# wrong grain orientation on wedged through tenon



## brian15c0 (Oct 30, 2020)

Laying in bed last evening after a productive day in the shop, I realized I made a big mistake. I cut my wedged through tenon such that the wedges are going to apply force across the grain and potentially split my board when I put them in.

I originally designed the thing correctly, its just that I let it sit for too long between steps. I didn't have the dimensions / measurements for my mortise location written out yet though and I guess I was on autopilot.

So, I cut the mortise 90 deg off what it should be. Now, the wedges are potentially going to split my board when I proceed.

A: Would I be able to clamp across the board as I'm driving in the wedges? (its a somewhat weird shape)

B: Should I make two additional wedges to fill my outer taper and make for a mainly-decorative wedge joint?

C: Should I enlargen the mortise in the correct orientation and make a new stretcher that is bigger? (I don't like this, it will be huge)

D: should I make a plug for the mortise, glue it in, and cut new mortises at the correct orientation? (high likelyhood of looking like crap)

E: Will everything be ok, just go for it? (similar to A, but sketchier)

Here are some photos:


http://imgur.com/nzkfS89


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## splintergroup (Jan 20, 2015)

Yeah, if the wedges are substantial and you really send them home, you could split your sides. Unlikely however.

As a way to correct this, I'd fill the kerfs with flat wood (no taper). Maybe a contrasting color for style points, then recut in the direction you intended.


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## SMP (Aug 29, 2018)

I'm not exactly sure of your end goal, and i can't see the rest of the setup, but since this is permanent and not knockdown, just some questions. Did you drill holes across the bottom of the kerfs? If you drilled those correctly aligned, and this is solid oak, and you tapered the mortise right it should be fine. They may snap internally but the glue etc should hold it all inside.


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## brian15c0 (Oct 30, 2020)

Thanks for the replies. I did drill the stress-relief holes at the bottom of the saw kerfs. It sounds like I am going to try to just go for it. I won't assemble the top dovetails till after the wedges work. That way, if it splits, I can re-glue it and put the wedged taper in the correct orientation.

Sounds like every woodworking mistake is salvageable given enough time, patience, and of course extra wood


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