After months of being harassed by my mother, its finally time to finish her laundry room cabinets. With the cases already installed, all that’s left to do is make the frame and panel doors. The wood of choice here is hickory. The weapon of choice? Router bits. Big ones! So come with me on this little adventure as we learn some basic techniques for making a very important component of modern-day cabinetry, the raised-panel door.

Rockler Rail Coping Jig For rail and stile doors. Allows you to easily make clean cope cuts without blowouts. Perfect for narrow cross-grain rail cuts. Rockler Rail Coping Jig

Do you have any opinions on the use of glue-joint bits for the use of making thick table tops? I am talking about gluing boards at least 1-1/8 inch thick for a project i am working on. I hate biscuits and want the extra strength that glue-joints offer. Other than self-aligning properties. Is it really needed?

And here was my reply:
Hey Alexander. The short answer is no. The long grain glue bond in a tabletop glue-up is stronger than the wood itself. So if its going to break, it should not break along the joint. Now biscuits do help with alignment but don’t add much in the way of strength. A glue-line bit will also help in alignment, but some people believe it actually decreases the strength of the joint. So if you don’t have alignment issues, all you really need is glue and clamps. If you do have alignment issues, I recommend a set of cauls or just a biscuit every 8-10 inches. Good luck!

*Note*- For those of you who aren’t familiar with glue-line bits, check out this article on NewWoodworker.com. Also, be sure to read the comments section of this post for further clarification on the weakened glue-line issue.