Originally Posted by
Brian Holcombe
I will make an objection to the over-cutting. The goal of joinery is to provide integrity.
The dovetail holds due to an interlocking fit between tails and pins, everyone knows this. The dovetail joint loses its ability to resist pulling apart if you severe the ties between socket and pin. The pins are now reliant upon their connection between the top of the pin and the socket, which in a pin is the thinnest part.
IMO, it needlessly weakens the joint, and increases its reliance upon the glue connection between the pin and tail.
We see surviving examples, what we don't see are examples that broke in use and were either replaced or discarded.