On Tue, 26 Feb 2002 16:51:49 -0800, Carm <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

>And then there is the Butt/biscuit joint that a couple
>people have suggested, though I am not sure if that
>was through bee-l or to me personally.  Combining the
>simplicity of simply cutting the boards to the proper
>length, and then using the strength of the bisuit. But
>as my brother is pointing out as I type, it maybe be
>hard to get that accurate due to the fact that the
>boards are being joined at right angles, and not side
>to side as what biscuit jointers are commonly used
>for.
>

I have often successfully used biscuits to join boards at right angles.  I
agree that cutting the biscuit on the face of the board can be difficult,
but not impossibly so.  Aligning the boards so that the outside edge of one
board aligns with the end of the other is mostly a matter of cutting the
slots in the correct manner.  Vertical alignment is also not much of a
problem as the slots are cut slightly longer than the biscuits.  That said,
I would offer that the biscuit doesn't really provide much strength.  It's
mostly an alignment mechanism.  Moreover, end grain gluing doesn't provide
a very strong joint either.  That's the beauty of the finger joint.