Replies

1. 
   John_D | Apr 25, 2006 09:02am | #1

   You might want to search on a technique called drawboring.

   My goal is for my work to outlast me.  Expect my joinery to get simpler as time goes by.
2. 
   shopteacher | Apr 25, 2006 02:10pm | #2

   On this set of night stands I used 1/4" cherry for the pegs and drilled the holes at 15/32".

   
1. 
   MikeHennessy | Apr 25, 2006 03:04pm | #4

   "I used 1/4" cherry for the pegs and drilled the holes at 15/32"

   Yo, Teach! Hope that's a typo. That would leave almost 1/4" of slop!

   In answer to the OP, here are several options:

   1) If you want square holes, drill square holes with a mortise machine (or, if you don't have a mortise machine, pre-drill them round and square them up with the chisel bit from a mortise machine -- this method also works well for pegging joints in an already-assembled piece that won't fit in the mortise machine) and make pegs sized to be snug.2) If you are using dowels, there's no telling what size they REALLY are, so pick a drill sized to give a snug fit.3) Drill round holes and make square pegs. Whittle most of the pegs round to fit in the hole snugly and leave the last 1/4" or so square. Drive it home.

   In all the above methods, put a drop of glue in the hole, not on the peg or you'll have glue all over the face of the joint. If you want the pegs proud, you might want to bevel the edges first and drive them home through a washer as a spacer to leave them uniformly exposed. If you want them flush, just drive them home and trim off the excess with a flexible saw and sand flush.

   Drawboring pegs is mainly used for larger work, like post & beam construction. That method requires drilling the hole through the piece with the mortise and then drilling the hole in the tennon just a bit closer to the joint's shoulder that the mortise hole is drilled. Then use green wood to make a peg. It'll pull the joint tight and get a crook when you drive it home that will become permanent as the peg dries. I think this is overkill if you are going to glue and clamp a M&T joint for furniture work, but hey, whatever makes you smile, ....

   Mike HennessyPittsburgh, PA

1. 
   Stephenson | Apr 25, 2006 06:16pm | #5

   Thanks Mike for the thorough advice. I guess I need to go out to the shop and try out a few techniques to see what works best for me.

    

   Thanks, John.

1. 
   AdamCherubini | Apr 25, 2006 06:59pm | #6

   That's smart to try all this before the big game (so to speak). Here's something else to try:

   Bore undersize then whittle a slight taper on the peg and tap it in until you run out of nerve.  If you have a gappy shoulder, you'll split the mortise piece, so keep pressure on the joint.  I do a lot of draw boring because it solves this problem and others.  Its hard to know exactly what was done.  Evidence of drawboring can disappear with time or be very subtle.  So I recommend trying this approach as well.  A center bit works best, though a brad point drill bit may suffice. 

   Adam

2. 
   shopteacher | Apr 26, 2006 01:58am | #11

   Oops!

   15/64" would fit much better.

3. 
   cherryjohn | Apr 25, 2006 03:02pm | #3

   If you are using a larger sized dowel you can get away with undersizing the hole a smidgen.  If the dowel is going to be a small one make the hole the same size as the dowel and let the glue do the work.  After all you are pinning the 2 pieces so that they dont pull apart and thats what the dowels is in there for.  If you undersize the hole you run the risk of splitting the case wood or snapping off the dowel.  This would mean drilling the broken piece out  and if your not exact the hole will be larger than the other pins and in case work it would be obvious.

   Wicked Decent Woodworks

   (oldest woodworking shop in NH)

   Rochester NH

   " If the women dont find you handsome, they should at least find you handy........yessa!"

4. 
   joinerswork | Apr 25, 2006 08:49pm | #7

   John,

   The easiest way of pegging a joint is to saw several lengths 1'-2' long of 1/4" square stock.  Usually same species as your project, but for contrast, or in the case of a really soft wood like white pine, you may want something different.  Make sure the peg stock is exactly 1/4", not even a little bit oversize.  Cut the stock into lengths of 1-1/2" or thereabouts.  Drill the 1/4" hole for the pegs into the clamped-up joint, knock the corners of the pegs back for 1/2" or so with your pocketknife, dip just the tips in glue and drive 'em home.  Remove clamps, and repeat as necessary.  When the glue in the joint has set, you can saw the pegs off just above the surface of the joint, and pare flush with a chisel.  And as the Brits say, Bob's yer uncle.  No need to pound square holes, whittle tapers, or drill separate holes  for mortise and tenon, unless you just really, really want to.

   Reagrds,

   Ray Pine

5. 
   Lataxe | Apr 25, 2006 10:28pm | #8

   John,

   If possible, make your own dowels as you can then control the size and use any wood you like.  I like the Lie Nielson dowel plate for this but there are other tools (eg see the Lee Valley catalogue).

   When I pin a tenon I make the dowel and the hole exacltly the same size.  But I make the dowel out of wood I have dried next to the cooker so it has a couple of percent or so less moisture in it than the joint to be pinned.  The dowel will then swell just a bit to make a tight fit. 

   I haven't had one split on me yet; and they certainly don't fall out.  In fact, they look very neat.

   The biggest problem tends to be getting a neat-edged dowel hole.  I try to bore the holes on a drill press with a good quality spur bit wherever possible.  My hand-held drilling skills are a bit on the wobbly side, which can lead to a ragged edge.  This spoils the "hole" effect.  :-)

   Lataxe

6. 
   frenchy | Apr 25, 2006 10:50pm | #9

   Stephenson,

     I can't believe nobody so far has taught you this technique..

     drill the holes the same size..  BUT--------  Offset the hole in the tennion slightly towards the post.  that way the peg is always pinched in place and  it  wants to  loosen the peg will draw the piece together tighter.. 

    If you go slightly smaller there will be a tendancy to split the wood as a too big peg is forced into  a too small hole..

    With my slightly offset method  (No I didn't invent it) the peg is trying to curve which locks the peg in like a turned key and pulls the work together..  
    

    

1. 
   highfigh | Apr 25, 2006 11:16pm | #10

   What frenchy described is the same thing JohnD called 'drawboring'. By drilling slightly closer to the tenon's shoulder, you draw the joint together and it's a very old technique.
   "I cut this piece four times and it's still too short."

2. 
   Stephenson | Apr 26, 2006 04:38am | #12

   Although I like the method of "Draw Boarding" I think the method I like the most, and the one I found to work the best today in the shop, was to mortise a 1/2" hole and drive in 17/32" stock. The door is 8/4 V.G. Fir and I made the pegs out of African Mohagany. The pegs will be going through a double, loose tennon.

   Thanks for all the good advice everyone, John.