Finger joint drawer glue up issue

[Sparetime]

I am currently working on making a number of drawers for a cabinet project. I used 5/8 baltic birch plywood for the sides of the drawers, and used 3/8 inch finger joints for the corner joints.

I allowed about .005 or so clearance on the finger to the slot, but when I went to glue it up, the glue swelled the finger ever so slightly and caused a little difficulty when gluing up.

I was using Titebond original, and I do need to use something with a little more working time.

I've already cut most of the drawers and would rather not try to change the setting on the dado. I could file and or sand every finger/slot, but would rather not.

Just came looking for suggestions. Hadn't figured on the slight swell of the wood causing me problems (at least that's what I figure is the problem). Of course the open time on the glue could be part of the problem. The drawers are 8 inches high and there are a lot of fingers to brush glue into. I guess it could be the thin layer of glue setting up causing me some issue on the fit up. I did dry fit the drawer before gluing. It fit fine and I didn't have to use a mallet to fit it up.

Ideas?

[Doug_H]

Sparetime,

If the joints dry-fit well then you are probably right about the Titebond swelling the wood. And yes, Titebond will grab from the friction of sliding a tight joint together. Recutting finger joints to loosen them has never worked well for me. Light sanding/filing the fingers is my preferred solution. You can buy Titebond with an extended open time or try hide glue (it really is stronger than most people think. Plenty strong enough for a mechanically strong joint

Doug

[ruffcutt]

Box joints don't require a ton of glue. What I have done is just barley start all 4 corners of the of the box and then put a small dollop of glue in the little square hole and clamp it together.

[Routerman]

If you go right to work the glue acts like a lube and the parts will slip together.
So only glue one corner/glue application. Let it cook, go to the next drawer etc.
When all 4 have one corner done, go back to no.1 and get corner no.2.
Let 3 & 4 go simultaneously, wet only one set of the tines/connection (corner) not both.
And don't screw around, get that pasted in under a minute.
Have all your ducks (cauls) lined up.

[Bill Wilson]

Routerman said:

---

If you go right to work the glue acts like a lube and the parts will slip together.
So only glue one corner/glue application. Let it cook, go to the next drawer etc.
When all 4 have one corner done, go back to no.1 and get corner no.2.
Let 3 & 4 go simultaneously, wet only one set of the tines/connection (corner) not both.
And don't screw around, get that pasted in under a minute.
Have all your ducks (cauls) lined up.

---

+1

I make faith chests for my church and they're built using box joints on the corners. After doing several, I've developed a system that works for me. Pat covered most of the key points. I do use a jig to hold things square while gluing up one end at a time. Still have to work quickly, but using a glue with a longer open time, it really took the pressure off. I cut my box joints with a router and PC 4216 jig. If I'm not careful when routing, the joints can actually end up a little too loose for my tastes.

[Alan S]

The things mentioned above all matter, and I agree that timing/glue open time is the most important.

If you take a cheap foam paintbrush and cut the end with scissors to match your box joints, you can use the brush to apply glue to several fingers at once. It goes on so fast you can assemble the joint much easier.

[ruffcutt]

http://www.popularwoodworking.com/woodwo...ger-joints

[Lynford in Reno]

If you go with Pat's idea doing one corner at a time, make sure you have some sort of squaring jig to clamp the side/end to. It will set up fast and if it is not square, then you are in trouble.

[Steve N]

Lynford in Reno said:

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If you go with Pat's idea doing one corner at a time, make sure you have some sort of squaring jig to clamp the side/end to. It will set up fast and if it is not square, then you are in trouble.

---

You needn't use high price tools to square the corners. The cheap construction brackets sold at the BORG work just fine. Check them with a good square, matter of fact bring a good square with you to the store, no sense buying bent ones. Plus if someone said it, I missed it, but plywood with all of those plies is a lot like a sponge. Too much glue gets soaked up, just a touch is all you need if your joints fit snug.

[Edwin Hackleman]

To increase working time with yellow glue, add a little water to the bottle and mix it. Note that I said a "little". You will be surprised at how much set time it will add with virtually no loss in bonding strength.