Should I buy a WoodRat

[Dave_G]

Hi,

Recently I have had quite a few requests for furniture to made with finger/box joints and for contemporary projects that could be made quicker if I used machined dovetails etc...

Now I'm more familiar with hand cutting dovetails and most of my joints and I don't have a clue about Woodrats or Leigh jigs.

So, to my questions; should I buy a Woodrat to batch cut finger joints and dovetails? How easy is it to use/set-up? Or should I consider the Leigh jigs? Which of the two is quicker to set-up?

Many thanks,

Dave

 

[Philly]

Dave
The Woodrat is a very handy jig - being able to batch cut joints is a real advantage. You will find many uses for it.
I also hear Woodrat are about to release a new, lower priced model.
Hope this helps
Philly

 

[Waka]

Dave

Both the woodrat and the leigh will give you the ability to batch joints, from what's been said on the forumthe woodrat is probably better.

have you considered other methods of doing batch wook, for example on the router table using the Incra fence etc, another method is making a jig for the table saw.

 

[GCR]

I use a Woodrat for finger joints and it works very well. I have even had some success cutting joints in ply, even Wicks ply!! All my joints have been cut with the wood at 90deg to the main extrusion and use the "power" feed to run the cutter through the work - I find a scrap block either side helps reduce tearout in ply. I print off computer generated spacings and stick these to the top plate, its just a matter of advancing the router after each cut (remembering to lock it of course!) As a matter of interest, I found 3.8mm spacing (with a 4.0mm cutter) gave a good sliding fit whilst 4mm spacing was way too tight. You can do this sort of fine adjustment with a 'Rat

Bob

 

[Anonymous]

I have a Rat and used to have a Leigh

In my experience, cutting DTs on the rat is a complete pain and I simply don't bother using it for them. It is fiddly and requires a lot of setting up


The Leigh is the one for batch cutting DTs - no contest

The Rat is more useful overall (not for DTs) and I am glad I sold the Leigh and bought the Rat, but it is not a great DT machine. however, consider the Rat as bought as a starting point that requires time and effort on your part making jigs and modifying it to get the best for it (see Aldel's site)

 

[Pete Robinson]

Why not have a look at an Incra jig, I have used them for the past 5 years, they are so much more versatile than any other jig I have come across, not only do they do all the normal joints, dovetails, box joints etc, but some real fancy stuff too, have a word with motownmartin, I suggested them to him, he bought one and has never looked back since.

 

[motownmartin]

Why not have a look at an Incra jig, I have used them for the past 5 years, they are so much more versatile than any other jig I have come across, not only do they do all the normal joints, dovetails, box joints etc, but some real fancy stuff too, have a word with motownmartin, I suggested them to him, he bought one and has never looked back since.

Your not wrong there Pete, you don't have to hang it off the wall either :lol:

 

[Mike.C]

Incra are one of the best joint making devices on the market, and certainly one of my best buys, but if you want to find out about the Woodrat, Aldel is one of the best members to talk too, his web site is a mind of information.

http://www.aldel.co.uk/base.htm

HTH

Cheers

Mike