wedge direction

[mrbrb]

In your typical wedged half dovetail, what direction should the wedge be oriented in? Jack Sobon's 'Historic american timber joinery' shows the wedge pointing in (fat end on outside, narrow end on inside of post),
while Steve Chappel has it the other way around (wedge driven from inside of joint, narrow end pointed out)

Either you drive the wedge from the outside or inside..  Seems to me that Sobon's orientation emphasizes the squeeze on the dovetail, while Chappel's puts the squeeze on the joint shoulder.  Just curious. I've been orienting them from the outside, preferring 'historic american timber joinery'



  

 

[Dave Shepard]

Jack's is probably sourced from actual historic joints that he has found. Once the sheathing is on, they cannot be tightened up.

[jueston]

on a barn in the 1800's it wouldn't have been too big of a deal to pull of a bit of siding and tighten up that wedge.

on a modern house it would be a big project to remove some siding, cut back insulation, destroy the integrity of your vaper barrier and house wrap to tighten up the wedge.

[Brian_Weekley]

I fitted my wedges from the outside like Jack shows in the book you referenced.  However, I think you could do it either way—just depends on which way you cut the taper in the post.  If you want to be able to tighten it in the future, insert it from the inside.  Just make sure your wedges aren't too long or you'll have the opposite effect—possibly driving the siding away from the wall if you tighten it later.  Even though I had supposedly cut all my joints and wedges the same, it was evident some wedges could be driven in farther than others.  Because the taper is relatively narrow, it's hard to judge how far the wedge will extend past the post when you hammer it home.