Best dovetail Jig?

Learn from my mistake and save your money for a Leigh.

I love my Leigh Super Jig.

-- My favorite piece is my last one, my best piece is my next one.

Look at the Router Boss. It won’t do pins and tails at the same time but it will handle stock wider than the Leigh or other dovetail jigs can. That’s handy for things like blanket chests. It’ll also make nicer looking, more slender dovetails if you use HSS dovetail bits. You can use absolutely any dovetail bit you wish as far as that goes.

You could also do the mortises and tenons and box joints and edge profiles and…

And, because it mounts on the wall, it’s always put away and it’s always ready to use.

-- Until you spread your wings, you'll have no idea how far you can walk.

Stay away from the Rockler jig too. I am sure they meant well, adjustments are a pain in @ss

-- My job is to give my kids things to discuss with their therapist....medic20447@gmail.com

Looked at the router boss awsome tool but looks like it has a high learning curve. Leigh looks the best so far.
Thinking the 18” with the accesory kit

-- Bob, Rockford IL, http://www.woodandwax.net

It’s not that steep or a learning curve. In fact it’s quite intuitive.

The 18” will be kind of limiting for things like blanket chests. You might want to consider the 24” at least.

-- Until you spread your wings, you'll have no idea how far you can walk.

I personally use the katie jig, it is very easy to use the manual is a bit undesirable, but it is ready to go out of the box. You can cut pins on 1 side and tails on the other at the same time. but with 1 router you have to change the bits. You can use it with a hand router or table unit. I am blind and I found it very easy.

Leigh D4R But it doesn’t do pins and tails at the same time.

Guess you have to pick your poison – - I am not aware of any jigs that have adjustable spacing that would cut pins and tails at the same time. That is only on the fixed spacing version.

-- Its never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.

I’m kinda surprised that there are so little Akeda users/fans out there, personally, If I was in the market for a dovetail jig – I’d definitely go with the Akeda based on my research. but with all honesty – I have no experience with any of them, so take this with a grain of salt.

I do dovetails with the bandsaw – but that can only take you so far when you consider blanket chests…

-- When in doubt - There is no doubt - Go the safer route.

I bought a Keller Dovetail Jig and have been very pleased with it. Very easy to use, very quick and unlimited length capacity. It doesn’t do pins and tails at the same time, though.

-- John, co-owner Sawdust 'n Stitches

I am very impressed with the AKEDA DC16 and am planning on buying one when I start doing dovetailing. Go to www.finewoodworking.com. They have a great tool review on dovetaling jigs (Tool Test/ Dovetail Jigs). Now that I typed this, I do not know if you can read it if you do not have an internet subscription. Left it in for those that do. Go to woodworking.about.com for a tool review you can read. If you go to the AKEDA sight they have internet reviews you can look at as well. Good luck on picking a dovetailing jig.

God Bless
tom

-- Mc Bridge Cabinets, Iowa

I picked up the new Porter-Cable 24” Omnijig when it came out, pricey but worth it in my opinion. All the preset stops that it has including setting the router bit depth speeds up the process immensely and makes it very repeatable. I had the Leigh 24” D4R before that and that was an excellent jig also, but Porter-Cable took some of the best designs from the Leigh and added improvements. But as mentioned, being a movable finger design it doesn’t cut both the pins and the tails at the same time.

-- -Curt, Milwaukee, WI

I have to echo DaveR about the router boss, the learning curve is VERY short. Some great reviews about the RB can be found on here http://www.aldel.co.uk/Contents.htm . If you have a fast internet connection, check out the woodrat video here http://www.woodrat.com/dvd.html . The RB is essentially a second generation woodrat, but I can only recommend the RB (because that’s the only one I own!).

-- Let's make some firewood!

I bought a LEIGH for a similar job and when I did the 30 drawers, I sold it for almost the same money I paid…...I doubt other brands retain the value that way

-- Francisco Luna, San Francisco Bay Area.

Incra LS Positioner, best dovetail and box joint and router everything you could imagine!!!!

-- MARK IN BOB, So. CAL

I am a long time user of the Leigh D4 and would have thought it unlikely that anytning could beat it for making dovetails. But it has been beaten, by the Leigh D4R version. This is a real step up without messing up the good stuff, something lots of companies have to learn how to do…
I just posted a review of the Leigh D4R at the link below (photos and video) that includes their dust system which is also a breakthrough. I cut joints for nealry three days and had less than a dustpan full of wood on the floor!

