4 types of wood joints every woodworker should know

Traditional, hand-cut joinery requires skill and a great deal of practise to master. But are those fancy joints necessary? Nah. I still use mortise-and-tenons or dovetails when a project calls for it. But for most projects, I just need joinery that’s strong and simple. My go-to methods include pocket screws, dowels, biscuits and the Beadlock system. There’s no reason to have all of them in your arsenal. Most serious woodworkers choose one or two, become proficient at them and use them in most projects. So pick the one that speaks to you and let’s get started!

Check out these 19 practical woodworking projects for beginners.

You can get a basic pocket hole kit for about $60. You’ll need a supply of different lengths of special self-drilling washer-head screws (course threads for hardwoods). You likely already have a drill/driver, which is the only necessary tool. That’s a plus, as you don’t need to purchase yet another tool that only has one purpose. Once you’ve become a convert, you can pick up more clamps, accessories and jigs to really step up your production. The only downside to pocket screws is that without special clamps, they don’t provide positive alignment of parts for assembly.

Pros

Fast

No clamping required

Cons

Visible holes

Doesn’t provide positive alignment

To use a pocket hole jig, just clamp your workpiece in the jig and drill the steeply angled holes. The thickness of the stock you’re drilling into determines the jig’s positioning as well as the setting of the drill bit’s stop collar. The included drill bit bores a flat-bottom hole with a short pilot hole at the centre to guide the screw into the adjoining part.

Build this pocket hole workbench.

Apply glue, clamp the parts together and drive the screws. Some pocket hole jigs are portable, so you can clamp them onto a workpiece that’s too large to put on your workbench.

Check out our guide to clamps.

A solid, easy-to-use doweling jig will set you back about $20-$60. You’ll need a supply of dowels and, like the pocket hole method, the only tool you need is a drill. Dowels for joinery are different from standard dowel rods found at the hardware store. Joinery dowels are grooved to keep glue from getting trapped in the bottom of the hole, preventing the parts from pulling together. The greater gluing surface provides a somewhat mechanical grip.

Unlike pocket screws, dowels provide positive alignment of parts. Also, unlike pocket screws, both sides of the joint look the same, without exposed screws. That’s good when both sides will be visible.

Pros

Positive alignment both directions

Mating dowel holes can be positioned anywhere using dowel centres.

Cons

Requires clamping

Slow

The doweling jig I use is a self-centring jig with an integrated clamping mechanism. Mark the hole locations on both parts, clamp the jig into place and drill the hole.

Apply glue to the dowels and mating parts. Press the joint together and clamp. You can use shims with this jig to drill holes for offset parts. When necessary, use dowel centres to mark the starting points for drilling into the adjoining part.

A plate or biscuit joiner runs anywhere from $130 to over $1000. The $1,000+ variety is really nice, but it’s not necessary for an amateur woodworker. A modestly priced model works just fine. A plate joiner cuts a semicircular slot in adjoining parts to accept a plate/biscuit, which is then glued in place. Biscuits come in different sizes to accommodate various part dimensions.

Pros

Fast

Easy to use

Easy to offset parts

Effective dust collection

Positive alignment in one direction

Cons

Requires clamping

Parts can slide during clamping

Mark joint centre lines on adjoining parts. Set the plate joiner to the desired cutting height, and the cutting depth to match the biscuit size you’re using. Line up the guide mark on the joiner’s fence with your mark and plunge the cut.

Try your hand at this smple, easy step stool.

Apply glue to the mating surfaces and in the slots. Insert the biscuit, press the joint together and clamp.