I love my dovetail jig except for one thing: If I forget to hold the router flat, it can tip backward off the front of the jig and ruin the job. To solve the problem, I made my own Lshaped …
These simple shop-made helpers will make marking less of a chore. Marking out dovetails for hand cutting goes much easier with these helpers. Held in place while hooked over the end of a board, [...]
Requiring sawing, planning, and shaping skills, this tray is the perfect project to put hand-tool lessons to practice. Project #2220 • Skill Level: Intermediate • Time: 1 Day • Cost: $45 This [...]
Not everyone’s ready to tackle hand-cut dovetails. Here’s how to get the most from your router and jig. Dovetails are prime joints. Long history, great appearance and cachet. Used in boxes, [...]
Hand-cut appearance with half the fuss. If you’ve labored over hand-cut through dovetails, you’ll be amazed how much faster they can be cut on the bandsaw. You get all the benefits, including [...]
1. Paraffin Lube When you rout a dovetail joint, your sense of feel is important. Your router should slide easily around the jig’s fingers, without hesitating, so you can tell which [...]
As a woodworker, what’s the first thing you notice when you open a cabinet’s drawer? The way it’s put together, of course. A drawer made with half-blind dovetails really stands [...]
There are lots of excuses for not using dovetails; cutting them by hand takes time, patience, and lots of practice. A dovetail jig is relatively fool proof, but if you don’t use it [...]
There are numerous jigs for cutting dovetails with a router. My go-to is the Keller pro series model 1601. It’s simple to use, though unlike jigs that cut pins and tails in one fell swoop, [...]
Through dovetails—for woodworkers, this is batting in the big leagues, isn’t it? Cutting them by hand certainly requires skill and practice, but if you use a well-designed router jig, almost [...]
When I talk to woodworkers about drawers, particularly dovetail joinery, I mention the transition that occurs as we moved from one furniture period to the next. In general, dovetails became a [...]