Idbill Posted May 1, 2011 Report Share Posted May 1, 2011 Ok, so I've now bought both the Rockler drop leaf hinges. My table/leaf edge is straight. I originally bought the 'Hinge Countersunk Barrel' 29249, inset the hinge... but found that when hinged down, the leaf ended up being about 1/4+" below the bottom of the table so I flipped the hinge over, and inset the barrel. Then the leaf wouldn't hinge because of binding. So I went back and got the 'Countsink Back-2LVS 1/2 Swage' 29256. This hinge is thankfully a little larger, so the screw holes are very different. Now it appear when the leaf is hinged down, it 'moves UP (towards the top of the table) by ~1/8", and to not bind, the pin needs to be just beyond the table edge(?) So I just visited the Rockler website and the hinge is shown SURFACE mounted! WTF. Searching for tips on mounting drop leaf hinges, sends me to:WhiteChapel ... which looks exactly like my 1st attempt. After thinking about it... it seems like the barrel needs to be centered on the gap between the two... and also centered on the bottom edge of the table, but that has become obviously clear to me that that logic doesn't apply here. I'm stumped... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jawertz Posted May 1, 2011 Report Share Posted May 1, 2011 You don't mention whether your top/leaf joint has a rule joint edge. If you used a rule joint, the hinge barrel must be "centered" under the top break in the table top edge. Lee Valley has a good illustration under "rule-joint hinges". The hinge can be either inset or surface mounted. For example, my Pennsylvania House dining room table uses surface mounted hinges (knuckle down). I have seen inset hinges done both knuckle up (inset) or knuckle down (exposed). I hope this helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Idbill Posted May 1, 2011 Author Report Share Posted May 1, 2011 OK, flipped the 'Countsink Back-2LVS 1/2 Swage' 29256 hinge over and the pin appears to be centered on the bottom edge of the table. When hinged, the gap looks good. My conclusion is that these hinges are not designed to be inset... just the barrel is supposed to be inset. It is unfortunate that there isn't any instructions included with the hinge or on the Rockler website other than the sales image. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Idbill Posted May 1, 2011 Author Report Share Posted May 1, 2011 Here are some pictures... The 29249 (Hinge Countersunk Barrel) Which produces a 1/8" gap With the 29249 flipped over... Which binds very badly The 29256 (CNTSNK BACK-2LVS 1/2 SWAGE) Note, this hinge is ever so slightly longer. In order for this to work at all, the hinge had to be shifted quite a bit out to the leaf, but still binds very badly With the 29249 flipped over... Which produces a 1/16" gap. This is what I'm going with! Also note (as I expected) the hinge pin is centered on the bottom edge of the table. Moral or the story: 1) As Mark says, 'With the test pieces, you can at least try different mounting strategies until you find what works for you.' 2) Test, test, test... even if it looks obvious. I hope someone else can learn from this experience. Bill 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
padregib Posted September 15, 2022 Report Share Posted September 15, 2022 This seems like the best step by step. He draws better than I could! https://s3.amazonaws.com/finewoodworking.s3.tauntoncloud.com/app/uploads/2006/03/27175656/Drop_Leaf_Hinges.pdf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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