Kreg Jig

[Per Swenson]

Confession time.
For along time I have been making face frames
with biscuits. M/T on the large ones.
This involved a elaborate Rube Goldberg clamping table.
Fancy face frame clamps and time. Lots of time.
I thought I would investigate pocket screws.
Heresy! My Father shouted. We do not do that Kind of work.
We kemosabe?
I would have posted this in the Next bar thread,
but I do not wish to bore.
Suffice to say, 30 linear feet of cabinet facing
was completed from rough sawn mahogany to frames
ready for finish by 1:30 this afternoon.
I promptly took a nap.
Nothing was heard from the peanut gallery.
He actually shook his head in amazement.
I think he muttered something very quietly about cheater.
Just amazed I am.
Per

[Alan Tolchinsky]

Hey Per, Just tell your Dad, you're not cheating. You're just working smarter is all. :)

The Kreg jig is the best thing since A/C and I do appreciate and love my A/C. Cherrio! Alan

[Greg Mann]

Per just keeps getting smarter!!:D

Marc Sommerfield, who sells his own version of his brother's jig, calls them the ugliest joint in woodworking. There's a lot of ugly stuff that isn't seen unless we dismantle the work. When time is money (or food :rolleyes: ), modern techniques and tools should be considered legitimate. A method of work that is fast, accurate, and strong should not be dismissed just because it happens to also be easy.
Greg

PS. Hey per, get one of those one hole jigs and give it to your Dad. Tell him he can carry it around in his pocket, just for emergencies. :D

[Alan Tolchinsky]

Per just keeps getting smarter!!:D

Marc Sommerfield, who sells his own version of his brother's jig, calls them the ugliest joint in woodworking. There's a lot of ugly stuff that isn't seen unless we dismantle the work. When time is money (or food :rolleyes: ), modern techniques and tools should be considered legitimate. A method of work that is fast, accurate, and strong should not be dismissed just because it happens to also be easy.
Greg

No Greg I disagree. The more suffering you do, the better your work is. Looking at my work, it's obvious I'm not suffering enough. :) Alan

[Jim Becker]

I wouldn't give up my Kreg jig for face frames...no way! Quick, strong and accurate. It makes "production work" for even a small-time, once in awhile woodworker like me much more enjoyable...and expedient.

[Greg Mann]

No Greg I disagree. The more suffering you do, the better your work is. Looking at my work, it's obvious I'm not suffering enough. :) Alan

You got a point there, Alan. When the Aleuts built a kayak they would mix their blood into the seal oil they used to protect the frames. It was a way of putting their soul into the boat to help protect them when out to sea. Us? We just fret about our miters separating. :rolleyes:

Greg

[Bob Swenson]

He cheated ! He cheated so he could get more nap time.
I told him that we now have to charge less. He does his
best work sleeping. :mad:

[Richard Wolf]

Charge less for the face frames but add extra for the creative thinking time. Afternoon naps are wonderful things.

Richard

[M. A. Espinoza]

Great use of the saved time! Truly wise. I usually don't savor time savings and then end up f***ing something up because I'm burnt.

Pocket screws are great for faceframes. We had a Castle automatic machine at my last shop before I went solo. I thought I would just use biscuits for FF and that lasted one job. Promptly bought a manual pocket jig. Not as fast as the automatics but still way better than biscuits time-wise.

If you do much FF work check out the Kreg Foreman or Porter-Cable automatic machines. Both around $700 I think but they will cut your pocket cutting time by at least a third vs. the manual jigs. Its all profit after they're paid for.

Then you'll be truly well rested.

[Tim Sproul]

Hopefully you stop short of no mortise butt hinges........ :D

[Mark Singer]

Per,

It is not fine woodworking, but it is strong and works and fast....very!
I have made some great looking projects with it, cabinets, drawers closet systems...I guess i cheat a lot:rolleyes:

[Mark Singer]

Per,
Here are a couple of links for cheaters....

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=10546&highlight=kreg+drawers

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=15940&page=1&pp=15&highlight=kreg+drawers

on the second one check all the pages...cheater!

[Corey Hallagan]

Per, what did you use for face frames, sizewise? I just did 2 shop cabinets and I used 1 x 2's. I assembled and mounted my propak and then looked at my 1x2's and thought not enough room for 2 pocket holes but maybe I was too hasty? I ended up gluing up and clamping to the PB and MDF and shot a few brads in. I know Pocket holes would of been so much faster if it would work in such a small thickness . I do plan to use it on my door frames and the drawers for sure.

Corey

[Per Swenson]

Corey,
There is more then enough room on a 1" x 2"
All though this is the bottom, the tops are 2 1/4"
This is another instance of where my high brow narrow
minded attitude was made a fool of.
Per

[Dale Thompson]

:rolleyes:
Per,

It is not fine woodworking, but it is strong and works and fast....very!
I have made some great looking projects with it, cabinets, drawers closet systems...I guess i cheat a lot:rolleyes:

Mark,
I guess that I sort of disagree with your "Fine Woodworking" comment on pocket holes. Up until I bought my jig a few years ago, I used to envy the manufacturers who had access to those "neat" elliptical access holes for screws. With the jig, I drill, glue, clamp, screw and UNCLAMP. What a pleasure!! :) What a savings in clamps!! :D

If I don't want the "neat" holes to be seen, I buy or make the required plugs. Neither ever end up flush with the surface. I have a cheap Ryobi laminate trimmer with a 1/2" mortising bit set to zero depth. A couple of passes with that and I have an easily sandable elliptical "mystery patch" in the surface. If the plugs can't be completely routed for any reason, one of those flexible, zero-rake saws work great.

I think that the elliptical patches are kind of artistic and add to the "fine woodworking" aspect of my junk. :cool: On a more serious note, my artistic talents would make Picasso look like he was sober when he plastered that expensive paint all over the canvass. What a WASTE!! :( :rolleyes:

Dale T.

[Corey Hallagan]

Thanks Per, I guess I could of saved some time and had a nap as well. I tried it out this weekend in some scrap plywood doing some practice joints for drawers and it worked wonderfull!

Corey