Setup of Locking Drawer Glue Joint Router Bit

[Dave Ronyak]

I am trying for the first time to use my Whiteside locking drawer glue joint bit, Part Number 3347.  According to the meager instructions supplied with the bit, it should be set ~5/16 high.  I spend most of yesterday evening trying to get a good, tight fit with poplar drawer side stock ~0.80 inches thick, using Whiteside's brass setup gauge bars to set the nominal bit height, and thereafter trying slightly higher and slightly lower bit height settings hoping to tune the fit of the joint.  With this bit, the drawer side pieces are milled standing on edge (long dimension vertical relative to the router table), and the front and back pieces are milled flat on the table.  I am certain I am orienting the pieces correctly and holding the side pieces true vertical (extension fence on my JoinTech fence, checked to be true with an 18 inch reference triangle from Woodpecker). Anyone have any idea how close parts machine with one of these bits are supposed to fit prior to glue application?  I am thinking of giving up on this bit and going to classical dovetails or domi-tails.  The drawer joints I am wanting to make need to be very strong because each drawer is ~24 inches deep by ~34 inches wide and intended to be loaded up to ~200 lbs.

Dave R.

 

[Daviddubya]

Dave - The drawer lock bit is tricky to set up.  Both the fence position and the bit height are critical.  When the joint is cut correctly, the fit is quite snug.  Here are a couple of setup instructions that might help:
http://www.mlcswoodworking.com/shopsite_sc/store/html/smarthtml/graphics2/TM35DrawerLock.pdf
http://www.woodline.com/Download/Drawer Lock.pdf

I made two sets of templates, one for 1/2" and another for 3/4" material.  I really like the drawer lock joint.  Don't give up on it.

ps - Since John Lucas added his post below, I am reminded that I used his tutorial to set up my bit the first time I used it.  Excellent tutorial John, and sorry I forgot to include it in my post.

 

[woodshopdemos]

Dave,
  This isnt my favorite bit. On 1/2" stock, there is hardly any mechanical advantage. On 3/4 there is some. DT's always better unless you want to try your hand at lock miter bit.
Here are SOPs for each.

The drawer lock bit:http://www.woodshopdemos.com/cmtdrw1.htm

and the Lock Miter bit:http://www.woodshopdemos.com/cmt-lm1.htm

Pardon the orange (CMT); it is sort of like green in that side of the shop. It does pay to buy quality, there also.

 

[Dave Ronyak]

Thank you, Dave and John!!  Exactly what I was looking for.  I am about to go to my shop and try it, again.  I also trial checked the fit of the 3/4" plywood bottom pieces into the grooves cut with complementary bits supplied in my Sommerfeld's Own set - excellent.  Given that I intend to glue the plywood bottom into the grooves in the front and sides, I don't think there will be much fore-aft loading on the locking glue joint between the front and sides of my drawers.

I agree with your comments regarding dovetails, and usually use them, but with stock that is ~3/8 to 5/8 inch for the sides of the drawers.

Dave R.

 

[woodshopdemos]

I agree with your comments regarding dovetails, and usually use them, but with stock that is ~3/8 to 5/8 inch for the sides of the drawers.

Dave R.

But Davem didnt you say you had the Incra or Jointech system? Ideal for DTs in this thickness stock

 

[Dave Ronyak]

John,

I have a JoinTech setup, but have not used it for many dovetails - yet.  The ones I made in the past were done with either an 8"  Craftsman jig or a 121" one from Trendlines (knock-off of 12" PC jig).  Both are limited to use with 1/4" shank router bits.

I am delighted to say that when I tried your (and Dave from Cave Creek's) setup instructions for the lock joint bit, I got good results.  The key point I did not previously understand was the importance of the fence position for machining the sides of the drawers.  I also rechecked squareness of my JoinTech fence to the table top and JoinTech's sliding (coping) VP fixture.  The fence was "on" but the sliding fixture was slightly off in two planes, thus preventing the vertically held pieces to be slightly off true vertical in two planes.

