Dowelmax or not -- YES!

[Ray Schafer]

Well, My Dowelmax came in on Monday -- just about the fastest delivery that I have ever seen. I received the Dowelmax, the 1/4 inch kit and two extra drill bits ... and dowels.

Well, today I started playing with it. I put some simple boxes together. I was surprised by one thing ... I guess I was just assuming that it would work out of the box (without any thought required) for 3/4" Ply. Well, because of the lengths of the dowels, I had to adjust the drill depth for the two different dowel holes. Once I figured it out, it was smooth sailiing.

Here are a few thoughts about using the Dowelmax:
1). It is really awesome. What a great way to construct furniture.
2). It is as easy as they say
3). I was glad that I got the extra drill bits, because I was able to set the drill stops at different lengths and have them ready for whatever depth I needed to drill.
4). I have started to make a drill stop depth gauge ... like I have seen people do for the Kreg pocket jig.
5). It does take some practice to get in the swing of using this tool. Certainly not very much practice, but some.
6). The folks at Dowelmax have been very responsive to my order and my questions ... what a great company to do business with.
7). I have to say this is my favorite tool now!

I highly recommend this tool!
Ray

[J. Z. Guest]

...3). I was glad that I got the extra drill bits, because I was able to set the drill stops at different lengths and have them ready for whatever depth I needed to drill....

Good thinking. I take it you ordered extra stop collars too? I think I'll do this too.

One tip, if you haven't already learned the hard way. Do NOT use your finger to clean the flutes of the drill bit. That drill bit is RAZOR sharp. I had to slice myself twice before figuring it out. (the first time, I was bleeding by my fingernail and couldn't figure out what did it) Get a small cutoff or use the tip of a dowel for this.

I like this about the same as my Kreg jig. They each have their strengths, but the Dowelmax is more versatile.

Shipping on mine took a bit over a week. Not that fast, but VERY fast considering it came from Canada.

Oh, one more tip: a higher-RPM corded drill makes much nicer holes and the dowels are a nice fit without having to push too hard. Cordless works (mine's 1600 RPM max) but it is not as clean and bogs down a bit more. (even though it is 18 V lithium)

OK, I lied: One more. Drill the holes in two stages, otherwise a LOT of heat is generated by the friction of the chips rubbing against the inside of the hole. By this, I mean drill halfway, pull it out halfway to clear some chips, then drill the rest of the way.

[Ray Schafer]

Thanks for the additional tips. I had not yet learned the "razor sharp" part on my own ... so thanks for saving me that lesson!

Yes, I have been using a corded drill for the extra oomph, however since this was my father's drill and was built about the same time that the wheel was invented, I am not really sure that it is any faster than my cordless 18V drill. ... so I put one bit in my corded, and one in my cordless and label them so that I don't grab the wrong one. I may get a new cordless drill, since they aren't too expensive, and keep it at my workbench as a dedicated Kreg and Dowelmax drill.

Yes, I got drill stops as well. I may also use the drill stops for drilling my 1/4" adjustable shelf pin holes ... so I can use them for other things as well. I am thinking about getting one more drill bit and stop for each size. That way I could have two bit stops set for creating a carcass with 3/4" ply, and have one set for using larger material. I can store them in my drill depth gauge and therefore reduce the chance of grabbing the wrong length when I use them. I found that I still can't be brain dead when using this tool -- I still have the ability to drill the wrong hole, the wrong depth or on the wrong side -- all easily fixed, though.

I think that I am going to get in the habit of using masking tape to label the parts with what hole goes in each piece to further reduce the chance of using the wrong drill bit depth.

One more thing ... I could not find the depth setting for each dowel / wood size combination anywhere, which would be a helpful thing to include in the manual (unless I missed it). BUT I sent an email to Mike and he gave me those settings within a couple of hours. That allows me to double check my depth setting with my ruler as a sanity check. (Of course, I could have figured that out on my own, but I was not sure how much extra space to have in the dowel holes.)

[Matt Ocel]

Ray - I was thinking about picking up Dowelmax, I make alot of face frames with pocket screws and no matter how tight I clamp every once and a while a pick up a little drift. From everything I've read it seems like The Dowelmax would be the right choice. Did you use pocket screws before and if so how do they compare? I know one of the copmplaints about dowels is they may loosen but I was thinking, why not shoot a couple of 23G nails through the dowels for added strength.

[Cary Swoveland]

Ray - I was thinking about picking up Dowelmax, I make alot of face frames with pocket screws and no matter how tight I clamp every once and a while a pick up a little drift. From everything I've read it seems like The Dowelmax would be the right choice. Did you use pocket screws before and if so how do they compare? I know one of the copmplaints about dowels is they may loosen but I was thinking, why not shoot a couple of 23G nails through the dowels for added strength.

