Hi Ernie
I’m a woodworker in Sweden that are in the middle of my project “durable outdoor table”. I have a question of technic in this article.
To joint the segment David Bedrosian is using spline for this joint. On the picture the spline are the grain in opposite of the segment, like plywood. So my question; shouldent the spline have the same grain direction as the segment to adding strength ? If I do it as it is in the article the segment can easiely break. Or am I thinking wrong ?
Sorry for my bad english, but I normaly speak swedish…..
///Benke
Replies
Yes, it would be better (and actually correct) if the grain of the spline ran in about the same direction as the the pieces being joined. That is with the proviso that they will never be exactly parallel due to the angle of the joint. The thing working for Mr. Bedrosian in this case is the narrow width of the perimeter pieces. at 5 3/8" (13.65 CM) there is not enough wood movement that it will make much difference. I am sure he understands this.
Your catch is a good one and it is nice to hear from readers who are paying attention to wood movement.
With best regards,
Ernie Conover
Benke, You're right. The drawing was incorrect, we ran a correction in the following issue.
Matt Berger
Fine Woodworking
Any idea where to find the chairs featured in the photo?
I'm not sure where those chairs came from. I'll contact the author and get back to you.
Would biscuits work as well as the splines? Seems like it would be much easier, but would it be as strong?
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