How to Make Mortise and Tenon Joints with Hand Tools

How to Make Mortise and Tenon Joints with Hand Tools

Learn how to make a simple, yet strong, hand cut Mortise & Tenon joint with traditional woodworking hand tools. Here are links to tools used in this video:

* Brass wheel marking gauge (update: my new favorite): https://amzn.to/2Q0ob0P
* 6-Inch Combination Square: https://amzn.to/2qbiQev
* Dovetail Saw: http://bit.ly/2AJSfXI
* Carcass Back Saw: http://bit.ly/338abb6
* Joiner’s Mallet: https://amzn.to/2WDo4eR
* Pig Sticker Mortise Chisel: https://ebay.to/2pBPMN1
* Marking Knife: http://bit.ly/2C7UxRj
* Woodworking Clamps: https://amzn.to/2WzMki8
* Wood Chisels: https://amzn.to/2N6zuES
* Some of the above affiliate links can earn me a small commission if you make a purchase (no cost to you)

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50 Comments

  1. HeyDaan on August 28, 2023 at 6:40 pm

    This is very helpful in my first babysteps of woodworking, making a mortise/tenon joint is a must-do for me !



  2. Solid Snake on August 28, 2023 at 6:40 pm

    Quick and precise videos. No rambling and just the sound of tool on wood.



  3. Stephen Cannon on August 28, 2023 at 6:42 pm

    This project looks less formidable on repeated viewings.



  4. Kupar lanong on August 28, 2023 at 6:42 pm

    Thank you sir..👍



  5. Bluegill20 on August 28, 2023 at 6:45 pm

    Make it look so easy. I used a drill to get my depth then used a chisel to square it up inside….. turned out horrible to say the least. Definitely have to try this method, looks easier



  6. Martin Berry on August 28, 2023 at 6:46 pm

    Excellent. Thank you for taking the time to post this – much obliged.



  7. Robert De Loyola on August 28, 2023 at 6:47 pm

    very helpful! thank you!



  8. Smokey Media Productions on August 28, 2023 at 6:47 pm

    pog



  9. Omar Atef on August 28, 2023 at 6:47 pm

    Brilliant!



  10. Kelly Cox on August 28, 2023 at 6:53 pm

    I learned how to do this more than 20 years ago, long before Youtube–mostly from books. I miss having a nice woodworking shop, it’s so relaxing doing stuff like this and having a table come together using only hand tools.



  11. Alex oshike on August 28, 2023 at 6:55 pm

    Making the tenon isnt a so difficult. Its making the mortise that is far more difficult.. You should emphasize more on that.



  12. Mandara Battalahalli on August 28, 2023 at 6:59 pm

    This was so awesome. Thank you.



  13. Bradley Roon on August 28, 2023 at 7:00 pm

    4 minutes in and i like it, but prefer the Paul Sellers mortise and tenon method. I think the marking is going to be more accurate



  14. Reza Shahvali on August 28, 2023 at 7:01 pm

    Blue button top right of the screen!!?



  15. Nate IFBB Pro on August 28, 2023 at 7:01 pm

    Thanks for the help!



  16. Pradnyesh Nimbalkar on August 28, 2023 at 7:06 pm

    Nice video thanks sir👍



  17. shihancheng on August 28, 2023 at 7:07 pm

    I am laying in bed having a sinus headache from menopause. I don’t even know why I watched the entire thing but it’s mesmerizing. 😃



  18. Adam on August 28, 2023 at 7:09 pm

    Now that’s a nice marking gauge, so sad it doesn’t deliver to me 🙁



  19. attila elekes on August 28, 2023 at 7:11 pm

    Thank you!



  20. 𝑰𝑾𝑪 𝐿𝑢𝑥𝑢𝑟𝑦 𝐹𝑢𝑟𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑒_𝐶ℎ𝑒𝑛𝑛𝑢𝑟 on August 28, 2023 at 7:11 pm

    U cut that tenon like a piece of cake



  21. Liam Heffernan on August 28, 2023 at 7:12 pm

    a rough man



  22. Kari S on August 28, 2023 at 7:12 pm

    Thank you for the clear instructions. I fully agree with Aleks James comments.



