DIY Tongue and groove

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Hi All,

Can anyone tell me the best way to tongue and groove timber? I've about 50m to do so don't mind buying kit, just wondering what's the best technique? I want approx 10mm tongues/grooves.

thanks!

S.
 
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On a fixed router table - you'll be paying 4 figures for decent kit.

Or the old fashioned way using a router plane that veritas or lie neilsen make, also hundreds of pounds.

Which might suggest buying it ready made would be more sensible in terms of time and cost.

Blup
 
Firstly, what tools do have access to?
What thickness is the timber you wish to work?
 
You could also get a quote from your local timber merchants to machine the timber.

Blup
 
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The groove bit is easy enough with a smaller router - just use a bearing guided grooving bit. The tongue requires a tongue set (often T&G sets capable of doing both cuts are sold) requires a lot more power, so a 1/2in router (1800+ watts) is required, It also generates a lot more waste/dust, so it will need an extractor of some sort fitting. Assuming decent lengths of timber (i.e. over a metre) both really require a router table fitted with a fence and a hold-down above the cutter (a Shaw guard or SUVA guard) to ensure that the height of tongue or groove on the edge remains consistent. You'll also need to rig-up some form of support mechanism (table, stand, etc) to support the material both at infeed and outfeed sides of the router table. The table, hold down and supports can all be home-made. This is not a task suitable for freehand routing. If your router is underpowered you may need to consider just grooving the materials and using a supplied loose tongue instead.
 
If your saw table is a decent one, and you have someone else with you, I would consider using this to cut both the tongue and the groove. It will probably take a number of passes to do the groove, by moving the fence out slightly after each cut, but it can be done.
However, as someone has already said, it would probably be much cheaper and easier to buy the boards already t &G'd.
 
Hi All,

Can anyone tell me the best way to tongue and groove timber? I've about 50m to do so don't mind buying kit, just wondering what's the best technique? I want approx 10mm tongues/grooves.

thanks!

S.
you need a spindle moulder with a power feed.

a hand router is a possibility but you might be disappointed with the results.
 
If your saw table is a decent one, and you have someone else with you, I would consider using this to cut both the tongue and the groove. It will probably take a number of passes to do the groove, by moving the fence out slightly after each cut, but it can be done.
That will almost certainly fail because getting the cuts to line-up properly on multiple passes on a circular saw with very long stock is all but impossible to achieve in practice even in a trade shop - that's why they use spindle moulders and power feeds for the task and do the cuts in a single pass (and why even router cutter sales places sell sets which will cut either tongue or groove in a single pass)
 
It was just a thought I had as I've seen a joiner do this but he was only doing single passes on thin boards.
 
I'll do a lot "knife and fork work" if it's a one-off/I don't want to wait a week for the workshop to deliver/we are being pushed by the main contractor to finish stuff so that another trade can follow us, etc (delete as appropriate), but there's a world of difference between making up a quick and dirty 3ft long section for a repair and doing multiple accurate, identical pieces. Hence my comments
 
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