Fixing a bad mortise...

[Clark Harbaugh]

I'm sure I'm not the only one who has ever over cut a mortise when cutting mortise tenons. I really blew it on 4 mortises for a desk I'm building and figured I'd share my solution, for whatever it's worth. I was luck enough that the locations of the oversize mortises are in a part of the desk that is not totally visible (drawer fronts will mostly cover); if it were the front of the desk or something, I'd be adjusting the design and buying more lumber to accommodate.

You can see here that I totally ignored the line on the side of the piece and cut the mortise way too long.
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I cut some little blocks that were a little larger than the mortise, since my mortise cut was not perfectly flat.
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I traced the bloc, scored it with a marking knife, then used a sharp chisel to make the hole.
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Then glued in the block that I made
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I used blue tape to protect the leg while I flush cut the plug
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I then sanded. I think once I put a finish on it, you'll hardly be able to notice.
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[John TenEyck]

Good save. Your mortise is too close to the top of the leg. It could easily blow out if the tenon is just a little too wide, or split if it's a little too thick. It's best if the mortise is never closer to the end of a work piece than its width, and preferably further away than that. When I need the tenon to be really wide and that puts it close to the end like yours I usually just run the mortise right out the end of the piece and make a bridle type joint.

John

[David Eisenhauer]

Nice save. One always hears that the pros are pros because they know how to fix their mistakes, so I guess you are a pro.

[Michael Peet]

Nice repair, Clark. You can hardly see it.

Mike

[Andrew Hughes]

Yeah Clark nice fix,But I can still see it hardly.:)

[Mike Henderson]

Good job on that repair, Clark. Selecting the right piece to put in there was important - so there was no obvious color or grain transition. And you were very precise in fitting it in.

Mike

[Art Mann]

I have read many times that a professional furniture maker is one who can either hide his mistakes or incorporate them in the design. I think you qualify.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Excellent save!

[Clark Harbaugh]

Appreciate the kind words.

John TenEyck, thanks for the tip on the mortises close to the end. I was extra careful on the fitment because of the fear of a split. I never thought of using a bridle joint, but definitely will next time.

[Jerry Olexa]

Nice work..No one will ever notice...good job!!!

[Doug Garson]

I'm sure there is a good reason for it but I can't think of it. Why did you make the block wider than the mortise? As the others have said great repair.

[Clark Harbaugh]

I'm sure there is a good reason for it but I can't think of it. Why did you make the block wider than the mortise? As the others have said great repair.

I made it bigger because the sides and ends of my mortise weren't perfect enough to give me a precise fit. Plus, I'd probably be hard pressed to accurately cut a block that small to match.