Loose Tenon mortise and tenon joinery is becoming more accessible to,
though not necessarily affordable for, the amateur woodworker thanks
to several products that have become available over the last several
years. Right now, I'm aware of three router based - non CNC - jigs /
tools that will cut end grain mortises - the TREND M&T JIG, the Leigh
FMT jig and the MultiRouter - along with the new Festool DOMINO that's
not router based.

What I hope to do is show, with simple annotated diagrams, the
procedure
for doing end grain mortises with each jig / tool and describe the
strenghths and weaknesses (if any) of the available jigs / tools when
it comes to this specific application.

I know the procedure for cutting mortises in end grain using the TREND
M&T JIG and the Festool DOMINO. I've never used the Leigh FMT jig or
the MultiRouter. I'm working on the Leigh FMT jig first, trying to
under-
stand how it works and the procedure for using it - in real basic steps.

The goal is to provide info that can help other woodworkers, looking
into ways to make loose tenon M&T joinery part of their joints arsenal,
with their purchasing decision. I'll put the stuff up on my woodworking
site after "peer review" is completed and post the URL to it in
rec.woodworking.

I have NO connection or affiliation with any of the jigs /tools makers
or sellers of any of the jigs / tool noted above, and paid the going
price
for the TREND M&T JIG and the DOMINO. - no freebies or discounts
to influence the evaluation. (When I got the DOMINO I gave the TREND
M&T JIG to a woodworker long on Woodworking Passion and Short on Cash.
If you have a tool or jig that's been replaced by a New AND Improved
one and don't feel like hasseling with selling or swapping it - find a
woodworker long on Woodworking Passion and Short On Cash and
make his/her day. What YOU get - priceless).

I've posted an illustration of the Leigh FMT procedure as I think it
works
to alt.binaries.pcitures.woodworking with this post's subject line.

Need someone who HAS used the FMT - preferably successfully - to look
over the attachment and let me know if I've missed something significant
or got something wrong. Comments can be posted here under this
post's subject line, or to a.b.p.w using this post's subject line
or e-mailed directly to me (my e-mail address is real, and the only one
I have - no HotMail or Yahoo drop outs).

Thanks for reading all this and hope to thank some of you for
helping out.

charlie b

"charlieb" wrote in message
...
Loose Tenon mortise and tenon joinery is becoming more accessible to,
though not necessarily affordable for, the amateur woodworker thanks
to several products that have become available over the last several
years. Right now, I'm aware of three router based - non CNC - jigs /
tools that will cut end grain mortises - the TREND M&T JIG, the Leigh
FMT jig and the MultiRouter - along with the new Festool DOMINO that's
not router based.

What I hope to do is show, with simple annotated diagrams, the
procedure
for doing end grain mortises with each jig / tool and describe the
strenghths and weaknesses (if any) of the available jigs / tools when
it comes to this specific application.


FIY, and FWIW, the current Wood magazine has a comparison of butt joints
made with the Domino, the PC Plate Joiner, a Doweling Jig, and a regular
mortise and tenon.
You might get some interesting information from that article.

I have had the FMT for several years, and love it. Cutting mortices in end
grain (or long grain) is simple. I would be happy to edit your procedure for
the FMT. Where is it ?(hasn't shown up yet on ABPW - I'll watch for it). I
also owned the Trend jig before buying the FMT, so I know the differences
between these two jigs.

