Cutting pins on a TS

[Rich Person]

I'm making a workbench and am going to put an 8/4 hard maple apron on it using dovetail joint on the corners. I am going to use variable spacing and don't have a jig that can do this. Even the D4 doesn't handle 1.75" stock. Since I don't really want to cut the pins with my backsaw, I was considering making a 1:8 angle reversable jig for my TS sled. This would allow me to cut the pins in both directions similar to how I would cut tenons on the TS.

I'm a little nervous though as I can't find very much information on people doing this. The sled jig should assure that I have the correct angle going both ways. I can line the work piece up by the scribe lines and the blade height will make sure the depth of cut is right. I was planning on cleaning out the waste on the TS and/or bandsaw and finishing with chisels. It seems simple--am I missing something?

[Michael Ballent]

Take a look at FWW mag. There was an article that cover this. It involved having a saw blade reground so tah it would net a flat bottom.

[Rich Person]

I was thinking more of just using my combo blade and cleaning up the grooves with a chisel. This may be the only time I ever cut dovetails on the TS, so I hate to alter one of my blades.

[Michael Ballent]

Have considered using a bandsaw instead? then its just jigs...

[Doug Shepard]

Take a look at FWW mag. There was an article that cover this. It involved having a saw blade reground so tah it would net a flat bottom.

That article did look like a pretty slick way for cutting DTs. IIRC the author was using a Forrest blade in the article. I noticed that right after that article came out, Forrest started listing some std angle grinds on their WWII blades.

http://www.forrestblades.com/woodworker_2.htm#custom

[Mark Singer]

You can make very fine dovetails on the bandsaw....especially if your table tils both ways....David Charlesworth and David Marks do it this way . I have used it on both big and small through dovetails... it works very good. Make an angle jig to correctly skew the piece and use a 10tpi 1/2" blade

[Rich Person]

I have considered using the bandsaw, and in fact am planning on cutting the tails on the bandsaw. After watching David Marks' example, (my BS doesn't reverse tilt) it just seems a lot easier to cut the pins on the TS. I am going to use the cut pins to mark the tail cuts, so I don't need to make the tails de novo. It just seems like it's simpler on the TS.

On the TS:

Make 8" tall 1:8 angle jig (back, face, 2-4 supports) to clamp onto sled
clamp on workpiece and cut first set of cuts / / / / /
flip angle jig over and clamp
clamp on workpiece and cut second set of cuts /\ /\ /\ /\ /\
chisel out waste

On BS (12" Jet, so this may not even fit. workpiece is 11" wide):

Make table with slot for blade, angled about 10 degrees
(bottom, angled top, supports)
Check blade drift and align fence on table with blade drift
Mount jig to bandsaw table
mount stop block on angled top for depth of cut (full length of table)
cut spacer blocks to keep cuts aligned with fence
make cuts, inserting spacers between each cut / / / / / /
unmount jig from table and reverse, and realign with blade drift
unscrew stop block an place on opposite side of jig
make cuts, inserting spacers between each cut /\ /\ /\ /\ /\
chisel out waste.


Am I making this more complicated than it needs to be? If my BS table tilted to -10 degrees, it would be much simpler, but it doesn't, so the jig has to do the work.

I do get FWW, can anyone tell me which issue had the TS dovetails?

[Michael Ballent]

The only issue is that without getting a reground blade you may either end up with valleys in the wood, or you are going to need to chisel out the inside corner of the of the tails, since you are not going to get a flat bottom out of the blade.

Also I am surprised that your Jet 12" BS does not tilt both ways... I was always under the impression that all BS tables tilted in both directions, except for some of the REALLY big BS.

*EDIT* I just checked and it looks like your table will tilt -10º and +45º

http://www.southern-tool.com/store/12_open_stand_bandsaw.html

Look at the specs that they have listed... unless you have some other model.

[Rich Person]

*EDIT* I just checked and it looks like your table will tilt -10º and +45º




Michael. Thanks for the link. That is my saw. I eyeballed it and it does tilt negative, but didn't look anywere near 10 degrees (I have to remove the zero stop to get negative, so I was being lazy). That does change things. I have a decent 1/2" blade on it now, so I should able to get a good cut.

[Mark Carlson]

Heres an article from FWW.

http://www.taunton.com/finewoodworking/pages/w00120_p2.asp

[Rick Thom]

Yes, you can cut both pins and tails on a table saw, that's how I did my work bench apron as well as 6 drawers. The jig I made and used is detailed in Pop Woodworking "The Ultimate Guide to Table Saws" July 2004. Using a thin kerf blade and some care, it produces a strong and quite snug fit. You can tailor the size and spacing to what suits you.
I think I would prefer the band saw route because it's safer IMHO. Working with long or heavy borads held in a jig vertically can put you at risk needlessly.