Dovetail jigs-to cheat or not to cheat

[Chuck Schwab]

Hi All,

I'm new to the forum..well at least being registered. I've been secretly peeping at all the posts for a while now getting answers to a lot of my questions but I finally decided to crawl out of my dark corner and register.

My question to all of you deals with Dovetail jigs for routers. I've looked at them on the internet, sometimes drooling at the projects I could do with them but I always snap back to feeling like a kid taking a test at school with the answers up his sleeve. Seems too much like cheating and at the price for these jigs, a little too pricey for my cheap and empty wallet. But I'm also worried that the cheaper ones will be a big disappointment as well.

What I would like to know is in your opinion, are they worth the money to buy the $100-$200+ jigs? Are the cheaper ones even worth considering? Or should I spend $50 on a big piece of Oak (yes, I'm a slow learner and will need that much wood) and buy a good backsaw?

Any thoughts, input, tool suggestions for this would be greatly appreciated!

Thank you!

[frank shic]

it's more gratifying to cut them by hand if you only have a few drawers like for a small chest but if you're making them for a kitchen, the dovetail jig is much quicker. the quickest dovetail jigs are the half-blind dovetail jigs and they are quite abundant. the main differences boil down to: ease and strength of clamping and variability of spacing. i wanted a fast and good clamping system and i didn't care about variability in spacing so i went with the omnijig. the best video i've seen on dovetailing remains frank klausz's classic: dovetail a drawer. anthony guidice's book on tables also describes frank's method in detail. watch your fingers whichever method you choose.

[Ted Miller]

Chuck, What Frank said, nothing like doing doves by hand, but when you are doing more than a few it can get tedious. Jigs are not really cheating, they take some time to set up and you may have to do test pieces to get it exact. Sometimes I even feel by the time I get the jig set up and ready to go I could have had a few drawers already done by hand...

[Tim Malyszko]

Hi All,

I'm new to the forum..well at least being registered. I've been secretly peeping at all the posts for a while now getting answers to a lot of my questions but I finally decided to crawl out of my dark corner and register.

My question to all of you deals with Dovetail jigs for routers. I've looked at them on the internet, sometimes drooling at the projects I could do with them but I always snap back to feeling like a kid taking a test at school with the answers up his sleeve. Seems too much like cheating and at the price for these jigs, a little too pricey for my cheap and empty wallet. But I'm also worried that the cheaper ones will be a big disappointment as well.

What I would like to know is in your opinion, are they worth the money to buy the $100-$200+ jigs? Are the cheaper ones even worth considering? Or should I spend $50 on a big piece of Oak (yes, I'm a slow learner and will need that much wood) and buy a good backsaw?

Any thoughts, input, tool suggestions for this would be greatly appreciated!

Thank you!

I was in the same dilemma as you a couple of months ago and decided to purchase a jig since it gives me the ability to cut many dovetails quickly and accurately. While I don't have the skillset to hand-cut dovetails, I've begun incorporating dovetails into my projects because the jig gives me the ability to do it easily.

Someday, I hope to acquire the skills to hand-cut dovetails, but for now, the jig serves me well.

By the way, I looked at many of the cheaper dovetail jigs, but I ended up going with the Akeda Dovetail jig, since it gives me the ability to cut many dovetail variations and half-blind dovetails. I can vary the spacing, which gives my peices that hand-cut look. So far, it hasn't let me down.

Jigs are the way to go if you plan on cutting dovetails rather frequently.

[Jim Becker]

I own one of the best dovetail jigs available (Leigh D4) and I have still learned to cut them by hand, both because I think it's an important skill to have as well as something that can be quite necessary in certain cases...such as tall casework...;)

Using a jig isn't "cheating"...it's just a method of work out of more than one available method.

[Luke McFadden]

Chuck, There most recent issue of WOOD has an article comparing different dovetale jigs. I think it compares 7 or 8 different models. Very informative to me (also a noob).

L

[Jerry Olexa]

Should your budget be in that sub $200 range, The PC 4212 DT jig is acknowledged by many to be a great jig and value. very accurate and will do through Dts as well as 1/2s, box joints, etc

[Von Bickley]

Can't tell you what to do about a dovetail jig, but I can say....


Welcome to "The Creek".

[Bryan Berguson]

Fine Woodworking also had a good article in their last issue. I have a Grizzly half blind jig that I'm seriously considering replacing. I'd like a jig that does through DT's and have really been drooling over the Leigh D4R...

Bryan

[Don Bullock]

First --- Welcome!!!!

If using any tool that makes woodworking easier is "cheating" then most of us are guilty. Yes, cutting them by hand is a noble thing to do, there times when this isn't practical, maybe even not the "best" way to do them. Good jig, including a dovetail jigs, can be very valuable tools. With than being said, I'd love to learn how to do some dovetails by hand and plan to learn, but I won't give up on using a jig when that is best for me or my project.

[glenn bradley]

By hand for satisfaction, by jig for speed and convenience. The cheap ones will torture you. I drew the line at the Rockler on special. The more expensive ones are more refined.

