Domino and Biscuit Joiner

[CARYinWA]

This will probably ruffle some feathers.  At one time I had a PC 557 biscuit jointer,  the Ryobi mini biscuit jointer, and a Domino.  I sold the Domino.
  I didn't use it a lot.  I use the biscuit jointers a lot.  There were some things I didn't like about the Domino.  I think my JessEm Doweling jig is more accurate.

[Handplanesandmore]

This will probably ruffle some feathers.  At one time I had a PC 557 biscuit jointer,  the Ryobi mini biscuit jointer, and a Domino.  I sold the Domino.
  I didn't use it a lot.  I use the biscuit jointers a lot.  There were some things I didn't like about the Domino.  I think my JessEm Doweling jig is more accurate.

I think you'd made the right decision since the pricey machine wasn't utilized.

No one has mentioned the power of the domino machine in doing offsets without resetting its fence such as those seen on apron to leg joinery. I forgot the issue# but Fine Woodworking ran a story on that. Imagine using the traditional m&t (tablesaw/router) or dowels to do that.

Anyone who has done a crib with dominos will tell you how unbelievably easy those slats (40 of them? ----160 mortises in total) can be done (hint-you need the trim stop). But most importantly for me ---I no longer cut dadoes. The beauty of that is the boards are cut to final length without calculating and allowing for the dado depth (x2). I hate making test cuts and dialing in the dado stack.

There're at least half a dozen more things that I have yet to try! Too many projects, not enough t.....enons.

Simon

[only 3 injuries]

I have and use both.

Some of it just comes down to the cost of the materials. Biscuits are way cheaper so I tend to use them for putting together sheet goods, they are more than strong enough for that.

The Domino's an awesome tool and I love mine, but it's also expensive to operate.

[Handplanesandmore]

Can you find someone to share the cost of a bulk pack? That'll keep the consumable cost down a lot. I did that once for the sipo tenons. 

Simon

[Handplanesandmore]

SAP 2000 CRACK

Ummm. My guess is bulk pack dominoes, 2000 tenons per bag under the brand name SAP.  CRACK? The guy is just warning us that he's trying to crack into our computers, nothing else.

Simon

[paulWoodworker]

Unlike Sawstop there is no revolutionary safety device involved, but a new way to cut mortices for loose tenons. BTW, does anyone compete with Festool for the Domino tenon market, i.e. the actual tenon you are now forced to buy from them?
 
Doug

There used to be a company called Tuff Tennons or something like that which made domino compatible tennons in multiple wood species, and for less cost.. but they no longer exist as far as I know. I still have a few packs of their stuff from when Woodcraft closed them out, maybe 5-10 years ago.
There is another company that someone linked which makes loose tennons but the price was either the same as festool or very close. I wonder if they were just selling the festool ones, but I didn't do a deep dive. Maybe someone else knows.

[paulWoodworker]

The only thing I haven't done with a Domino that I could do with the long-ago-sold Mafell biscuit joiner is the installation of a biscuit-shaped metal hinge (made by Lamello and so not inexpensive) into a matching cut made with the BJ. Both kinds of machines have knock-down inserts but the Domino-type inserts seem less expensive than the Lamello-type inserts. The Domino knock-down inserts are very easy to use.

I needed some knock down inserts. Watched all the reviews. 
The kicker for me is that the Domino entry price is about $300.. By the time you buy their drilling jig, drill bit, one box of connectors, 8 mm cutter.
The entry price for the Lamello ones? It was $55 or $60 shipped.
One reviewer that demoed both said the Festool ones were more of an afterthought compared to the lamello ones.
The lamello ones work better in tighter spaces too. 
Note, I have never tried the Festool ones, but that's what I based my decision on.

In any event, this is the first time in my life that I have needed knock down fasteners, I know it's not something that most hobbyist woodworkers do frequently, so if someone doesn't anticipate using them, then yea, that's not a reason to keep a biscuit jointer.

All my kitchen uppers are made of solid wood.. I ended up using about 1 1/2 big boxes of biscuits to align glueups.  (The joinery for the actual boxes were sliding dovetails) If I had done that with dominoes, it would have cost a fortune. But again, not all hobbyist woodworkers use that much.

[Bill_de]

   

I assembled this small bench this afternoon. I sat on it for a while at the writing desk/table while I did some work on my laptop. Tomorrow I'll take it apart, sand it and use some glue to hold it together permanently. Today, four dominoes in each corner did the trick.

[Handplanesandmore]

4x4=16
6 for breadboard ends
22x0.1=$2.2, say $2.5

If you used dominoes as buttons to attach the top, add 6 to 8 more. In all, the consumable cost would be around $3.

Whoever still argues that dominoes are an expensive component of a project should consider taking up something else as a hobby.

Simon

[Tapper]

Simon,

Are you "surreptitiously" working for Festool in their Domino division? 
 

Doug