I am nearing the completion of our kitchen. I have the drawers and doors left to make as well as a cherry counter top for the peninsula. Ever since taking a dovetail class from Rob Cosman I have wanted to perfect my skills of making hand cut dovetails with some measure of speed. I decided to use the kitchen drawers (all 13 of them plus the sliding upper tray for silverware) as an opportunity to do just that. With two drawers and the silverware tray completed, I am beginning to realize vast improvements in my technique. I have modified some of Rob's excellent teaching to suit my own style. What's most exciting is having the confidence that each pin will consistently and predictably slide firmly into their tail slots . . . not too tight and not too loose. While I have made dovetail joints using my Leigh D4 jig and my Incra system, doing the dovetails by hand allows me to design the pins as narrow as I like. Plus, I am sure that after another four drawers or so I will be able to make the dovetail joints as fast as using the machines. The photo below shows the flatware drawer with the upper sliding tray partly completed. 13 drawers plus the flatware tray represents 112 ends of boards requiring tails or pins. I better get back to work!!
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