If you only occasionally need a shelf-pin drilling jig, but are serious about your furniture, you can not beat Bench Dog’s $20 system, sold by Rockler.

It will only drill 5 holes at a time (all I usually need for a shelf), but an indexing pin makes it easy to extend that row to the horizon. Of course, the indexing pins stows on board the jig (smart designers). Best of all the jig comes with Rockler’s self-centering drill.

There are a few other intelligent touches packed into this smart little system. Handy slots let you see your layout lines, aligning a front row of holes at the front of a cabinet with those at the back. And a strip of grabby rubber along the inside of the fence means you can hold the jig in place with one hand. Just to be safe, though, there are clamping zones at both ends of the top plate.

I’ve seen a small pile of similar jigs, but I think this is the one for most hobbyists. We’ll certainly be giving it a true test soon.