Alignment.—Another fault that is fairly common is having the axes of the hinges out of alignment. Especially is this the case when three hinges are used to hang a wardrobe or other large door. It is absolutely necessary in all cases that the exact centres of the pivot-pins of the hinges should be in a straight line.
Particular attention to alignment is necessary when the body and the door frame are shaped on the face side. A familiar example that every reader may inspect for himself is the curved side of a railway carriage body and railway carriage door, where he will notice that a specially wide hinge has to be used at the bottom of the door to give the necessary alignment. Hinges fixed on work with their centres out of truth are often overlooked by the inexperienced worker, and this is a frequent cause of creaking.
Gauging.—[Fig. 222] is a sketch of a brass butt hinge, open. [Fig. 223] illustrates a similar hinge closed, and shows the gauge set so that the point of the marker is exactly to the centre of the pivot-pin. This distance we will call C. Now turn to [Fig. 224]. The distance C has been gauged from the face side of the frame. The gauge is then set to the thickness of the hinge at its thickest portion, and to prevent "hinge-bind" see that the gauge is set on the fine side. Remember that the tapered point of the steel spur or marking awl will part the fibres of the timber a little more than the fine point, and give you a wider gauge line than was anticipated when you set the gauge. The inexperienced worker nearly always overlooks this. The result is a hinge-bound door, the cause of which is not discovered by the worker because he is so sure that he has set the gauge correctly. The distance B, [Fig. 226], shows the line gauged for the thickness of the hinge.
Position of Hinges.—Another difficulty to the beginner is the position for his hinges, and it may here be stated that the general rule is to carry a line across the face of the work from the inside of the cross rail and place the hinge at E, as [Fig. 224].
Fig. 226.—Tool Operation when Paring Out the Hinge Recess in the Door.
Sawing for the Recess.—After marking out for the hinge, as shown at [Fig. 224], take a fine-toothed saw (a dovetail saw is considered the best) and saw down as shown at [Fig. 225], care being taken not to cut beyond the gauge lines. In this sketch three intermediate saw kerfs are shown, but if the hinge is of great length, say 5 or 6 ins., the removal of the waste wood will be greatly facilitated by the addition of more intermediate saw kerfs. These cuts sever the cross fibres and allow the timber to be easily pared away in short lengths.
In [Fig. 226] we see the tool operation when paring out the hinge recess. At the left of the drawing the recess is shown marked. Take a 3⁄4 in. chisel and, using it as a knife (see A), deepen the gauge lines. Then stab the chisel downwards, as at B, to deepen the end lines. Next, take the chisel and pare away the back of the recess as at C. The work may then be completed by paring neatly till the bottom of the recess is flat.
| Fig. 227. | Fig. 228. |