# How do I get amazing joints?



## AbbyL (Jan 31, 2018)

I am currently making cutting boards. I've made a few before and have never gotten good joints. I cut all my 1" strips on a table saw. They were uneven so I put them through my planer a couple times. When I hold the pieces of wood together I can still see light through. How do I get a good joint before glue up?


----------



## BLarge (Aug 29, 2011)

I would get a razor sharp handplane and hit each side of a glue joint- think about it this way, your planer doesn't cut flat, it takes thousands of scallops and scoops due to the circular cutting nature of the machine, so your mating surfaces are not getting full glue surface connection. Look down your components lengthwise and you will see the very so slight scallops….

Same technique for table top glue-up, or face mating glue-ups- once you get used to it, do spring joints to improve your strength and gluing accuracy.

Good luck!


----------



## RobHannon (Dec 12, 2016)

Sounds like either your planner blades needs some adjusting or the opposite side of the boards are not flat causing it to rock as it goes through. If they are large boards and you have a jointer I would try that. Small you can use shims and hot glue to get them level on a flat surface like a scrap piece of mdf and pass them through the planer.

I recently had this happen to me on my planer and a wood chip had gotten under one of the blades making in convex. Still not sure how I pulled that off but was an easy fix.


----------



## Loren (May 30, 2008)

It seems likely to me that your pieces are
curving. They may also be coming out of
the planer thinner in the middle.

Glue joints can be refined by running the
parts over a jointer, using a router table
set up for edge jointing, jointing with a hand
plane, or even rubbing the parts back and
forth on a flat surface with sandpaper taped
to it.

Table saw methods like this may also
work.


----------



## jerkylips (May 13, 2011)

I know I guy. Call me.


----------



## AbbyL (Jan 31, 2018)

Loren I'll try doing the sandpaper and table thing. I'm not experienced enough to know all the wood working terms. But the cheapest route is the best for me so I'll give that try. What grit sand paper would work best?


----------



## mojapitt (Dec 31, 2011)

Welcome to Lumberjocks

Where are you located? If you're close to many people here, I am sure someone would let you use a jointer.


----------



## Loren (May 30, 2008)

> Loren I'll try doing the sandpaper and table thing. I'm not experienced enough to know all the wood working terms. But the cheapest route is the best for me so I'll give that try.
> 
> - AbbyL


Try to make sure the surface is really flat. I
have a scrap of MDF with a length of 6" 
sanding belt glued to it.

I wouldn't do a whole batch without checking
the joints. If your sanding surface is out of
flat the first few joints will probably tell you. 
If you have a stone counter top in the house
those tend to be pretty flat.


----------



## AbbyL (Jan 31, 2018)

I am in Houston Texas. My countertops are old and uneven. Ahaha. I'll test it out a couple times on my fold out table


----------



## AbbyL (Jan 31, 2018)

Actually. I have a scrap piece of that stuff too. I'll use that. Thanks.


----------



## AbbyL (Jan 31, 2018)

This good right?


----------



## Loren (May 30, 2008)

Yeah, that sort of thing exactly.

You can mark the wood with chalk or pencil
which makes it easy to see where material
is being removed by the sand paper.


----------



## AbbyL (Jan 31, 2018)

When I clamp them together with my my hands I am now seeing no light.


----------



## jerkylips (May 13, 2011)

no one mentioned it, but something may be off on your table saw, too. If the blade is not parallel to the fence, you could be getting cuts that aren't square. If your blade is dull & you're having to force the wood through, you could be putting uneven pressure on it/letting it come away from the fence.. That sort of thing..


----------



## AbbyL (Jan 31, 2018)

I don't have my own table saw yet. I was using a family members one and it is very old and makes sounds it shouldn't. I've learned my mistake with theses boards. One I need more practice with a table saw. Really all power tools and two get my own table saw.


----------



## Sludgeguy (Jan 24, 2018)

https://www.popularwoodworking.com/techniques/joinery/cheating-at-jointing-edges
http://www.finewoodworking.com/2014/02/19/jointing-boards-for-dead-flat-panel-glue-ups

I use the technique in the second link. It's in a book by Chris Schwarz also.


