A chain mortiser is a tool used for cutting square holes in wood for mortise and tenon joints or post and beam fittings. There are two types: portable and stationary. The chain is wrapped around a pulley attached to a drive motor, and larger jobs may require multiple chains. Carbide tipped chains are expensive.
A chain mortiser is a tool designed to cut square holes in a piece of wood, often to create mortise and tenon joints or post and beam fittings. Like other mortising machines, the chain mortiser is designed to cut material into a square shape, which drill bits often cannot do. Unlike other mortising machines, however, chain machines can remove a significant amount of material very quickly, and the chain itself can be plunged deep enough into the wood to create deeper cuts. The chain goes around a bar, much like a chainsaw design, but usually on a much smaller scale.
There are two general types of chain mortising machines: portable machines and stationary machines. A portable chain mortiser is often quite light and compact. A user will hold the machine to cut the square mortise, making this tool convenient for on-site jobs like home construction. Stationary chain mortisers are much larger, heavier, and able to support the weight of the wood being cut. The piece of wood is placed on the machine’s worktable and usually locked into place. A hand lever, much like the one found on a drill press, will be used to drop the chain and bar onto the piece of wood on your work surface. The machine can be equipped with a depth gauge to check the cutting depth of the chain.
The chain will be wrapped around a pulley attached to a drive motor. As the engine spins the pulley at a high speed, the chain will also rotate rapidly around the guide bar. The size of the engine will often dictate how quickly the chain can be moved; in most cases, the faster the chain moves, the smoother the final cut will be. When the mortise chain is dipped into the wood, the result will be a square hole with a rounded bottom; the chain can then be re-dipped close to the original hole to cut a flatter surface.
Larger jobs often require a chain mortiser than other types of mortising machines. The chain itself can be carbide tipped for longer life and clean cuts, and for larger jobs, multiple chains are likely to be fitted side by side to create a larger cutting tool. Each chain will either run around a separate bar or around a bar with separate flanges to guide the chains. Depending on the type of chain used, the cost of the cutting chain can be quite high; carbide tipped chains are particularly expensive, sometimes reaching or exceeding the cost of the machine itself.
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