# Tablesaw dovetail jig



## nmacdonald (Jan 13, 2012)

Has anyone every made a tablesaw dovetail jig as shown in woodworkers journal Aug 2010


----------



## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*Lola Ranch has*

http://www.woodworkingtalk.com/f13/character-grade-hickory-cabinets-43862/ :thumbsup:


----------



## vursenbach (Apr 11, 2012)

Both are way cool. I have seen the first one before but not the second. My major problem as a dwarf is being able to look over my work to the exact spot the blade comes in contact with the wood. I'm too short to see that over the jig. However, way cool.

Sent from my iPhone using Wood Forum


----------



## thegrgyle (Jan 11, 2011)

Nmacdonald.... I have never seen anything like that, and it looks like a real good way to use the TS to make those cuts. Thanks for posting that, and now I have another jig to add to my "Make this at a later date when I need it" list.


----------



## thegrgyle (Jan 11, 2011)

Nmacdonald... Did you ever make this jig? I think I am going to attempt to make it this weekend.....


----------



## nmacdonald (Jan 13, 2012)

I've attempted it but failed horribly lol. I'm sure the jig will work great but it requires a great amount if accuracy. I never tried making it again since getting a new tablesaw, but thinking ill either start learning to make them by hand and get a Leigh jig down the road.


----------



## thegrgyle (Jan 11, 2011)

I finally have a need for it, so I think I will be trying to make this jig, and will probably take a bunch of pics as I do. IF I am succussful, I may do a thread on it. That is a Big IF though. :icon_smile:


----------



## thegrgyle (Jan 11, 2011)

*Well, I tried.....*

First of all, I thought the one on that was posted in the video was way too bulky and cumbersome, so I thought I would make 2 different sleds.... One for the pins, and one for the tails....


I thought I would take a crack at this jig, just to see if I could make one successfully. I thought that the key thing to it would be keeping the angles consistent, so I set off to making a few angle blocks. I laminated some 3/8” mdf together, and then squared them off to make some rectangular blocks. I then made a make shift taper jig to cut the angles consistently and accurately.


----------



## thegrgyle (Jan 11, 2011)

*Now the Pin sled….*

Then I made some fences for the pins sled that I was going to make. Next, I positioned those on my sled, using the angled blocks to reference the angle that I wanted them at. I also put a spacer block between the angle and the actual fence, since I wanted the whole drawer side to sit on the sled. I used some double sided tape to temporarily hold them in position, and then finished fastening the fences with some staples. I then cut my runners, and attached them the same way, except I used some screws on them.


----------



## thegrgyle (Jan 11, 2011)

*Onto the tails sled…..*

After that I glued the wedges to some pieces of MDF to make the fence for the tails sled. I made a second sled, and then attached the fenced wedges using screws this time. I ended up splitting the MDF wedge a little, but didn’t think that would factor into the effectiveness of the jig.


----------



## thegrgyle (Jan 11, 2011)

Well, Now it is time to see if it works. I milled some pine down for some practice boards, and proceeded to try to use my jig. I then watched the video to make sure I had the process right, and then cut the pieces accordingly. In the video, they stated that you will have to do some hand tool work with a chisel to fine tune it. I know I need a lot of help with my hand tooling, but this is how it turned out. 

















I kind of wonder if my chisel needs sharpening/honing, because when it came to having to pare the endgrain of the pine, it didn’t seem to cut it, but kind of bend it over. I didn’t like that. I know I still need a lot more practice with my hand tools.


----------



## thegrgyle (Jan 11, 2011)

While posting this, I went to the link that Woodnthings provided of Bret’s hickory cabinets and his TS sled. I like it, and all the safety covers to shield the user from the high spinning blade. I will have to incorporate that into mine if I end up keeping it.

*Bret (lolaranch),* Is there a way you might be able to post a pic of that sled you made for your bandsaw? I am thinking that I may want to use my other 2 wedges that I have left over to maybe make one for mine…. I think I can figure it out, but wanted to see if I could use yours for inspiration.


----------



## nmacdonald (Jan 13, 2012)

Looks like it didn't work out too bad. Thanks for posting the pictures!


----------



## thegrgyle (Jan 11, 2011)

I really didn't like the way my first DT's turned out with these new jigs, but I wasn't ready to give up on them yet. I decided to try they out on the drawers for my daughters desk. I am using poplar for her desk.

I looked at the ones I cut out of in pine, and tried to figure out where I may have gone wrong. I tried to pay better attention when I was cutting the new ones, and I think I had better success. I thought my chisels were dull when hand tooling the pine, but I think the wood is just too soft. They worked alot better on the poplar.

What do you think?


----------

