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Trenching:
Dados and Grooves
To make a dado or groove by hand, routers are used in
conjunction with other tools. Typically, you saw the sidewalls
of the trench, hog out the waste between with a chisel,
and finish the joint with a router plane. While some woodworkers
will simply saw and chisel the joint, using a router plane
is superior because it lets you achieve an exact and repeatable
depth. This is important in casework construction.
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your finished depth with a knife and take small
bites until you reach your finished depth. Note
that you should work from the edges and into the
center to avoid blowing out your edge grain when
the tool exits the work. |
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Stopped
Dados
Making stopped dados is simple work using a router plane.
First, drill a hole that's the diameter of your dado at
the location where the dado will stop. Then, saw out the
sidewalls of your trench, connecting them to the hole.
Remove the waste with a chisel and your router plane.
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| Making
a stopped dado is dangerous with a table saw and
stacked dado cutter. The better choice is a saw,
chisel and router plane—or a plunge router
and spiral bit. |
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