The Mortise and Tenon Joint The mortise and tenon joint is thousands of years old, and been used by carpenters all over the globe, mainly to join pieces of wood together.
It is most commonly used to join wood at a 90 degree angle.
It's easy to use and when used correctly is also very strong.
There are many variations of this joint, but the basic mortise and tenon comprises of the mortise (hole) and the tenon (insert).
The tenon which is usually cut into the end of a piece of wood and is mainly square or rectangle is inserted into and equal sized hole on another piece of wood, the tenon is cut to fit the mortise hole thus making a snug to tight fit with shoulders for it to butt up to, then once inserted, the joint is either pinned, screwed or glued, or a combination of these methods, to hold and lock it in place.
Types of Mortise and Tenon There are various types of mortise and tenon joints, from an open mortise, that's a mortise with only three sides normally cut into the end of the timber, to a stub mortise, that's a shallow hole that does not go completely through the timber, to a through mortise which has the hole cut right through the piece of timber.
As for the tenon, you can have a short tenon that is designed to not go right through a mortise, to a through tenon that will go completely through the mortise, to a top tenon that you would possibly see on the top of a post, to a half shouldered tenon.
In general the size of the mortise is related to the thickness of the wood, as a rule of thumb most carpenters would cut it to one third of the width of the rail allowing maximum strength in the timber.
Once inserted the shoulders butt up strengthening any lateral movement once the screws pins or glue have been applied, this adds to the overall strength.
Similar to the mortise and tenon joint you can make a bridle joint, this is where a mortise is cut into the end of a piece of timber and a tenon is cut into another, these would be cut the full width of the wood and again pinned or screwed and glued.
If you want to make a joint that is resistant to being pulled apart, then the most common is the dovetail, one of the most common uses for this type of joint would be on drawers connecting the front to the side, this comprises if a series of pins cut into one member and a series of tails cut into the other, these fit together and are glued.
As you can see there are quite a few variations to the common mortise and tenon joint and each has its role in whatever project it is that you have undertaken, but if you want that project to have strength and a professional look then it's a very important piece of knowledge to have.
It is most commonly used to join wood at a 90 degree angle.
It's easy to use and when used correctly is also very strong.
There are many variations of this joint, but the basic mortise and tenon comprises of the mortise (hole) and the tenon (insert).
The tenon which is usually cut into the end of a piece of wood and is mainly square or rectangle is inserted into and equal sized hole on another piece of wood, the tenon is cut to fit the mortise hole thus making a snug to tight fit with shoulders for it to butt up to, then once inserted, the joint is either pinned, screwed or glued, or a combination of these methods, to hold and lock it in place.
Types of Mortise and Tenon There are various types of mortise and tenon joints, from an open mortise, that's a mortise with only three sides normally cut into the end of the timber, to a stub mortise, that's a shallow hole that does not go completely through the timber, to a through mortise which has the hole cut right through the piece of timber.
As for the tenon, you can have a short tenon that is designed to not go right through a mortise, to a through tenon that will go completely through the mortise, to a top tenon that you would possibly see on the top of a post, to a half shouldered tenon.
In general the size of the mortise is related to the thickness of the wood, as a rule of thumb most carpenters would cut it to one third of the width of the rail allowing maximum strength in the timber.
Once inserted the shoulders butt up strengthening any lateral movement once the screws pins or glue have been applied, this adds to the overall strength.
Similar to the mortise and tenon joint you can make a bridle joint, this is where a mortise is cut into the end of a piece of timber and a tenon is cut into another, these would be cut the full width of the wood and again pinned or screwed and glued.
If you want to make a joint that is resistant to being pulled apart, then the most common is the dovetail, one of the most common uses for this type of joint would be on drawers connecting the front to the side, this comprises if a series of pins cut into one member and a series of tails cut into the other, these fit together and are glued.
As you can see there are quite a few variations to the common mortise and tenon joint and each has its role in whatever project it is that you have undertaken, but if you want that project to have strength and a professional look then it's a very important piece of knowledge to have.
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