# I jumped



## Gap_308 (May 2, 2009)

After reading alot here and learning what I can without putting my paws on it. I ordered a dovetail jig, my first one. Its not the best or the worst as far as reviews go so only time will tell. 

ON SALE! - Rockler's Complete Dovetail Jig with FREE Dovetail Jig Dust Collector, While Supplies Last! - Rockler Woodworking Tools

I also ordered a bushing kit to play with, at some point I want to learn about inlays. 

ON SALE! - Rockler Router Guide Bushing Kit - Rockler Woodworking Tools

I called one of the local tool stores , Sacramento Machinery. I want to put my paws on a 690lrvs before I get one. I see the standard 690 everywhere, and the vs is kinda rare. Not sure why yet, isnt the ability to change speeds a good thing? So tomorrow I'm going by to check it out. I can get the plunge base later if the need is there. Hopefully with all this I can start making some nice drawers. Well when everything gets here I'll take plenty of pics, laughter is the best medicine :sarcastic:


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## jschaben (Jun 21, 2009)

Gap_308 said:


> After reading alot here and learning what I can without putting my paws on it. I ordered a dovetail jig, my first one. Its not the best or the worst as far as reviews go so only time will tell.
> 
> ON SALE! - Rockler's Complete Dovetail Jig with FREE Dovetail Jig Dust Collector, While Supplies Last! - Rockler Woodworking Tools
> 
> ...


Hi Scott  That's the same setup I have and I have been pretty happy with it. Have only done half blinds though, Instructions got kinda convoluted and spotty when I got to the through tails and box joints. Actually the instructions were pretty confusing the whole way through but Bj and a couple of others here got me pointed right finally. 
Dust collector is incredible, almost nothing escapes and I am just using a shop-vac. Just one tip; leave the dust collector off until you have the left and right guides adjusted where you want them. With the dust collector installed you can't get to the front adjustment screws on the thing. :fie:
Not a big deal, one of the guys suggested I set it up with 3 1/2 or 4 1/2 inch wide stock and leave it alone. Just make all the sides even inch + 1/2 and they will work out. If I run into a drawer or box that needs another size I just round it up to the next 1/2", cut the joints and then rip it to size afterward, taking an equal amount of both edges.:wacko:


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## istracpsboss (Sep 14, 2008)

jschaben said:


> Not a big deal, one of the guys suggested I set it up with 3 1/2 or 4 1/2 inch wide stock and leave it alone. Just make all the sides even inch + 1/2 and they will work out. If I run into a drawer or box that needs another size I just round it up to the next 1/2", cut the joints and then rip it to size afterward, taking an equal amount of both edges.:wacko:


Hi John

Is that just using the standard comb template that most come with?

Does it change with other intervals? I've 7/16", 1/2" and 9/16" with mine although I've not started using it yet.

Cheers

Peter


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## jd99 (Jun 17, 2009)

That's the same one I have also, and I still havent had a chance to pull it out of the box and use it yet.

Let us know how it works, and show pictures.


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## jschaben (Jun 21, 2009)

istracpsboss said:


> Hi John
> 
> Is that just using the standard comb template that most come with?
> 
> ...


Hi Peter/Danny 
Like I said, I haven't done any through dovetails. It comes with two combs, one for half-blind and the other for through/box. It uses a 14* - 1/2 dovetail for the half-blinds and a 8*(?) 1/2 dovetail and 5/16 straight for the through/box. 
Had some projects to build storage boxes for a bunch of tools I have that didn't come with boxes or had an assortment of different sized plastic boxes. I been using that project to practice dovetails on but I use 1/2" construction grade plywood for them so a lot of the dovetails get a lot of tearout. Figure when I get a nice looking dovetail in that stuff, I'll be good to go on everything else. 
The jig itself is pretty easy once set up. I also helped myself a bit by dedicating a router to it. No need to fumble with the stop fence and bit height only if I change stock thickness. Been setting up to run left-front, right-rear in the first pass, then left-rear, right-front in the second pass and I'm done. Works only if the stock width is less than 5-1/2 though.
Hope this helps some.


