I will be joining two cherry slabs together that are at 5% MC for a desk top. I don’t have a FT Domino so my plan is to use biscuits for alignment and then simply glue up. Would putting metal splines on the underside be advisable? The client is putting metal pipe legs on.
Thank you,
Leah
Replies
I assume from the chalk lines that you are planning on squaring them up before gluing. At first glance, I thought you might be asking how to join them at just the points where they now touch. With a straight square edge they should glue up just fine. Biscuits will help with alignment but, they aren't perfect. You should also use clamping cauls until the glue dries. Cross-grain battens might not be necessary structurally but, might be good to provide anchor points for the metal base. Just be sure to allow for expansion and contraction by screwing it on (don't glue) through elongated holes.
I've used long splines for joining boards together as I don't have a biscuit joiner or Domino. Easy to make, simple to assemble, strong and should last a long time. You still have to be careful with alignment but that's true in all cases, I think.
Where those boards are split on the ends I'd insert butterflies. Metal will work but it doesn't have the same expansion rate as wood, and may stain the cherry in the long term.
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