Does He Need A New Dovetail Jig? from Sawmill Creek

He has a mortising attachment for his JET floor drill press (which, though difficult to use, works well), a tenoning jig for his table saw, and a cheap, now rarely used, plastic dovetail jig. With many dovetails ahead, this woodworker wondered if he'd be better off by buying a new jig, sticking with his current mortise and tenon method, switching to a dedicated mortiser, or going with the Woodrat for both the dovetails and mortise and tenon. And he'd like to keep it under $500.

Akeda Jig

The first responder was partial to the Leigh jig for dovetails. Regular through-cutters are included with the jig and the addition of a #120 bit for half-blind dovetails for drawers would leave cash left over for the parts to built a nice router mortising jig (e.g., Bill Hylton's plan which will appear in the November/December 2003 print edition of Woodworker's Journal) and some nice material. The next few responses agreed with the basic approach, but recommended the Akeda over the Leigh. Apparently, however, a serious fire near the Akeda plant has disrupted production and there was some question when the jig would be available again.

Other woodworkers' recommended jigs included:

• Katie dovetail jig

  Katie dovetail jig … because you'll get good results and can use it on a router table, rather than using the router "freehand" on the jig. To fake half-blind dovetails, add another piece of 1/2" or 3/4" face board for the drawer front.
• The Woodrat … the owner loves it!
• Woodhaven jig … a simple and accurate, but pricey, half-blind machine. Uses a bearing bit and takes seconds to set up using the included gauge.
• Porter-Cable 12" 1/2 (4112P) or JET 12" half-blind unit … if you plan on doing lots of drawers, think about these smaller, less expensive units. Then you'll have money left over for a dedicated mortiser. (Get you a really good set of chisels too!)

  Porter-Cable 24" Omnijig

• Porter-Cable 24" Omnijig … bit of a bear to adjust properly, but once set produces consistent results. Drawbacks include the lack of adjustability and price of the templates.
• Keller 1601 … there's no limit to the width piece you can dovetail, and you can vary the spacing of the 'tails. Drawbacks include poor owner's manual, and an inability to cut half-blinds with this jig.

Table of Contents

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Does He Need A New Dovetail Jig?

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Porter Cable 7529 Router in the UK