[Dan Forman]

Sounds to me like you really want to be able to say that you did them by hand. If that is the case, then I would suggest getting a good back saw and a good set of chisels, and give it a try. It's not as mysterious as all that, just learn to cut to a line with the saw and use a chisel properly, valuable skills to have on down the line for other things as well. I wouldn't start with oak though, maybe poplar or another of the semisoft hardwoods. First thing to do is just practice cutting to a line on the end of a board, some straight and some angled. If you get that part down, the rest will go easier. Once you can cut accurately, then take two longer pieces, join them with dovetails, then cut the joints off and do it again until they look acceptable to you.

There are several good videos by Rob Cosman, Frank Klause (sp?), and Tag Frid, that will take you through the steps. There are also many articles in magazines, and most books on joinery will cover it too. You can get lots of help and encouragement downstairs in Neander Haven too.

If, in time, you find that you still want a jig, then at least you will have the saw and chisel department covered.

Dan

[Chuck Schwab]

By the way, I looked at many of the cheaper dovetail jigs, but I ended up going with the Akeda Dovetail jig, since it gives me the ability to cut many dovetail variations and half-blind dovetails. I can vary the spacing, which gives my peices that hand-cut look. So far, it hasn't let me down.

Jigs are the way to go if you plan on cutting dovetails rather frequently.

First off, I live in Lancaster PA where the Amish do everything by hand hence the "cheating" part of my post.

I'm heavily debating between the Akeda and a Porter Cable 12" dovetail jig. But the thing that is weighing heavy on my mind is the $350 price tag. I'm trying to justify if I can make an ROI if I purchased the Akeda as I do sell some of my work. The Akeda seems like a wise investment and could foresee using it quite often in my work.

I do thank everyone for their input. I really want to learn to handcut dovetails as well, but between a regular job and being a father of 3 girls plus the ever increasing projects, it's really hard to find enough time to squeeze in teaching myself handcut DTs let alone time to sleep. Guess if no one catches me, I can cheat for a while...

[Tim Malyszko]

I'm heavily debating between the Akeda and a Porter Cable 12" dovetail jig. But the thing that is weighing heavy on my mind is the $350 price tag. I'm trying to justify if I can make an ROI if I purchased the Akeda as I do sell some of my work. The Akeda seems like a wise investment and could foresee using it quite often in my work.

I assume you are referring to the Akeda as the $350 jig. Just as an FYI, the accessory pack is nearly a necessity, which will set you back another $250 if purchased seperately or $500 for a jig/accessory pack combo. Woodcraft recently had this package on sale for $399. The jig alone comes with the following:

Nine 7° through dovetail (TD) pin guides
Nine half-blind dovetail (HBD) pin guides
7/16" precision guide bushing
DC-16V user’s manualThe 7° through dovetail (TD) will work, but is not the ideal choice for all thicknesses. The accessory pack contains all the other guides, dust collection as listed below:

Nine each of the 9°, 11°, 14°, and 20° TD pin guides
One each of the 7°, 9°, 11°, 14°, and 20° dovetail bits
One each of the standard, undersized, and oversized straight bits
Waste collector kit
Sliding dovetail template
One pair of the HBD pin stop guideIn my opinion, you will get by with just the Akeda jig, but will kick yourself down the line for not having the accessory pack. I use the majority of the accessory pack components.

[Jim Becker]

First off, I live in Lancaster PA where the Amish do everything by hand hence the "cheating" part of my post.
I think many folks would be very surprised about how much "machinery" is being used by the Amish for furniture production. There is a whole industry out there that converts electric machines to be powered by other means for the Amish furniture and lumber industry! But I do understand what you mean...

Both the PC (the newer one that supports both half and through dovetails) and the Akeda offer a lot of value. Either one will be a good choice...the Akeda has a little more capacity. The Leigh D4 has even more if you plan on doing casework... ;)

[Eric Wong]

Welcome to SMC!
I'm fairly partial to the Akeda myself. Even though I don't own one, I've done several demos on it for my local Woodcraft store. There are several things that make this jig really good:

1. full support for the router (the bit sits between 2 rails, unlike most jigs on the market)
2. Dust collection is very very good (with the add-on DC kit)
3. One-handed clamping is easy
4. no-brainer engineering (the dovetail angles are precalculated to go with the bit lengths)

Leigh is the gold standard, but I think the Akeda is an excellent jig. There are a few quirks, like having to put the fingers in upside down to prevent them from popping out, but I can live with that.

[Joe Chritz]

I haven't used the PC jig but everyone seems to like it and rates it top in the affordable jigs.

If you can beg, borrow or steal the coin you wil never be sorry with the D4.

Cheating or not I use a jig. The last project was 1/2 blind dovetails in baltic birch.

15 drawers, most 5 1/4 in tall, front and back makes for 60 corners. I had them all cut and ready to assemble from the sheet in 4 or 5 hours.

Now I save hand cut for something really special.

Joe