Thursday, July 25, 2013

Breadboard Un-ending

Everything was going so well with the breadboard ends.  The mortises were wider than the tenons, I tuned the fit perfectly, I squared up the shoulder so there were no visible gaps.  So far so good.

I clamped on the breadboard ends before taking a 1/4" drill bit to mark the current location of the center of the holes.  I used my double square to measure 1/32" or so toward the shoulder to mark where I needed to drill the holes in the tenon for the drawbores.

I drilled the holes.  I reattached the breadboard ends and peeked into the holes and everything looked good.

As I stood back and began whittling the pegs I had half a feeling that I was forgetting something, but // Wow, no mistakes so far, what a great day this is turning out to be!  Let's keep going! //

So I glue the front tenon, clamp the ends on and peg them one at a time.  Everything worked perfectly.

I cleaned up the shop, went upstairs and my wife asked me what the best thing that happened today was.  // I didn't make any mistakes! //

It wasn't until the next morning while in the shower that I realized I forgot to elongate the drawbore holes in the back two tenons.  Grrr!

"Can't you just leave it?"

// No.  When winter comes the wood will dry out and it won't be able to shrink.  Those two pegs are keeping it expanded, and it might crack right down the length of the bench lid. //

"You need to make it right then.  It will bother you until winter that you didn't do it correctly and if it breaks you'll be making your third lid for the same project."

// Yep. //

So I cut the breadboard ends off and chiseled off the glue.

It's not all bad.  I had plenty of extra 5/4 stock to make new breadboard ends and now I know just how easy it is to remove them.

I cut a kerf between the tenons using the bandsaw.  Then extended the kerf with the fret saw.  Then whacked each section off with chisel & mallet.

The glued section was removed with chisel & mallet, riving the wood and then shaving it off.

The two back tenons now have elongated holes to allow for wood movement.

New breadboard ends, comin' right up!

All better.

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