Mortiser or Router

[Eric Garner]

Looking for some thoughts around a mortiser vs. a router jig to make mortises. Can someone give me the benefits of stepping up to a mortiser rather than buying a jig for my router?

Is there a big speed and versatility difference between the two?

thanks,

[Ken Werner]

I think the ultimate results are similar. A mortiser gives you square corners, a router leaves round corners, which if they show, have to be squared.

The router screams and requires a jig.

The mortiser is fairly quiet, and is more pleasant to use. I like marking out the mortise and chopping down into it. The router can leave smoother walls.

I have both, but enjoy using the mortiser more. Boils down to personal preference. Both work, and work well. And we aren't even mentioning mortise chisels....yet.

[Greg Hines, MD]

I think it depends on how many you have to cut. I use a router and home made jig for mortising, which works great. But if you were need, say, 200 mortises for some project, a mortiser would be a great help on it.

I guess the way I looked at it was that I made my jig in about an hour, out of some scrap I had on hand, and it cost me nothing. When I really need a mortiser, I will get one.

Doc

[glenn bradley]

I think if you search here you will find several discussions on this. My search included everything short of a floor standing machine and I ended up with a Mortise Pal. I have been very happy with that decision. The occasional through mortises I do, I square off the ends.

[Jerry Olexa]

It really depends on how many and often you do mortises...A dedicated mortiser is wonderful but mine gathered dust as I used it once or twice a year. I sold my Jet mortiser a few months ago and now do them when needed with a plunge router and jig or sometimes by hand or with drill press. Just MHO...

[Gary Herrmann]

I never thought I'd buy a mortiser until that Jet JFM5 deal via MS Cashback last year. As Ken said, it's much quieter and more pleasant to use. Admittedly, I'm not a huge router fan though. Probably just because of the noise and the dust going everywhere.

[pat warner]

2 main advaantages of power morticer over router:
Speed and depth.
Routing (http://patwarner.com/router_morticing.html)buys quality and accuracy.

[Paul Ryan]

I completely agree with the distain for router mortising. I got in on the jet floor mortiser too. For about $100 more than the price of the mortise pal or other jigs I have a dedicated mortiser. It is super easy to use and set up. If I had it to do over again and had to pay $900 for the floor stand Jet I probably wouldn't have. I would have went another route. I think a good bench top would work OK but a router makes a heck of a mess. I don't like the idea of having to make floating mortise stock either. That is just me. With the sqare holes you still have to do some clean up with them when they are cut. I wouldn't think that would be the case with the router. Find a floor mortiser and go that route, that is the best of both worlds.

[Neal Clayton]

if you ever aspire to make doors/windows you'll want square mortises for those, since it's much easier to cut the tenons with the cope cutter, which leaves a square tenon.

router jigs are great for non-profiled joints, for joints within rail/stile profiles, they're tedious.

[Jay Jolliffe]

I guess I'm the odd one. I have 2 mortisers, 1 Powermatic floor model & 1 Delta bench model. I'm making 10 raised panel doors for the house I'm working on. I bought Pat Warner's mortising jig which works great. Machinist quality in a wood working jig. I use a plunge router with a long straight cutter. I have to make 20 mortices on the stiles & rails & would rather us the router hooked up to a vac. Cleaner cut. I don't have to make the tenons on the rails with the table saw. Rip the tenon stock to size & run it through the drum sander. To each his own. I would rather use the router not for not having a mortiser seeing as I have 2. BTW the Powermatic is for sale if anyone is interested. Used twice. Brand new condition:)

[Rod Sheridan]

I have a hollow chisel mortiser which I use a lot.

I hate routers, so they're not even under consideration.

I may think about a slot mortiser for my jointer/planner, however I really like hollow chisel mortisers, they are accurate, can cut deep mortises in a single shot, and are quiet.

They also make square holes which is good for pegs, and of course matches the tenons I make on a shaper.

Regards, Rod.

[Cliff Rohrabacher]

I am a fan of the slot mortiser and floating tenons. I didn't think I would be but I built one and now I can't imagine doing it any other way.

The things I like about it include
1) ability to produce floating tenon stock in bulk and knowing that it'll always fit just right so long as I use the same cutter when slotting.
2) freedom of angles: my slot mortiser has a tilting head.
3) speed and ease of use
4) dead on repeatability across a production run

I never had a good conventional mortiser but having spent time trying to tune in a tenon cutting rig on the TS and finding the problem of error doubling to be a royal PITA, I don't think I'd switch off given the opportunity.

[Chip Lindley]

LOL That is *politically-incorrect* at SMC! But, personal and environmental concerns aside, it boils down to how you want to spend your money! Will you cut enough mortises to justify a stationary machine taking up floor space? (BTW, hollow-chisel mortisers are NOT self-centering--far as I know!)

Or would you benefit in many more ways from a 3-1/4" hp plunge router and the *learning experience* of building a self-centering, sliding mortising jig for the router? (Many articles have been published) I think lack of depth is no concern with a large 1/2" collet router! There are 3" long plunge bits available. Plenty long, even for entrance doors!

