CABINET MAKING OPERATIONS
S HAPI NG OPERATION S
Shaping operations using cutters such as glue joint, tongue & groove, lock-wedge and similar bits which remove
stock from entire edge of workpiece are easily accomplished by using the same setup procedure as for edge
jointing above.
The frames discussed here will be wood panel frames or glass frames for doors rather than picture frames. The
most basic and easiest frame to make is the mortise and tenon while the decorative coped molded rails require
special rail and stile cutters. Any dimensions shown in this section are to get a sense of proportion and are not
intended to be a limit for design purposes.
Mortise and Tenon
The mortise and tenon is normally constructed with rails and stiles of the
same thickness for simplicity. Start by planing all the pieces to the same
thickness, or cut the pieces from the same board. Mark the front face of
each piece (rail & stile). For frames with a mortise groove of less than
1
/
4"
cut the groove with a slot cutter in the router with the pieces laying flat on
the table. Use the Fence Featherboard to keep the piece down on the table
and the table mounted Featherboard to keep the piece against the fence.
If you use an undersized cutter and pass the piece through the cutter two
times turning the piece over between cuts, you can be assured that the
groove will be in the exact center of the piece. If the groove is made from
one side only, be sure to orient the pieces with the side marked for the face
either up or down for all the pieces. Wider grooves can be cut using straight
bits, preferably spiral upcut bits.
Mortises of any width can be cut on the table using multiple passes with the
saw blade or a dado blade. The CLINCHER can be set up as a saw fence to
control the width of the cut with absolute accuracy.
Regardless of the method chosen for cutting the mortise groove, all of the
rails and stiles for a given frame assembly should be cut on the same setup.
Cut the pieces to be used as stiles to a length about
1
/
8"
longer than the
required finish length. Cut the rails to the required length between the
finished stiles, plus twice the depth of one mortise plus
1
/
32"
.
The next step is to cut the tenons on the rail ends. The tenons can be cut on
a table saw or router table. If using the router with a straight cutter, use the
cope cutting guide (see Jointech Woodworker's Notebook, SECT. III) to
support the rails. Use a piece of scrap cut from the pieces with the mortise
cut. Using the scrap piece and trial and error make a series of cuts about
1
/
4"
wide, raising the router bit slightly each time until the tenon will just fit
into the mortise. With the height of the bit established move the fence and
make cuts until you are within approximately
1
/
32"
from the full length of the
tenon. Use the CLINCHER Micro-Adjust to move the fence and make cuts
until the tenon is exactly the same length as the mortise depth. Save this
scrap as a template for future set ups. Cut the tenons on both ends of each
rail.
Frames
COPE CUTTING GUIDE
7
Mortise
Cheek
Tenon
