# First Blush Impressions



## Wolffarmer

Hey thanks for the very informative review. Not that I am in the market for such a jig but every bit of knowledge helps


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## phil619

Great review. Thanks for posting it.


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## Routerisstillmyname

THX for detail review and awesome pics.
These types of jigs for Mortise & Tenon are way too time consuming and the length of the stock is limited to the height setup. Accuracy is hit and miss at best.


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## Tennwood

Thanks for the review. I was really interested in getting one of these, but not so much anymore.


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## thedude50

Daniel just reviewed the leigh fmt on our website, the review was a bit more pleased with this tool than you were with the general. Your review was well done since this is a comparable machine you may want to read this review too click here http://www.thisoldworkshop.com/index.php/reviews/106-leighmt and or copy the link to your browser. I don't think Daniel had the same problems with the flanging, i am not sure if it is supposed to do that or if the formula is bad for the tenon, any way you did a good job. i can telll you the one thing we do differently is we take days to learn all the problems and how to fix them before we do the review. That's why we take so long to do a review we feel we have to know if its the user or the tool if its easily mastered. few things are perfect out of the box and you could have given it a week or two and worked out the bugs and offered us a complete review with your solution's since your lay out is so good this one little bit of advise and you could be a pro at reviews.


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## michelletwo

now this is an informative & well done review. thank you.


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## Pdub

Thanks, I just saw this in a magazine over the weekend and was wondering where I would get the money for one. Maybe I'll hold off for awhile before spending $150.


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## pintodeluxe

I thought it looked too good to be true. Can you cut angled or compound angle M & T joints?
As far as the alignment tool - could you just make a little wood t-bar that extends all the way down to the workpiece for easy marking? I agree with you their alignment tool looks like an afterthought.


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## Woodowl

For 150 buy a decent chisel and a saw and cut those in ten minutes. Perfect fit


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## Chipy

Thanks Dyanablue for the in depth review! I drooled over this jig thinking it would be a great alternative to buying a costly dedicated mortise machine/"dust collector"(joke)This jig had a odd coming out party and took a long time to come to market witch left me with a lot of questions even before this jig hit the shelves now I know why.I don't do a lot of mortise work but would like the capability.You have saved me a lot of aggravation and dismantlement,thank you, this is just what this web site is all about!!!!! I kinda wonder how well those $800 +jigs perform?


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## lcwood

nice review with pros and cons!

looks too good to be real and the cons me tell the real deal
tanks for save me 150 bucks !


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## ferrini

Wow. Thank you so much for an incredibly informative and detailed review.
This reviews saved me the trouble of buying one and finding out what you revealed here.


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## Lsmart

I don't know if anyone is still watching this thread but I have a question. I have just received my M/T jig and first impressions leave me a wishing I had read this review before buying. I haven't even tried the jig yet but right away I am noticing a lot of slop between the guide bush and the mortising guide (between 1/64 and 1/32). I am wondering Dynablue if you experienced the same thing. I will be trying the jig today to see how it affects performance but it doesn't give me hope.


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## joejt

I have recently had the opportunity to try this jig, and I was able to make a test mortise and tenon joint. I like the quality of the jig, but I have a few suggestions for the designer who I know is following this blog.

I like the quality of the jig. The screw in bushings are nice and a necessity.

I read the review by Dynablue and share most of his observations. However, I had no problem with the set up fingers as he did. He was concerned about give/bending of the fingers and not getting square joints. I tried to duplicate his concern about bending, and found it would take a lot of force to do so. Just placing the wood firmly against the fingers, I was able to make a square joint. Also, the addition of the Squaring adapter should alleviate his problem of square joints and it is a welcome addition for making repeat cuts without measuring and marking each joint.

Suggested Improvements:

Better method for centering the wood front to back - 
The front fence is calibrated based on sawmill references: 2 quarter, 4 quarter, etc. Note that not all boards are not going to comply exactly - some will be exactly 3/4" others may be over or under, for example. I think the front fence should have a crank, knob, or other means of adjustment so the work can be easily centered in the template window. However, if the wood is always oriented with the same face to the front or back, there is no need for PRECISE centering. It still would be easier to approximate quite accurately with a different means of adjustment.

I was going to complain about the lack of a settable stop for repeat cuts ,but then discovered the squaring/stop accessory. Seems the manufacturer is getting feedback and listening to it.

A clean-up in the directions:
"Set the Depth of the Router Bit" There is no need to reference from the router face plate. Simplify by measuring the protrusion of the router bit from the face of the guide bushing. This will determine the depth of cut in the mortise, and the length of the tenon. Eliminate the instruction calling for measuring from the base plate and subtracting 1/2"

Introduce the squaring/stop tool earlier in the instructions. Note: it is not included in the section of "What's in the M&T Jig Kit"

Other Concerns:

Plastic template width adjusters. I am afraid that repeated movement and squeezing the set screw will wear out the plastic guides quickly.


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