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Wood router joinery

Creating joints to fasten two or most pieces of wood is the common way to build a wood working project. Learning how can be tricky for those who are just getting started in the workshop. There are four common joints that you can make with a router and use for most of your projects.

There are many different types of joinery that a wood worker can use to join two or more pieces of wood together.  Depending on the situation and the amount of stress a joint will be subjected to a wood worker needs to create a joint that will be able to with stand the stress.

Selecting a joint that is going to maximize strength is important. This is determined by the amount of glue surface of the joint and the direction of any stresses the joint will experience.

Housed Dado
A dado is simply a flat bottomed groove cut partially into a piece of stock. This joint is typically used when building shelves.

Use your wood router with a straight cutting bit and a straight edge to guide the router is the simplest way to mill a housed dado. Simply clamp the straight edge to the board as a guide for the router base plate. You will have to determine the proper distance from joint that you will need to set your straight edge. Measure the radius of the router base plate and subtract the radius of the bit you are using. This will give the exact distance from the joint your straight edge will need to be clamped.

It is safer to make several passes with your router when making any type of joinery where a lot of wood needs to be removed. If you are making a 3/8" deep dado do two passes taking 3/16" with each pass. This will result in a smoother dodo and be less work for your router. It will also be safer for you since you can control the router better. Continue to set up and cut all the dados you require.

Stopped Dado
Ideal for shelves or bookcases that don't have a face frame a stopped dado hides the joint to make a project look better. Stopped dados are created the same way you would make a housed dado. Great for shelves and bookcases without face frames a stopped dado allows a woodworker to hide the joint along the front edge. This still provides the strength of the dado joint but stops just short of the front edge.

To make a stopped dado simply mark the joint about an inch from the front edge and stop the router as you get to that mark.

Rabbet Joint
A rabbet joint is much like a dado except it runs along the edge of a board or piece of stock. To easily make a rabbet joint with your router use a rabetting bit. This is a bit with a guide bearing that follows the edge of the board making a notch cut. The width of the rabbet can be adjusted by changing the size of the bearing. This will reduce the amount of the bit that is exposed to the wood. The depth of the rabbet is determined by the height of the bit in the router.

Rabbets are used mostly along the back edge of a piece of stock to make a recess for a plywood back. They are also ideal for making a recess in a frame for a mirror or piece of glass.

Tongue & Groove Joint
Basically a tongue on one piece of stock that fits into a groove on a mating piece of stock. There is plenty of glue surface area making a tongue and groove a very strong joint.

Creating a tongue and groove joint is a bit more work then a housed dado but is still rather simple with a router table. First start by cutting the groove. A general rule of thumb is to cut the groove first and cut the tongue to fit. The groove should be 50% of the thickness of your stock.

Begin by setting up your router in the router table and set the height of the straight cutting bit about 1/16" higher then the length of the tongue. Set up the fence on the router table so you can center the groove. feed the stock through and turn it end for end and feed it through again. This will center the groove on your stock.

With the groove milled in the first piece you can measure the exact width and start to form the tongue. This is simple, place the piece with the groove flat on the router table and set the height of the bit so it is just shy of the groove. This will be the most precise method for getting the tongue the right thickness. Make the pass on the first side flip over the board and make a second pass to complete the tongue.

The router is a great tool for creating precise and attractive joinery. When used with a router table and the right bits you can make almost any type of joinery needed to complete most wood working projects.