Using a Scrap Block to Make a High-Rise Mortiser

Using a Scrap Block to Make a High-Rise Mortiser

My Delta mortising machine lacked the vertical capacity for mortising some wider stock recently, so I bolted a 2″-thick hardwood spacer beneath the tool column to give the machine more “reach.” Now I can mortise workpieces up to 4-1⁄2″ tall. But, to preserve the original mortising depth for narrower stock, I clamp a second 2″ spacer block to the table in front of the fence. A couple of stopped holes on the ends hold it in place with spring clamps.

– Ken Johnson
Bellefonte, Pennsylvania

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