Dovetail Joints

Tyler, Here are 3 web sites that I found helpful: http://home.nj.rr.com/afoust/dovetails.html#saws http://www.amgron.clara.net/index.htm http://www.handcutdovetails.com/
Also, many of the woodworking magazines have articles from time to time. Try the websites for Woodcraftmagazine.com, Woodsmith.com and others have archives you can search for information. The best way to learn is to read and practice the author’s descriptions. Woodworkers often have differnet ways to accomplish the same results. As you try different techniques, find one you like and the practice it some more!
Hope this helps a little.
Lew

Tyler,

some months back I posted a blog entry that contains a 37 minute video on how to cut dovetails by hand:
http://lumberjocks.com/jocks/alindobra/blog/2755

You might want to take a look.

Alin

-- -- Alin Dobra, Gainesville, Florida

Hi Tyler, I’d also recommend Alin’s videos. They’re very thorough and will give you a good idea of how to proceed. And if you post pictures and comments of your attempts, you will probably get good feedback from the community.

-- Eric at http://adventuresinwoodworking.com

I concur. Alin’s video set me on my way to hand-cut dovetails.

-- The significant problems we face cannot be solved by the same level of thinking that created them

you can use a router to remove most of the material for the pins and then clean them up with a chisel. then just cut the tails with a hand saw and remove it with a chisel. it takes some time to learn though. i will probably have something on dovetails in one of my upcoming podcasts.

I have several of Rob Cosman's DVDs and really enjoy them. They are full of good information. Rob is also going to release a Shop Manual that you can take to the shop with you. If you do a little research, you quickly find that there are many techniques to cutting dovetails. You may need to try a couple, to find the one that works for you. Experiment and have fun with it. It will be frustrating at first, but hang in there. Cutting dovetails is a skill anyone can learn, but it does take a lot of practice.

-- http://theinquisitivewoodworker.com/

I would enthusiastically second watching Alin’s video. He really does an excellent job.

teenagewoodworker,

I would agree with you but I think using a coping saw is much faster and easier to control. A router without a guide on the edge and not going through the marking lines takes acrobatic abilities, not to mention that it is noisy and makes a lot of dust. If you opt for a router with a guide you might as well go with a dovetailing jig. Coping saws (Lowes and HD sell them for less than 10$) are very aggressive and relatively easy to use. The only problem is the rough cut but you are cleaning up with a chisel anyway.

Alin

-- -- Alin Dobra, Gainesville, Florida