Most tabletops are created by edge joining, or assembling wood pieces together, side by side. You can also larger wood pieces like 4×8′ plywood or MDF board along with larger pieces of live edge wood to create tabletops.
In this article, I will go over how to edge join wood to create tabletops, benchtops and more. I will compare the different methods and go over the steps for each
Directory
5 Ways to edge join table top
There are 5 main ways that you can edge join wood to create a tabletop. You can edge glue the wood, edge glue with biscuits, use pocket hole joinery, using dowels, or use plywood spline and groove joinery.
| Edge glue | Edge glue w/ biscuits | Pocket hole | Dowels | Tongue and groove | |
| Simplicity | 5/5 Very simple | 3/5 Fairly simple | 4/5 Simple | 3/5 Fairly simple | 3/5 Fairly simple |
| Strength | 3/5 | 3/5 | 3/5 | 4/5 | 4/5 |
| Design | Minimalist, cannot see joinery | Minimalist, cannot see joinery | Not ideal, joinery can be visible | Minimalist, cannot see joinery | Visible joinery for aesthetic purposes |
| Time | Quickest | Quick | Quicker | Quick | Quick |
Edge glue wood
Edge gluing wood are very similar to creating butt joints. You will apply glue to one of the wood pieces and clamp them together.
Simplicity
Edge glue wood is a very simple and effective form of edge joinery. It is the easiest and requires the least amount of steps.
Strength
Edge glued wood is strong enough to handle most of the force that a tabletop will experience, like rocking force and downward pressure. Edge glued joints are very common in workbenches made for and tools, that will experience a lot of force from sawing, chiseling, and hammering. However, it is not the strongest edge joinery out there.
Design
Edge glued wood creates a joint that is very simple and barely visible. This joinery can make the wood look like a solid slab.
Time
Edge glued butt joints is the quickest way to create edge joinery and it requires the least number of tools.
Edge glue with biscuits
Edge gluing wood with biscuits are very similar to edge gluing wood in general, however, you will need a biscuit joiner to create the biscuits.
Simplicity
Edge gluing wood with biscuits is more difficult are requires more steps than just edge gluing wood. However, with a biscuit jointer, creating the biscuit holes can be done very quickly with minimal effort and setup.
Strength
Edge gluing wood with biscuits is slightly stronger than just edge gluing wood. However, the research for this shows very negligible results and many woodworkers do not find it worth the extra time and effort.
Design
Edge gluing wood with biscuits is no different visually from just edge gluing wood. The joinery will be barely visible and can make the wood appear as one large slab.
Time
If you are using a biscuit jointer, it may take double the time to assemble a tabletop in comparison to just edge jointing. However, it is still one of the quicker methods to edge jointing wood.
Pocket hole joints
You can edge join wood by using pocket hole joints. This method is not as common because edge gluing is much easier, simpler, and takes less time.
Simplicity
Pocket hole joints can be set up like edge joinery and you can add pocket holes in the clamping and drying process.
Strength
Pocket hole joinery, when used with wood glue, will be stronger than just edge joining wood.
Design
Pocket hole joints can be seen (even if it’s just under the table). Pocket hole joinery is not “appeasing” in wood joinery. However, they can be less visible and put in hard to see places, like the underside of a tabletop.
Time
Using pocket hole joints will take more time when edge joining. The amount of time will vary based on the type of pocket hole joinery jig you have and the number of pocket holes you join.
Edge glue with dowels
Edge gluing wood with dowels is when you use dowels to connect the edges of wood and wood glue to secure the wood.
Simplicity
Using dowels requires you to bore straight holes to allow the wood to align after inserting the dowels. This causes this method to be more difficult than the others or the use of special tools like a drill press. The biggest issue with this method is the tendency for the wood to move slightly out of line after securing the dowels. However, flattening the wood last will address this error.
Strength
Using dowels with edge joints will create the strongest joint out of the other edge joinery. This joinery is best for tabletops that will be under constant or extreme pressure, like supporting machinery.
Design
Edge gluing wood with dowels is no different visually from just edge gluing wood. The joinery will be barely visible and can make the wood appear as one large slab.
Time
Edge gluing with dowels takes considerably more time to create than edge gluing with biscuits and pocket hole joinery. You have to set up and align the hole so that it is bored correctly. This time can be cut down if a drill press is being used.
Plywood spline and groove joints
A plywood spline and groove joint to edge join wood together is created by making a groove in both edges of the wood and inserting a plywood spline.
Simplicity
plywood spline and grooves are fairly simple to create and require that you create a groove along the length of the wood and creating a plywood slit to insert into the wood. You do have to ensure the slit is wide enough and thick enough to create a tight fit.
Strength
Plywood spline and groove joints are considerably stronger than edge joints with biscuits and pocket hole joinery. However, they are not as strong as edge glue with dowels.
Design
plywood spline and groove joints show aesthetics with a tabletop. You can see the plywood splines which are visually appealing to some people.
Time
This joinery takes around the same amount of time as edge gluing with dowels. You will need to create splines and grooves of the correct size.
How should I edge join wood
For the general table
Edge glue joints
The best edge joinery method for the general table is edge glue joints. Edge glue joints are very simple and effective at creating a quality tabletop. This joinery is the quickest to create, the joints are barely visible, and you get the needed strength.
For a very strong table
Dowel or plywood spline and groove joints
Dowel and plywood spline and groove joints are the strongest form of edge joinery. Your preference between the two will likely be due to the tools that you have and the final look.
Edge glue with dowels require boring bits and dowels. They also create a minimalist design where the joint is barely visible.
Plywood spline and groove joints requires a saw, preferably a table saw, to create the grooves and plywood splines. They will create a visible joint that is aesthetically pleasing to some.
For the aesthetics
Plywood spline and groove joints
Plywood spline and groove joints are the only joints that are visible and show an appealing design. You will be able to see the splices in-between each joint on the end grain of the wood.
Conclusion
In this article, we learned about the 5 ways to edge join a table top and which methods are best for the general table, a very strong table, and a tabletop with joinery aesthetics.
Thank you so much for taking the time to read this article and I wish you luck on your woodworking journeys!
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