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## Gap_308 (May 2, 2009)

John does that mean it works with metric plywood also ie.. pins and tails the same thickness? I'm going to make a bunch of drawers and boxes for the garage first. Hopefully someday I wanna build my own kitchen cabinets, my wife has a photo of some in alder, all she said is I want em' to look like that. If this works out right then I can get a gifkins or katie later and the price will FEEL warranted. As for the router, thats what the 690lrvs will be for. I want my Triton to stay in the table, it's heavy. Jig delivery is 12/02.


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## Gap_308 (May 2, 2009)

Delivery date for the jig is 12/02, funny it comes from back east goes right thru my city and goes to san francisco, then comes back this way. I already got ahead of myself and bought REAL lumber. First time at a hardwoods shop, and yes I felt and sounded lost. The guy was real nice though, even with his own language of lumber. I got 4/4 hard maple and 1/2 baltic birch. He plained down the maple for free for me to 1/2. I want to use all of to learn and to make drawers. I got both not knowing if the baltic birch will dovetail well or not. I do have to run the maple thru my router table as a jointer. This will be the first NON processed lumber for me. I need to do some reading about use the router table for this, my fence has independent adjustments so it shouldnt be to bad.


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## BigJimAK (Mar 13, 2009)

Nice looking wood!! When you get ready to shim your outfeed fence for jointing, an old deck of cards make good shim stock. There's nothing wrong with business cards etc., but the shop is a good recycle place for the cards.


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## Dr.Zook (Sep 10, 2004)

Nice looking wood Scott. AND I love your tail gate.


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## dutchman 46 (May 23, 2007)

I agree with the others, It is exciting doing new things, enjoy the new tools, and good luck on the drawers, Scott. Read, and understand the dovetail instructions, and you will be OK, The jig has a learning curve. It almost made me mad when i used it the first time. That was back in the 70's.


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## Gap_308 (May 2, 2009)

It showed up today. This things a tank , base steel is 1/8'' thick. Gotta get the new shelves up tomorrow so I can get some ****stuff*** outta my way. I even have the new sears router to use on it. Double review comming I think.


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## BigJimAK (Mar 13, 2009)

No rest for the routed..


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## Gap_308 (May 2, 2009)

I started playing with new jig today, it only took 4 tries to get a good wabbit joint. the variables are bit depth and fence to material depth. At a casual pace it took about 1 1/2 hrs do setup and final adjustment. The pre marked jig positions are for exact material thickness. The instructions are great for ONE side of the jig, so after doing the left front corner of a drawer your on your own to figure the rest out. I even looked online for a more thorough write up, but only the video they have at their site comes up. I did the 1/2'' maple today. I did learn that using a router table as a joiner requires a long fence with NO deflection....like my mdf fence. Short material , something under 24'' still works. I found that running a 3' board down my short and weak fence actually created a bow in the maple. 12'' boards came out perfect, they made for great test pieces. I did get the dust collector with the DT jig and it works great. It does get in the way when aligning the material in the jig though, not a big deal. The dust collector becomes the front clamp. I will try the baltic birch in a couple days and get some pics up. If I had started earlier in the day I could have completed a couple drawers easily.


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## Dr.Zook (Sep 10, 2004)

Congrats on your new tool Scott. Maybe some pics soon?


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## Gap_308 (May 2, 2009)

*what have I done now*

ok ok ok I get, I should have got the katie or gifkins jig. Try and save a buck and you spend it on aspirin instead.

Pretend your working with 1/2'' material and then read page 6 of the instructions. warning as this will cause confusion followed by a drop in your patience level, read at your own risk.....you've been warned:blink:

http://www.rockler.com/tech/RTD10000332AA.pdf


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## BigJimAK (Mar 13, 2009)

Don't beat yourself up, Scott.. Just making a box with 4 precisely mitered edges, all to the correct length and all angles correct takes some time and tuning. With dovetails you start out with a bit that is designed to cut at one and only one correct depth for the joint. Once the bit depth is correct, the spacing and placement must be mastered and finally (for half-blind) the depth of cut must be correct.

