Dowel Plate Woes

[Steve Thomas]

Don't over think it guys

Here is a video of me making a "dowel"


I made my plate from scrap steel, it's not quite 6mm thick and is covered in paint.
I drilled an array of holes using every drill bit i had at the time 6mm through 13mm
I have used it for 5 years now and never "sharpened it" or tapered the holes. both of which I'm sure would improve it's use and finish of the end product but for pinning joints, round is round.
But this makes good dowels.

If I'm making whole bunch i put a bucket under the bench and use the next one to push the first one through. it's pretty efficient. When i made 12 large entrance doors last year i made a dowel jig for the router and that is worth the effort too.

[Steve Branam]

Wow, Steve, now I have chisel envy! That is one nice hunk of metal!

[Steve Thomas]

yeah i love it. nothing like a little mass to help split timber.
It's an old old Witherby, new to me about two years ago.

[Jessica Pierce-LaRose]

Was searching for an article I remembered reading in an old FWW from the last year or two, and stumbled across an article where the other makes dowel rod by running it through a homemade dowel plate, but rather than hammering, he chucks it in a power drill and runs the drill as he presses it through. I've no experience with dowel plates (yet . . . ) anyone have comments on that method? I believe the article (you'd think I could remember something for more than an hour or two) he actually started with store-bought dowels that were a bit oversized...

[Jerome Hanby]

There is a jig in one of Hylton's books (router magic I think) that uses a technique like that. Think it's a cove bit in the router, table mounted router with the jig on top so that the bit protrudes through the edge of a hole, and the stock is chucked into a drill and pushed through the hole while the drill is spinning it and the router is running.

Here is a picture...

infeedside.jpg

Was searching for an article I remembered reading in an old FWW from the last year or two, and stumbled across an article where the other makes dowel rod by running it through a homemade dowel plate, but rather than hammering, he chucks it in a power drill and runs the drill as he presses it through. I've no experience with dowel plates (yet . . . ) anyone have comments on that method? I believe the article (you'd think I could remember something for more than an hour or two) he actually started with store-bought dowels that were a bit oversized...

[Ron Kellison]

Lee Valley sell a dowel maker but it might be overkill for your needs. http://www.leevalley.com/en/wood/pag...at=1,180,42288

Regards,

Ron

[Steve Branam]

You may be thinking of this online article and discussion: http://www.finewoodworking.com/item/...our-own-dowels. Hey, I know one of those people!

[Dean Chapel]

One thing I haven't seen mentioned is that the dowel does not have to be hammered through the jig, but instead an be gripped in a drill and spun through the jig. Less violent and you can use less than perfectly straight material. The dowel will be HOT when it comes out. Lay on a flat table and roll it and it will straighten up nicely if crooked.

[Jessica Pierce-LaRose]

One thing I haven't seen mentioned is that the dowel does not have to be hammered through the jig, but instead an be gripped in a drill and spun through the jig. Less violent and you can use less than perfectly straight material. The dowel will be HOT when it comes out. Lay on a flat table and roll it and it will straighten up nicely if crooked.

Yeah, I was just asking about that about four posts up. I saw it mentioned in an issue of FWW. You've had good luck with it? I'll have to give it a try.

[David Keller NC]

There is a jig in one of Hylton's books (router magic I think) that uses a technique like that. Think it's a cove bit in the router, table mounted router with the jig on top so that the bit protrudes through the edge of a hole, and the stock is chucked into a drill and pushed through the hole while the drill is spinning it and the router is running.

What an absurdly ridiculous way of insisting on using power tools for everything. Sort of like absolutely insisting on spending several hours sanding a table surface because handplanes are so "horse and buggy".

[harry strasil]

I have seen one person chuck a length of dowel in a power hand drill and force it thru what could be called a dowel plate to compress it some to fit in a hole and then it will expand after insertion. FWIW

Unless of course you have an old Stanley Rotary Dowel plate around.



and for short dowels, one of the tenoners.

[Jerome Hanby]

What an absurdly ridiculous way of insisting on using power tools for everything. Sort of like absolutely insisting on spending several hours sanding a table surface because handplanes are so "horse and buggy".

I don't think it's that absurd. From what I've read of other folks use of dowel plates, you don't always get a nice smooth surface and to get best results you need to split out the stock you feed through and there is a definite limit on the length of stock you can hammer through it. The router jig turns out nice smooth stock and the length is not really limited. You probably would get "better" dowels if you split out the stock to feed through it, but you would get pretty decent dowels just ripping down stock on the table saw. I know this is the hand tools forum, but the original poster did start out talking about problems so alternate solution suggestions seem appropriate.