Timber Framers Guild Forums General General Forum Questions Pegs Too Big

Find a local machine shop and have them drill and ream a 3/4" hole through a 1/4" thick piece of steel. Fasten this plate to a stump with a hole through it. This is a Die. Now just drive your pegs through this die. All my pegs are finished in this manner.

We've always made our pegs by taking straight grained boards and ripping them into squares just a 1/16 of an inch larger then the finished peg size. Then shaving off the corners until it fits through the test hole, in the seat of the shaving horse.

We never wet our pegs, again.

When the dry peg is driven into a wet timber frame the peg draws some moisture into it from the frame and swells up a bit to make it a tight fit. This is why when we test fit things using these pegs we never drive them in a lot, as we're going to drive them out again to dis-assemble.

Jim Rogers

I understand that the primary peg turning business makes different sized pegs for imperial sizes and for the Owl Bit holes, which are graded in imperial but manufactured in metric, so they are actually a 32nd or 16th off. Is it possible you have an order of pegs designed to fit the Owl Bit 3/4 approximation?

I tend to use dry split hickory driven through a plate to make my pegs. Riven pegs follow the grain and tend to bind better when set, using dry materials ensures the peg won't loosen when it does dry out.

Howdy,

Thought I'd follow up. Eric that is an interesting post, which brings up the question: If the timber is green and your pegs have moisture when they both dry, whats the result? Me thinks that they will only get tighter with all the wood movement.

Tried the microwave: DO NOT ATTEMPT! Hehehe.
Solution: Take block plane and go to town. About 15 seconds per with a sharp blade. As far as grain, if your iron is sharp enough and your depth is small enough, and your hand is quick enough, no problems. And if it tears a little so be it, its still doing its job.

P.S. Anybody want to see some pictures? Its a nice frame.

Pics please.

Mo, isn't the answer to a question like that obvious? Pics, please! It's always a pleasure to see other folks' work

OK.

Mo, that's great work.
What did you use to treat your timbers?

I am a big fan of curved, profiled, or otherwise decorated struts and braces, so this is right up my ally!

This makes me think of this (look at the bracing):