----------



## rwe2156 (May 7, 2014)

First, it sounds like that tablesaw needs some alignment.

There's a difference between flat and surfaced ;-) A jointer makes a surface flat. This is what you're trying to achieve with the sanding. A planer makes a board uniform thickness. So a curved board going into a planer will come out curved, but equal thickness.

BUT - in your case its really not that critical. You should be able to clamp out any minor gaps with strips that thin as long as the edges are uniform. How are you clamping them?

If you're still seeing gaps after planing & clamping, this can be caused by sniping by the planer, where the ends are a bit thinner than the rest.

So get that table saw aligned, get a good quality glue line rip blade and you should be good to go.


----------



## AbbyL (Jan 31, 2018)

When I did that, using the clamps and pressing the gaps closed when I unclamp they separate some. When I ran them through the planer the gaps just got bigger. Some of my boards just fell apart after running them though. Here is an example of one of my boards with the gaps


----------



## bndawgs (Oct 21, 2016)

not enough glue perhaps also?


----------



## AbbyL (Jan 31, 2018)

I over glue mine. I have a sloppy mess when done clamping. Is it possible I'm over clamping?


----------



## EarlS (Dec 21, 2011)

Is your glue new? Any chance it froze or has been sitting for a long time. I have to say I've never heard of gaps getting wider after glue and clamps, especially if you have squeeze out.

How long are you leaving them clamped? I usually go for at least 8 hours, and better, overnight. You might also try Gorilla Glue (polyurethane) otherwise Titebond II is the standard that most of us use.

While over clamping is possible, in practice, it is pretty hard to over clamp a glue joint.


----------



## knotscott (Feb 27, 2009)

Great joints come from flat, straight, square stock. Start with a flat reference face, which is most easily achieved with a jointer, but can also be achieved with a planer using a planer sled. Then square an adjacent edge, also most effectively and easily done with a jointer, but if you have a flat reference face, a consistent square edge can also be effectively done with a jig and a table saw or router. If you skip the flattening step, and try to square an edge, it won't necessarily be a consistent 90° throughout the length of the board.

Lots of folks have different techniques, but that's the way the Norm Abrams, David Marks, and many other very successful woodworkers dimension their stock.


----------



## AbbyL (Jan 31, 2018)

I use titebond 3 it was outside in 25 degree weather. It is new. I got it maybe 1 1/2 months ago.i have done testing on the boards from 45m to 24h all the same result. And the options with getting a level/flat surface with expensive tools isn't gonna work bc I don't have them. I have to work with what I have. Which is a thickness planer and a sander. The glue wasn't out in the cold on my first ones which had the gaps still. I called the glue company and they told me if you can see light through the boards then the joint wouldn't be a good joint. Therefore it can cause it to gap. So I understand why I'm having this issue. If there is a bad joint then the joint won't last which makes since on it trying to come apart or even breaking off when going through the thickness planer. I'm trying to make good quality boards without the glue covering up a hole. Some of my boards where warped. Now I know I need more tools. Just can't do it now. So I think I'll stick to using sandpaper laid out on a flat surface.


----------



## waho6o9 (May 6, 2011)

^ Public Domain

Veritas edge plane works for me. 
http://www.leevalley.com/us/wood/page.aspx?p=54862&cat=1,41182,48945


----------



## AbbyL (Jan 31, 2018)

It looks cool. But dose it work for surfacing or just getting a flat surface


----------



## waho6o9 (May 6, 2011)

Just for the edge, it worked well for my butcher block


----------



## waho6o9 (May 6, 2011)

Thanks to OSU55's blog, http://lumberjocks.com/OSU55/blog/39501, I learned how to fine tune the chip breaker ^ after which I flattened the butcher block.


----------



## AbbyL (Jan 31, 2018)

Yeah that looks amazing. Well done.


----------



## waho6o9 (May 6, 2011)

Thank you


----------

