Page 1 of 3 123 LastLast
Results 1 to 15 of 41

Thread: My very first neander dovetail - go ahead and laugh, I can take it

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Oct 2009
    Location
    Ossining, NY USA
    Posts
    61
    Blog Entries
    2

    Angry My very first neander dovetail - go ahead and laugh, I can take it

    So I've finally started to practice making neander dovetails. Got myself twenty four feet of 1x4 poplar, a coping saw, dozuki, and a couple of Lee Valley marking gauges. My first attempt looks like hell and sure didn't take any three minutes like Frank Klaus demonstrates but it's mine and I'm happy with it.

    I'm cutting six inch pieces with the dozuki, squaring them up with a miter trimmer and using the Lee Valley gauges to mark things out. I can get two test dovetails out of each foot of poplar. If I do two a day, I should be doing a lot better by the end of a week or two.

    For your amusement -

    photo 1.jpgphoto 2.jpgphoto 3.jpgphoto 4.jpgphoto 5.jpg

    Ok, it's awful but it'll get better. Someday my dovetails will be good enough to go into Derek Cohen's burn pile!

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Aug 2013
    Location
    Enchanted land of beer, cheese & brats
    Posts
    1,314
    Look good for a first attempt. As with most things practice makes perfect. For what its worth half blind dovetails, while seeming to be more difficult, turn out looking much better - only need to look good on one side, not two.

    Check out this guy, John Bullar

    How to Make a Half-blind Dovetail Joint: http://youtu.be/HPQK_EGyXbY
    I got cash in my pocket. I got desire in my heart....

  3. #3
    Edward,

    Not laughing but smiling because we have all BTDT. I'm not a fan of Japanese saws but some like 'em. Do you have a plane? If so a shooting board should do a better job of squaring than a miter trimmer. Some of the gaps are from crud in the corners, pay close attention to making the base line true and smooth and keep on keeping on. You are on the right track, do several a day until you are happy with the results....shouldn't take too long if you will keep to a daily practice.

    ken

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Jul 2013
    Location
    Suwanee, GA
    Posts
    297
    Are you cutting tails first or pins first?

    Here's a little secret. All of our first set of dovetails look bad. You were smart enough to get them out of the way in your practice!
    Blood, sweat, and sawdust

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Jun 2009
    Location
    Spokane Valley, WA
    Posts
    225
    Kudos to you for just giving it a try, and especially for posting this to encourage those of us who haven't yet taken the first step. Thanks!

    Regards, Marty
    "Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity" - anon

  6. #6
    I know of no one who made fantastic dovetails the first time. Practice will get you where you want to be and it looks to me like you're on your way. Go slow, the speed will come along on its own later.
    Dave Anderson

    Chester, NH

  7. #7
    Quote Originally Posted by Edward Clarke View Post
    a coping saw, dozuki, and a couple of Lee Valley marking gauges.
    I'd say that if you didn't need to resort to a dovetail hammer, you're doing pretty good for a first attempt

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Jun 2008
    Location
    Charlotte, MI
    Posts
    1,523
    I'm thankful that I didn't have a digital camera when I cut my first dovetails. Kudos to you for your success. You got them together and might stay together over time. That's really all that matters. For the record, I agree with Dave Anderson... speed is very much a secondary consideration.... if you are enjoying yourself who the heck cares how long they take?
    Your endgrain is like your bellybutton. Yes, I know you have it. No, I don't want to see it.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Sep 2006
    Location
    Houston, TX
    Posts
    127
    I am also learning, the best advice is learn with hardwoods.

    I tried with poplar, but it is better with a hardwood. Get some soft maple, it is not expensive and it is hard enough.

    The saw will work better, you will have a better feel with the chisel as well.

    It will be harder, but the dovetails will look better. The hardwood will help prevent the saw and chisel to wander too much up to a point.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
    Location
    Longview WA
    Posts
    27,347
    Blog Entries
    1
    It is a sign of courage to show one's first dovetails in public.

    Mine were not that good the first time.

    For practicing I would cut the tails off and start over on the same pieces of wood. At one time my practice cuts were numbered to track progress.

    Tails first or pins first doesn't really matter. What matters is identifying errors and their causes.

    My biggest revelation was sawing to the line and not through the line. This coupled with remembering to saw on the waste side of lines marked from the first piece cut. If the top edge of a pin is marked with a knife against the side of a tail, the line is in material to be saved to make a tight joint. Same is true if the sides of the tails are marked with the pin board as a guide.

    After trying to use pull saws for a while my results were improved by going back to western saws.

    My attempts at using a coping or fret saw to remove waste have not been any faster than chopping out the waste with a chisel.

    My current projects using dovetails are not perfect, but they are much better than when my first attempts.

    jtk
    "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."
    - Sir Winston Churchill (1874-1965)

  11. #11
    "Ok, it's awful but it'll get better. Someday my dovetails will be good enough to go into Derek Cohen's burn pile!"

    Yup, same thing I aspire to!

    Keep on truckin', Brother. If it can get easier for me, it can get easier for anyone.

  12. #12
    Join Date
    May 2013
    Location
    Liberty, SC
    Posts
    613
    I will be making my first hand made dove tails soon and will let you know how they turn out. That's not really bad for a first time. I ask my football coach how to get better at the game; he said, Practice, practice, practice, that's how. You will get better. All the best.
    You never get the answer if you don't ask the question.

    Joe

  13. #13
    If you can find someone who is skilled in making hand cut dovetails and they will work with you, you'll probably pick up some good tips.

    Reminds me of the story of the guy in New York who was lost. He runs up to a drunken bum and says, "How do I get to Carnegie Hall?"
    The bum tries to focus his eyes, looks up at the guy and says, "Practice, man, Practice!"

    Mike
    Go into the world and do well. But more importantly, go into the world and do good.

  14. #14
    Join Date
    Aug 2010
    Location
    USA
    Posts
    5,582
    All those joints need a just a bit of cleanup and they will be perfect.

  15. #15
    Join Date
    Aug 2013
    Location
    Princeton, NJ
    Posts
    7,254
    Blog Entries
    7
    IMO; Take the joint back apart (it does not appear to be glued).

    Take a perfectly square board clamp it up along the baseline and pare everything that is over the baseline. Do this from the outside edge in, then reassemble the joint.
    Bumbling forward into the unknown.

Tags for this Thread

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •