Stacked Dominos

[Cabana Dan]

Hey friends, I am building a reclaimed pine farm table (like the RH Ironbolt in the pic below). I am still new to the domino, but love my 500. My issue is with stacking dominos in the base currently with an end-to-face joint. I have seen a few posts in regard to stacking dominos and some about face plunging, but haven't gotten a great feel for what I need to do. I am using 5"x4" beams for the horizontals and vertical of each base with the vertical turned to have a shoulder revealed (again like the picture). After reading "Getting the Most From the Festool Domino Machine" (by Jerry Work), how exactly can I measure and get the layout for such an array as in the picture below? I will be using 6 dominos per joint (10mm) in a 2x3 array. The main issue is that I am using reclaimed wood that is not perfectly true and it is hard for me to figure out how to do this. I can't simply use the fence due to the untrue/rough wood. So, are my options to just make a reference line in the face and end? I have also thought about potentially clamping/attaching a straight edge as reference? Both seem a little sloppy and leaves too much room for error with so many dominos with my novice skills.

I appreciate any help and all drawings/pictures would go a mile.

~Dan

 

[waho6o9]

I would use brass set up blocks

And or this may be of some use as well:

 

[ear3]

There's no way you can get the stock square, at least in the area where you will be mortising?  Without doing that I feel like a true M&T joint is a better option.  At the very least, if you could get the top of the base flat, as well as the bottom of the vertical, then you could operate by trial and error without the fence, understanding that the distance from the bottom of the machine to the center of the mortise is always going to be 10mm.

Hey friends, I am building a reclaimed pine farm table (like the RH Ironbolt in the pic below). I am still new to the domino, but love my 500. My issue is with stacking dominos in the base currently with an end-to-face joint. I have seen a few posts in regard to stacking dominos and some about face plunging, but haven't gotten a great feel for what I need to do. I am using 5"x4" beams for the horizontals and vertical of each base with the vertical turned to have a shoulder revealed (again like the picture). After reading "Getting the Most From the Festool Domino Machine" (by Jerry Work), how exactly can I measure and get the layout for such an array as in the picture below? I will be using 6 dominos per joint (10mm) in a 2x3 array. The main issue is that I am using reclaimed wood that is not perfectly true and it is hard for me to figure out how to do this. I can't simply use the fence due to the untrue/rough wood. So, are my options to just make a reference line in the face and end? I have also thought about potentially clamping/attaching a straight edge as reference? Both seem a little sloppy and leaves too much room for error with so many dominos with my novice skills.

I appreciate any help and all drawings/pictures would go a mile.

~Dan

 

[Birdhunter]

The pictures show what looks like trued up pieces. I don't know how "untrue" your wood is, but any degree of "untrueness" will make using stacked Dominos very difficult.

My first impression is that I'd clamp the pieces to be joined and drill holes for dowels.

If you want to use Dominos, I think you must find a way to create a true reference surface.

Can you post pictures of the wood you will be using?

 

[Cheese]

I don't understand why you can't at least make the surfaces that interface with each other flat and square. If they're not flat and square to begin with, you'll have a heck of a time trying to fit the dominoes. Matter of fact you'll probably never be able to join the surfaces to form a tight joint. You want a nice tight fit between mating surfaces/parts so that you can solve both aesthetic issues along with structural issues.

If both the foot and the table support surfaces are not flat and square, relative to each other, then the Domino mortises will be out of alignment with each other and the only Domino that can be fit will be a rubber one.  [eek]

 

[Stoli]

You can get away with being sloppy with the horizontal alignment using the wider slots on one piece, but there is very little wiggle room on the vertical alignment, so you need to figure out a way to space the dominos apart repeatably.

If you don't think you can reference off the surface, then how about referencing off the work surface.  Clamp the piece down "flat".  Then find a spacer onto which you will place the domino machine to make the first row of holes.  Then find another spacer that you'll place on the first to get the domino to the second row of holes.  You should be able to do this for both sides.  This will at least give you a result that will mate together since the spacing between rows is repeatable. 

 

[Birdhunter]

I've done stacked Dominos several times and, at best, it's a touchy job and that's with squared up trued up pieces. I can't imagine trying it with rough lumber.

I'd either true up the lumber or find another joining method.

 

[Cheese]

I'd either true up the lumber or find another joining method.

I agree, if you can't true up the surfaces that meet and that are in line-to-line glue contact with each other, then an alternative assembly procedure must be implemented such as long counter-bored lag screws or long threaded rods. That way the strength of the joint is dependent upon the size and secureness of the threaded rod rather than the surface-to-surface integrity of the glued joint.