Hand cut dovetails: A shopping list for newbies

[Josh Saul]

I really want to begin to incorporate some dovetail joinery into my woodworking bag of tricks. For the longest time I thought the best way for me to do this was to throw down $$$ for a Leigh jig. But after doing a lot of reading here and elsewhere, I'm no longer convinced that going the jig route is any easier, just different. Learning to do it by hand seems more appealing now.

What I need though is a definitive list of tools I need to get started. Saws, chisels, marking gauges - please be specific. Even include workbench setup in this. As it stands now, my workbench is more of a plywood-topped assembly table. What kind of surface and vice do I need? Thanks so much. I'm excited to start my trip down the hand tool rabbit hole.

[mike holden]

Asking for specific tools is problematic, everyone has their favorite brand.
For dovetails you need:
A way to hold the board vertically, I started with a machinist's vice but a wood vise is better
A way to mark the boards, a marking gage and a marking knife. Again, they all work.
A way to saw to the line, pick a small saw, ANY small saw. I have seen demonstrations where the dovetails were cut with a hacksaw, if it cuts wood in a straight line it will work
A way to remove waste, bevel edge chisels are sufficient, narrow enough to fit inside the cavities YOU layout. Some will add a coping saw to minimize chopping out of waste - your choice, chisel works fine
That is all you need.
Important thing is laying out the joint, then cutting to the line.
Of course that is all any joint is, layout, then cut to the line

Good luck, and let us know how things work out.
Like most, your first ones will be gappy, overcut, and not be ready for prime time, but they will be YOURS and improvement will come quickly

Best,
Mike

[Jim Koepke]

Howdy Josh,

The basic way to start dovetailing is to do just that, start. To begin you will need a saw and a chisel. A fancy bench isn't required. My first dovetails were made on a Black & Decker folding Workmate 300, iirc.

To step up the game a bit a shooting board will help to get square ends on your wood. Very helpful when fitting dovetails.

A marking gauge is also handy to mark your baselines.

Chopping out the waste with a chisel is good to start. Over time you may want a fret or coping saw to remove the waste.

As for what size chisels, you need ones that will fit between your tails and pins to pare away the waste. A 1/4" pin socket can't be cut with a 1/2" chisel.

jtk

[Mike Henderson]

You can do dovetails with very little equipment but certain things make it easier. I'll give you my list.

1. A marking knife. A regular pocket knife will do but I use two (a left hand and a right hand) Japanese marking knives. I like those because they are thin (to get into small areas) and are single bevel, which makes accurate marking easier.

2. A marking gauge - two are better. Technically, you don't need a marking gauge if you can hold one piece of wood against another accurately and scribe a line. A marking gauge make life easier. You can go with a beam marking gauge or a wheel marking gauge. I like the wheel marking gauges - Lee Valley, Kevin Drake and Taylor Tools make good ones at different price points.

3. A way to mark the dovetails. You can just eyeball them, or use a sliding bevel gauge or get a dovetail saddle marker. You can make a dovetail marker yourself or buy one. I've made them out of wood and brass.

4. A saw. A traditional dovetail saw is one way but for years I use a small dozuki saw to cut dovetails. I now use a western saw. Lee Valley makes a good one as does Lie Nielsen.

5. A set of dividers for laying out the dovetails. You'll find lots of uses for dividers in layout of all types.

6. A small square. I like the 4" double square. iGauging makes a good one as does PEC. Search eBay for PEC blem.

7. Chisels. Sharp.

8. A mallet. I use a round carver's mallet.

9. Pencil

10. A clamp or something to hold the wood while you chisel on it.

I'm probably forgetting something but that's all I can think of now. I have tutorials on my web site on how to do hand cut dovetails.

Mike

[lowell holmes]

You will need a bench with a woodworking vise. If that is out of the question, rig up a vise to hold the wood between wooden jaws.

A dove tail saw and a dovetail marker will be needed.
A paring chisel along with sharpening and honing stone will be needed.
A small square and marking knife will be needed.

For what it's worth, I have an old Leigh jig that has not been used in 10 years. I used it a lot until I went to a Paul Sellers class.

[Prashun Patel]

I cannot overstate the importance or the subtle nuance in this:

you need to be able to mark accurately, and saw straight.

You'll improve your results marginally with good tools (saw, chisel, marking knife, coping saw, vise). But there's no shortcutting practice.

Joinery cutting and fitting is like playing an instrument. You need to practice.

