Hidden Joining Systems

How to Hide Fasteners in Woodworking projects

Place them out of site

It seems a little obvious but installing from the underside of the table or cabinet will hide the screws. You can also use caps to cover them.

Use other pieces to cover the Screws

Design the project so trim or molding will cover the screws or stack a few pieces of trim and install the screws from the other side, being careful to use the correct length of screw.

Counterbore the screw.

The counterbore is attached to your drill bit for the pilot hole and will recess the screw.

Fill the deep hole with a wood plug

Dowel Screws and Hander Bolts are designed to fit Flushs

These threaded fasteners connect two pieces of wood or wood with another material. One end features lag screw threads for screwing into wood, while the other end has machine screw threads for attaching a nut or threading into a pre-tapped hole, often used in conjunction with threaded inserts, such as in furniture assembly for attaching legs to table aprons. Dowel screws create hidden joints; often with dowels, they are not the best choice when high shear strength is needed.