Mortise and Tenon Primer

Fixing F**K Ups

Unless you make regular contributions to the woodworking cabal and perform the requisite rituals and sacrifices to the woodworking gods, at least once, you're going to cut a mortise too wide or a tenon too narrow, or worse yet, cut a mortise on the wrong face of a table leg or the like. Normally it's the result of not marking, and then using, the reference faces and edges when doing the layout.

Here's an example of a good fitting joint - in the WRONG PLACE.

Some sources of the problem:
1. used the wrong Referece Face when laying out the tenon
2. the tenon was too "fat" and, rather than shaving a little off opposite cheeks, all the
adjustment was done on only one cheek.
3. both cheek cuts were made on the wrong side of the layout line
4. the wood gods were having a bad day and took it out on YOU

Here's one solution to this "challenge". Glue on some veneer to "add" wood where it's needed.

more to come

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