Joinery - help

[brian cammarata]

I was hoping to improve upon my skill set .

Trying to step up ad go above and beyond pocket holes, etc.

Wife liked these plans and said go make it

https://blog.strongtie.com/diy-build-h-leg-table-bench/

It is for quick and dirty outdoor bench. Made from cedar 4x4,with base trimmed / cut down 2.5 x2.5

Not sure if these are good candidate for mortise and tenon joinery (or some other type) with this cedar post / stock

if so any recommendations on thickness, length and width of tenon


thanks in advance

[Carl Beckett]

Looks a lot like building a workbench - I would look at some of the workbench threads to see different ways people have done it. imo absolutely a great candidate for M&T and can practice your hand skills on it.

[glenn bradley]

In the DIY instructions they are using screws in place of tenons but, in similar locations. No where near as strong but, very doable for the weekend warrior so it makes a good choice for the article. For the 2-1/2" square posts I would probably use something like a 1" square tenon around 1-1/2" long. A lot of people put a lot of science to their mortise and tenon sizing which is fine. In furniture mortise and tenon get offset, mitered and all sorts of things to get the most bang in the available space. Your build won't have that really.

I would use the 'rule of thumb' for sizing which is to divide by 3. A third of your 2-1/2" square post is 53/64" but, it is easy to round up to 7/8" or even an inch. The tenon length is another arguable dimension. The longer they are the more face grain you have for gluing but, at some point the length becomes a problem. I rarely make tenons length more than 1-1/2 times the width. There are always exceptions; through tenons. draw-bore, pegged or other specific requirements. You are looking for a nice, strong, basic build so I would keep it simple.

[brian cammarata]

In the DIY instructions they are using screws in place of tenons but, in similar locations. No where near as strong but, very doable for the weekend warrior so it makes a good choice for the article. For the 2-1/2" square posts I would probably use something like a 1" square tenon around 1-1/2" long. A lot of people put a lot of science to their mortise and tenon sizing which is fine. In furniture mortise and tenon get offset, mitered and all sorts of things to get the most bang in the available space. Your build won't have that really.

I would use the 'rule of thumb' for sizing which is to divide by 3. A third of your 2-1/2" square post is 53/64" but, it is easy to round up to 7/8" or even an inch. The tenon length is another arguable dimension. The longer they are the more face grain you have for gluing but, at some point the length becomes a problem. I rarely make tenons length more than 1-1/2 times the width. There are always exceptions; through tenons. draw-bore, pegged or other specific requirements. You are looking for a nice, strong, basic build so I would keep it simple.

Thanks Glenn!!! I felt like I was over thinking this with the "rules", etc Your comments were exactly what I was looking for. Much appreciated