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What Is a Dovetail Jig and How Does It Work?



Dovetail joints are extremely popular with woodworkers because of the look and strength they offer. Behind this special joinery technique are the elements like pins and tails. A dovetail jig is a tool that cuts these elements in a way that they can be interlocked to make the joints strong and durable.

 

A jig can be defined in more than one way and when you’re wondering what the best dovetail jig looks like and how it works, you need more than just a functional definition. Well, this article explains the tool and its mechanism in detail.

 

The way a jig works invokes curiosity about its design and function. The manufacturing of cabinets, carcass, drawers, tables, timber framing, and other furniture involves repeated and interchangeable actions without sacrificing accuracy, which seems next to impossible without a dovetail jig that allows the joints to hold together regardless of the use of glue. However, gluing makes them more resistant to pull-apart.

 

So, What Is a Dovetail Jig?

It’s a device that keeps a piece of work in place and guides a specific tool that operates on the workpiece. It may consist of a plate, a box, or an open frame that holds work and guides a machine tool to that work. It can be used for locating the drilled holes and spacing them.

 

Joinery and some other woodworking techniques require that the workpiece(s) and the tool be in a positional relationship. A jig helps the woodworker maintain this position with mechanical accuracy.

 

AND a dovetail jig is specifically designed for holding a piece of wood (workpiece) in a vertical position and guiding a router (work tool) to cut notches (often referred to as pins and tails) in that wood.

 

The first ever dovetail jig for commercial uses included a machined finger assembly fastened securely to a piece of wood (the workpiece), and the user used to cut the dovetails on the router table. Many of the jig models after that early version used the same process.

 

Components and Construction

Nowadays, dovetail jigs from different manufacturers may incorporate notable differences in their componentry. While different opinions may exist, the Leigh D4 presents the features and functions which, according to most woodworkers, only the best dovetail jig could possibly offer.

 

The jig stays clamped to the workbench, and the piece of wood being worked stays clamped to the jig’s base. There’s a finger guide to help you operate a handheld router with bushing. These jigs allow woodworkers to get different dovetail joints like half-blind cuts and through cuts, the strongest of all.

 

The majority of jigs in the market use a template that is attached to the jig’s base. A template becomes essential when a joint is intended to have particular shapes or sizes like fan-shaped or small/large dovetails. Router bits need to be compatible with the template; so you can cut pins on one side and dovetails on the other as you need. It means that the bits for one particular template may not be good for another.

 

A jig with moveable fingers is helpful when dovetails are to be cut with variable spacing requirements. For more decorative joints, you want to use alternate templates. If cutting through dovetails is your only goal, you may choose a simple jig.

 

Models with advanced features and equipment settings are known as full-featured jigs which are often expensive. These models are ideal when you choose to cut a variety of dovetails.

 

How Does a Dovetail Jig Work?

A thorough idea of the features of these jigs should help you understand their functions. Most jigs come with similar features, such as

·    A strong base that includes a clamping system (the part that your work material is securely mounted onto)

·         A guide bushing

·         A finger assembly

·         A bit (more can be used) for the router

 

The finger assembly of a jig provides the user with a guide or fence that is followed by the guide bushing’s outer edge and moves the bit of the router along the right path for cutting the joint.

 

As a standard for these jigs, the finger assemblies usually sit on some arms that come out from either of the jig’s side. The finger assembly slides onto the set of arms and needs to be correctly positioned for each joint one can cut.

 

So, the guide bushing and the finger assembly are common in all jigs. Regardless of the specific joinery system employed by a jig, a different surface for the guide is a must-have for any kind of joint.

 

Functions of the Finger Assembly and the Template

Some jigs include a finger assembly as a one-piece component that is operated as a single unit along with a fixed spacing measurement for both the pin and the tail as the user reposition the template to cut the different types of joints.

 

Depending on the intended type of cut, a typical template can be used in any of the four guide surfaces. To access all four positions, you can rotate the templates end for end or flip them upside down.

 

Some dovetail jigs use the same mechanism in a different manner. They use individual fingers having them snapped into a guide rail that is indexed.

 

The Role of the Guide Bushing

If you want a joint fitted securely, you need to recognize the role of the guide bushing. It runs along the surface of the guide on your finger assembly and then guides your router bit. While installing the bushing, you have to fasten it securely to the router base because a loosely fastened bushing may lead to a poor operation.

 

Sometimes, the router may not be compatible with all types of bushings. You can get an adapter to make sure the router accepts the bushings.

 

By the time, the operational concept of a jig is clearly understood; it’s likely for most woodworkers to pursue this delicate yet creditable joinery method. However, the concerns for safety are strong even with the best dovetail jig.

 

Read all the manuals (for both jig and router) carefully and wear safety clothing plus accessories like goggles, gloves, etc. Try to use a small router with a fixed base and avoid a plunge router unless you’re adept at handling one. Create a reference point on the jig and the router to be able to use the router looking down safely from above.

 

Final Words

Remember that a dovetail jig may save you a lot of chiseling and sawing and make you feel privileged only when you’re able to operate it with proper knowledge and safety arrangements. Hopefully, this article makes the learning easy and understandable for you.

Happy dovetailing!

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