In article .com, "nireedmot" wrote:
Hi there-

I hand-sawed and -chopped a double tenon with haunches
on a 17" wide glue-up for a bed footboard. It goes in
most of the way into the mortised leg and then stops.
Is there a trick for how to tell what the problem is?
How can you tell exactly where along the 17" of joint
the problem is when nothing's visible?

I'm assuming that the problem must be in the mortise, as any problem with the
tenon should be instantly obvious. I'm guessing there's a spot, somewhere,
that you didn't get chopped out deep enough.

Is there some reason you can't look into the mortise with a flashlight? That
ought to show you where the shallow spots (if any) are.

If the problem is that the tenon is being pinched (i.e. tenon too thick, or
mortise too narrow) somewhere along the way.. make a test fit, then take them
apart, and examine the tenon on both sides for signs of wear or compressed
wood fibers. That will tell you where the fit is tight.

--
Regards,
Doug Miller (alphageek at milmac dot com)

It's time to throw all their damned tea in the harbor again.