[David Eisenhauer]

Additional overstatement or subtle nuance: As already said above, cutting to the line (as close as possible to but not on the line) is a very important step. To do this, you need to securely hold the wood in a position such that you can see the line without difficulty. A wide enough vise with smooth jaw faces, possibly lined with leather or cork for a secure non-slip grip and presenting the wood at a height such that you can comfortably see and saw with an unhindered arm motion to that line. Good natural lighting and/or a decent light source coming from the correct angle is of great assistance in making that all-important cut. There are two cuts that should be as accurate as possible - the horizontal cut across the thickness of the end of the board, plus the vertical angled rip cut to form the sides of the dovetail. Positioning and then securely holding the board where you can see and saw to both lines is a big part of a successful cut, especially when starting out. If your bench is of a typical height from the floor, it may be too low to hold the board up to a better height for sawing. I elevate my boards with a portable-type vise (home made Moxon) that attaches to the top of my bench to hold the boards or some folks sit while doing the work. Crouching does not work for my older knees and that lamp positioned just so helps my older eyes.

[steven c newman]

When sawing, whether tails or pins first ( doesn't really matter which) Try to "split the lines" when you saw. make the first part as perfect as you can, as it will be the pattern for the second half of the joint. Mark those lines using that pattern...saw on the waste side, leaving the lines. Much easier to pare a little bit, than to try and add a sliver. Oh, and BTW, always mark which is the waste side of the cuts. A big old "X" will do.....since you will be removing that wood from the joint, it can be neon green, doesn't matter, as long as you can tell which is to be removed as waste.

Tools? As long as they as SHARP, and cut straight, it really doesn't matter what brand name is on the tool. This includes that pencil you use to do the layouts....sharper the better.
Fancy marking knife? I do have a hand-forged one, but have also been known to use a sharp, new blade in an ultility knife, and even a pocket knife when I can find the first two.

height of work? I will have the board up high, when I mark the lines. I then drop the height down to almost benchtop height....and sit down on my shop stool to saw, chop. and pare. hate standing bent over a bench, when I can just sit a spell..saves my knees.
Haven't found much use for a coping saw, can never get mine to cut straight enough to split the entire line. The only use I have found for them is as a rasp, doing a little cleanup.

[Josh Saul]

These replies are great, thanks everyone. What size chisels to I need to get started?

[Phil Mueller]

Chisel size really depends on the size of the space between the tails at the base line. That would be the smallest space that needs to be chopped out by a chisel. So if that space is 1/4" you need a 1/4" or smaller chisel.

[Dave Anderson NH]

Josh you have been given much great advise in this thread. I would only add the comment that when you are only doing a single drawer, single carcass, or a few at a time hand cutting is the way to go. For less than the price of a Leigh Jig you can get everything you need to dovetail by hand and I'm speaking of good quality tools. More importantly, there is move versatility in both design and execution when hand cutting. Add finally the learning curve, setups, and test pieces, and you have already used the time needed to do at least 2 hand cut joints. You will also need to relearn the Leigh Jig after not having used it for a while. Dovetail jigs are really only efficient and cost effective when doing multiples of the exact same thing.

[Pete Taran]

+++1 on learning to saw straight. It's harder than you think. When I was making the Independence Tool dovetail saws, I would go to trade shows to show off the saw and sell them to the masses. It is amazing how many people can't start a saw cut. The tendency is to put downward pressure on the blade and since the teeth in a good dovetail saw are filed rip, they would dig in like fishhooks and you wouldn't be cutting anything. I used to teach first timers to imagine that you are cutting in air with NO downward pressure and once you have a kerf started, you can apply a little pressure to move the cut along. Once you get a saw, whichever you decide, put a piece of stock end grain up and mark a bunch of lines on it and practice cutting to those lines.

Once you have your technique mastered, move on to angled lines that are similar to the slope of a dovetail. Once you've got it, it's a skill for life. I wouldn't start laying out tails on that prized bubinga before I have the skills down in pine or poplar first. It will be time well spent.

[lowell holmes]

[QUOTE=Pete Taran;2684585]+++1 on learning to saw straight. It's harder than you think. When I was making the Independence Tool dovetail saws, I would go to trade shows to show off the saw and sell them to the masses.

Pete, I thought I recognized your name. I was starting to get into hand woodworking when Lie Nielsen started making that saw, so I had heard your name.

I saw the Lie Nielsen dovetail saw at a wood working show and bought it on the spot. It took me a while, probably two years before I became proficient with it. It was the most beautiful saw I had ever seen. I still have and use it. It is as bright and shiny as was when I bought it.

I'm sure you hear this all of the time.

[William Fretwell]

You can buy a Japanese pull saw and make your life very easy, no 2 year learning curve! Two weekends perhaps, and they just get better (or you do!).
Practice with a good wood like Cherry, not pine. It will speed up your learning.

[steven c newman]

Meh....not really......