My domino joiner keeps slipping on plywood edges and I need a fix

I was building some kitchen cabinets last Tuesday for a job in Portland, using 3/4 inch birch plywood for the boxes. Every time I tried to cut a mortise near the edge with my Festool Domino, the tool would shift maybe 2 millimeters and mess up the alignment. This happened on like 4 out of 18 joints before I stopped and started using a clamp to hold it steady. That slowed me down a lot though, and I still had two joints that were slightly off. My helper thinks it's because the base plate is worn down a bit, but the machine is only 2 years old. Has anyone else dealt with the domino walking on plywood, or is there a trick to keeping it planted without clamping every single time?

2 comments

2 Comments

taylor_fox1d ago

A buddy of mine had the same drifting problem on his Domino last spring when he was building shelving for a restaurant. He said he stopped mid job and put a strip of blue painter's tape along the edge of the plywood, then ran the tool over it once before making his cuts. The tape gave just enough grip that the base stopped sliding around on the slick birch surface.

the_ben2d ago

Dude YES this EXACT thing happened to me on a set of utility cabinets last fall. My Domino would drift like a quarter inch on the edge cuts and I thought I was going crazy. I finally figured out the rubber pad on the base plate gets slick after a while, especially on that smooth birch surface. I wiped mine down with alcohol and scuffed it with some 80 grit and it helped a LOT. Still have to clamp for the really tight spots near the edges though, it's just the nature of the tool on plywood.