Best wood species to practice hand cut dovetails?

[Chris Yarish]

I have tried some hand cut dovetails in pine (just messing around trying to figure out spacing and measurements)....what is a good species to practice on?

[Gary Keedwell]

I have tried some hand cut dovetails in pine (just messing around trying to figure out spacing and measurements)....what is a good species to practice on?
Poplar would be my choice.

Gary

[Dan Barr]

:D if so, go with some lignum vitae. that'll dull your tools enough so that you'll get a good schooling in sharpening and you'll be forced to increase your stores of patience ten-fold, much less hone your joinery techniques.

all other woods after that will seem like butter.

otherwise, if youre just going for plain ol practice and not trying to "pefect" those joinery skills, poplar would be fine as stated previously.

have fun!

dan

[Chris Padilla]

Pine could actually be TOO SOFT to practise on. You need super sharp chisels to pare it well.

Poplar is usually the right price for such endeavours but usually whatever you have laying around wouldn't be a bad start. Try some plywood, too. :)

[Bruce Page]

I think basswood would work well, carvers love it.

[Peter Quinn]

Took a class this winter with Mario Rodriguez at CT Valley School of Woodworking on hand cut dovetails...have been heating my house with my mistakes since. In the class we used pine which he felt would help grow chisel skills. Sorta keep you honest. He had different saws with different set depending on the wood, less set for pine, a bit more for hardwood. I have been practicing on poplar because its more like the other hardwoods I like to use. Tried zebra wood once...don't recommend it...still pulling out splinters.

He suggested ultimately to pratice on the species you want to work to get the saw set and sharpness tuned to the wood you will be working. My dovetails are ugly, but my house is toasty!

[Kevin Groenke]

Yeah, avoid species that are TOO soft. Cutting dt's in w.red cedar is harder than cutting 'em in rosewood.

I usually give beginners medium density, straight grained stock: y.poplar, cherry, soft maple, maybe alder, aspen, bass, though those are a but soft.

The dudes who think they're good get gnarly elm, ironwood, burled walnut, etc..

kg

[Brent Ring]

I did my first today in Red Oak - Have a lot to learn and a good DT saw to find - it was fun tho. Looking forward to routing them ultimately tho, but thought it best to earn my downhill run, so to speak.....