Cutting kitchen worktops

[sharkhunter]

Job done [:)]

[tonyv]

Thanks, all, for your help and advice. I'm afraid Ive chickened out of making up the clamps from scratch, and have emailed a mate in UK to pop into screwfix to get me some and post them out to me.

Thanks for the offer anyway, JR.

BM, what is a biscuit joint?

[Clair]

[quote user="tonyv"]what is a biscuit joint?[/quote]

a Bourbon?[:P]

[Anton Redman]

Basically a biscuit, in this context is an oval shaped piece of wood. The bit of kit below allows you to cut a hole of a given depth into the narrow surface of a piece of wood. You then cut a matching holes in the piece to which you are joining, glue and clamp the surfaces and archive a very tough and well aligned join.

 

http://www.ehow.com/video_4426178_using-biscuit-joiner.html

 

http://www.screwfix.com/search.do;jsessionid=CGAMGRFGEEQQQCSTHZOCFFI?_dyncharset=UTF-8&fh_search=Biscuit+Joiner

 

Sense of humour by pass cut in again 

[tonyv]

Aah, thanks, Anton.  I've used them, but never knew the proper name for them. The video was excellent.

Never too old to learn something new [:)]

[Scooby]

[quote user="tonyv"]Hi all,

I'm about to fit my kitchen, and discover that I have no clamps for the worktops, nor the hole cutters. Normally, in the UK I'd nip in to Screwfix and get some, however, in deepest Ariege, I don't have any option but Mr Bricolage.

Noe of my usual harware suppliers (Screwfix, Toolbank, tooled-up) seem to want to deliver to France. Any suggestions for a UK supplier who will ship?

Am I correct in thinking these things don't exist in France. If they do, what are they called, and does anyone have a link to a supplier, please?

Grateful for any suggestions

[/quote]

Not sure if you are on one of their delivery routes but www.sterlingshopping.co.uk will deliver screwfix orders to France.

[BIG MAC]

Tony some threaded bar and some 40mm steel tube and you are in business.

Drill 9mm holes along the tube at regular intervals then saw off as many sections with a hole in as you need. thread 8 mm bar cut to length through hole and put a washer and nut on it, do the same the other end et voila!

[Quillan]

My apologies for reopening an old thread but I am just about to start installing a new kitchen and need to make four joint's, two at 90 deg and the other two are simple butt joints.

Firstly my worktop is made from wood chip with a laminate top surface and so some paper type material on the bottom and are pretty standard Leroy Merlin stuff.

I have read this thread and think I grasp what is being said but still have a couple of questions.

I see that you can get a "Offset scribe for kitchen worktop jigs" and wondered what this is and do you really need it and if you don't do you have to use something else to carry out it's function or is it simply not important.

I have seen a 90 deg cut done before and the guy used "biscuits" but he also had a special machine to cut the slots. Obviously I don't want to buy one of these machines to only effectively use four times so is there another way of doing it? Could I use a router for example as I have a "plunging" Bosh router which has a micrometer for the plunging adjustment.

I see the 4" router bits for cutting come at various prices, £45 at Screwfix but as low as £12 for a four piece kitchen router kit. So do the more expensive bits have a taper on them so you have a slight "drop off" from top to bottom to make the better fit people talked about earlier on? Are the £12 sets any good for making just four joints, is it because they wear out quicker than the more expensive ones or am I simply wasting my time buying them because they make a lousy cut?

[BIG MAC]

I presume you are using a router jig...if surfaces are clean then a quick rub with sandpaper to the mating faces will give you an adequate join IMHO particularly if you are looking for functional rather than indetectible.

Cheap cutters are a risk not worth taking I would rather spend my money on one  decent cutter that a set of tandoori ones.

Yes you can use your router as a biscuit jointer but measuring is of paramount importance, you can also set up a dremmel type machine to form slots...not as good as the real thing and more fiddly, personally I would simply use the old 'dog bone' bolts method.

I prefer clean and accurate cuts and once sanded a couple of coats of varnish to the raw edges (flat back once dry) to seal them then use coloured silicone sealant in the joint when clamping it up seems to have lasted well in my 12 year old kitchen.

[Chancer]

assuming that you have the correct template then you can cut the dogbone slots to clamp it up, you wont really need the biscuits, I sometimes use them but its belt and braces. i have never found the joint clamps (dogbone fixings) in France, if you are stuck then PM me and i will send some but as you are looking at cutters I guess you have them in hand.

I have only ever used the cheap cutters, I cant tell you if they are worse only that they are good enough for several worktops, sometimes I give them a lick over with a hone though, the one i currently use has done probably 8 worktops, 50% laminate 50% bois massif, its till OK but if I were doing an expensive worktop for a customer then I would replace it but only with a cheapy again.

You must practice first on some offcuts, get used to holding the router away from the joint for the first cut and towards the joint for the cleaning cut, using opposing but correct feed directions for each pass will aid you with this, think also of where the cutter will exit, sometimes you have to change feed direction to avoid chipping out the front edge, also you must flip the jig over when cutting the male and female parts, this ensures that if your router does not lock precisely at 90 degrees and many dont then you will still have a flat joint.

To be honest even after having done loads of joints to do one after a break is just like doing the first one except you pick it up quicker.

good luck

[sid]

Good post! [8-|] I only tried this once about 10 years ago, and got it wrong on the offcuts I used and couldn't understand why. I think the turnover explains it! In the end I got a kitchen fitter to do it for me. I sold the templates/jig virtually unused.

[BIG MAC]

Probably not reading this correctly but how would turning the jig over change the cut angle of the joint? Inverting the router might (Unlikely and awkward) or turning the worksurface over ...I have seen blunt cutters used and people exerting pressure on them giving a poor pass but ultimately an adequately sized /powered router (Mine is a Hitachi 1850w with 12mm chuck if memory serves), an accurate jig and decent cutters along with a bit of experience will see the job done.

[Quillan]

Thanks for the tips guys. I am going to have a lesson tomorrow night with an English guy who does this for a living. Sadly he won't be around when I will need mine done but has kindly offered a loan of his jig.

[Chancer]

Mine was a bad explanation based on a flaky memory, you turn over the worktop and reverse the jig, effectively one cut from the top one from the bottom............................ I think!

Quillan, bien joué!

Dont expect a pro to do the job in any way resembling the instructions (although he just might), they are written by people cosy and warm behind desks who have done the job once only, someone doing it repeatedly will usually find a better more expedient way