HI everyone,
I am going to make a couple of Shaker style lap desks. It would be nice if I could make the dovetails on the 1/2″ sides with my INCRA jig, and yet have it look as much like hand cut dovetails as possible. I do not mind equal spacing. If a person looks at antiques, the dovetails, at least to me, are more elegant. They appear longer and taper down much narrower than machine cut dovetails.
Wonder if anyone knows of a way to use one of the INCRA dovetail templates, with a dovetail bit that resembles one of a hand cut look?
Your ideas will be appreciated..
Thanks,
Ken
Replies
ken,
I made a shaker lap desk last year with fairly small dovetails. There were two things about the dovetails that I was not completely satisfied with: the external marking guage line and the small dovetails look like chicklets (kinda)..just a bit too cute...of course with thin stock(mine was 3/8") and different absorbion of finish(end grain) it might be hard to avoid. I could have easily avoided the marking guage line if I had thought ahead..
Ken,
You can use your Incra jig to make variable-spaced dovetails. Just skip an index point or two, depending on the pattern you want. The 'Master Reference Guide' shows several templates with varied or wide spacing. Using many of the templates, you can decide which pins to skip and then make extra cuts to form the tails to match.
Regards,
Bill Arnold - Custom Woodcrafting
Mensa Member
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Bill Arnold got it!..
I have a full blown Incra fence.. I love it for dovetails and cutting thin sticks or other 'EQUAL or such spaced' stuff'. Otherwise I do not use...
Use the guide patterns with different degree bits on some scraps (of the same wood.. makes a difference.. I think..)
I have even hand ground a HSS bit to angle I wanted.. Well, I got some old metal workin' tools...
EDIT: NOT saying you should do it! May be dangerous.. But even taking a old drill and grinding a taper on it will do... JUST for the final profile.. NOT the whole cut...
I always wear a face shield 'Just in case'...
Edited 6/14/2005 2:14 pm ET by Will George
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