What the jig offers is repeatability; once its set you can make a number of boxes of precisely the same stock width and thickness quickly.

Whether router cut or (even more skill required) hand-cut, dovetails are a sign of craftsmanship in the end product. The maker spent the extra time and attention to detail to add them. Even the most expensive jig, as shipped from the factory, requires this investment. I used dovetails to make the drawers in a rolling cabinet (that I'm still working on the trim for) and fortunately I didn't count the number of scraps I went through with my Incra making them (they were my first dovetailed drawers). Once it was set up though, the drawers went quickly. At that time I chuckled to myself that if I knew the size and number of drawers I'll need for my router table base, I'd have made them at the same time!

I *do* recommend using scrap stock and first making a set just like the instructions. Once they work correctly you'll see how to adapt it to what you want to do. Others may be so experienced (or skilled) as to not have my experience, so your mileage may vary, but I'd be surprised if it was a wham-bam for them the first time either!


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## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

Hi Scott

You may want to give the EZ Pro.dovetail jig a hard look see, it's almost the same as the Katie and the Gifins and about at 1/4 the price.. 
I amazed what this little jig can do..  and how fast it was to setup and use..
40.oo bucks at HD

The EZ Pro Dovetail Jig Instructional Videos

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Gap_308 said:


> ok ok ok I get, I should have got the katie or gifkins jig. Try and save a buck and you spend it on aspirin instead.
> 
> Pretend your working with 1/2'' material and then read page 6 of the instructions. warning as this will cause confusion followed by a drop in your patience level, read at your own risk.....you've been warned:blink:
> 
> http://www.rockler.com/tech/RTD10000332AA.pdf


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## jschaben (Jun 21, 2009)

Gap_308 said:


> ok ok ok I get, I should have got the katie or gifkins jig. Try and save a buck and you spend it on aspirin instead.
> 
> Pretend your working with 1/2'' material and then read page 6 of the instructions. warning as this will cause confusion followed by a drop in your patience level, read at your own risk.....you've been warned:blink:
> 
> http://www.rockler.com/tech/RTD10000332AA.pdf


Yep, that's why I haven't made any through DT's on it yet... Avidly going to study any following posts. Right now am about as lost as a $2 hunting dog.:lol:


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## levon (Sep 14, 2008)

bobj3 said:


> Hi Scott
> 
> You may want to give the EZ Pro.dovetail jig a hard look see, it's almost the same as the Katie and the Gifins and about at 1/4 the price..
> I amazed what this little jig can do..  and how fast it was to setup and use..
> ...



hi BobJ,

do you have this ez pro jig? it looks pretty simpple and cost effective for a cheapie like me. :yes2:


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## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

Hi levon

Yep,, here's a shot or two of the one I have..

Router Forums - View Single Post - EZ Pro Dovetail Jig
Router Forums - View Single Post - EZ Pro Dovetail Jig


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levon said:


> hi BobJ,
> 
> do you have this ez pro jig? it looks pretty simpple and cost effective for a cheapie like me. :yes2:


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## levon (Sep 14, 2008)

hey thanks BobJ

glad to see you didnt need to rework it, hahahahaha

i like the bottle tops!


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## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

Hey

I sure wish I didn't need to rework most jigs when I get one hahahahahaha

"bottle tops"
I just hate to put things in the trash can that can be use in many other ways..  I now see Steve Spangler is saving them for his new test tubes,just the small ver.of the plastic bottles..or to say the ones that didn't get made into pop bottles all the way..I saw a TV show how they made the bottles and I said that would be a great tube for cigars..20/20 thing once again...

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levon said:


> hey thanks BobJ
> 
> glad to see you didnt need to rework it, hahahahaha
> 
> i like the bottle tops!


