Advice

[wayne123]

Hi
Im new to this site and also new to woodwork. I am looking for a bit of advice. I am looking at making a small bedside locker with 3 draws but i want to have dovetails on the drawers. I have a Trend t9 router but the dovetail jig for this router is to dear for me. Is there any other jigs i can use for this router to form dovetails?

 

[simocco]

Did you check out axminsters jig? i think its around £50. i have never used the jig myself so cant comment on its operation or results sorry

 

[simocco]

Hi
Im new to this site

Welcome by the way!

 

[CHJ]

....... I am looking at making a small bedside locker with 3 draws but i want to have dovetails on the drawers. I have a Trend t9 router but the dovetail jig for this router is to dear for me. .....

In all honesty I think you would be better considering doing the dovetails by hand, any dovetail jig/router setup needs a certain amount of practice and trial and error to get familiar with the setup requirements for good fit. There's more to matching tails to draw side width and base fixing methods that's not always easily achieved with a simple fixed jig.
Whilst you are doing that you could have done the same practice by hand and due to the small quantity of tails required probably finished the job without the expenditure of the jig.

 

[stef]

....... I am looking at making a small bedside locker with 3 draws but i want to have dovetails on the drawers. I have a Trend t9 router but the dovetail jig for this router is to dear for me. .....

In all honesty I think you would be better considering doing the dovetails by hand, any dovetail jig/router setup needs a certain amount of practice and trial and error to get familiar with the setup requirements for good fit. There's more to matching tails to draw side width and base fixing methods that's not always easily achieved with a simple fixed jig.
Whilst you are doing that you could have done the same practice by hand and due to the small quantity of tails required probably finished the job without the expenditure of the jig.

yes, i agree.
if your sawing is not that accurate, just purchase a small bandsaw. with the proper wedge shape jig, dovetails are easy to make.

 

[RogerBoyle]

....... I am looking at making a small bedside locker with 3 draws but i want to have dovetails on the drawers. I have a Trend t9 router but the dovetail jig for this router is to dear for me. .....

In all honesty I think you would be better considering doing the dovetails by hand, any dovetail jig/router setup needs a certain amount of practice and trial and error to get familiar with the setup requirements for good fit. There's more to matching tails to draw side width and base fixing methods that's not always easily achieved with a simple fixed jig.
Whilst you are doing that you could have done the same practice by hand and due to the small quantity of tails required probably finished the job without the expenditure of the jig.

yes, i agree.
if your sawing is not that accurate, just purchase a small bandsaw. with the proper wedge shape jig, dovetails are easy to make.

Why advise to go from a router Jig to a Band saw and Jig ??????? costs are starting to mount up and you have no idea if the OP has the room for one .
I do agree with trying it by hand first. You will gain a better understanding of how to do dovetails and you will with experience realise that there are a vast amount of jigs out there for doing this
All have their good and bad points.

Some jigs/systems can cost several hundred pounds But will carry out a multitude of tasks
As well as some that you can build for next to nothing

Roger

 

[stef]

Why advise to go from a router Jig to a Band saw and Jig ??????? costs are starting to mount up and you have no idea if the OP has the room for one .

Roger

because the advice is for a small bandsaw (cheaper than the axminster jig), and a home made wedge jig (virtually free from scraps of mdf).
and because a bandsaw, even a small one, will be a far more versatile tool than a dovetail jig. a small hobby bandsaw will be cheap, and probably far easier to resell, when time for the upgrade has come !


I was in the same situation as Wayne, sturggling with router made dovetails. I made my wedge a couple of years back, and only use this technique for my dovetails.
It's quick, acurate, cleaner, less noise, and more satisfying than with the router.
now it's my personal opinion.

 

[RogerBoyle]

Why advise to go from a router Jig to a Band saw and Jig ??????? costs are starting to mount up and you have no idea if the OP has the room for one .

Roger

because the advice is for a small bandsaw (cheaper than the axminster jig), and a home made wedge jig (virtually free from scraps of mdf).
and because a bandsaw, even a small one, will be a far more versatile tool than a dovetail jig. a small hobby bandsaw will be cheap, and probably far easier to resell, when time for the upgrade has come !


I was in the same situation as Wayne, sturggling with router made dovetails. I made my wedge a couple of years back, and only use this technique for my dovetails.
It's quick, acurate, cleaner, less noise, and more satisfying than with the router.
now it's my personal opinion.

I dont disagree with what you are saying but and its a big BUT
he didnt ask about a bandsaw He asked about a jig for his router
We know nothing about the OP, His capabilities or if he can make a jig for the bandsaw
I dare say the OP knows even less about Bandsaws and good and bad blades
Try and find a good bandsaw for less than the cost of a cheap dovetail jig :roll: :roll:
Yes you can get some cheap saws but they are usually dispatched with crap blades and are very restrictive in their capabilities

The bandsaw can and will cut dovetails but only through dovetails and for fine dovetails you really need to clean them up with hand tools so may as well cut them by hand
For batch production of the joints then the router is by far the quicker and easier method and using jigs like the wood rat you can cut all the tails for 4 drawers in the same pass then swap the timber and cut all the pins again in the same pass

For the occasional drawer then I just do them by hand by far the quickest and easiest way
For 6 or more then its the Router :twisted: :twisted:
Noise and all :twisted:
Roger

 

[Blister]

Hi
Im new to this site and also new to woodwork. I am looking for a bit of advice. I am looking at making a small bedside locker with 3 draws but i want to have dovetails on the drawers. I have a Trend t9 router but the dovetail jig for this router is to dear for me. Is there any other jigs i can use for this router to form dovetails?

I have this DT jig for sale with the DT cutter

for-sale-dovetail-jig-12-plus-cutter-t60226.html

 

[wayne123]

Hi All
Thanks very much for all your help on this i managed to pick up a dovetail jig for 20 euro its the craft CDJ300. with the bits. it is second hand any way. But again folks thanks very much for all your help this is a great site to help me out. At the moment i just have a medium shed so have not got much room for big machines.