Split mortise fix?

[Picalilli]

Hi all, looking for some advice.
Pretty new to hand tool woodworking and been following the English woodworker tutorial video series to make a danish stool.

I was busy with some small, angled tenons and when fitting the last one into the mortise I stupidly tried to hammer it home with a mallet and heard a dreaded pop. The wood has split along the grain.

Any advice on fixing this daft mistake? If I remove the tenon the split can’t be seen, but it’s still visible even after I’ve fettled the tenon more to make it a looser fit. If I do glue this up, would it be best to glue the split first, let that set, then glue the tenon in, or glue it all together at once and get some clamps on there? Does this look like it’ll affect the strength of the joint too much? It’s the top apron, and is going to be a weave seat. The tutorial says it’s not going to need to be a very strong joint (hence it being small) as the weave will be adding the bulk of the strength.

 

[spb]

As it doesn't need to be a very strong joint, I'd just use something to get the crack to open and drop in some thin CA glue - no need to clamp it there as the wood closing up again will be enough for the superglue to work. Once that's dry you can assemble the joint as normal, with a more normal wood glue.

 

[Cabinetman]

Also just to be on the safe side I would put a G cramp across that piece of wood whilst glueing the tenon in. That split shouldn’t be opening when you assemble it dry, must be something in there that you’ve missed I think. Ian

 

[Pete Maddex]

Blow some glue into the crack with a straw and clamp it up, use the tenon to open it up.

Then shave some off the tenon.

I have done a similar thing with a wedged tenon luckily I managed to get the wedges out pull the joint apart and glue it.

Pete

 

[Mike G]

If time wasn't a big issue then I would definitely fix the crack first (as well described by the others, above). Then I would adjust the tenon so that it fitted properly before gluing the joint together. This will give you the chance to A/ clean up properly after fixing the crack, and B/ get a properly fitting joint.

 

[Picalilli]

Thanks for the replies all. Really helpful. Time isn’t an issue really so I’ll fix the crack first. Can probably go with wood glue too as I don’t mind taking the time to make it stronger. I’ll also try fettling the tenon a little more to see if I can get it to for without the crack opening up - was just being cautious as I didn’t want to go too far and make it too loose.

What a stupid mistake - kicking myself when I did that!

 

[Woodbloke]

If time wasn't a big issue then I would definitely fix the crack first (as well described by the others, above). Then I would adjust the tenon so that it fitted properly before gluing the joint together. This will give you the chance to A/ clean up properly after fixing the crack, and B/ get a properly fitting joint.

Agreed, it's not a big 'fix'. Run some glue into the crack, clamp, clean up and adjust the tenon. I've sorted out far more horrendous goofs when the FUF has paid a visit :lol: - Rob

Edit- looking at the pic again, I'd advise that the tenon is too large. The 'Rule of Thirds' maintains that the tenon should be 1/3 the thickness of the rail and 2/3rd's it's depth. If say, the rail is 30x30mm, the tenon ought to be 10mm thick and 20mm wide, thus leaving more material where the stile is prone to cracking.

 

[Just4fun]

The advice you have received above is good, so I won't comment further on that, but I thought I would just say that your work looks good with crisp lines and a tight joint line. It looks like you are making good progress.

 

[Picalilli]

Thanks very much for saying - I’m pleased with how it’s going. Those tenons were a challenge as they had to be angled slightly, so couldn’t use the router plane to fettle them.

It’s slow progress, but that’s fine. I do find that I learn far more just doing things and making mistakes than watching endless YouTube videos, which is what I spent a lot of time doing during my first few months getting into woodwork!

 

[9fingers]

Something to perhaps take away from this experience is to aim for the tenons to have a sliding fit but not loose.
When testing resist the temptation to use a persuader but instead mark the tenon with a soft pencil, insert until resistance is felt, withdraw and see where the pencil mark has been rubbed off and ease the tenon in that region.

Bob

 

[Sheffield Tony]

It does look pretty crisp.

One added comment - much as it is tempting to prepare all your bits of wood to exact final size before cutting joints - and sometimes it can't be avoided because there is no spare - if you do have the scope, leaving the pieces a bit over long and sawing the surplus off after cutting the joints can make this a little less likely.

 

[Picalilli]

Thanks for all of the responses all. Some good tips, particularly like the soft pencil idea, and it’s a good point about leaving things over size until joints are cut.

I’ve glued the crack now, not sure how much wood glue I managed to get in there with it being so fine a crack, but will clamp it together when I glue the tenon in anyway to be doubly safe.

Pleased it hasn’t turned out to be too much of an issue. My heart sank at first - I was worried I’d have to start over!

 

[Mike G]

There are very few cock-ups in woodworking which are insurmountable. Once you've mastered the basic skills, mastering repairs and so on is your next fundamental set of skills. No-one is immune to making balls ups.

 

[AndyP]

There are very few cock-ups in woodworking which are insurmountable. Once you've mastered the basic skills, mastering repairs and so on is your next fundamental set of skills. No-one is immune to making balls ups.

He who never made a mistake never made anything.