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## levon (Sep 14, 2008)

well BobJ, my friend,

there isnt many jigs that havent been improved or made easier to use than by your reworking. 

as far as the ezpro dovetail jigs, i now know it works great, because i know you have used it and put it through the tests. 

you are one of the few people that really put the equipment thru the tests and dont just buy things after hearsay or as many "googling" lol lol

i see answers to questions that come straight from google. i just dont know why people that dont know answers try to make it seem they do. but that happens all over the web.


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## Gap_308 (May 2, 2009)

I used my secret Squirrel decoder ring to decipher the instructions and I think Im on to something. These are things NOT in instructions.
1. The left stop is used for both pins and tails of through DT. 
2. The material stop is plastic and will flex as it only has one screw in face of jig.
3. Dust collector works great, but you cant use it since its always in the way.
4. page 6 instructions mean....use enough material so the bit doesnt hit the jig. scrap wood shims being flush with back of jig means nothing but to confuse you. cutting 1/2'' material means use 1'' of scrap on top so bit doesnt hit. cutting 3/4'' material means use .........yes you guessed it 1 1/2'' of scrap.

I will be making some improvements to make the jig more consistent. Im going to make an aluminum stop to replace the plastic flexi one. All the cuts are made from this starting point and yet it can move under pressure. The variables that effect this jig the most are using material thats not exact thickness. Im going to try the baltic birch nest as it is more consistent. I did find that using a micrometer helps with pin and tail alignment.


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## Gap_308 (May 2, 2009)

more pics


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## oliverc612 (Dec 3, 2009)

Scott - the end product in the last picture looks pretty good. I think that almost any new jig takes a while to get used to and to understand how it works best.


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## Gap_308 (May 2, 2009)

Thanks, I just expect more from myself, most of what I think I know is self tought. Hands on has always worked best for me. My hands were kinda frozen today. First snow in 33 yrs, California valley floor, Im at 86 feet above sea level.


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## Gap_308 (May 2, 2009)

Tell me your thoughts, does it look to loose or not, its my first through DT ever made.


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## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

It's fine ,you need room for the glue 
You can reset the bit just a LITTLE bit if you want..but I can tell you don't want to use a hammer on the joints to drive them home..they will split/crack with to much force .

nice video by the way 
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Gap_308 said:


> Tell me your thoughts, does it look to loose or not, its my first through DT ever made.


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## Gap_308 (May 2, 2009)

Thanks Bob..... um which way for the ( little bit ) out so the joint is more proud or less for more flush? I found the video button on the camera woohoo. Did you see the cheap pakstic stop I was talking about. Im looking for an incra cut with black and decker tools :laugh:


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## bobj3 (Jan 17, 2006)

Hi Scott

Push the bit up into the router, it's a very fine line so just a little bit...
Yep I saw the plastic part that's real common on that type of jig,thin plastic in place for alum.part,you can make your own with some 1/4" thick plastic you have the room for the 1/4" part...the real key for that type of jig is to keep the template from moving from side to side..it's a big deal if it moves just a little bit..this is how I fix that error..

The error comes when you clamp the stock in place,it moves the template and the stock ,sand paper stuck to the hold downs works well also..
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Gap_308 said:


> Thanks Bob..... um which way for the ( little bit ) out so the joint is more proud or less for more flush? I found the video button on the camera woohoo. Did you see the cheap pakstic stop I was talking about. Im looking for an incra cut with black and decker tools :laugh:


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## Gap_308 (May 2, 2009)

I made my first box today with all through DT's , the jig works once you learn its personality. I do want to get another freehand router to make setup easier and more repeatable. Added a couple quik clamps and it did improve somewhat. Im looking real hard at the Gifkins and the akeda now. Im only an hour away from japanwoodworks..................hmmmmmmm.


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## BigJimAK (Mar 13, 2009)

Gap_308 said:


> Im only an hour away from japanwoodworks..................hmmmmmmm.


You lucky sot! :yes4::yes4:


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