bkharman
Member
- Joined
- Jul 1, 2013
- Messages
- 2,072
Hey everybody.
A few weeks ago Ron Wenner at Seneca Woodworking reached out to me about some feedback on the FOG for a potential customer looking at the standard "package" of:
My feedback on the thread was 99.9% positive and the only negative I had was "If you are working with 1/2" and 3/4" materials, switching Domi-Shims can get a bit repetitive." Ron and I chatted a bit and I told him that i had grand plans involving some rare earth magnets and some sweat induced tapping of my fence and he let me know about this little gem coming soon. Needless to say, he send me a pre-release version of it to test (for them and me) and here is what I can say...
This setup is WAY better than what I was going to venture in to doing on my own. They are releasing an Imperial Thickness Gauge for the Domino XL. It works in combination with the 1/2" Domi-Shim (the thicker of the two) and allows you to pick your material size on the gauge and your mortice ends up near center. I say near center because as we all know, not all sheet material is exactly the size they say it is. Personally I found this to be a + as I am in the school of thought that you do not want the domino directly in the center as it is easy to lose your reference side and can be troublesome later (dry fit to glue up).
The Thickness Gauge has 5 standard settings:
This covers most "standard" sizes that you would work with and honestly if you have any other sizes that are standard, they probably are close enough to these that while it wont be centered, it will be more than close enough to accomplish what you need. A picture is worth 1,000 words so here are my (initial) 4,000 words.
Imperial Thickness Gauge for XL installed:
Domi-Shim plate to use (the 1/2" one which is the thicker one):
Story Stick I created and marked up on one test with 6mm bit. It shows the material thickness as well as the centerline of the material (not the centerline of the mortice):
The test setup:
Final thoughts:
As I said above, I really like this setup. I don't have to swap the plates when working with mixed materials which saves time because as we all know, even if you have a really solid workflow, there is always going to be that one little things you forgot... It also is simple. I assume for people with the Domi-Shims, this will be a simple addition and I can imagine that they will "kit" this with a plate(s) for new customers. It works well and it is simple which are a great combination.
I think this will cover most of us who use our 700 with the bit adapter and on sheet goods. I think the only ones it won't appeal to would be someone who is looking to bore direct center of the workpiece. Again, I prefer it that way as it doesn't lose any stregnth but gains ease of alignment.
End of review jargon:
I was approached by Seneca Woodworking to test out a pre-release version of this. I am not aware of their release date on it nor the price. The schematics of the gauge may be altered before going into full production. I was not compensated for this review other than receiving the test unit for feedback to them. I already owned the Domi-Shims and use them quite often. In fact, the only thing really changing now is that my 1/2" plate will be attached more often than my 3/4" plate. [tongue]
If you have any questions about my experience with it, feel free to reply to this thread or PM me. If you have anything for Ron and Ryan... email them at info@senecawoodworking.com.
Cheers. Bryan.
A few weeks ago Ron Wenner at Seneca Woodworking reached out to me about some feedback on the FOG for a potential customer looking at the standard "package" of:
- the RTS-500 cutter adapter
- the Domi-Shims for the XL 700 (1/2" and 3/4")
- and sometimes the Imperial Fence Height Gauge for the XL
My feedback on the thread was 99.9% positive and the only negative I had was "If you are working with 1/2" and 3/4" materials, switching Domi-Shims can get a bit repetitive." Ron and I chatted a bit and I told him that i had grand plans involving some rare earth magnets and some sweat induced tapping of my fence and he let me know about this little gem coming soon. Needless to say, he send me a pre-release version of it to test (for them and me) and here is what I can say...
This setup is WAY better than what I was going to venture in to doing on my own. They are releasing an Imperial Thickness Gauge for the Domino XL. It works in combination with the 1/2" Domi-Shim (the thicker of the two) and allows you to pick your material size on the gauge and your mortice ends up near center. I say near center because as we all know, not all sheet material is exactly the size they say it is. Personally I found this to be a + as I am in the school of thought that you do not want the domino directly in the center as it is easy to lose your reference side and can be troublesome later (dry fit to glue up).
The Thickness Gauge has 5 standard settings:
- 1/2"
- 5/8"
- 3/4"
- 7/8"
- 1"
This covers most "standard" sizes that you would work with and honestly if you have any other sizes that are standard, they probably are close enough to these that while it wont be centered, it will be more than close enough to accomplish what you need. A picture is worth 1,000 words so here are my (initial) 4,000 words.
Imperial Thickness Gauge for XL installed:
Domi-Shim plate to use (the 1/2" one which is the thicker one):
Story Stick I created and marked up on one test with 6mm bit. It shows the material thickness as well as the centerline of the material (not the centerline of the mortice):
The test setup:
Final thoughts:
As I said above, I really like this setup. I don't have to swap the plates when working with mixed materials which saves time because as we all know, even if you have a really solid workflow, there is always going to be that one little things you forgot... It also is simple. I assume for people with the Domi-Shims, this will be a simple addition and I can imagine that they will "kit" this with a plate(s) for new customers. It works well and it is simple which are a great combination.
I think this will cover most of us who use our 700 with the bit adapter and on sheet goods. I think the only ones it won't appeal to would be someone who is looking to bore direct center of the workpiece. Again, I prefer it that way as it doesn't lose any stregnth but gains ease of alignment.
End of review jargon:
I was approached by Seneca Woodworking to test out a pre-release version of this. I am not aware of their release date on it nor the price. The schematics of the gauge may be altered before going into full production. I was not compensated for this review other than receiving the test unit for feedback to them. I already owned the Domi-Shims and use them quite often. In fact, the only thing really changing now is that my 1/2" plate will be attached more often than my 3/4" plate. [tongue]
If you have any questions about my experience with it, feel free to reply to this thread or PM me. If you have anything for Ron and Ryan... email them at info@senecawoodworking.com.
Cheers. Bryan.
