You should NOT have to use a hammer to drive them in like a nail. you should be able to push them "almost" all the way in with your thumb. To use thumbnails correctly, you have to be careful when setting the depth of the cut. Compared to vnails, the thumbnail inserts are NOT cheap. Sometimes i use thumbnails for larger mouldings. I know that my way isn't the best for all, but there are framers that have great success using this method. The quality of my joints is superb.īeing able to share opinions makes the Grumble great! But.I'm sticking up for my machine because some might not have considered all of the facts. Not great for volume, but a nice choice for a perfect join if you know what you are doing. We also have a v-nailer but prefer the Thumbnailer for many jobs. I've been using the system for years and have never gotten a broken joint back to repair. I'm 1/2 hour away from him and never gotten a broken joint of his to repair. One friend has been in business for 35 years and swears by it. There are many framers that use the Thumbnail method for joining frames. I've seen one of their labs and I know that much thought goes into their products. Perhaps a framer should contact the manufacturer to ask why it broke if they seem to have this problem? If it was so bad, why does such a big guy keep offering it? They have an amazing science lab with some pretty smart science guys there. Cheap glue? Inexperienced framer? Innapropriate method of joining for the moulding? Different climate? The Northeast is very different than the Southwest. Perhaps before disapproving and badmouthing a method, consider all of the facts. I believe that the manufacturer of these of plugs admits that there was a bad batch out there at one time. Sometimes a plastic plug is not appropriate for the frame. Sometimes failure occurs because of inferior glue, the wrong v-nail, operator error, no glue, being dropped or a bad batch of plastic plugs. Isn't it the glue that holds the joints together and the v-nail, wedge, or Thumbnailer keeps it together until it dries? I have seen failed joints with v-nails, brads, wedges, and Thumbnails in my 23 years of being a framer. Sadly, most of us are notorious cheapskates when it comes to purchasing equipment, so we end up with things like the Thumbnailer being promoted to us as a "professional" piece of equipment. The Hoffmann joiner was built for the cabinet making industry, and that is where it is advertised and promoted, not to our trade. The bigger cut off saws, some CMC mat cutters, moulders, etc. Many tools that are manufactured are not done so with small frame shops in mind at all, but more for the factory operations. One of the biggest problems is that frame shops are reluctant to put any significant money into their equipment, so the people who furnish us our equipment do the same. From mat cutters, wall cutters, "V" nailers, saws, and yes Thumbnailers. Just about every tool we need can be bought from reputable suppliers as professional equipment only to turn out to be worthless junk. In my fourty five years in this business I have seen a lot of "junk" being sold as professional quality equipment. I think what a lot of framers do not understand is that just because a machine has had a lot of advertising & promotion, or/and it comes from a reputable manufacturer or distributor, does not necessarily make it a professional quality machine.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |