Favorite tool for cleaning out tight dovetails?

[Jim Koepke]

…

Would a 3/8ish Fishtail chisel work well for the work a 1/8 Bevel Edge Chisel is supposed to do?

Remember the chisel has to be smaller than the space between the tails to be of any use.

Realized this when my first skew chisels were made from 1/2" chisels.

It might be easier to find an inexpensive 1/4" chisel at a junk store or estate sale and grind your own.

jtk

[Derek Cohen]

A 3/8" chisel is a good size to shape into a fishtail for the corners of half-blind sockets. I have made several over the years. This one started out life as a spare 3/8" Veritas O1 ...



Below is the travel kit for demonstratig dovetailing at wood shows. In addition to the marking tools and fishtail chisel, there is a kerfing tool (to extend the kerf depth), which helps with the removal of wasteas well.



None if these items are essential. It is possible to make decent dovetails without all. However, they do make the job easier, and I prefer to use them for this reason.

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Todd Zucker]

From the original post I’m not sure the OP was referring to half blinds. I tried through dovetails with Japanese chisels for a while, and the blunt edges (lands) messed up the sides of the dovetails. If the OP was referring to through dovetails, switching to chisels with sharper lands would resolve his issue. After getting new chisels, I ended up with cuts all over my fingers for a while until I got the hang of it, but the dovetails had crisp edges.

[Derek Cohen]

From the original post I’m not sure the OP was referring to half blinds. I tried through dovetails with Japanese chisels for a while, and the blunt edges (lands) messed up the sides of the dovetails. If the OP was referring to through dovetails, switching to chisels with sharper lands would resolve his issue. After getting new chisels, I ended up with cuts all over my fingers for a while until I got the hang of it, but the dovetails had crisp edges.

Mmm .. Todd, you did not get my memo about Japanese oire nomi and dovetailing (or any bench chisel with high sides for that matter) ...

https://www.inthewoodshop.com/ShopMa...ilChisels.html

(This was published in FWW magazine as well)


Summary ....

The square sides of the chisel are shaped to angle at 9.5 degrees, which is a 1:6 ratio.

The jig is a platform at 9.5 degrees …




Belt sanders grind without much heat, unlike bench grinders. Keep your fingers on the blade and dunk it in cool water if it heats up.


Simply place the side of the chisel against the belt, and pull it across the face. Keeping it moving will reduce the chance of heat focussing on one spot.







The side of the blade will grind from the upper side down, and this makes it quite easy to keep track of where the grinding is taking place. The process is far easier than one might expect, and a side of the blade may be completed in just several light runs across the belt. It is possible to vary pressure if one end is grinding faster than the other end.


Eventually, you will reach this stage …





For Japanese chisels, which are blackened, it is possible to return the colour using black oxide. This is one I sourced in Australia ..







The result, after just a few minutes, looks like it was never modified. I like that – it looks original.




Regards from Perth

Derek