# Anyone Using Biscuit Joints on Door/Window Casings?



## wilschroter (Dec 17, 2016)

I recently pulled off some of the door and window frames in my house and noticed that all of them have a beautiful biscuit joint on them. They are so well done that when you pull them off, they stay perfectly together!

In all the tutorials I've seen everyone seems to just nail them to the perimeter directly, which seems much faster, however I'm not sure how maintain a perfectly flat plane without some sort of guide/re-inforcement.

I'm curious what your experience/technique is for getting those miters to stay perfectly planar over time?


----------



## rwe2156 (May 7, 2014)

Glue them together and pin nail from edges prior to installing.


----------



## PPK (Mar 8, 2016)

ive thought of using the biscuit method before. Simply because with end grain joints(which miters are) the glue doesn't hold well. Nails are OK, but often split or deflect and come out somewhere unintended. And trust me, I've seen a LOT of miter joints come apart that are glued and/or nailed. I'd strongly consider it if I had a biscuit machine handy.


----------



## Bill_Steele (Aug 29, 2013)

I used biscuits on all my window and door casings. I've been very happy with the outcome. I made a story stick to get the correct dimensions and then I cut, glued, and assembled the casings in my workshop. Once dry they are easy to nail in place. I have a couple of these clam clamps that I use to clamp the casing while the glue dries.

I agree that adding a biscuit to the joint and waiting for the glue to dry takes longer. If I was doing trim carpentry for a living and knew that I could install it well enough [with no biscuit] that it would not open up later on-I might not do it.

You can make the cut by bringing the casing to the joiner (joiner is fixed and the cut is referenced from the base of the joiner) OR take the joiner to the casing (hold the joiner in your hand, reference the joiner fence off the back of the casing). You can cut a small scrap of 1/8" or 1/4" masonite or hardboard and use that to span the gap on the back of the trim to get a flat reference surface for the joiner fence.


----------



## DBDesigns (May 29, 2018)

There is woodworking and there is trim carpentry. A biscuit jointer is a woodworking tool.
Just sayin'.


----------



## Jared_S (Jul 6, 2018)

Its common on high end trim, as well as some production trim guys find its faster. Dominos, biscuits, clam clamps and pocket screws keep the miters from ever moving or opening up

Pre assembled casing installed as a single unit rather than individual boards nailed in place. Can be faster.


----------

