Replies

1. 
   hammer1 | Jun 29, 2006 01:30am | #1

   I'd worry about that one, Webby. As you flip the jig, you will double the mistake. Could you move the fence to the other side instead of flipping the fixture? This would keep the mistake in line but you will now have a left and right set up to change and remember. You will get rocking shelves if you don't address the issue, the opposite corners will be off 1/8". You could also add a spacer, but this is another thing that gets confusing, especially if you have a long run and have to move the jig.

   I'm sure you don't want to see your time wasted. Making another jig without a drill press will be just as challenging. Unfortunately, a jig that is not accurate, and needs fiddling with, will really tick you off when you goof an important piece. You may be able to use the good part of the existing jig to make a better one.

   Beat it to fit / Paint it to match

2. 
   mike_b | Jun 29, 2006 04:27am | #2

   I've done shelf pin holes using my own shop-made jigs (you can use pre-drilled peg board also -- 1/4" holes, 1" on center), and it's really easy. I do it after the carcass is assembled. Both front and back holes are the same distance from their respective edges, so I make a template/jig from 1/4" hardboard. The template is two times as wide as the distance of the pin holes from front and back edges of the cabinet -- drill 1/4" holes, 1" apart right down the center of the template. The template should reference off the top or bottom of the cabinet. Place the template against the top/bottom of the opening and against the back of which ever side you decide to start on, drill the pin holes with a stop collar set to desired depth + the thickness of the template. Slide, don't flip, the template to the other side of the cabinet at the back and drill more holes. Move the template to the front of that same side, it's edge referenced from the front edge of the cabinet, and drill the holes. Slide it across to the the other front edge, repeat the process and you have pin holes on both sides, front and back, that are all exactly the same height/distance apart and distance from and back.

3. 
   Jamie_Buxton | Jun 29, 2006 07:11am | #3

   You can build your own, but you do have to fight for the needed accuracy.  A better solution is to buy a commercial one.  They're built on numerically-controlled mills, and do have the accuracy.  One example is http://www.woodhaven.com/SearchResult.aspx?CategoryID=38 .  Other companies make similar stuff.

   For less than $50, you're back to making furniture instead of fussing around with tooling.

   I strongly recommend using a plunge router, but a drill can be used if your depth stop never slips.

1. 
   jazzdogg | Jun 30, 2006 07:36am | #8

   "...a drill can be used if your depth stop never slips."

   Hi Jamie,

   If you use a Vix-type bit, that shouldn't be a problem. Several manufactured jigs, including Woodhaven's and Rockler's, are designed to work with them.

    -Jazzdogg-

   "Don't ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive, and go do that, because what the world needs is people who have come alive." Gil Bailie

4. 
   ring | Jun 29, 2006 09:55am | #4

   I do it the same way as Mike describes.  Even if there is some inaccuracy in the jig it will not cause a problem because you never flip it end for end.  Putting a fence on the jig just interferes with using both faces for the left and right walls.  If I'm doing a one-off cabinet I use masonite for the jig.  On big jobs I've used 1/8" aluminum plate with great success.  Easy to make the jig and the holes don't wear too quickly.

   DR

5. 
   webby | Jun 29, 2006 05:16pm | #5

   Thanks for the good advice everyone. I am definitely going to purchase a manufactured jig especially one that will work with the euro hinges.

   However I might try another attempt at making a jig myself, I have redesigned my original with these improvements.

   You are right it is in flipping the jig that really screws me up. I think if I make anew one I will place my holes on a centerline, and make the slots that the fence rides in work for both sides, so that I can move the fence to either side of the holes, and then for the right side of the cab. I will flip the fence to the other side of the jig.

   That way if there is a slight error, it will be on the same side at the same place.

   Webby

1. 
   KeithNewton | Jun 30, 2006 01:42am | #6

   Webby, You are on the right track. only you need to take it way further than you are thinking now. Back around 1985 I made up a bunch of jigs for using the 32mm system that I don't think anyone has matched yet. It was just too far ahead of it's time then, and I wasn't a good enough salesman to convince the bone-headed cabinetmakers around here that thought the only way to build a good cabinet was with face-frame. Mine are made from 1/2" apple ply, and the holes have a small bevel from both sides to make it easier to hit with the guide bushings, and you flip the pattern for left & right.The upper is 12" x 48" and the holes are 37mm back from each edge, and 32mm apart. At this spacing, the same holes work for shelf pins, as well as mounting the hinges for the doors, which is a real plus if you use MDF or melamine, because the plates with the big system screws really bite good compared to wood-screws.
   But the real benefit is that with the plunge router, I can drill 1.5 holes per second. Yes that is 90 holes per minute, and they are all the same depth, and those little carbide brad-point drills never leave a fuzzy hole. The base cabinet template is 24" x 35 1/4", with the toe-kick notch cut out of the front, to use as a marking template for the part since you are going to have it on there anyway, and for an alternate index point if it is to be an internal side / bulkhead, it would be shorter. However the holes in it are placed in the correct location to mount the hinge plates, and all of the drawer slides for the most common configurations that I normally use. It is really neat to be able to cut a blank side, and spring-clamp this template to it, then quickly pop a few holes in it, take the template away then screw the slides and hinge plates on it while it is still laying on the bench-top without even taking my tape off of my belt, regardless of whether it is a door with drawer, or a 3 or 4 drawer stack.
   I just hate having to reach back into cabinets to screw hardware on. Have there been any articles of this in either FHB, or FWW? Maybe I should do an article on this if someone else hasn't done it recently. But what I really should do is a video, if I could figure out the editing part.Please give me feedback if you are interested,,,,, anybody. K

6. 
   alanplanesaw | Jun 30, 2006 04:15am | #7

   Webby,

   Looks like you have a variety of answers.  I started to buy a jig, as I like things to be properly spaced.  A fellow woodworker showed me one he made from plywood.  The price difference was too hard to ignore.

   So, I made my own jig using UHMW Sheet, 1/4" Thick   #124226 from Woodcraft.  And I used a plunge router.  I bolted a fence along the length of the jig so I always had the same distance from the edge of the upright to the holes.

   If you use pegboard or plywood, the wood is gonna' chip around the holes.  Using the UHMW, there is no chipping.  And the plunge router glides over it very easily.  I beveled the sides of the holes so the router bushing would slide right in.

   Took a while to make the jig, but I'll have it for life.

   Alan - planesaw

7. 
   Dave45 | Jun 30, 2006 04:12pm | #9

   I tried that a couple of years ago and couldn't make it work - even with a very careful layout and using my drill press.  Flipping the jig doubles any errors and that can get ugly in a hurry.

   I get good results using tempered pegboard and a 1/4" drill with a depth stop.  I'm ultra careful laying out the first hole and clamping the pegboard to the carcass.  After that, I can move it and use two 1/4" dowels to maintain my registration and spacing.

   The only problems I've encountered have been when I tried to get too many holes out of a piece of pegboard - lol.

   The latest Rockler catalog has a nice looking jig for drilling these holes and I'm thinking of buying one.