesn't work perfectly, you will only have sacrificed a tiny bit of the wood in the attempt.  (Full credit to Brian Sedgeley, the instructor at Festool in Indiana).

Never thought of this. thanks!

 

[bwiele]

So, I go off the grid for a couple days and you guys go viral!  I have a jointer (which is my preferred approach for solid wood situations) but I was impressed with the efficiency of the Mirror Cut approach in a setting where a jointer wasn't available.  I'm just a hobbyist with mediocre skills, until jointing and gluing up the panels at the class I had never done a glue-up before!  Since then I've used my jointer to create glue-ready joints for the table top and shelf that I'm making for my wife.  My point in all this is that I don't have a strong view about the different techniques due to lack of experience, but I thought the other technique was pretty cool!

 

[JSands]

The significant benefit of this mirror cut, other than the obvious, "no jointer available, or jointer is too small"....  is when jointing long boards.    This technique is more effective on 8ft boards and a single rail, vs. a jointer, as the reference surface for the rail is the same length as the board... whereas the reference surface of a jointer might be at best, 1/2 the distance of the boards, or in the case of a 24" hand plane, 1/4 the distance.   

 

[fdengel]

The HL 850E with the "fence" and stand presents another option for those who have them.