Rex Edgar Posted April 18, 2016 Report Share Posted April 18, 2016 What is the opinion of the forum as to the best way to make strong miter joints in plywood? I plan to use spines to add surface area for the glue and to add an accent. Do biscuits work well in plywood? or is there another method that I'm not familiar with? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tpt life Posted April 18, 2016 Report Share Posted April 18, 2016 Search lock miter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaneymack Posted April 18, 2016 Report Share Posted April 18, 2016 Time for a domino ! ? Sent from my SM-N910W8 using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rex Edgar Posted April 18, 2016 Author Report Share Posted April 18, 2016 I've tried the lock miter bit for the router and found it way to labor intensive and a good source for future kindling. Way too finicky to set up, see some of my earlier posts, thanks...... What are the differences between a Domino and a biscuit cutter? I just got the green/black dust collector, need to recharge the financial batteries Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdwerker Posted April 18, 2016 Report Share Posted April 18, 2016 If you have more than 3 or 4 long grain plywood miters to do look for lock miter set up blocks. It's worth the effort. If you are doing flat miters a biscut machine will help but isn't great. Biscuts don't go deep enough or fit tight enough. Dominos go deeper and fit tighter. Get a Domiplate by Senaca to go with it and increase your joint accuracy a bit more. A router and a wing/slot cutter & splines will work but not as good as you might hope. Chances of getting good results with splines on long grain miters are very slim. Use test cuts and featherboards whatever you do. If you just cut miters and apply a thin bead of glue a 23 gauge micro pin gun is very useful to hold the joint aligned as you work your way from one end to the other. Clamps will just make it a nightmare. Using tape as a hinge actually works quite well. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhighlander Posted April 18, 2016 Report Share Posted April 18, 2016 +1 on using the tape hinge method, on almost any miter joint. Clear packing tape holds great, and is strong enough to "clamp" tightly. Be careful to peel, not pull, when removing. It can sometimes adhere well enough to pull out chunks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rex Edgar Posted April 18, 2016 Author Report Share Posted April 18, 2016 6 hours ago, wdwerker said: If you have more than 3 or 4 long grain plywood miters to do look for lock miter set up blocks. It's worth the effort. If you are doing flat miters a biscut machine will help but isn't great. Biscuts don't go deep enough or fit tight enough. Dominos go deeper and fit tighter. Get a Domiplate by Senaca to go with it and increase your joint accuracy a bit more. A router and a wing/slot cutter & splines will work but not as good as you might hope. Chances of getting good results with splines on long grain miters are very slim. Use test cuts and featherboards whatever you do. If you just cut miters and apply a thin bead of glue a 23 gauge micro pin gun is very useful to hold the joint aligned as you work your way from one end to the other. Clamps will just make it a nightmare. Using tape as a hinge actually works quite well. Looked at the Domiplate, according to description, it will work on 1/2" or 3/4" plywood. What are the differences in the Festool Domino packages offered; 500/700 with accessories or with out and what about the actual 'dominoes'. I recon an assortment of them is necessary...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdwerker Posted April 18, 2016 Report Share Posted April 18, 2016 I have the 500, the 700 is for bigger work like house doors and large furniture.The 500 is plenty to work with 8/4 stock. I don't use the accessories much. I got my machine second hand and got all the toys but they sit in the box. I only got one bit and slowly added different sizes as I needed them. Same with the Domino loose tenons. 5 or 6 mm is plenty for 3/4 ply. I use 5 mm dominoes w 5/8"Baltic birch which is actually 15 mm thick. I made a shim for the 1/2" side of the Domiplate to use with 5/8 ply out of 2 layers of scrap Formica .That centers the bit almost perfectly . I also make my own tenon stock in widths to work with the 3 width settings on the machine. Careful ripping followed by drum sanding and then a tiny round over bit on the router table. It's easy and cheap once you are set up so run as much as you can out of scrap hardwood. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barron Posted April 22, 2016 Report Share Posted April 22, 2016 Miters in plywood are stronger than you might think, but I don't think you said how big your project is, so biscuits or dominos won't hurt. I have not used the accessories that came with my Domino but I have cut my own wide Dominos and it isn't hard to do. You can cut wider mortises than the three settings on the tool pretty easily. There is a video on how to do this on their web site. Wdwerker is right about just buying what you need. If you get the assortment set they sell you end up with a lot of dominos you don't use, and not enough of the ones you do need. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Wright Posted April 23, 2016 Report Share Posted April 23, 2016 if you are adding decorative splines then you shouldn't need any additional reinforcement Another option is to add a hidden spline to the joint, which will create strong corner. The only tool needed is a tablesaw to do this method Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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