Divided-light glass doors using hand tools

[Staffan Hamala]

I'm planning to make some doors to a couple of bookcases I've made. As I've never made divided-light glass doors before, I'm currently researching the different methods for making the mutins.

I found one description in an article by Steve Latta, in Fine Woodworking issue 171.

Another description can be found here (have a look in the PDF article by Glen Huey as well):
http://www.popularwoodworking.com/techniques/joinery/details-on-the-divided-light-door

Latta's method is a bit more complex and involved. Huey's method seems very simple. Chris Schwarz also uses Huey's method, and in the link he says that they are very solid.

However, while I find Huey's method appealing, I'm a bit worried about how the mutins are attached to the door frame. In Latta's method, the mutins are attached to the door frame in mortises, which would be very solid. With Huey's method, the mutins are glued to the frame. The glue surfaces are very small, and I think the mutins might work loose over time.

What do you think?

Are there any other methods?

[Trevor Walsh]

Mario Rodriguez has a great divided light door tutorial in Fine Woodworking. I lent the copy to a friend going to France, but I'll try to dig it out. He does the bulk of the work on the TS, but for gluing he soaks little pieces of fabric in hide glue and glues them around the corners of the joints, then when the lights are puttied in it's a very strong piece. The article was this year I know that.

[Jim Koepke]

There is a video in the Woodrights workshop about a corner cabinet that shows how he makes them. I do not recall the whole thing since it is in three or four parts.

He goes into a lot of the joinery for such a project.

jtk

[Pam Niedermayer]

In making shoji the kumiko (muntin equivalent) are tenoned and the frame mortised. This is an extremely strong arrangement.

Pam

[george wilson]

They ought to me mortised in. I am not a window maker,but the Wmsbg. museum millwork shop was right next door to my shop. I saw them making windows all the time,mortising them in. doors and wimdows are a lot of work to make! In the 18th. C.,the tenons on doors went all the way through the doors,and were visible on the sides of the doors.

One time they made a mahogany door,which was to be PAINTED and woodgrained to look like mahogany!!! Why?,there was mention in an 18th.C. source that some major residence had a door painted to look like mahogany. Since the millwork shop normally makes exterior doors from mahogany for durability,they found themselves in this peculiar position. Actually, I think I never saw an exterior door in the Historic Area that wasn't painted,anyway. Just not woodgrained.

[Staffan Hamala]

There is a video in the Woodrights workshop about a corner cabinet that shows how he makes them. I do not recall the whole thing since it is in three or four parts.

He goes into a lot of the joinery for such a project.


Thanks. Very interesting to watch. It was in episode 13 of season 29.

[Staffan Hamala]

I found these two articles that describes the kind of muntins Roy Underhill makes. The first looks like the method he used for the cabinet doors, and the second looks like what he showed for sash windows:
http://www.finewoodworking.com/item/4790/making-a-window-sash-or-breakfront-cabinet-door
http://www.finewoodworking.com/item/16371/roy-underhills-scribed-window-sash

[Staffan Hamala]

I got a tip about an article in Fine Woodworking no. 64, from 1987, "Coping with Sash" by David R. Pine.

[Shawn Pixley]

They ought to me mortised in. I am not a window maker,but the Wmsbg. museum millwork shop was right next door to my shop. I saw them making windows all the time,mortising them in. doors and wimdows are a lot of work to make! In the 18th. C.,the tenons on doors went all the way through the doors,and were visible on the sides of the doors.

One time they made a mahogany door,which was to be PAINTED and woodgrained to look like mahogany!!! Why?,there was mention in an 18th.C. source that some major residence had a door painted to look like mahogany. Since the millwork shop normally makes exterior doors from mahogany for durability,they found themselves in this peculiar position. Actually, I think I never saw an exterior door in the Historic Area that wasn't painted,anyway. Just not woodgrained.

Not to hijack the thread, but I ended up graining all the doors and trim on a 1860's mansion. The style at the time was for woodgraining the surfaces. We used a feather to ceate the grain. Getting all the wood match when it was done over many years was a pain.

For the doors, the muntins were mortised in (back on topic).

[Staffan Hamala]

Mario Rodriguez has a great divided light door tutorial in Fine Woodworking. I lent the copy to a friend going to France, but I'll try to dig it out. He does the bulk of the work on the TS, but for gluing he soaks little pieces of fabric in hide glue and glues them around the corners of the joints, then when the lights are puttied in it's a very strong piece. The article was this year I know that.


I finally found it. It's in issue 217. Thanks!