It is the perfect marriage of form and function both strong and attractive. So nailing dovetail joints is a must when youre looking to up your woodworking game precision is the name of the game here, and the right tools make all the difference between a bummer project and a win. Although this jig can execute finger joints, sliding dovetails, and even through dovetails when equipped with suitable templates, i use it exclusively to join drawer parts with halfblind dovetails. Dovetails are widely viewed as a hallmark of craftsmanship, and a durable form of joinery that many view as a pinnacle of woodworking techniques. That is if you dont include the time learning how to use the jig, setting up the jig and making all the necessary test cuts to. After discovering how easy it is to use my tablesaw to cut clean pins and tails, my dovetail saw spends a lot more time in its till. In this series, ernie conover clearly demonstrates how to lay out, cut, and assemble the most popular types. Guild members will remember this small hand cut halfblind dovetails excerpt from the shaker table series.
How to cut dovetail joints guide to joinery in woodworking. I now teach city and guilds furniture making at rycotewood as of september 2018. The process is the same as for the halfblind dovetail but the tool has to go all the way through the horizontal piece of wood. That is, make the dovetail extrawide at first, then reduce the dovetail s width by a. Cutting repeatable dovetails to perfection by hand by paul sellers 7 august 2016.
Each machine is outfitted with stops and clamps, so you can quickly insert pre cut boards, clamp them in place, and start cutting. How to make a sliding dovetail popular woodworking magazine. How to cut a dovetail housing joint by hand youtube. Rob cosman walks you thru a different way of transferring tails to pins. I prefer the look of a dovetail joint with half pins on the outside edges rather than half tails.
No need to scrub though long videos, with just a couple clicks you can find just the information you need and get back cutting perfect dovetail joints for your guitars. The dovetail gadgets are a powerful addition to the vcarve pro and aspire software. Scruffy dovetails richard rants video november 21, 2017 by richard. Cutting dovetail joints with a router jig root simple. In this video, ill show you how to mark out, cut and refine a stopped dovetail housing joint. A different technique to cut dovetail joints is to use a router and a jig. The following technique, which i learned from frank klausz, is a particularly efficient way to work. Learn furnituremaker gregory paolinis simple techniques for tablesawn through dovetails. Unlike the halfblind dovetails, the wood veins sould be vertically oriented on the male piece. Introduction to hand cutting dovetail series plans.
Through sliding dovetail a more complicated joint, this is made in three steps. Through dovetail joint jig how to make dovetails youtube. Ive practiced and practiced, read, studied the magazines, watched videos. A through dovetail means that the male part goes all the way through the female part, making it visible from the outside. This means the dovetail will be visible from the back, but not the front. With the pieces removed from the jig, test the fit of the joint. The way two pieces of wood fit together is a thing of beauty and a great way to spot a quality piece of furniture.
Bit of a twist on the way ernest joyce taught it in his book the. In the notes at the bottom of this page youll find links to some videos about ways to cut the tails with a router or a table saw. In this video, wood magazines jim heavey demonstrates stepbystep how to build. Someday i will cut a dovetail joint by hand, but ive got a lot of drawers to fix and i appreciate the efficiency of using power tools for this task. Up next make a dovetail box in 12 minutes wood magazine duration. Grizzly g0611x 1612 extreme series dovetail machine. Illustrations by mike del rizzo in this article kevin shows you how to cut such dovetails using the incra ls positioning fence system. This style of dovetail can be done by cutting dovetails on the band saw. Our dovetail machines make it fast and easy to produce strong and attractive halfblind dovetail joints. Every time i watch one of your basic skills videos i pick up on another of your subtle tricks. But if you want to make narrower pins than your dovetail jig will allow or the freedom to space the dovetail pattern as you like, then the best option is to cut your dovetail joints by hand instead. Dovetails are often seen as the pinnacle of hand tool woodworking and the sign of a good craftsman, usually intimidating beginners from trying them. Hand cutting dovetails imparts a look thats impossible to duplicate with a router jig. Hand cut dovetails the quick and dirty version youtube.
With practice and patience, you can master the satisfying skill of hand cutting dovetails. This method is used on the second part of the joint that you cut where deadon accuracy matters. Click here to visit our frequently asked questions about html5 video. A comprehensive guide to cutting dovetails tips and. And once youve mastered the technique, cutting dovetails still takes time and involves some risk. Dovetails are often seen as the pinnacle of hand tool woodworking and the. Each type of sliding dovetail requires a different jig. I do find the overall volume level quite low but thats the same on all the videos i just turn up the dial and its all good. If you are cutting halfblind dovetails, especially with the clampon jig we featured in the january 2018 issue of stumpy nubs woodworking. Ive included everything i know about cutting dovetails and all the tips and tricks ive learned over the years. Make a dovetail box in 12 minutes wood magazine youtube. Even dovetails now are a bit over the top theyre easy to machine to a standard pattern but, given the. This is a comprehensive video breaking down every step of the. Cutting dovetails the oldfashioned way is more than a link to the past.
