| Review by teenagewoodworker | posted 108 days ago | 430 views | 0 times favorited | 9 comments |  |
- Leigh D4R Dovetail Jig
- Brand: Leigh | Category: Other
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I know, I know, Its not a true D4R that i have but its the exact same thing except for some improvements in the new D4R which i will mention. like i said the D4R is a solid performer. it takes a while to set up but once you are set up you can consistently and accurately cut as many dovetails as you want. and once you get some experience under your belt set up is a breeze. i love the adjustability so you can have almost any configuration you want and its great to have the whole 24” so you can handle almost anything and you can still do some cool stuff on smaller boards. its only setback it that it is big so cutting dovetails on say a 2” board is a little weird but you can still do it. it is a very hefty machine too. the one that i have has more plastic than the newer one. the newer D4R is one full casting for the base with machined stops. great for repeatability and it shows the quality. the clamps hold down the pieces really nice and tight so they won’t move when routing. in the end if you take your time and so the proper test cuts you’ll get some nice dovetails. remember to keep your manual though, you will live and die by it as it shows all the different bit sizes and settings. i would say if you have the money and have a lot of dovetails to cut especially on large drawers (8” and up) it is a great purchase!
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9 comments so far
lew
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1232 posts in 237 days
posted 108 days ago
You lucky dog, you!
How did you manage to get TWO Leigh dove tailing jigs!!
Lew
teenagewoodworker
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2025 posts in 250 days
posted 108 days ago
no i only have one. thats two pictures of the same one. i just studied the newer one thats how i know about it.
Sawdust2
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846 posts in 569 days
posted 108 days ago
It looks like we have the same model.
One thing I learned in a course on how to use it was to polish the fingers til they shined like the back of a chisel. Once I did that the jig worked sooo much better.
Lee
-- No piece is cut too short. It was meant for a smaller project.
teenagewoodworker
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2025 posts in 250 days
posted 108 days ago
wow how do you do that? i cleaned it up a bit when i got it but never thought of polishing it
matt garcia
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190 posts in 153 days
posted 107 days ago
I own a D4R, bought it last year. It is intimidating, but once you have a project like a Highboy, with lots of drawers, it will come 2nd nature. I’m still debating whether I should buy the router bit set for it. All I own now are 3 bits. I want to try some mini dovetails for my next jewelry chest project. I love my jig, if only I could get my P/C 690 concentric, thats gonna be a feat!!
-- Matt, Houston Texas
Joey
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204 posts in 297 days
posted 100 days ago
i’ve got the mini dovetails for it, they do great. that’s what i used on the prayer box under my projects. I am interested on how you polish the fingers. I’ve had mine 3 years and never thought to do that.
-- Joey, Magee, Ms http://woodnwaresms.com
Sawdust2
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846 posts in 569 days
posted 99 days ago
You know how to polish the back of a chisel until it shines? You keep rubbing it on your wetstone or oilstone until it is mirror smooth.
You do each of the fingers the same. Then you put them on the bar in the order that keeps them most nearly the same size to each other. They should almost look like stainless steel.
Will it improve the end product? Only as much as shining the back of a chisel improves the end product.
Lee
-- No piece is cut too short. It was meant for a smaller project.
Chris
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1221 posts in 472 days
posted 95 days ago
OK… Were did you manage to find one of these used?
-- Chris
teenagewoodworker
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2025 posts in 250 days
posted 95 days ago
craigslist!