GerryG wrote:
Okay, just located Chuck Ring's notes, some of which came from Hank Metz, who
taught me about these things years ago, so this should be fairly accurate.
http://www.woodworking.org/WC/GArchi...28ringpj1.html

The slot should be 5/32 or 0.156 wide.
Biscuits are spec'ed at .0.148. (However, I've never seen them that thin.)
The biscuit should swell with water to 0.164, and stay close to that when it
dries.

GerryG

I measured mine last night and did some more joints, and didn't have
the same problems I was having. The slots I measured came out right
at 0.156 to 0.157. The biscuits I forget exactly but I believe they
were 0.148 +/-0.002.

I assume that my problems were operator error on the first couple of
joints I made - not holding the tool or workpiece steady as I made the cut.

I still had some vertical alignment issues last night - but it is more
along the lines of being able to catch the fingernail as you slide
across the joint. I figure that is only a couple of thou difference and
easily taken care of by the sander.

I hadn't used a biscuit joiner until the last couple of days and I am
really liking it. Lets me make no-fastener joints in places I couldn't
before, and is SO much faster than using the doweling jig. Not to
mention a whole lot more forgiving on alignment issues than dowels. I
put some solid banding (2.5" wide) on some plywood last night using it.
I ended up using 16 biscuits and didn't have any major alignment
issues. I couldn't imagine trying to do that with dowels and not having
at least one hole be off just a hair - enough to be a pain in the....


Dan