# squaring up table top



## lateralus819 (Mar 24, 2013)

I'm almost on the home stretch with this thing and of course one more problem arises! Argh…

Anyways, I've glued up two panels roughly 24" wide each, and i want to glue them together, i noticed though, when dry fitting there is a gap in the middle but not the ends, i checked with a straight edge and they aren't perfect square.

A jointer isn't an option,

would mounting them to a known square piece of MDF suffice? I think it seems as my only option, i tried hand planing the two face to face but somehow that didn't work either. Thanks.


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## MarkDavisson (Apr 26, 2009)

You're trying to glue the two panels face-to-face or edge-to-edge?


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## bondogaposis (Dec 18, 2011)

More info please, I can't picture the problem and how the MDF comes in.


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## lateralus819 (Mar 24, 2013)

basically if the panels were standing on edge there they have a curve (albeit minor, just not suitable to glue another panel). I need to get a straight edge, it bows in the middle (of the edge not the panel.)

Basically if i stick my panels to a sheet of mdf that has a square edge, i can use the mdf to guide down the fence on a table saw and get a square edge on my panel.


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## lateralus819 (Mar 24, 2013)

Mark, edge to edge, but the edges aren't perfectly flat, somehow some way…

I dont own a jointer so thats out of teh equation.

think of it as turn trying to glue two C's together. a bit more drastic than what i have going on though.


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## MarkDavisson (Apr 26, 2009)

I received an email newsletter last week from Woodworker's Journal. It contained a link to a very interesting article that might help you. http://www.woodworkersjournal.com/resource/TablesawTechniques/Jointing/index.html

Once you have one good, straight edge, you can reference the other 3 off of that.


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## bondogaposis (Dec 18, 2011)

I would get a straight edge and draw a line down each panel and hand plane to the line. Checking the fit as you go. How big a gap are we talking here? Once you get to w/in a 1/32" you should be able to spring them together w/ clamps.


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## bondogaposis (Dec 18, 2011)

I would get a straight edge and draw a line down each panel and hand plane to the line. Checking the fit as you go. How big a gap are we talking here? Once you get to w/in a 1/32" you should be able to spring them together w/ clamps.


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## lateralus819 (Mar 24, 2013)

Wow thats an incredible technique to know and it makes perfect sense!


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## OnlyJustME (Nov 22, 2011)

Mark you couldn't have posted this a week ago before i jointed all that mahogany by hand? Great article and info. i'll be using it in the future.


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## lateralus819 (Mar 24, 2013)

It's maybe 1/16-3/32". I SUCK with a hand plane, I'll either do as that article said or mate it to a sheet of MDF and use that as my "straight edge/guide"


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## kdc68 (Mar 2, 2012)

Well theres a thing called a spring joint when gluing edge to edge. Having a slight gap in the middle is fine because the principle of a spring joint is when you apply clamp pressure in the middle until the gap goes away, both the ends butt tightly together. That is if your gap is slight

Another option would be to place your boards face to face clamped together flush and "shoot" the edges with a plane. Planing both edges at once will make two mate perfectly together

I don't understand the mdf thing either. But the ideas above might work for you if I understand the rest of your question


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## lateralus819 (Mar 24, 2013)

I've tried to plane two at once and it didn't work..


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## lateralus819 (Mar 24, 2013)

Maybe this will help


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## hotbyte (Apr 3, 2010)

Sounds like you are wanting to use the MDF similar to using a taper jig to straighten edge of a wavy board?

Article on tablesaw jointing is pretty neat. Might need to try that!

Another option is router table with straight bit and outfeed fence offset from infeed fence like on a jointer.


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## kdc68 (Mar 2, 2012)

lateralus… I seen your photo above…. that would work with one of your boards. Then you'd have to do the set up again for the other board and hope that you reference it the same (square) as the first. Marks idea he sent in a link via Woodworkers Journal is a good technique. It's a jig that you set up once and run as many boards as you have in your glue up. A big Plus is you could use this jig over and over again for this project and others you do in the future since you don't have a jointer…good luck


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