Kreg pocket tools

I am thinking of buying a kreg pocket tool. I have mahogany board to glue up for window sills 3/4” and will be making me own cabinets for our camp. I was looking at the K4MS system. I have never used one. Anyone have any experience with them and know if this model unit would work for what I am going to do.

They are handy if you have a face you can put them in that won t he seen. They go in at an angle so the can slide your joint out of alignment when you tighten them down and they can move a bit over time so paint might crack if that is a consern. They are great for attaching plywood boxes together but for face frames and most wood joints I use biscuits or dominoes and if I do also use the kreg screws it's just as a "clamp".

Our cabinet shop tried to use them instead of biscuits for a while and had lots of joint failures. Basically use them where it doesn't matter of in conjunction with good jointery practices.

Excellent tool for the shop. Great for making cabinet face plates. If you get one my advice is to buy the set with everything in it. Take some scrap pieces and practice with those first.

Jmo

I'm not a fan of pocket screws, especially for cabinetry. I'm more of a traditional joinery guy. But, I'll admit they seem to be very popular.

I can't comment on the pocket hole jig because I've never owned one. But I recently bought a Kreg jig for installing European style hinges on cabinet doors and was not impressed with the quality.

I'm guessing for light work the jig you are looking at would serve the purpose.

I used them when I built the walnut cabinetry for my store in 2001. My friend who was a veteran cabinet guy loved them for cerrain things. I used them for boxes and face frame joints and biscuits to attach the face frames to the boxes. We always used vise grip style clamps when screwing the face frame joints and had no slippage or joint failure over 10 years.

I bought the simple Kreg kit here 11 years ago and have done alot with it. Make sure to buy the Kreg style screws.

Pete

We use ours all the time and have had a very good experience, just make sure your using the right screws for the wood because the thread changes for the hardness of the wood.