  23. Donald Curley on August 28, 2023 at 7:13 pm

    Thanks very helpful, haven’t done that since school,many years back!



  24. Leif Harmsen on August 28, 2023 at 7:13 pm

    Nice. Now I have to buy new tools that would have been useless before I learned how to use them in this video, but now should be useful for the rest of my life especially living in this 19th C house with mortise everything that will all need fixing or replacing at some point. Job #1 replacing the broken outer rail on my front door!



  25. George young on August 28, 2023 at 7:13 pm

    I was told to only hit the chisel once tho , y



  26. Alex Ellis on August 28, 2023 at 7:14 pm

    Really helpful and clear 🙌



  27. Bonny Jones on August 28, 2023 at 7:15 pm

    Great overview!! Thank you!



  28. Austi on August 28, 2023 at 7:18 pm

    Prince of Peace



  29. Der Stoff aus dem der Joghurt ist on August 28, 2023 at 7:20 pm

    Is there anyway to use something else instead of a mortise chisel? Could you get it to work with the normal chisel?



  30. Jay J on August 28, 2023 at 7:22 pm

    The bevel on your marking gauge should slope TOWARD the waste side. FYI.



  31. Ibrhem Ahmed on August 28, 2023 at 7:23 pm

    Very good and thank you so much



  32. Melkamu Creaghan on August 28, 2023 at 7:24 pm

    very helpful. I take woodshop and my final tomorrow is making one of these



  33. ROB ARELLANO on August 28, 2023 at 7:24 pm

    Great Video. Thank You



  34. Cole Robinson on August 28, 2023 at 7:26 pm

    So for years now I’ve been wanting my own home wood shop but at the time I’m not able to due to living and financial situations. But I have been thinking about starting to gather tools and materials to be able to do that. BUT with my current situation I won’t be able to do anything that requires power. Such as needing. A table saw or planet and jointer. Is there a way I could start with just hand tools and being completely energy free?



  35. Stephen Cannon on August 28, 2023 at 7:27 pm

    You taught both parts of the joint in less than ten minutes, therefore you are a stud.



  36. Robert Brunston on August 28, 2023 at 7:28 pm

    Very good Josh.



  37. thomas sudderth on August 28, 2023 at 7:28 pm

    Awesome video. I’m gonna check out the rest



  38. Linda Morgey on August 28, 2023 at 7:30 pm

    I’ve heard good feedback about the Woodglut plans.



  39. Rajkumar Ponnuthurai on August 28, 2023 at 7:31 pm

    Bro! what you showed gave me an interest in woodworking at home, thanks. what are the basic, essential tools required to have a wood workshop in the backyard…



  40. Anton Shkabara on August 28, 2023 at 7:31 pm

    Great to see it. I did it too. The plans from Woodglut helped me a lot 🙂



  41. Ros Sanctuary on August 28, 2023 at 7:31 pm

    A bench chisel, better and quicker, cheaper then a mortise chisel



  42. tal stack on August 28, 2023 at 7:31 pm

    very useful thanks



  43. Nutty on August 28, 2023 at 7:32 pm

    Thank you for this video.



  44. James Barrett on August 28, 2023 at 7:33 pm

    Does it matter what kind of saw you use to cut the tenon?



  45. JRW on August 28, 2023 at 7:33 pm

    Great video. I like how clearly you explain how to cut this joint.



  46. Markus Simarmata09 on August 28, 2023 at 7:33 pm

    Veri skillfull



  47. sepatu futsal on August 28, 2023 at 7:34 pm

    thx,easy to understand, salam from country +62🙏



  48. Vivia Waag on August 28, 2023 at 7:37 pm

    I’m planning on making a bassinet, an old fashioned one, that looks like my great grandfather’s, where it goes all the way through and secured with a pin. But this is much prettier, with a hidden “seam”. ☺️
    This is an awesome video, and very well described. 😃



  49. SMEAC on August 28, 2023 at 7:37 pm

    I appreciate you demonstrating the proper method of scribing with the mortise gauge, so many guys seem to blow by it.



  50. Muhammad Rizwan28 on August 28, 2023 at 7:39 pm

    Very very yousfull sir thank you very much