Midspan joint in triangular arris rail for fencing

[Ouch77]

If I were to use a half lap joint to join/extend a 75x75mm triangular arris rail mid span, how much overlap should I have?

Spans are fairly short ~1200mm but as the cut lengths of the rails are only 2400mm I can see myself falling short of the post by a few inches in several occasions, hence the need for midspan joints to save wasting tonnes of timber.

 

[foxhole]

False economy .
Buy 3m lengths.

 

[Ouch77]

False economy .
Buy 3m lengths.

Too late, got 2.4m lengths.

 

[foxhole]

Then you have wasted tons of money, joining arris rail is not a good idea.

 

[Ouch77]

I'm sorry, I think you misunderstood my question:

I asked how best to join arris rail midspan. Not whether it was best practice, or even a good idea.

I have not wasted tons of money as the rails were free, probably because they were such an impractical length. In a perfect world I'd have 3m or longer rails and I wouldn't be on this forum asking questions like above.

 

[ladylola]

In that case use a lap joint or bridle joint glued and screwed together. I'd go for a joint at least 8" long and would try to stagger the joints rather than have one directly above the other. If aesthetics aren't a problem then it may also be an idea to reinforce the joint with metal strapping or angle . To be honest if the rails are jointed in this way I'd also be inclined to screw the boards rather than nailing.
Ties in with this thread
//www.diynot.com/forums/garden/feather-edge-board-fitting-method.402562/

 

[Ouch77]

Thanks for the advice.

I've got some waterproof glue already for a gate (another thread) I'm putting in said fence. I'll be staggering the joints as it's best practice in any sense. I'm also using galv fittings on the gate, and also galv rail supports on the corners so more galv steel won't be the end of the world.

I'll stick with lap joints as there's less cutting involved, and the remaining bits of wood would be thicker than if using a bridle joint - as it's triangular the smaller corner/edges would be on pretty thin wood.

I've already bought a bunch of nails on a recommendation here, but picked up some 'outdoor' screws on a whim last time I was in a DIY shed, so I'll probably screw the pales in the area of the joint.