How To Mortise A Door Hinge By Hand

You can cut hinge mortises by hand with a chisel.

How to mortise a door hinge by hand.

Mark the depth of the mortise on the edge of the jamb with your knife using a combination square as a guide. In other cases a mortise is merely cosmetic. Follow the sequence below to lay out and mark the mortise using a pencil a sharp knife and an awl. Laying out the mortise.

Now all you need to do is turn the hinge over and attach it to the door in the correct orientation. The hinge mortise allows the hinge to be mounted flush with the jamb and door so the door will close properly. Doors must be mortised to make hinges fit properly. No mortise hinges are a handy solution to a tricky problem.

In some situations a mortise is required for the door to close properly. Becoming proficient with a chisel is useful for more than just hinges. It allows the hinge to fit flat and flush with the edge of the door inside a shallow cut. Mortising for a door hinge allows the hinge to install flush with the surface of the door edge or face.

Once you have both hinges installed on the door you can mount the door in the cabinet. And as you can see here the design of the hinge makes the installation quick and. A mortise is a recess or hollow space cut to fit a specific item such as a door hinge or a lock mechanism. Among other things the mortising and carving techniques shown here can be used to install strike plates.

Locate the back of the hinge on the door. The depth of the mortise must be slightly more than the thickness of the hinge leaf. Using a utility knife trace along the outline to create small groves then make a cut on the front or back side of the door indicating the mortise s depth. Hinge mortises on a door are often cut by machine with a router and straight bit but you can cut mortises by hand using a hammer and chisel as well.

How to mortise hinges on a standard interior door. With it you ll be able to cut every size of butt hinge mortise you ll ever need in a fraction of the time it would take you to chisel them out by hand. And with a few optional inserts you can add butler tray hinges and sewing machine hinges in a various sizes to the list. Hold the hinge in place and scribe around it with a utility knife.