First "Real" Dovetails

[Rob Luter]

Greetings to all,

As I mentioned in a previous post, Santa brought a LN Dovetail Saw for Christmas. I'd hacked a few pin sockets into scrap wood in the past with little success, but this saw gave me inspired confidence that I could really pull it off. The Christian Becksvoort Dovetail tips on the FWW website were very helpful, as were the many tips I found here. I figured I needed some skin in the game if I wanted to stay focused so I dimensioned up some soft maple I had and jumped in head first. With the investment in time I made for dimensioning and layout, I forced myself to work slow to avoid bonehead errors. I was mostly successful. This hinged box is the result. We keep in on the hearth to hold treated pine cones that color the flames. It wound up looking like an antique. I whipped out this IN/OUT box afterwards to make sure my success wasn't a fluke. Neither are perfect but I think I'm on track.

[John Dykes]

Very nice... quite striking in fact.

[Rob Luter]

Thanks John. It's a pretty box for a first try. I'm hoping to hone my skills on a few more in the next couple of months.

How did your trip go at Christmas? We had a good time in Denver. Woodcraft turned out to be a bust but I had good success on rust hunts. The antique mall at Broadway and Powers had a booth with a bunch of Millers Falls eggbeaters. I got a 5A in nearly mint condition for only $3.50. We did Antique row on broadway as well. One store on the North end had a nice tool booth where I scored a #18 bevel gauge. I'll have to post pics later.

[John Keeton]

Rob, as a "dovetail newbie" I think you did a great job! Mastering the saw is my big challenge at the moment, so I understand fully the difference a quality tool can make.

[John Dykes]

Good time in Lexington - though the folks aren't as young as they once were.

Crazy as it seems, I took about 100 pounds in tools (guessing) - so I was well prepared for any eventuality. Luckily, I was able to borrow 2 Workmates from relatives and rigged a thick piece of plywood between them. Add 240 lbs of sand - and I was pleased as punch. It was all quite portable as well...

The distractions of relatives was happily balanced with a wonderful afternoon in the home of Mr. John Keeton and his lovely wife Eileen. Though I am wholly envious of his shop and ability to work wood (don't believe all his "beginner" hooey).

I've tried doing some rust hunting here - but the dealers seem to charge a pretty penny for things. Glad you had better luck.

Again, really like that box.... proportions, hinges, and finish really strike a chord with me.

[Rob Luter]

Thanks again. The finish is a witches brew I've been using on maple. I have a jar of mineral spirits that I've used to clean stain brushes. It's about the color of tea or coffee. I just wipe it on, rub it in, and it imparts a nice subtle hue to the wood. Pops the grain a little too. Once the spirits dry I wipe on a couple three coats of garnet shellac then rub it all down with 0000 steel wool and paste wax. Raw to done in an afternoon. To pop the grain a little more use BLO or natural Danish Oil between the "stain" and the shellac.

[Wilbur Pan]

Really nice job!

Can you post some more details as to how you made the top of the box?

[gary Zimmel]

Nice to see even more hand cut dovetals in projects.

Great job Rob.

[Rob Luter]

Really nice job!

Can you post some more details as to how you made the top of the box?

It's just a floating raised panel set into a groove. I cut the 45 degree angles in the face using the table saw, then set the blade at 90 degrees to trim out the waste with the top on edge. I used fences to keep everything aligned and to create a predictable path for the waste to shoot out of when I made the second set of cuts. See the attached. The rest was done with a shoulder plane. The thickness of the panel and the location of the groove puts the top of the panel flush with the top of the sides. It's a cool look.

[Marty Weatherup]

Rob,

Those are great. I hope when I get weaned of my router and Leigh jig that my hand cut dovetails will look half as good.

Marty

[Dale Osowski]

Nice job, you will soon see that dovetails by hand are addictive.