Dovetails

I started on the drawers for my shop cabinets the other day, and have completed my first dovetail drawer. I looked at numerous jigs, and even thought about doing them by hand. Eventually, I stumbled across a jig at home depot. I picked it up to try out, and if I feel like I need a more expensive jig, atleast I can learn on the cheaper one. The "Dovetailer" is made by General, and could not be much more simple. It is an all in one jig, capable of doing 1/2" half blind or full through dovetails. It is a good beginner jig, from what I have seen, and the $40.00 price tag was not too bad either.

Overall, I am happy with the jig. The only thing that I am not crazy about, is the rounded corners. This is the first jig that I have used, so I don't know if that is standard, but I did not think it was. Actually, if you do half blinds you do not even see the rounded corners though.

Here is the jig in use on my bench, (my bench top clamp system actually came in handy). This jig can be used with a handheld router, or a router table. I would watch the video on youtube, the included instructions are not real clear.

 

I slotted the drawer to have 1/2" plywood bottoms, and it tuned out pretty good.

Here is the first one complete and unfinished.