Until our *New* Government declares differently, *The choice is YOURS*!

[glenn bradley]

I am a fan of the slot mortiser and floating tenons. I didn't think I would be but I built one and now I can't imagine doing it any other way.

That was me. I was always traditional M&T with chisel and tablesaw. Then I had "the experience". Too easy, too accurate, can't go back.

[Jeff Ranck]

I am a fan of the slot mortiser and floating tenons. I didn't think I would be but I built one and now I can't imagine doing it any other way.

When you say slot mortiser, you mean a big machine something like this: http://www.lagunatools.com/mortiser.platinumhs.aspx right? Or am I wrong?

[Bill Huber]

I think it all depend on how much you will use it. I have a Mortise Pal and I like it very much, it does a great job and does it fast and accurate.

Now with that said I also have a (place don't throw rocks) a drill press attachment. Mine was made for my drill press and fits right on with no spacers or anything like that. I works very well when I need it.

I don't use the drill press that much for mortises but when I do it is fast and I can cut much deeper mortises with it and clean up is fast. With it I can make larger mortises and cut the tenons on the table saw.

So most of the time I use the MP and once or twice a year I will used the drill press. So if you want large mortises and just once or twice a year look at the attachment for the drill press and get a MP. If you want to do a lot of square deep mortises then I would go with the machine.

[Rod Sheridan]

LOL That is *politically-incorrect* at SMC! But, personal and environmental concerns aside, it boils down to how you want to spend your money! Will you cut enough mortises to justify a stationary machine taking up floor space? (BTW, hollow-chisel mortisers are NOT self-centering--far as I know!)

Or would you benefit in many more ways from a 3-1/4" hp plunge router and the *learning experience* of building a self-centering, sliding mortising jig for the router? (Many articles have been published) I think lack of depth is no concern with a large 1/2" collet router! There are 3" long plunge bits available. Plenty long, even for entrance doors!

Until our *New* Government declares differently, *The choice is YOURS*!

That's pretty funny Chip, I guess I'm politically incorrect.

Does that make me an outcast at SMC?

I guess hate was too strong a word for the router, I hate the noise and mess, not the router.

It probably goes back 30 years to a low quality fixed base router I owned.

I was never happy with it, bought a shaper, a hollow chisel mortiser and never went back to the router. Now, I have no need for one.

I think people change their construction techniques to fit their tools, and in the interest of full disclosure I don't own a biscuit joiner either. I do however have a 4mm slotting cutter for the shaper, for those rare instances when I want to use a biscuit.

I'll start the 12 step plan to stop hating routers soon.

Regards, Ros.

[glenn bradley]

Does that make me an outcast at SMC?

If having an opinion makes you an outcast here, I guess we're all outcasts. And if we're all outcasts, I guess we all belong on the same forum :D:D:D.

[Thomas Pender]

I have used both routers and a dedicated mortiser. I do not think you can overstate how much quieter a dedicated mortiser is than a router and how much less dust it makes. In addition, I can make really deep mortises. Yes, my mortise machine makes chips, but they are localized and vacuum right up into the floor sweep. Also, for me, I have much less set up time with a mortiser than a router jig. I also clean out the bottom of my mortiser made mortises with my swan neck chisels giving me nice flat bottoms and sides.

There are times when I use a Pat Warner style router jig and get great results, plus it costs much less than a Festool Domino. Mortises made with a router require very little clean out.

Finally, there are times when I take out my mortise chisels and mallet and pound away. I cannot do it as well as I would like, but it does impress folks. I am more likely to do this if the mortise is open at the top, the throat reach on my mortiser is not adequate, or I am doing through mortises for something like an old craftsman magazine stand or library table.

Regardless, making mortises is part of the woodworker's journey - they are vital for quality woodworking and whatever works is fine.

Have fun!

[Chip Lindley]

....I guess hate was too strong a word for the router, I hate the noise and mess, not the router....I'll start the 12 step plan to stop hating routers soon.

Regards, Ros.

Um...well, we know how it goes with all-too-many routerhaterholics! Tomorrow never comes...

Was just havin' some fun!

Regards,
Chip

[Rod Sheridan]

Um...well, we know how it goes with all-too-many routerhaterholics! Tomorrow never comes...

Was just havin' some fun!

Regards,
Chip

I know, and I sure laughed when I read the post, it was funny......Rod.

[Guy Belleman]

Chopping and routing for years, then got myself a large General table top chisel mortiser. Very heavy duty. Manual moving of piece along. Took my hand and hit my forehead, and said, "Self, why didn't I get one of these 20 years ago?"

Then I took a furniture making class with Lonnie Bird. Used his floor model, with the mobile table handles, that allows you to feed the piece along. Then I said, "Self, why didn't you spend a little more and get one of these?"

Now I am looking to upgrade.

[Greg Young]

I've never understood why the chain mortiser went the way of the dodo.