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Cutting The Tenon

Cut a 1” (25mm) tenon as you would a regular tenon. (See our Mortise and Tenon course for a more comprehensive guide). You can use the beam of your square to mark the 1” shoulder with a pencil before running your mortise gauge.

Without changing the distance between your pins, loosen the locking nut of your mortise gauge and slide the beam in order to centre the pins on the 3/4” (18mm) tenon piece. This should leave around 3/16” (4mm) on either side of the tenon.

Once you have run your gauge, come back in with your square and knife to define the shoulders. Run a knifewall on both sides and down to your gauge lines on the top and bottom edges. Then proceed to cut the shoulders, followed by the cheeks, and clean out the shoulders with a sharp chisel.

The beam on a standard square is 1" (25mm)
The beam on a standard square is 1" (25mm)
Centre your pins on the tenon piece and run the gauge lines
Centre your pins on the tenon piece and run the gauge lines
Make your shoulders definite with a knifewall on both sides and down to the gauge lines
Make your shoulders definite with a knifewall on both sides and down to the gauge lines
Transfer the shoulder carefully
Transfer the shoulder carefully
Pare into the knifewall with a wide chisel before sawing the shoudlers
Pare into the knifewall with a wide chisel before sawing the shoudlers
When sawing the shoulders, cut marginally away so that you do not cut beyond the knifewalls
When sawing the shoulders, cut marginally away so that you do not cut beyond the knifewalls
Saw the cheeks of the tenon from both sides to help you stay parallel
Saw the cheeks of the tenon from both sides to help you stay parallel
Clean the shoulders with a wide chisel but do not undercut
Clean the shoulders with a wide chisel but do not undercut

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