I have been looking at/reading about Japanese joinery methods.
1) Can anyone point me to a reference or illustration for a particular joint? See the attached picture. The joinery is seen on chests that have a frame of square or rectangular cross-section with thinner panels forming the body or sides of the chest. I am not visualizing the joinery of the intersection of the frontal facing frame and the side frame member (either top or bottom).
Most examples show a through tenon of the side member into the front facing rail. What i’m not seeing or visualizing is the joinery for the vertical member. I presume that this intersection of the three frame members are interlocking, but I need a visual prompt.
Thanks
Replies
“[Deleted]”
If you look at the top left corner you can see there's a tenon from the vertical member showing on top. The bottom should be the mirror image of that. If you need a drawing of it in exploded form, I can make that.
I see the vertical tenon, now. An illustration would help, especially if there is an interlocking aspect.
Thanks!
I don't think it's really that complex. I can't tell for sure from your image but I'm guessing there's a narrow shoulder on the one side of the tenon as in my drawing. I imagine you could lock the joint with a dowel run in from the end of the mortised part but I'm guessing the original isn't pinned.
Thanks for the illustration! I tend to try and over engineer things, hence the idea that the joints should be interlocking. If one still thinks the upper and lower frames need a mechanical joint or bond as well as the glued tenons, then wedged tenons could be employed. Thanks again for the response!
Yes. You could wedge the tenons although I don't see any evidence of them in your photograph.
Happy to help if it clarified things for you.
FWIW, I have a sneaking suspicion there's no narrow shoulder on the tenons like I show. This would make the tenons easier to cut but your mortises have to be much more perfect.
Look at issue number 262 - "Lighter, Stronger Panels" by Andrew Hunter. He uses Chinese joinery methods instead of Japanese, but there are through tenons used in the center rails. I'm no expert but I enjoy reading fine woodworking articles and just remembered that article.
Maybe just to point this out: What is interesting in the first picture is that the tenon penetrates the "rail" straight and in line with the vertical rail border. This works because the "rails" are overhanging or are proud. So it seems to me that when the tenon is cut, the outside face stays flush.
Edit: Or as Dave says, there is no outside tenon-shoulder.
An alternative is to interlock the tenons. On the horizontal members, create as wide a tenon as possible and assemble the joint. Then rout a smaller mortice right thru the existing tenon, sizing it so there's enough wood on either side. I did this on a Tansu style chest a few years back. It's pretty easy and was fun to do.
Don’t forget to hammer the tenons with a slightly rounded hammer to compress the fibers, which will expand (depends on wood?) when resting in the mortise.
This forum post is now archived. Commenting has been disabled