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Thread: box joint jig

  1. #1

    box joint jig

    I just got the Freud box joint set and am brainstorming the best way to do the jib. I've poked around the internet and there are lots of different variations doing essentially the same thing. Would folks please mind sharing some pics of theirs and tips? I am just curious.

    Thanks.

  2. #2
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    Not sure if it would apply to the Freud jig, but William Ng - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NutwD7B6tmE - has a great video on making a jig & using it.

  3. #3
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    Ditto on Ng's video. I made his jig and got within 5-7 thousands accuracy. I also took a class of his last week, and he is a genius.
    Regards,

    Tom

  4. #4
    "Don't know what to tell 'ya; kind of , huh?"
    Last edited by Lee Schierer; 01-30-2020 at 9:18 AM.

  5. #5
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    Why unhappy?

    My Freud box joint set works great, with any jig that does 3/8 or 1/4", home made or not.

    Perhaps I am missing something?
    Rick Potter

    DIY journeyman,
    FWW wannabe.
    AKA Village Idiot.

  6. #6
    I was quoting the video. I just thought it was funny.

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by Günter VögelBerg View Post
    I was quoting the video. I just thought it was funny.
    And it is. I love his somewhat dry sense of humor.

  8. #8
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    I have an i-Box and still use a method similar to William's since that is the way I started making them. The i-Box is handy for a lot of small fingers if you are doing that.
    "A hen is only an egg's way of making another egg".


    – Samuel Butler

  9. #9
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    I also have the I-Box jig and the Freud SBOX8 blade set, and have been using this combination for about 10 years. All of my shop made box joint jigs (one for each size) went in the burn pile after I bought the I-Box jig. It's so easy to set up and use, and requires much less space to store in my shop. Since purchasing these I have made a lot of boxes using them.

    A tip for I-Box users - Remove the sacrificial strip that comes with the I-Box jig and use it as a template to make a bunch of them. It's just 1/4" MDF. I bought a 2' X 4' piece from Home Depot for about $5 and cut about a dozen from it. Once cut, you will need to drill 4 holes and countersink them. I set up two stops on my drill press to drill the first hole. Then by flipping the piece over I drilled the second hole. Then flipped the piece end for end and repeated the process for the other two holes. Then I removed the drill press stops and changed the bit for a countersink bit and countersunk the 4 holes in each piece from the smoother side of the MDF. In less than an hour I made a dozen spare sacrificial strips for $5 and an hour of shop time. Trust me, when you find how easy the I-Box jig is to use, you will be using it a lot. Each time that you set up the jig to make box joints you should move the sacrificial strip so that you make a fresh cut through it. This fresh cut will then act as a zero clearance function for all of the box joints that you will be cutting with that saw blade height and width. If you will be making box joints all day, it might be good to move the sacrificial strip and make a fresh cut through it about half way through your day, because, just like zero clearance inserts in your table saw, they will wear out and reduce the quality of your cuts. You can buy these sacrificial strips already made at 3 for about $10, but they are so easy to make, why not and save your money for real projects.

    Attached are a few photos of some of my box joint projects. Who was it that said "You can't cut box joints in plywood". I do it in Baltic Birch plywood more often than solid wood and they are always perfect using the I-Box jig and Freud SBOX8 blade set. For 1/8" box joints, I found a 10" Ripping blade with a FTG grind (.126" tooth width) that works just as good as the SBOX8 blade set does for 1/4 and 3/8" box joints..

    Charley
    Attached Images Attached Images
    Last edited by Charles Lent; 01-30-2020 at 9:36 AM.

  10. #10
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    Duplicate post - removed

    Charley

  11. #11
    Thanks, guys. I see the ibox jig on sale, so I think I am going to just order that. I always cringe a little buying something I can make, but at the moment with my new job my time for workshop is scant and the couple hours I might spend making jigs of different sizes are worth $170 to me.

  12. #12
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    I had struggled with box joints until I made William Ng's jig. This was the first box I made with it & it worked great. The boxes were for a local charity fundraiser. There was more than one comment about how 'those dovetails are beautiful'

    Box joint.jpg

    And like Charles, I've made them from Baltic Birch plywood and they turned out very well.

  13. #13
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    Great answer Charley. Well said.
    Rick Potter

    DIY journeyman,
    FWW wannabe.
    AKA Village Idiot.

  14. #14
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    Gunter

    Where is this jig on sale and for how much?
    Regards,

    Tom

  15. #15
    Quote Originally Posted by Thomas McCurnin View Post
    Gunter

    Where is this jig on sale and for how much?
    https://www.infinitytools.com/incra-...waAkZtEALw_wcB

    $40 cheaper than Woodcraft. They say mine has already shipped.

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