Loose Tenons Material

[George Bokros]

I am planning to male my own loose tenon stock using the router table and a bull nose bit. Most of the loose tenon stock you can buy is beech, I am planning on using poplar, or scrap oak or what ever the project is being made from unless it is pine.

What are your recommendations for material to make the tenons from? Does it make a difference what wood the loose tenons are?

Thanks

George

[Peter Quinn]

I make them from the drops from whatever species I am working with typically. I've never done a project that didn't yield plenty of loose tenon stock from the waste. If I were trying to build up a supply, I'd use maple, oak, maybe mahogany for exterior projects or use with softer stock.

[Prashun Patel]

I'd use a harder wood than poplar if it were me. maple (hard or soft) is another good choice.

[Thomas Hotchkin]

George
I make my loose tenons as Peter and Prashun said. But I do favor Oak, as I like open pores for better glue joint. Tom

[Mike Cutler]

When I use loose tenons, it's always out of the same material. I haven't a clue if it really matters, but it makes sense.
The best loose tenon design I've seen were done by Mark Singer, on his Balboa Door Project.
Go to post 33 in the following link to see how Mark incorporated slots to allow squeeze out.

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?22781-Balboa-House-Doors/page3&highlight=Balboa+Doors

[Ellen Benkin]

Any hardwood should work.

[Frank Drew]

I don't think it really matters in terms of wood compatibility; the most common biscuit material seems to be beech, and how many projects are made of beech?

I can't think of a commonly available wood that would be too weak to use as a loose tenon (balsa, maybe); hard maple, though, might not be my first choice since it's not, in my experience, the best gluing wood.

[Richard Coers]

I'm not too particular about the material for small work, workbench leg joinery, chair joinery, use something strong. I've always used the router table to put 45's on the edges of the stock. I want a place for the excess glue to go. Easier fitting too if you get it a little wide.

[Kevin Guarnotta]

I thought the reason Beech was used for biscuit or loose tenons is that it swelled when gluing up?

[Chris Fournier]

I like poplar because it is strong enough but easy to "adjust" if I need to take a pass with a plane for a perfect fit. I've used poplar in heavy exterior doors and it has not let me down as of yet.

[Frank Drew]

I thought the reason Beech was used for biscuit or loose tenons is that it swelled when gluing up?

Part of the biscuit manufacturing process is to compress the biscuits and also dry them to a very low moisture content, thus the swelling when the biscuits are exposed to the water content of the glue. Most of the biscuits I've used were beech and were made in Europe, where beech is fairly common and inexpensive; maybe some other woods are used as well these days.

My point, though, was that there's not really any structural or mechanical advantage to using the same material for loose tenons as the wood you're joining; anything that's strong enough, cheap and available, and suitable for gluing is fine for loose tenons, and, of course, that might well include scraps of your project wood. The poplar that Chris cites is perfect, IMO -- cheap, available, easy to work, glues well and is certainly strong enough for the application.

[Stephen Cherry]

Where I am at it is possible to get scrap hardwood pallets. Craigslist, the county landfill, dumpster diving, etc. It seems to me that they would make nice tenons on the cheap.

[Jim Becker]

I prefer loose tenons to be made from the same species that the project is utilizing so that seasonal movement is identical. This is a great way to use up material that's not long enough or has visual blemishes, sapwood, etc., in a productive way.

[Peter Quinn]

When I use loose tenons, it's always out of the same material. I haven't a clue if it really matters, but it makes sense.
The best loose tenon design I've seen were done by Mark Singer, on his Balboa Door Project.
Go to post 33 in the following link to see how Mark incorporated slots to allow squeeze out.

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?22781-Balboa-House-Doors/page3&highlight=Balboa+Doors


Nice old post there, I love his work. I do the hydrolic release grooves too, really makes a difference, saw that on the old DJ Marks wood works, I usually use a BS for individuals, or run a TS blade at something close to 45 degrees, just a fuzz above the table to make a slight chamfer. Have used a router table with v point bit too.

[Richard Coers]

Where I am at it is possible to get scrap hardwood pallets. Craigslist, the county landfill, dumpster diving, etc. It seems to me that they would make nice tenons on the cheap.

Do you think they would have a low level of moisture? Domestic pallets don't even need to be dried, some are barely air dried. Anything that ships overseas has to be kiln dried, but they don't ship them back. If the moisture content is too high, they will shrink with time and weaken the joint, if not fail altogether. Grit is also imbedded in them from sliding around dirty floors. I wouldn't use them on a bet.

[Stephen Cherry]

Do you think they would have a low level of moisture? Domestic pallets don't even need to be dried, some are barely air dried. Anything that ships overseas has to be kiln dried, but they don't ship them back. If the moisture content is too high, they will shrink with time and weaken the joint, if not fail altogether. Grit is also imbedded in them from sliding around dirty floors. I wouldn't use them on a bet.

I've used them for prototypes for projects, etc. By the time they are discarded, the wood is probably dry. A friend of mine has veneered some of it for some pretty upscale projects. In my opinion, the wood really does not know that it has been in a pallet, it just knows that it is wood. The grit is just that, it needs to be milled off.

[glenn bradley]

I use the same species as well. Like others have mentioned, I would pass on poplar as too soft.