Plate (biscuit) joiner use

drw

Donn
Corporate Member
Mike, thank you for posting. I have a biscuit joiner, but like you I don't use it often - my domino has become the tool of choice. That said, I did learn a couple of new tricks from the video which has the potential of expanding the tool's utility.
 

Warped Woodwerks

.
Senior User
That is a fancy joiner he is using. ZETA P2 = $1,550

I saw this, on IG, and thought this was a sweet jig. VERY simple to create, as well as use.
 

Gotcha6

Dennis
Staff member
Corporate Member
I've found other uses for mine as well:

1. When installing a drawer lock where you need to cut a slot in the cabinet case, a simple plunge in the proper location does the job.
2. Installing barn doors - some come with a concealed guide pin or rail akin to half of a bypass door finger. Setting the cutter to center the door bottom and plowing a slot almost from end to end makes the concealment complete. This can't be done if you want to have the door open past the frame size unless you have an oversized door.
 

patlaw

Mike
Corporate Member
I have an Elu 3380 that I bought when Norm was using his on his TV show. It's not very useful, but sometimes, it's just the right tool.
 

mkepke

Mark
Senior User
I agree with Martin, using it as a slot cutter is pretty ingenious.
I like the idea but not sure how applicable that slotting capability is..some biscuit joiners are specifically designed NOT to slide side to side, eg with pins or a coarse sandpaper face on the fence. And you have the spring pressure to overcome.

One of my favorite ‘unusual’ uses for a biscuit joiner was the ability to use the super-sized S6 biscuits but looks like Lamello stopped making that size.

-Mark
 

JimD

Jim
Senior User
I have an old "Skil" biscuit joiner ad I rare use it, like you guys I gather. It works unless I tried using it for a joint where significant strength is required - like leg to apron joint. Did that once and it worked for awhile but then the table got tugged on a little too hard and the joint broke. It works for aligning boards during glueup but domino tenons work better. That used to be my most frequent use for it. Using it in a miter in 3/4 material makes sense since you can't go very deep regardless of what you use.

The biggest benefit I got from the Skil was the setup blocks it forced me to make. The fence is plastic and does not stay parallel at all. So the only reasonable way to set depth is to put a block under the fence and tighten the fence while it is resting on the block. I made them up in 1/16 increments from 1/8 to 1 1/4 inch thicknesses. I do not use them much on the Skil but I use them a lot for setting up other things in the shop. Depth of the table saw, rip fence of the table saw or bandsaw. I made all the blocks from hardwood scraps running them through my planner to get them just right.
 

pop-pop

Man with many vises
Corporate Member
A drill press cabinet is on my “todo real soon now” list. Last year I bought a large benchtop DP so that I could have a cabinet with drawers underneath for bit storage. I experimented with the miter joint technique from this video as a potential drawer joint. I used a scrap of 1/2” (15/32” really) Sandeply from Homer’s that I did not realize was very slightly bowed. Set the plate joiner for a “0” biscuit. Held the work in my sliding leg vise.
0EC602A2-3229-4289-957B-C5686749BB10.jpeg


Here the joint is test assembled sans glue (cold shop).
4C1E27A1-CA73-4BDA-B0DC-0A075514B561.jpeg


I was off a bit and there was a slight breakout on the inside.
8B4D2505-0BB2-4F12-87DA-4ABB91944828.jpeg


Anyway, it looks to me like a miter joint in 1/2” plywood aligned with a “0” biscuit is a possible technique for a drawer corner (and being somewhat more exacting than other techniques).
 

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