Not sure why people still buy the domino

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[alexviau]

I've never used a domino. I don't think I've ever even seen one irl. But the appeal to me as a hobbyist has never been time savings but rather the accuracy and certainty that the joints will be near perfect without having to manually adjust each joint individually.

[MrRobertBatchelor]

I bought the domino in June and the festool hoover. 2500€ and I’ve done two projects with it. Which I wouldn’t have even attempted without the domino. It is opening up my creativity. I’m a professional property renovator in France.

[tannerbriggs]

As a professional carpenter during the day; There is nothing that beats the speed and durability of a domino in on-site carpentry. Me and my employees will continue to use them. For alignment of panel etc. they are great.

[frankshannon]

I bought my Domino in 2008. Mine was the first one my dealer had sold. It was my 50th birthday and it was my present to myself. I've used it for 16 years now and I look forward to using it for another 16 years God willing. I don't remember exactly what I paid for it. There was a special discount if you bought the kit.

I was building my kitchen and the unusual door profile precluded cope and stick. That was my immediate rationale.

[mjf]

We have heard from so many YouTubers that "the Domino is really used to help with Alignment during the glue up". Absolutely it looks like it does help. For me, based upon this time study, I need to practice cutting my M&T joinery! 😅❤

[adrian-mujr]

Dowelling is cheap, easy and fast. You can get a wide variety of diameter and any length you like. Standard super accurate jigs can make 6mm to 10mm dowel joints. Then you can use as many dowels as you want in a joint.

[andrewbrown]

Good video, Scott. As a hobbyist woodworker, I never expected that I would ever buy a Festool Domino...until I did. While I love making joinery using traditional methods, the Domino is just fun to use. I find myself employing it in different ways and replacing other methods of doing things. I used to use my biscuit joiner to make slots for Z-clips (or similar hardware) to hold down tops to rails, but now I use the Domino. I have also used the Domino to make double & triple-wide slots resembling wider mortises for specific applications and it works like a dream. Several other uses, but I've already over-typed and you're now snoring.
Always looking forward to your next...

[richardlyle]

I love how nerdy you get with the numbers and now i can use your calculator to convince my wife.

[TaylerMade]

interesting video. i am now retired, but remember when the domino first became available. i was a one man shop who made individual pieces on commission, so my throughput compared to most commercial shops was small. i looked at the cost of the machine and its consumables, decided that unless doing large batches it was uneconomic. to be honest, when i trained most professional shops used dowels. with a horizontal drill and bench drill it was a quick and easy method to get a joint that done well, stood the test of time. my last point is this, i see more money spent on tools in amateur shops than i had in my shop. people its not about the gear you have, its about how you use what you have to be able to enjoy your time in the shed. its a hobby and it doesn't matter how long it takes you.

[melmartinez]

I mean, there are various round-dowel jigs that are very fast and accurate that would serve for this. MUCH cheaper than a Domino and MUCH MUCH easier than doing a full classic mortis & tenon with a router. The nicest advantage of the Domino that you can't easily replace, though, is the dust collection. Not that important to a DIY hobbyist, but to a full-timer, that can be pretty important..

[befmx]

As I am sitting here watching this video, I just have to say, the video quality is superb!

[OperationDarkside]

"Tools you already have around the shop"
You, Sir, underestimate how much of a cheapskate I am and how I'm willing to suffer with hand tools for it.

[larryschweitzer]

I ran a commercial woodworking business most of my life. We did have a Domino machine along with multiple other methods of joinery. For all panel joinery dowels were used because it was strong and fast. (CNC!) Dowels were sometimes used for solid wood construction but took longer in assembly than Hoffman dovetail keys which were fast to machine and didn't require any clamping. Lamello biscuits were used for odd & end panel work that didn't justify some other means. The Domino machine was the least used method even though we had one for years. The issues were: it took longer to make the two slots, spread the glue on both surfaces, install the loose tenon, align the parts and clamp then unclamp. Too many operations. It was a good joint and OK if time didn't translate in to $$s. As a hobbyist I would find it hard to justify where I would rather spend my limited resources on other things.

[Ceen]

For me it is quite easy. The Domino is so idiot proof, that it makes me a better woodworker. It delivers the same result, every time.
I even got a really good router jig for the mortise and good bits. But in the end, the Domino wins hands down. Every time. I'm glad you mentioned the dust in this case.
I also use the Domino every time it makes even a little sense. Any glue up with enough meat on the wood (I rarely use less than 16mm wood), gets a small domino. No movement during clamping is another huge benefit for me. I even use it when gluing two sheets together, just so nothing moves. Well and also because I want to use it lol.

[markusesslinger]

If it is a hobby, time is not what matters — it is fun.
So if you consider joinery to be a boring labour, go and buy whatever helper you can afford. However, if you do woodworking for recreation, even a electric router might be a bad choice: Stick with old handtools which are neither fast nor easy, but are much more rewarding — and in the long run, you probably even save time when you master handsaw and chisel.

[nathanfife]

The thing I like about the domino is that it's just kind of fun.

I have limited time to actually spend building stuff, but I try my best to actually get out there and build things for our house.

It allows me to be more creative in my design and not be so limited by my inexperience.

That's not to say that I can't make a mortise and tenon, I have done that quite a few times. But it takes me far longer than I'm sure it takes you, and I always have to re-remember exactly how to do it because the frequency of that operation is low enough for me that it's not muscle memory.

For me the reason I got my Domino was more because it just made woodworking more fun for me

And I would say after 3 years of using it, I stand by that decision, it definitely hasn't returned its investment in terms of money, cuz I don't really make money doing my woodworking, but it has made it more fun and made me more willing to tackle projects that I wouldn't have felt like I had the time or energy to do without it.

Similar to a CNC, which I don't have, I think it just allows for more creative process for people who don't do it as a full-time job.

However, I'm sure if you're a contractor, it suddenly becomes incredibly useful as a tool for making money as well.

Personally, that's not why I got it though

[Paulo-Bunzo]

One thing that might be useful for the calculator is building in a (potentially optional?) salvage/resale value for the Domino. If it holds its value from new to used, then the high cost can be somewhat justified as "I'm really just renting this over a long period of time". But great job on this video!

[phpn]

It's not just cots ; it's also User Experience. Not as in how much experience does the user have, but in how pleasant the experience is. This is a huge factor in people's acquisition decisions. If on top of it, the expense enhances the repeatability and the accuracy of the work, with minimal effort, you have a significant value proposition. Last on the list is the aspirational, brand-related factor : "I use a Festool Domino" has a similar appeal to "my daily driver is an Audi", even if you get nearly as good a car in a Honda, for much less moolah. And these factors may be even more true to hobbyists. Professionals make existential decisions all the time ; hobbyists can afford to make irrational, emotion-driven decisions, and that's something we need to understand and not criticise, even if the gadget purchased, could end up living mostly in its original box.

[harlanbarnhart]

You are not limited in tenon width with the domino once you start making your own tenon stock. I rarely use a standard width, I keep mine switched over to the expanded wide setting and sometimes use double plunges to get the appropriate width. When I need tenon stock, I run a large batch and keep it on hand. For a common size like 10mm I will typically have four widths on hand, regular, 1st expansion, 2nd expansion and double plunge.

[G.I.JeffsWorkbench]

Thx Scott for this ver😊y practical & (mostly) scientific analysis. Well worth considering before you lay out a grand or almost two on one tool. A Domino for a production shop is a no brainer (time is money). For a garage / hobbyist woodworker, money is often money, and time is time. Furthermore, time in the shop is bliss. Bliss is simultaneously free & priceless.