# Akeda Dovetail Jigs - Do they Exist or is there good substitute?



## PittsburghTim (Jan 16, 2012)

Has anyone been able to buy one in the past few years. I am on a waiting list with the only dealer they have and no one will even venture a guess as to when they will be available or when they last received one. If it's hopeless, does anyone have experience with one that is equal?

I would like to be able to make variable spaced through dovetails and box joints. Mostly drawers, but would like to make some chests, so 24" capacity is a must. I looked at the incra LS, but am doubtful that it would work well, if at all for a project the size of a chest.

I'd consider the Leigh models, but am concerned about the setup. I once used my father's old omnijig and it was extremely fussy to set up.

Thanks


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## wmodavis (Aug 28, 2007)

Don't know of current availability but I have one and love it especially the easy setup.


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## Loren (May 30, 2008)

I'll recommend you not trip out on some unattainable 
tool that becomes a sort of "holy grail" that zooms your
abilities to a higher level.

Jigs are fun to explore, but they all come with their own
hassles and so forth.

Did you know you can cut through dovetails with a bandsaw?
It isn't even hard to do and it is pretty fast. Mark Duginske's
bandsaw book tells how to cut them as a production
method so you can do a dozen drawers with interchangeable
dovetails if you want to.

There's also the Woodrat and Router Boss if you have several
hundred bucks to drop on a dovetailing system - they are
flexible and can do any kind of variable spacing and dovetail
angles. The method of work is different from the Akeda,
but the result is the same: variable-spacing and variable
pitched dovetails.


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## ZiggyZ (Nov 14, 2011)

I recently purchased a 16" Akeda Jig from my local woodcraft. Someone bought one and returned it and they had it in the back as Woodcraft no longer carries them. Try giving them a call if you have one local. No luck online?


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## richgreer (Dec 25, 2009)

I'm familiar with the Akeda because a friend has one. I'm also familiar with the Leigh because I have one. It is not obvious to me why the Leigh would be considered harder to set up than the Akeda.

On the Leigh, it is important to set the guide plate in just the right position to get the pins just right. It takes a little trial and error. My discovery is that, once I have it right, I cut a block of wood that is just the right width to set between the guide plate and the base of the jig. This block of wood becomes a spacer that makes it very easy to repeat the set up at a later point in time.

Of course, additional spacers are needed for working with different bits and different thicknesses of material.


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