Hand Cut Dovetails

[Robert Rozaieski]

I personally am of the opinion that too much is made of cutting dovetails. Mortise and tenon joinery is much more exacting and much more difficult, IMHO.

I couldn't agree more. We tend to make way too big of a deal over dovetails.

Here's my advise, for hand sawing any joint, not just dovetails. Learn to saw to a line. This is the single most important skill you can learn for improving your hand sawn joinery.

To get better at sawing any type of joinery, be it mortise & tenon, bridle, half lap or dovetails, you need to learn to saw accurately. Want to learn to saw accurately? Put down the dovetail and/or tenon saw and pick up a long rip saw. Take a 4' piece of 1 x 12 pine from the BORG and using a marking gauge, mark a line parallel to and about 1/2" to 3/4" from the edge. Saw the strip off with the rip saw, concentrating on tracking the line and keeping the cut plumb. When you have finished, plane the edge straight, mark another line and do it again. Keep doing this until you have a bunch of small strips (cross cut them and use them as stickers for your lumber pile). By the time you've sawn the entire board into 1/2" wide strips, you will have vastly improved your ability to saw to the line.

I'm convinced that the reason most folks have so much apprehension and/or difficulty hand sawing joinery is their lack of practice sawing. Most people use tablesaws and bandsaws for the "rough" work and do the joinery by hand. I think those of us who do at least some "rough" sawing by hand have an advantage when it comes to accurately sawing joinery because we simply do more hand sawing and have more practice sawing to a line.

I'm not saying anyone should go sell their table saw or band saw for a nest of hand saws . I certainly don't enjoy ripping tons of oak or maple by hand. However, woods like pine and poplar, which are popular secondary woods for things like case backs, drawer sides and drawer backs, are very easy to rip. So on your next project, try hand sawing the secondary woods for parts to size instead of using the table saw. It will give you practice sawing to a line for sawing your joinery but won't be an exhausting undertaking like hand sawing the primary wood can be. Plus, your cuts will be cleaned up with a plane so if they're not perfect from the saw it's ok.

I gaurantee if you practice hand sawing more often, such as hand sawing these secondary woods, your joinery will improve as a result.

[Pam Niedermayer]

Graham,
I agree there is no magic potion hidden in the pits of a Cosman DVD but for someone starting out that has never done it before this is a great place to start (even Chris's article states this is the place to go). I made several attempts at cutting them (without success) before I bought the DVDs. I introduced several bad habits and frankly just bad technique without this instruction. After watching them and with some practice with his step by step methods I am able to churn out some pretty respectable dovetails. I know this is a pretty religious topic and there are several approaches that will get you to the same end results, but IMO Rob's is the best method to TEACH someone how to do it.

I bought and watched Cosmo's Drawer dvd's and found the dovetail method way too fiddly. As it happens, I have all the tools he calls for, but it's unlikely someone starting out would have them. So, yes, his method works; but no, I couldn't recommend that a beginner do them his way.

Pam

[Dan Barr]

I agree with that. the ability to handsaw can set you up for an almost finished joint or a joint that still needs lots of work.

If youre really good with the saw, you can make dovetails that don't need any paring. They are not going to be "machine quality" or perfectly geometrical. But, you can make solid joints with just a couple of saws and chisels without tediously and meticulously wasting your time.

watch this guy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZ8fSSKn0Ls

He's pretty quick. There is another guy who whips out a set in less time than this. I tried to find the video clip but could not.

Cheers,

dan

[Pam Niedermayer]

Great video, Dan, only thing I'd add to it is that it's a good idea to mark the waste area with an "X" or something similar before starting to cut.

Pam

[Rick Erickson]

I bought and watched Cosmo's Drawer dvd's and found the dovetail method way too fiddly. As it happens, I have all the tools he calls for, but it's unlikely someone starting out would have them. So, yes, his method works; but no, I couldn't recommend that a beginner do them his way.

Pam

Interesting Pam. I was a beginner and found his method fullproof. He has tought thousands of people (most of them beginners) with this method. I've attended several of his classes and am amazed at what beginners produce after just a few hours of instruction. To each his/her own I guess.

[Pam Niedermayer]

Well, yeah, Rick, if you're attending a dovetail class everything I said about beginners is bogus. In the class beginners have access to the tools and personal instruction. I was talking about beginners out here in the hinterlands trying to learn on their own.

Pam

[Rick Erickson]

Well, yeah, Rick, if you're attending a dovetail class everything I said about beginners is bogus. In the class beginners have access to the tools and personal instruction. I was talking about beginners out here in the hinterlands trying to learn on their own.

Pam

That is how I learned Pam - out in the hinterlands on my own. I was cranking out some very nice dovetails long before I took the class. I bought the tools (or versions of) recommended on Rob's DVDs and went to town. I would say 4 or 5 practice boards into it I was cranking out some nice joints. I'm not here to derail this thread. The gentleman was looking for suggestions and I provided one. Others seem to agree with this recommendation. However, one size certainly doesn't fit all.

[Pam Niedermayer]

....Others seem to agree with this recommendation. However, one size certainly doesn't fit all.

Oh, right, how silly of me to forget.

[Gil Knowles]

Many thanks to all who replied a lot of good advice.
Dan the video was great, the fellow really knows what he is doing. I was very impressed.

Gil

[Gil Knowles]

Many thanks for all the quick replies.
I am going to order the micro adjust gauge.

Gil