Shaping: Rounding Over The Protruding Tenons

With the arches cut, the next shaping element is the ends of the tenons on the lower rail. This follows the same pattern as that for any roundover (click here for a comprehensive guide), but with the length being only 2” (51mm), it can be a little challenging to achieve a uniform curve.

Begin by securing the piece upright in the vise (not too high) and creating a 45° chamfer across the end with a plane set to a relatively heavy cut. Remember you must skew your plane by bringing the back down so as to slice through the wood rather than push into it. This is essential whenever you are rounding over end grain.

Once you have created a 3/16” (4mm) wide chamfer, begin to drop your plane so as to create an even round. For this you will need to decrease the depth of cut on your plane. Do the same working up to the end of the tenon. This time, you may get a lot of loud vibration due to planing perpendicular to the length of the cross-rail. If this is the case, simply oil the sole of your plane and that should reduce the friction between the surfaces.

With both front and back rounded over, give the resulting profile a light sand with 240 grit sandpaper to even out any remaining discrepancies.

The last detail is the half round on the two edges of the tenon. For this, take a wide chisel and start about 3/8” (10mm) from the end, with your chisel laying almost flat. Use the palm of your hand instead of a chisel hammer as it’s only a small amount of material to take off. Take progressively steeper cuts as you get closer to the end and then smoothen the profile with a flat file. Do not sand this as the finish from the file is good enough and results in crisp, clean ridges.