With a router and a dovetail jig you can cut a perfectfitting joint in. Youll need this information to make a dovetail ramp for your band saw. Watch our woodworking videos to help you with your next project in the woodshop. How to set up and use a dovetail jig wood magazine youtube. The iron rule for this setup is to start fat and finish lean. Autoplay when autoplay is enabled, a suggested video will automatically play next. Personally, i am a little more resultsoriented than processoriented. You can tediously cut them by hand or you can use a router and dovetail jig to make them quickly and accurately. The jig cuts perfect radii with a router using a swinging arm. How to make a mortise and tenon joint the three joints paul sellers duration. Second, the shoulders of the dovetailed piece hide the edges of the slot, much as a tenoned workpiece hides a mortise. The dovetail may be the most iconic joint in woodworking. The method you showed for refining the fit of the joint seems particularly helpful.
To lay out the tail board, i use two sets of dividers. The simplest way to hand cut dovetails wood by wright. If the dovetail cuts do not permit a perfect fit, use a small chisel or sandpaper to remove debris or wood from the crevices. At some point youll realize handcutting dovetails can take less time than setting up a dovetail router jig, especially when doing smaller. In this video, chris marshall demonstrates how a simple jig makes it easier to cut the pins and tails with a hand saw. This is the simplest and easiest way i know to hand cut a dovetail joint. Cutting, routing and sanding the pieces of the chair.
In this video, i show you the various ways to mark out a dovetail joint for superior. The jig can be used over and over again which makes cutting the dovetails a more time efficient activity. First, theyre stronger because they dont rely solely on glue. Its also faster than setting up a jig if you have only one or two drawers to make. Now, lets move on to the more challenging halfblind dovetail joint layout. Dovetails can be complex, but they do not need to be. Through dovetail joints are as beautiful as they are strong, and work great for all kinds of casework, including drawers.
As hand tool woodworking skills go this one is very easy once you master a few basic skills. If you dont cut dovetails very often and need a quick refresher than this is the tutorial for you. Learn how to set up for through dovetails using a porter cable dovetail jig for joining in your woodworking shop. This weeks woodworking joint is a comprehensive guide to cutting perfect dovetails. Hand cutting dovetail joints with a simple jig youtube. Such wellmade joints add a oneofakind handcrafted appearance to your work. First the straight bit forms the shoulder, then the dovetail bit shapes the divider pin. The king of rht eh joints and the nemesis for many woodworkers. You can cut dovetails with a router and dovetail jig, which is a perfectly acceptable option. Using the jig is faster and more convenient than hand cutting dovetails and, for all practical purposes, the joints are just as. Make dovetail joints without a jig weekend with wood 2015. Sliding dovetails provide several advantages over a dado joint. Dovetail joints in furniture and cabinet drawers are considered a hallmark of quality craftsmanship thanks to their mechanical strength and beauty.
With the ability to cut two joints at a time, these dovetail machines can produce a 4sided drawer in under. My porter cable jig i have does through dovetails, half blind dovetails, rabbeted halfblind, sliding dovetails, box joints and miniature versions of all these joints. This system creates beautiful dovetails as well as complex and beautiful box joints. You will be able to cut dozens of joints without inaccuracy. Dovetail joints are considered the finest hand cut joint in woodworking and are used to create both functional and elegant handjoined pieces such as drawers. After using both fusion360 and jointcam to create a cutting file, noah resurfaces the wood, then plunges and cuts the wood using dovetail router bits on his homemade cnc machine to make a dresser. Dovetail video the basics of the common dovetail paul. Apply a small amount of wood glue inside the joints, and join the two pieces of wood.
This method helps build good habits when sawing and helps you fix any mistakes. The entire video will soon be available from our vimeo channel for rent or purchased download. A dovetailing trick for beginners popular woodworking. After watching cncwoodworkers video on youtube we decided to try and make our own dovetail joints. Someday i will cut a dovetail joint by hand, but ive got a lot of drawers to fix and i appreciate the. Good photos, good use of clamps i used my woodworking vise. Cutting repeatable dovetails to perfection by hand. Its just a pity ive already cut all of the dovetails in my current project.
The gadgets create the angular dovetail joints from the top of the material down rather than the traditional method from the side and using a special tool, this top down approach allows you to use a regular end mill to create the desired joint. I have made several tests on the fablabs shopbot cnc usin. When this happens and i need to cut dovetails, i quickly default to the method i use to teach students to dovetail. Tools editor bob hunter shows how to cut four dovetail joints in 12 minutes. You set up the machine, cut a joint, adjust and away you go. After the scoring cut, adjust the router tables fence to make the dovetail fulldepth. Its just a taste of some of the fun we have in the guild dovetails. A soft mallet can then be used to drive the joint home. Illustrations by james provost in todays woodworking world, there are many machines and jigs that can cut dovetails very quickly.
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