dovetails for carcass construction; too wide for my jig?

[BradD Strong]

I'm planning my first dresser project, and would like to do solid wood carcass construction. I'm looking at using halfblind dovetail joinery for the top/bottom to sides attachments for the main box structure. Problem is, the dresser depth will be 18", exceeding the capacity of my Porter Cable 4212 dovetail jig (12").

Since I'll be gluing up 6" boards to make my wide stock, I've thought about using the jig on one 12" wide section, then on the remaining 6" board. Then I would glue it up for my 18", thereby getting around my 12" limitation. Does this seem doable, or too tricky to get everything perfectly aligned? I don't have the expertise to hand cut the dovetails. I'm not looking for pretty here, since the half blinds will be hidden by an attached top.

Appreciate the help, and happy 4th!

Brad

[Mike Henderson]

It's very easy to cut the dovetails by hand. That's what I do on carcass construction. Since they're hidden, the quality is not so important. See here for an example.

Mike

[I forgot that I have a tutorial on half blind dovetails on my web site. See here. Also a tutorial on through dovetails.]

[Cary Falk]

You can do unlimited lengths by mounting the template to a clamping board(page 6). http://www.portercable.com/jigs/dove...ntalManual.pdf

[Greg Cuetara]

Mike Talked me into cutting dovetails by hand last year and I am so happy that he did. Get a good saw and with minimal practice you will have half blind dovetails good enough for what you are want. Especially since they will be hidden you don't have to worry too much. Read Mike's articles and watch a few youtube videos and you will be there in no time.

Greg

[David Kuzdrall]

It's very easy to cut the dovetails by hand. That's what I do on carcass construction. Since they're hidden, the quality is not so important. See here for an example.

Mike

+1

unless you are doing repetitive production work, it may actually be faster to cut them by hand as well...this was my experience. I own a Liegh jig and the time it took to set it up, was just not worth it, I have cut all my dovetails by hand for the last 2-3 years and have never looked back.

If you have never done it before, give it a try.

[Roy Harding]

+1

unless you are doing repetitive production work, it may actually be faster to cut them by hand as well...this was my experience. I own a Liegh jig and the time it took to set it up, was just not worth it, I have cut all my dovetails by hand for the last 2-3 years and have never looked back.

If you have never done it before, give it a try.

I agree. I make a lot of small boxes. I also own a Leigh jig, and it only comes out when I have four or more boxes to be done at once. Don't get me wrong - it's a wonderful jig, but in the time spent setting it up I can have three boxes worth of dovetails cut by hand.

[Thomas L. Miller]

I agree with Greg and Mike. As an added bonus, the more you cut them by hand the faster you will become and the quality will improve proportionally. I started out with jigs and such and now cut all dovetails by hand, even for multiple drawers. Since I don't woodwork professionally, time isn't a huge factor. Besides, cutting dovetails by hand is so much quieter than using a router and mistakes happen much more slowly! A good saw, sharp chisels and a good marking gauge are the key along with practice.
Tom

[BradD Strong]

Alright, you've all convinced me. I don't know why my first instinct is to go the power tool route, but I'm going to teach myself the fabled hand cut dovetail. Thanks everyone!
Brad

[John T Barker]

I learned dovetails at a very good shop doing 18th century repro work. Not tough and as everyone says they can't be seen so filling them with wedges so they will be tight is okay. If you have a good power jigsaw (handheld) with a fairly fine blade it is a great way to cut the tails and then zip right in to take out the majority of the waste (cutting parallel to the scribe line.) A little chisel work and you are redy to do the rest of the work.

Also, if you scribe you pins and make your initial half cut with your handsaw you can use a router to clean out the waste instead of spending a lot of time chiselling. Stand the board on end in a vise, clamp it to your bench too, clamp a block to the back surface to act as a surface for the router to ride on and clean it all out, going nice and slow. A little chisel work again at the end and you should be ready to fit them together.