Replies

1. 
   forrestb | Dec 09, 2014 01:35pm | #1

   loose, or slip, tenons

   I assume you are asking about "how-to" with slip tenons - even though you have done one?

   I use them all the time, even for small projects, since I don't much care for fitting tenon-by-tenon-by-tenon - ad infinitum.

   Assuming your project needs for these are fairly consistent in size, I would make all of your mortises the same width, length and depth although the width of the mortise is most important to keep constant.

   The width just follows the rules for sizing cut tenons.

   You then produce a 'long' board that fits the width of the tenon perfectly.  You can then decide where to cut this 'slip tenon board' to fit the lengths and depths of your various mortises should they not all be the same.  You make all of your "tenons" at once.

   I find that making the slip tenon a little short of the length and chamfering the edges wil allow the slip tenon to fit with a bit of wiggle-room' at assembly to line up mating surfaces.

   If you sign up for Tim Rousseau's Mitered Joinery class on Taunton Workshops he shows how to use them for mitered joints, but the process is the same for butt joints.  He rounds the edges for a 'perfect' fit to the mortise, but this is usually not necessary unless your design has starved you of any extra room.

   Forrest