How to Make a Miter Joint - Part 1

In this Video you will learn to make a Miter Joint.

The Miter Joint is used in the corners of frames and boxes where the two perpendicular pieces are glued together by end grains bevelled to 45 degrees.

Since they have no mechanical strength, if the glue fails, so does the joint.

The tools that you will need are: a Try Square, a Protractor, a Pencil, a Marking Knife, a Sliding Bevel Edge, a Bevel Edge Chisel, a Hammer, a Crosscut Saw, a Block Plane, a Bench Plane, two Clamps and a Vice.

The materials you will need are: a workpiece, scrap wood, a rectangular board, sawdust and adhesive.

Step 1 - Marking the miter.

Set a Sliding Bevel Edge to 45 degrees using a protractor.

You can also use a miter square.

Place the Sliding Bevel Edge at the point along the edge where you would like to make the cut.

Use marking knife to mark the line of the cut and highlight the mark with a pencil.

Use a Try Square to extend the line to the adjacent sides of the workpiece.

Step 2 - Cutting.

Fix the piece on the Vice with the 45 degree line facing up and start sawing along the line using a crosscut saw.

Fix the first piece on the Vice with the bevelled edge parallel to the work bench.

Use the Sliding Bevel Edge to check if the cut was made at the right angle.

Use a block plane to make sure the bevelled surface is smooth, flat and consistent.

Fix the second piece on the vice and follow the same steps to finish the bevelled edge.

Place the pieces together on the workbench and use a try square to ensure that they join at a right angle.

Now that you have two pieces with mitered ends that meet at a right angle, you can continue to glue them together.

For the remaining steps, continue watching How to make a Miter joint part 2.

Watch the video How to make a Miter joint part 2.