Replies

1. 
   bluemo | Jun 02, 2022 04:19pm | #1

   I've used Forrest with good results. They are expensive and their website currently says to expect a 5 month delay. I use a shop-made sled dedicated for dovetails.

1. 
   lauriamc | Jun 02, 2022 06:15pm | #3

   I just bought one myself. If you call them, they can rush the order. I ordered and picked up (I live nearby) within 2 days.

2. 
   user-7737453 | Jun 02, 2022 05:12pm | #2

   I use the nine degree blade from Ridge Carbide. It was pricey and not a necessity for cutting dovetails, but kind of fun to use. A carefully made zero-clearance backer for the miter gage or cross-cutting sled is a must in my experience.

3. 
   ral3wood | Jun 02, 2022 06:17pm | #4

   Either the Ridge Carbide or Forrest Blades will work fine, but ARE pricey as mentioned above. I have the Forrest one which is great, but wanted a second one with a different angle grind. So I actually just took an old inexpensive (and pretty worn out) Freud thin kerf carbide tipped blade and had it reground to the angle I needed. It even has pretty low tooth count but cuts without tear out with a zero clearance backer. Cheap way to try it - can even make narrower dovetails that way!

   (If I remember correctly it was Burns Tools that reground it for me. Just specify the angle and which direction your tablesaw tilts.)

4. 
   JEarch | Jun 02, 2022 06:21pm | #5

   I use a Freud 40 tooth 7-1/4” ATB circ saw blade that costs about $15. With the blade clamped in a vise between 2 blocks of wood, I carefully remove the carbide from every other tooth, leaving 20 remaining teeth all angled the same way.

   In removing the carbides it is important that all of the force is aligned in the same plane as the saw plate so as not to accidentally distort it. I do this by placing a punch at the back of the carbide aligned toward the front of the tooth (tangential to the circumference of the blade). A sharp hammer rap on the punch, with the force also carefully aligned toward the front of the tooth, will break the weld. A little light file work to remove any remaining weld fillet and the blade is ready to use.

   A few advantages of this approach (besides cost):
   — The thin blade allows me to more closely approximate the look of hand-cut tails with a small gap between them.
   — As long as the ATB angle is greater than the desired dovetail angle, I can change the dovetail angle to suit the project at hand. You just need a fresh backer board in the sled for the different angles.

   In response to the OP’s second question, very straight-forward to use but a sled is necessary and clamping the work piece to a tall fence is critical for anything larger than smallish drawer and box sides.

   When I first ventured into this approach for dovetails I was hesitant to invest heavily in a blade that limited me to one dovetail angle, especially since I wasn’t sure what angle that would be. Or maybe I’m just cheap. In any event, after cutting both small dovetails in thin drawer and box sides as well as large ones in thick ganged casework sides, this economical solution has worked so well that I’ve never looked back.

   
1. 
   rob_ss | Jun 03, 2022 02:43am | #7

   Very clever.
   I was considering having a blade re-ground but may do this instead.

5. 
   pantalones868 | Jun 02, 2022 06:38pm | #6

   That's what I do, take a blade or buy one there at my sharpening service and have it reground to the angle I want. If I buy a blade from them they give me a break on the sharpening.. guess if you cut a great many dovetails then it might be worth spending the money for a Forrest but I have several ways to come up with a dovetail.