To mortice with the FMT

1. Pick a mortice size template and mount it
2. Pick a spiral upcut router bit and mount it in the plunge router.
3. Extend the cross hair alignment piece on the jig and clamp the part to be
morticed in the FMT with it's top end touching the alignment piece.
4. Release the XY positioning lock and move the top plate so the crosshairs
align with the mortice center position marks on the part and retract the
Crosshair alignment piece.
5. Place the plunge router with FMT baseplate on the FMT
6. Set the depth of the mortice by setting the plunge depth of the router.
7. Make plunge cuts with the router to remove the bulk of the material from
the mortice. The pin that follows the mortice slot of the template prevents
the router from cutting anywhere outside the perimeter of the mortice
dimensions.
8. Follow the mortice slot in the template in a counter clockwise direction
to clean out the mortice.
Done

The same template (outside perimeter) can be followed to cut a matching
tenon and an adjustment of the tapered template follower pin allows for
precise mortice/tenon fit adjustments, if you wish to make matching mortice
and tenon joints, which are repeatable (today, tomorrow, or next month) once
the ideal setting for this size and wood type has been found and recorded.

Leigh provides a very thorough FREE demonstration DVD of the FMT and their
Dovetail jigs along with their catalog that is complete enough for anyone to
learn how their jigs work and how to use them. I also have their D4R
dovetail jig and the F2 Finger joint attachment. These Leigh jigs have
increased my woodworking joint accuracy more than any other tool that I own.
Their jigs do everything that they say they will do to CNC accuracies
without the "Hocus Pocus" and "Kentucky Windage" that is required to get
precise fits with other brands of jigs.

I have no connection to Leigh. I'm just a very satisfied customer.

--
Charley

"charlieb" wrote in message
...
Loose Tenon mortise and tenon joinery is becoming more accessible to,
though not necessarily affordable for, the amateur woodworker thanks
to several products that have become available over the last several
years. Right now, I'm aware of three router based - non CNC - jigs /
tools that will cut end grain mortises - the TREND M&T JIG, the Leigh
FMT jig and the MultiRouter - along with the new Festool DOMINO that's
not router based.

What I hope to do is show, with simple annotated diagrams, the
procedure
for doing end grain mortises with each jig / tool and describe the
strenghths and weaknesses (if any) of the available jigs / tools when
it comes to this specific application.

I know the procedure for cutting mortises in end grain using the TREND
M&T JIG and the Festool DOMINO. I've never used the Leigh FMT jig or
the MultiRouter. I'm working on the Leigh FMT jig first, trying to
under-
stand how it works and the procedure for using it - in real basic steps.

The goal is to provide info that can help other woodworkers, looking
into ways to make loose tenon M&T joinery part of their joints arsenal,
with their purchasing decision. I'll put the stuff up on my woodworking
site after "peer review" is completed and post the URL to it in
rec.woodworking.

I have NO connection or affiliation with any of the jigs /tools makers
or sellers of any of the jigs / tool noted above, and paid the going
price
for the TREND M&T JIG and the DOMINO. - no freebies or discounts
to influence the evaluation. (When I got the DOMINO I gave the TREND
M&T JIG to a woodworker long on Woodworking Passion and Short on Cash.
If you have a tool or jig that's been replaced by a New AND Improved
one and don't feel like hasseling with selling or swapping it - find a
woodworker long on Woodworking Passion and Short On Cash and
make his/her day. What YOU get - priceless).

I've posted an illustration of the Leigh FMT procedure as I think it
works
to alt.binaries.pcitures.woodworking with this post's subject line.

Need someone who HAS used the FMT - preferably successfully - to look
over the attachment and let me know if I've missed something significant
or got something wrong. Comments can be posted here under this
post's subject line, or to a.b.p.w using this post's subject line
or e-mailed directly to me (my e-mail address is real, and the only one
I have - no HotMail or Yahoo drop outs).

Thanks for reading all this and hope to thank some of you for
helping out.

charlie b

Leon wrote:

FIY, and FWIW, the current Wood magazine has a comparison of butt joints
made with the Domino, the PC Plate Joiner, a Doweling Jig, and a regular
mortise and tenon.
You might get some interesting information from that article.

Right now I'm just after the TREND M&T JIG, the Leigh FMT jig, the
MultiRouter and the DOMINO. But for those on a budget the DowelMax
looks like a well thought out system that can be positioned
accurately.

Charley:

thanks for the info. will post response in a.b.p.w.

charlie b