Leigh D4R Review

-- Tom Hintz, www.newwoodworker.com

D4R, love it!

-- Jeremy, Baton Rouge, LA - rayburnfinefurniture.com

When it comes down to it, there is no “best” dovetail jig or “best” anything. It depends upon what you like and what sort of flexibility you need. If you like those fat dovetails that look like zipper teeth, a fixed finger jig will be just the ticket. If you want those fat dovetails made by carbide cutters but you want a flexible template to follow, the Leigh and Akeda jigs seem like the ones to look at. And if you don’t want to be limited to only fat carbide cutters or templates, there are other units to consider. If you don’t want to use a router then there are several other options I can think of. None are the best, though.

-- Until you spread your wings, you'll have no idea how far you can walk.

www.newwoodworker.com Just did a tool review on the D4R dovetail machine. Very impressive machine. I would go with the AKEDA BC24 or the D4R. Both are pricey, but alot has to do with how much you want to spend.

God Bless
tom

-- Mc Bridge Cabinets, Iowa

I have an older (about 20 years old) 24” Leigh jig, and I highly recommend there product for doing multiple drawers, but lately I have been doing dovetails by hand and will continue this for only a few drawers at a time.

Good Luck.

-- -JimmyC...Clayton,NC- "Just smile and wave boys, smile and wave"

I use the Leigh 24 inch D4. It does a good job but it doesnt do tails and pins together. I have to keep the manual handy since between uses I sometimes have trouble figuring out the setup. I have ordered parts and bits from Leigh directly and have called them with questions etc…they have great customer service.

-- Wayne - Plymouth MN

I also have the D4R and am very happy with it, but it doesn’t do the pins and tails at the same time. I prefer to batch cut all of my pieces anyway. I read where the new Leigh Superjigs can do this, but I have no experience with them.

I took a look at the Router Boss and was suitably impressed with the looks and concept. But then I looked at the price and was struck dumb. I would love to buy one but the price is far more than ANY single tool in my shop. Wow.

-- Oshkosh, Wisconsin

This thread just goes to shows that the best dovetail jig is the one you get use to using . I have 3 different models and use each of them.

-- Jim from Heirloom Woodshop Southern Oregon

Jim, you are correct.

Diamondback, The price is high but compare buying the RouterBoss to buying machines to do the things you can do with it and that price isn’t so bad. I realize that might not put it in range for you but for a lot of woodworkers, it could be a good alternative to say a Leigh dovetail jig and the Leigh FMT plus maybe a router table and some other tools. It takes up less space than those things do, too.

D

-- Until you spread your wings, you'll have no idea how far you can walk.

I recommend the Akeda for two reasons:

—Customizations are easily REPEATABLE. I don’t do production work, but I can imagine getting pretty frustrated trying to replicate a setup on the Leigh. On the Akeda, it’s EASY to repeat a setup that you made even 10 years before.

—It’s idiot proof (based on my statistical sample size of one idiot :-).

-- Laziness - Apathy = Efficiency

I agree that the Akeda is the way to go. I have the Leigh D4R, PC Omnijig and two Akedas. Use the Akeda all the time. I have one set up for pins and the other for tails and they fit together perfectly. I like simple and this jig is simple, but still can do through dovetails, half blind, sliding dovetails, and finger joints without buying additional templates.

I took a long look at the Akeda a year or so ago and was very impressed with the videos showing off how it worked, etc. Seems like a very nice system. I had heard at the time though that they were having problems maintaining the business and would go “under” soon. Is that incorrect?

No doubt about it I really like the concept of the Router Boss, the footprint, ease of use, flexibility, etc. And I do understand the cost versus multiple capabilities argument. I would agree. Now I just need to save up the bucks and do enough dovetailing work, etc. to justify it. (Then again, the Akeda calls to me….)

-- Oshkosh, Wisconsin

Akeda is alive and well. There was an issue with Woodcraft that may have created this feeling, but their sales seem to be strong and the guys I have been talking to are looking forward to moving forward with new ideas and programs. The fact that Whiteside is continuing to make router bits for the Akeda is a testament that they feel that Akeda has a long future ahead of it.