Workshop Tip: Relief Cut Makes it Easy to Chop Out Dovetail Waste
The kerf left by a Western-style handsaw, located in the center of the dovetail waste, makes it easier to chop out between narrow pins.
When hand-cutting dovetails with narrow pins, it can be difficult to chop out the waste between the tails. It’s much easier, however, if I first make a relief cut down the center of the waste. I use a Japanese pullsaw for my main cuts, but I make the relief cut with a Western-style push saw, which leaves a wider kerf. The extra space gives the waste material somewhere to go, letting me free big chips simply by chopping near the shoulder line. The chips pop out easily and the chisel doesn’t want to dive toward the shoulder. Once I’m halfway through the thickness, I make a final chisel cut right at the shoulder, and then flip the workpiece and work from the other side.
—Michael Winiarski, Bayside, N.Y.
Illustrations by Dan Thornton
From Fine Woodworking issue #276
Fine Woodworking Recommended Products
Veritas Precision Square
Suizan Japanese Pull Saw
Veritas Standard Wheel Marking Gauge
Comments
Chopping out waste is hard on chisel edges. It is also more work. For this reason I prefer sawing away the waste about 1mm above the baseline, and then paring away the remaining waste. This is more efficient ...
Regards from Perth
Derek
I tried this today and it was less work than my coping saw. I tried the tip in-between tails for narrow pin gaps as described. IMHO Derek's photos of a pin board make no sense here.
Why pin board? Because it is the photo to hand. It does not alter the information in my post. Chopping into anything but a thin section is hard on chisel edges. Avoid doing this if you can. Saw away most of the waste first.
Here is a short video I made recently about fret saw technique. Again, it is for pin waste. Tail waste is even easier, especially if you make skinny dovetails.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=M6O4rY_0zQs
Regards from Perth
Derek
Another post to show something unrelated to the tip. The wind says you did not try the tip before calling it less efficient. On what planet do we not use chisels as chisels? Sharpening one is a thing you get used to after a little practice, you could try Hock Tools' website to start:
http://hocktools.com/tech-info/sharpen.html
My Gramma (RIP) said it best: "Andy, a closed mind is the worst kind."
Regards from Earth
Andy
I like to use a scroll saw to remove the bulk waste. Its fast, and less sharpening.
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