Testing out the Tianli Handheld Mortiser floating tenon jig and comparing it to the Festool Domino joiner. Is the Tiani jig the Festool Domino replacement we've been waiting for? Yes and no. It's $1000 less expensive than the Domino, but it does not have all the features. For a lot of enthusiast woodworkers wanting to save some cash, this may be the perfect drifting tenon jig.
Ebay link for this mortising jig. I have no association with the seller
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Thanks for buying a second one! I was looking at getting one of these for myself but wasn’t sure if it was going to work for me. For the few times I want to use a floating tenon, this thing looks perfect for me!
Pretty nifty jig! Already own the domino, and everytime I use it I always think: “Man this tool is such a pleasure to use!” Whereas every time I use a router… well, they’re scary things!
I’ve seen this before and I admit, when you did your video on buying fad tools ,I was hoping this was going to be one of them. So glad you evidentially found this, I was very curious if :1- it was real, 2- if it worked, and 3- if the build quality was there. Thanks for the answers! Thanks for doing this video, I’ll be ordering this if for nothing else, just to play with it, as I cant afford a Festool just for kicks, and to see if I can find a use for it. I’m a retired carpenter and now just piddle around my shop/garage because I like it, not for a living.
The sole and only case where I would probably consider it a fair replacement to the domino would be if I needed the XL for huge tenons where the 500 can’t fit. Otherwise, i don’t think we can consider it as a decent replacement nor competitor of the domino. There’s way too much manual adjustment to be made. Thanks for showing us, thanks for spending the money so I won’t have to 👍
Great video, that company should be sending you a commission check for the incredible amounts of sales their about to make. I am sure there are plenty of hobbyist who are just like me who would love a Festol but can’t justify the cost. This brings that feature into reality, even if it comes with some inconvenience. A bit of a side note, the savings is only that good IF you own the router.
I gotta get one and try it. I’ve been wanting a Festool however it is well out of my budget…
Thank you for the video demonstration! 👍
As a DIY home gamer the domino is way outside of my justifiable spending range. This tool fits this gap perfectly. Yeah, it’s not as quick and yeah it’s dusty but is it $1,000 slower/dustier? Not in my world.
Excellent review and as always a great video.
Also my mom says thanks for the inch?? 😉
While it is true that the tool is $200, it could easily be worth the expediency to just leave a router in the tool permanently for expediency. So add in ~$150 for that and you’re still only at ~$350.
Very interesting tool. Good find!
It appears the the jig is not cutting a parallel mortise to the stock face. In the video you can clearly see the poor alignment issue. WIth Festool you gain acurracy. The lack of accuracy is possibly due to the lack of robustness of this small jig. There is a lot of faith being placed on the ~8mm sliding rods with a >4 pound router hanging on it. I am also curious about the Y axis being accurate, If X is inaccurate then Y most likely is just as inaccurate. I have seen this jig before and now that I have been able to see it in a video I would not buy this Festool Domino alternative. Maybe V2.0 of this jig will have better accuracy and more robust.
For an even more budget option, check out the domino jointing jig made by Peter Millard at the Ten Minute Workshop YouTube channel… I’m not sure whether he ships to the States, but there are a series of videos about how he built and developed the concept.
Saving $1000 is a big deal, for sure. Since all of us woodworkers always want more tools, use the $1000 saved to have a better tablesaw, which is the cornerstone of practically every shop. Thanks for the video and sharing this jig!
Seems like a great option for *FLOATING TENONS*. Inexpensive and actually works pretty good. Always nice to see that. And I do love having options. Thanks for sharing!
Perfect, thanks for sharing ! The domino is way outside my budget given the few times I would actually use it (as a non professional woodworker). This looks like a very easy jig to use, at least compared to other diy options out there.
I bought every woodworking ad I saw on Facebook https://youtu.be/ZzvYeFoqyYA
Coming up with a dust extraction jig and using fixed bases would greatly improve the product. I like it, very neat. I’m not getting rid of my Domino but I love to see this kind of innovation in our craft.
I actually bought and own this! My gripes with this is the fence doesn’t tilt to 45 degrees, the depth and height stops are easily moved when locked down, and the 1st iteration had a (higher quality in my opinion) spring loaded linear guide rail/bearing. I reached out to the manufacturer as to what exactly got “upgraded” to warrant a higher price for the second model as to which they replied “we painted red”. Buyers beware, I still would recommend it though. Just wish they would’ve stayed with the linear guide rails than just two thin rods.
Would you get a version 3 if it tilted?
For the people that don’t have the budget it seems a good option. If you have money, don’t think about it and go for the Domino. I have owned it for two years and drilled a lot of mortises with it and it is the perfect tool. Price is high but making few projects will pay for itself. Best regards from Croatia 😊
This one is a hard pass; in comparing, it may seem like a good deal vs a domino, but look at things this way: this jig costs $195 + $45 shipping, so $240 total. Plus tax of course. But, for $225 shipped, no tax, you can get a dowelmax, which is an infinitely better joinery jig. I’m not sure if you’ve tried a dowelmax, and honestly, with a domino, there’s little reason to have one, but it’s a legit workhorse. Just going by your demo here, I can tell you for certain that the dowelmax is faster to use, easier to set up, it’s made incredibly well, has insane accuracy, which is built into the jig, and will save you time since you don’t need to make specific loose tenon sizes. Jessem makes a nice doweling jig too, though I’d still choose the dowelmax for the integral clamping. A biscuit joiner is another option in the $200 range, but that’s not really something I’d use for joinery, and even for alignment purposes, the dowelmax is still superior.
So while this contraption may be a decent value vs a domino, when you look at other options, it’s a flop, all factors considered.
Thanks for showing that as I’d be interested in dropping $200 for it to use in my tiny shop.
One thing I did notice regarding sawdust and maybe safety is a 1/4″ thick piece of plexiglass could be installed on the top of it. That way the sawdust is not flying up but only down and to the sides. As far as safety, the plexiglass might stop from putting a finger in there. I don’t know.