Advice Needed: Cutting big wide stopped Dado

[psoumanis]

Hi
I'm after some advice - I'm making a bench and my last 4 joints are stopped dados that will house the long stretchers. These are half-lap joints, and the vertical piece will end up being laminated to another to make a leg with a mortise to receive the stretcher's tenon.

Anyway, I need to chop a 80x70x30mm piece away from the leg. I've done 1 using a router (3 passes) to cut the sides and back and chiseled out the rest. My issue with that approach is that it's loud, messy and slow.

Any advice on a hand-tool approach that will make less dust and is more "sleeping baby" friendly ? How do I start the sides and get the bottom even?

I work in the garage and only time I get to fire up machines is when our baby up - so free time is when she's asleep. Sawing and chiselling is relatively quiet compared to a router and shop vac.

Thanks
Pete

[orraloon]

The days of hand tools are not yet over as you have just found out.
Te basic method it to mark the joint out with a marking knife. Cut the walls with a tennon saw and chisel out the waste. Use a router plane to get the bottom nice and flat. Couple of links will help explain and save me a long winded explaination. The second link is how to make a poor mans router plane in case you dont have one.
http://www.popularwoodworking.com/techniques/joinery/stopped-dados-by-hand

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B_2a_FwjAgk


Regards
john

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B_2a_FwjAgk)