Scribe lines across the tails.........

[Roy Wall]

In looking at many photos of dovetail work, I often notice the depth scribe line on tail pieces of a dovetail joint.

Although faint, it's still a scratch in the wood - and maybe the photograph shows it more than in person..........I was wondering, shouldn't more care be taken when using the marking guage not to scratch "between the tails"? After all, you can pretty much tell where your going to cut.

Or, is it the mark easily sanded out - and I've just been missing something?

[Steven Wilson]

On drawers it's a tradition. You don't build the sides of drawers to look at so why bother scraping away the marks? On through dovetails that are exposed I would clean them up.

[Mark Singer]

As Steve said it is a matter of tradition and preference. It makes it clear they are "hand cut" but that is easy to tell even if they are removed.If you plane off the extensions the line remains , is you sand them off...the line usually goes.

[Alan Turner]

I usually leave them on, as a mark of the maker, so to speak. I was reading an old Ian Kirby article the other day (FWW, 1980 or so), and he sets the scribe line for the pins at about 1/64th short, and then hand planes off the scribe marks. Each to his own.
Alan

[Roy Wall]

Now I know!!

Thanks guys!!!

[John Weber]

Roy,

I think it's become sort of a trend to leave them, I don't mind a faint line, but it seems many people are scribing a very heavy line (so everyone knows they are handcut dovetails). Faint line ok, heavy line no, and I still like no line at all best.

John

[Roy Wall]

Roy,

I think it's become sort of a trend to leave them, I don't mind a faint line, but it seems many people are scribing a very heavy line (so everyone knows they are handcut dovetails). Faint line ok, heavy line no, and I still like no line at all best.

John
John, I agree 100% :cool:

[Joel Moskowitz]

On drawer sides I don't think it matters but on visible parts of a carcass on primary woods I think it looks primitive. At least part of the problem is that if you use a wheel gauge or a knive gauge the thin line cuts deep (to be visible) and takes work to plane out. THe remants of the sutline will catch finish when you are don't. I use a pin guage and you can easily adjust the pressure so that on visible lines I can make them really shallow and the pin doesn't cut as deep as a knive.

[Tom Stovell]

John,
I don't know if it has become a recent trend to leave the scribe lines. in most of the antique pieces I've collected over the years the drawer dovetail will show the scribe. I am inclined to think it is, like someone mentioned, a 'maker's mark' and is more of a continuing tradition.

Tom

[John Weber]

Tom,

Yes I know that, the recent trend I was speaking of was a heavier line designed to be seen. Traditional scribe lines are faint and almost blend into the piece, the current "trend" many woodworkers seem to be using is a heavy scribe line that serves little other purpose then to be seen. I guess it comes down to personal preference. Scribe lines have a purpose and I orefer they are used for that with the least impact on a project.

John