Matt, don't forget you can use both dowels and pocket screws. The pocket screws aren't needed for additional strength, but serve as clamps while the glue dries. I did that recently when building the base of a Murphy bed. Using clamps would have been a real pain.

I wouldn't bother with the pin nails. I haven't heard of anyone having problems with dowels coming loose, when using the Dowelmax and good dowel pins.

Cary

[Matt Ocel]

Cary - If I am using 2" wide stock for face frames, would I use 1-dowel, and 2-pocket screws, I am assuming the dowel is for alignment?

[Cary Swoveland]

Cary - If I am using 2" wide stock for face frames, would I use 1-dowel, and 2-pocket screws, I am assuming the dowel is for alignment?
Matt,

I've not had a problem with alignment when using pocket screws, so I wouldn't use a dowel for alignment. If I'm using a two dowels for a joint with 2" wide boards, I might clamp it with a pocket screw between the dowels. Ditto if using loose tenons rather than dowels.

Cary

[Phil Thien]

Ray - I was thinking about picking up Dowelmax, I make alot of face frames with pocket screws and no matter how tight I clamp every once and a while a pick up a little drift. From everything I've read it seems like The Dowelmax would be the right choice. Did you use pocket screws before and if so how do they compare? I know one of the copmplaints about dowels is they may loosen but I was thinking, why not shoot a couple of 23G nails through the dowels for added strength.

Another option for doing face frames is the FF biscuit. I cut my slots for FF biscuits on the router table:

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=73685&highlight=biscuits

[Will Blick]

Matt, the 23g small pins through the dowels, is a brilliant idea! It may not be required, but what a simple, fast and cheap insurance policy! I will have to try this....

Phil, I tried the router with the ff bit also....and if you do lots of volume, and have some jigs set up to guide the boards in.... sheeesh, this is one fast method of biscuit joinery. So much depends on volume, and how many cuts are identical.... i.e. to pick the best joinery technique...

[Ray Schafer]

Matt,
Cary answered your questions, but I thought that I would add that I have used pocket screws and like them a lot. I have not usually had trouble with drift if I am careful to clamp in two dimensions. I like the dowels and plan to try the dowels and pocket screw method for cabinets -- dowels for alignment and screws as clamps.

[Chris Sedore]

Yes, I got drill stops as well. I may also use the drill stops for drilling my 1/4" adjustable shelf pin holes ... so I can use them for other things as well. I am thinking about getting one more drill bit and stop for each size. That way I could have two bit stops set for creating a carcass with 3/4" ply, and have one set for using larger material. I can store them in my drill depth gauge and therefore reduce the chance of grabbing the wrong length when I use them. I found that I still can't be brain dead when using this tool -- I still have the ability to drill the wrong hole, the wrong depth or on the wrong side -- all easily fixed, though.




I hadn't thought about the drill length differences, but fortunately did think about it before I drilled a hole clear through the 3/4 material I was working on. I didn't want to adjust the stop, so I grabbed a 1/2" nut and slipped it on the bit ahead of the collar and it seemed to be just right. Quicker than changing bits, too. I initially worried about scarring the bit, but that part would never touch wood when using the DowelMax anyway.

Now I just need some shorter dowels.

[Bryan Berguson]

Matt,

I recently built some face frames and used the Dowelmax without pocket screws. Too narrow (1" and 1.5") to do both. They are made out of hickory and the alignment was so good I only used the ROS with 150 grit to finish them. I've used pocket screws before with hickory and it didn't matter how hard I clamped them from two directions, I still had creep. If I were going to build 2" inch frames, I'd try two dowels on the outsides and use a pocket screw to "clamp" it. That might be just the ticket.

You'll love the Dowelmas btw. It works as good as everyone says. ;)

Bryan

[Matt Ocel]

Bryan - I just built to face frames today out of poplar (pocket screws). After all this talk, I took extra care in clamping, drilling holes, and installing the pocket screws. Out of 8 joints I had 7 perfect and one crept on me. I try to build all my face frames with 2" material and the more I think about it, it seems that 2 dowels and one pocket screw makes the most sense.

[Jim Lindsay]

Thanks to everyone involved for the ongoing great feedback on the Dowelmax. It's great to hear they are out there working perfectly as we intended. It sounds like everything is well in hand, however we are available any time for questions or technical assistance.

Mike Lindsay, Dowelmax.
http://www.dowelmax.com

[J. Z. Guest]

Mike - Thanks for being around. Good after-sale customer support is important to us, and I don't see your counterpart from Festool hanging around offering tips on Domino...

Kind of like how I like to shop at Ma 'n Pa places whenever possible. I like Ma 'n Pa!