Phil Thien
01-02-2013, 9:53 PM
I purchased a JessEm dowelling jig from Bill Huber. He gave me a great deal and sure got it here super-fast. Thanks Bill!
It is this jig:
http://www.jessemdirect.com/JessEm_Dowelling_Jig_Master_Kit_p/08350-master-kit.htm
I absolutely love this jig. They (JessEm) demo it referencing off a line scribed on the jig. I had started a thread wondering whether the machining was precise enough to allow referencing off the edges as well. The answer to that is a giant YES. The machining on this unit is nothing short of amazing. When you bring the two pieces being joined together there is no misalignment at the edges, not even a bit!
The only problem (and I'm picking nits) is the clamping surface is very slick. I'd like to add a thin piece of something to improve the grip between the jig and my workpiece, and reduce the pressure I need to achieve with my f-clamp.
Now, thickness isn't really THAT important because I'd be shifting the holes in the same direction on both pieces I'm joining. But being the perfectionist I am, I figured I'd keep the offset I'm adding as minimal as possible.
So I'm looking for the THINNEST material that will stick to the jig and provide an anti-slip surface to grip the wood I'm drilling.
I've used the stair grip tape on these kinds of projects before. But it is actually quite thick.
I was thinking maybe some self-adhesive sandpaper of a finer grit.
Lee Valley sells this stuff:
http://www.leevalley.com/US/wood/page.aspx?p=32184&cat=1,110,43466,32184
But they don't specify thickness. And I don't need anything else from LV to qualify for free shipping so having to pay for shipping might make the tape kind of expensive.
I thought of just electrical friction tape, which is pretty thin and I'd think the cotton would be better than the smooth aluminum.
I don't need it to be super-grippy. Just not as slick as the very smooth aluminum surface.
It is this jig:
http://www.jessemdirect.com/JessEm_Dowelling_Jig_Master_Kit_p/08350-master-kit.htm
I absolutely love this jig. They (JessEm) demo it referencing off a line scribed on the jig. I had started a thread wondering whether the machining was precise enough to allow referencing off the edges as well. The answer to that is a giant YES. The machining on this unit is nothing short of amazing. When you bring the two pieces being joined together there is no misalignment at the edges, not even a bit!
The only problem (and I'm picking nits) is the clamping surface is very slick. I'd like to add a thin piece of something to improve the grip between the jig and my workpiece, and reduce the pressure I need to achieve with my f-clamp.
Now, thickness isn't really THAT important because I'd be shifting the holes in the same direction on both pieces I'm joining. But being the perfectionist I am, I figured I'd keep the offset I'm adding as minimal as possible.
So I'm looking for the THINNEST material that will stick to the jig and provide an anti-slip surface to grip the wood I'm drilling.
I've used the stair grip tape on these kinds of projects before. But it is actually quite thick.
I was thinking maybe some self-adhesive sandpaper of a finer grit.
Lee Valley sells this stuff:
http://www.leevalley.com/US/wood/page.aspx?p=32184&cat=1,110,43466,32184
But they don't specify thickness. And I don't need anything else from LV to qualify for free shipping so having to pay for shipping might make the tape kind of expensive.
I thought of just electrical friction tape, which is pretty thin and I'd think the cotton would be better than the smooth aluminum.
I don't need it to be super-grippy. Just not as slick as the very smooth aluminum surface.