Thanks, again, for your assistance!

Dave R.

 

[Daviddubya]

Dave - I am happy to know the bit is working well for you.

One more tip.  Once you have determined the correct setup for a particular thickness of material, measure the bit height with a caliper and make a note of the exact height.  Use that setting the next time you do the setup to shorten the time.

 

[Dave Ronyak]

Thanks for that tip.  I plan to keep a piece of each of the front and side pieces to use as setup blocks.  I also purchased a strip of 3/4" X 4" HDPE that I can use to make setup blocks that should be more stable than those of wood.

Dave R.

 

[woodshopdemos]

Dave,
  One other thing.Wood compresses. You may find gaps at the bottom of the grooves that will make your joint look poorly fitted. I am in the habit of making a 2nd and third pass is I still hear it cutting, If set up properly, the additional passes will NOT hurt the joint,,,only help, Try it on MDF. If you find your material splitting out, take the passes a little at a time.

 

[Dave Ronyak]

I agree with your comments regarding dovetails, and usually use them, but with stock that is ~3/8 to 5/8 inch for the sides of the drawers.

Dave R.

But Davem didnt you say you had the Incra or Jointech system? Ideal for DTs in this thickness stock

John,

Yes, I have a JoinTech CabinetMaker system (fence and incremental machine with templates), and their phenolic table.  But I have not been able to get the 17" wide end table I bought for routing to be flat.  I should have complained to them when I first installed it.  I have tried bracing and coaxing it into being flat for quite some time, yet it is still shaped like a horse's saddle, albeit a shallow one.  This means a workpiece standing on end and claimped to the VPF (sliding fixture) used to make the tails on drawer side pieces are not in contact with the table when they pass over the bit.  I need to get a truly flat table before resuming trying to do dovetails with this setup.

Dave R.

 

[woodshopdemos]

Dave R,
  Try this. With the router off (natch), put the vertical pieces in the vertical fiixture as close to the cut line as is possible. Calmp tight, and then run the cuts. It should be close. It must aggrvate you know end to have that much investment in something ans it not work. The other thing is to add a very loose mix of thinset with acrylic additive. Let it dry flat and then when very dry, add a sheet of laminate. Shouldnt add moroe than 1/4" overall.

 

[Dave Ronyak]

Thanks, John, for your great ideas for a solution.  I would never have thought of trying a thinset/acrylic combination.  But I won't get a chance for about 3 weeks because my company is moving my office location and I have to travel on business.  I'm also thinking of replacing that small table top with one made of MDF with laminate on both faces or buying one from Woodpeckers.  Or buying a Leigh dovetail jig that I could use on many other future projects which include a couple of blanket chests.  I hear many good reports on that product.

Dave R.

 

[HowardH]

Hi, Dave.  I also have the Jointech system and my phenolic table is very flat.  No trouble at all with VPF on the DTs I have tried thus far.  You should contact Ernest, the new owner.  Since the original owner passed away almost a year or so ago, Ernest, a former employee, has worked hard on the customer service end.  He should fix you up if you have a defective table.  Also, I have found the digital lift to be very handy.  Got a little plugged up with MDF dust the other day but a little WD-40 took care of that.   

 

[Dave Ronyak]

Thanks, I'll try that.  I spoke with Earnest before I purchased my setup.  He was very helpful and full of information.  I have a JoinTech router lift that I have yet to use - need to get the PC 7518 first!  Neither the Freud I am now using nor an old Stanley unit I own has a motor housing diameter that matches the adapter rings offered by JoinTech.  Neither of these routers is nearly as powerful and heavy duty as the PC 7518, either.

Dave R.

 

[HowardH]

I'm using the Bosch 1617 (sears labeled) at it hasn't skipped a beat.  I'm careful not to try to hog off too much at a time.  It fit right in the adapter without a hitch. I'm wondering if putting in that big PC unit would make that much of a difference.