Help with M&T's?

[®smpr_fi_mac®]

Need help from the experts here.

This is my first big M&T project, a big farmhouse trestle table. The joints will be pulled together with draw bores.

When dry fitting individual pieces, they all fit flush. When dry fitting the group, one doesn't sit right. The leg and base are 90*. All knee braces were built with jigs and stops, so they're interchangeable. I actually swapped these two and the gap was the same in the same spot.

I'm thinking that maybe this mortice there isn't giving me the correct clearance? It's an angle mortice, so maybe I didn't dig it out correctly.

Before I go in and mess things up more, can I get some advice or ideas?

[jteneyck]

If there is a gap on both braces and you are sure the angles are correct then the mortises in the post and/or horizontal piece need to be lengthened, or the tenons trimmed a little.  The other possibility that comes to mind is that the braces are a little two long.

John

[Gary G™]

Take a rasp, round over the edges of the tenon.
If it doesn’t fix it, pencil marks it to see where the mortise needs a but more excavation.
A little gap in the bottom won’t hurt anything anyway.

[Bill Holt]

Brad, your dry fit is much closer than when I built that style table for my DNL.  I tend to agree with John's last comment: braces may be too long.

[®smpr_fi_mac®]

Thanks, folks. After posting I realized I need to ensure that there is a gap in the bottom to allow for the draw bore to work.

The braces are actually about 1/8" shorter than the plans, but the mortices are laid based on the pieces, not the drawings.

[®smpr_fi_mac®]

I trimmed then as suggested and everything fits tightly.

Thanks!

[jteneyck]

I trimmed then as suggested and everything fits tightly.

Thanks!

Glad you got it sorted out.  Looks really good now.  

John