# Is it possible to make splines with no end grain showing?



## TiggerWood (Jan 1, 2014)

The only possible way I can think of is to find a sharp bend in the wood and make the splines out of that. Is there any other way or does the end grain on the spline not matter/bother you?


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## Loren (May 30, 2008)

You could make triangle spline stock and then glue thick 
veneer mitered on the corner on it. Then cut off your 
splines. The thick "veneer" will give you some long grain 
to plane away.

End grain on splines does not bother me.


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## Yonak (Mar 27, 2014)

I'm making a chest top right now which splines are shorter that the length of the adjoined pieces. I just started short and ended the dado cut short on the table saw. Is that applicable to your question ?


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## TiggerWood (Jan 1, 2014)

Loren, That sounds good and challenging.

Yonak, I'm sorry, I have no idea what you are describing.


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## Yonak (Mar 27, 2014)

> Yonak, I m sorry, I have no idea what you are describing.
> 
> - TiggerWood


Clearly, you and I are not singing from the same songbook. Good luck.


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## TheDane (May 15, 2008)

> Yonak, I m sorry, I have no idea what you are describing.


He is talking about a stopped dado (or groove). The dado/groove stops just short of both ends of the pieces being joined. The spline would then be more like a loose tenon … you would get the advantage of the strength and alignment a spline affords without seeing the end-grain of the spline itself.


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## Loren (May 30, 2008)

There are all kinds of concealed joints most woodworkers
have never learned to cut. Hidden dovetails and things
like that. You can cut a miter with a sort of half-lap in
the back, but cut back so the excavated portion on the
one side is not visible from the edge of the frame. You 
can even do a miter with a concealed mortise and tenon 
joint but it could be tricky to cut well and especially tricky 
on thin frame stock.


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## patron (Apr 2, 2009)

mitered corners
and the spline going down the miter
with the grain going across the joint
(so the spline doesn't split)









plane stock to saw kerf thickness
and crosscut pieces to length


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## TiggerWood (Jan 1, 2014)

Thank you guys. I understand what your saying about the hidden joints.

I like the spline contrast and have seen many splines on picture frames, with the long grain showing on the side, possibly with the end grain on top and bottom. It really looks good and I would probably take the approach with picture frames. I want to make a wine box using splines. On a box, people will see both sides of the spline.

Right now I'm thinking of making the spline with the grain on one side and then inlaying veneer on the other. How does this sound to you?


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## bigblockyeti (Sep 9, 2013)

I think you'd be loosing much of the strength involved with having the wood turned in such a manner that the end grain wasn't visible. If you're more concerned with the contrast look than gaining strength in the joint, you could make a shallow stop dado on two adjacent sides and inset a small piece of the contrasting wood of choice. It would take very little wood to do so and you could miter the corners together so they matched the miter of the wood they were inset into.


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