Menu
What's new

Dovetail jig setup

J

Jay Lock

Member
Messages
1,037
Hi everyone


I am trying to figure out what I'm doing wrong using my PC dovetail jig, I can't get the tops of the drawer to line up.

What guidance can you give me about using the right and left hand side of the jig? On page 110 of Carol Reed's Router Joinery Workshop she mentions "with the two "right" corners routed, slide the spacer to the right and clamp the appropriate side piece to the front of the jig, positioning it on the left side of the jig and aligned with the left fence.

I am totally befuddled!

Any help will be appreciated, I am going through practice scrap at a fast rate! The joints are tight but I obviously am missing something in the marking/ setup process.

Are one set of opposite corners of the drawer considered the "right" side and the others the "left"? I noticed that I was a bit off in my centering, the half tails aren't exactly the same size. As I turn the drawer around in my hands, the skinny tail is at the top of one corner, down at the bottom of the next, up at the top in the next corner and down in the last corner.

I am using a PC 4210 jig with the miniature dovetail template.

Thanks for the help

Thanks in advance for your help!
 
Not sure Jay. I have the 4212

I do all my work on the left side of the jig. No alignment issues
 
I do not have the PC but have an Akeda but I think that this will apply to you also. If the cuts are not going to be perfectly symmetrical, which it sounds like that yours are not, I have to have a duplicate setup on both the left and right sides of the jig. Then for forming the tail pieces I cut one end on the left and change it end for end, keeping the same side toward me, and cut the second end on the right side of the jig. This keeps the slim pieces on one side of the board and thick pieces on the other side of the board. Then I do the same thing for the pin pieces.

It really helps me to lay out the pieces as they are going to be assembled and marking the insides and outsides and what piece that they are so that I can keep track. If it is not going to be symmetrical I also mark which side of the board will have the thin piece cut and which will have the thick piece cut.

If they are going to be completely symmetrical and centered it will not make any difference which end of the jig that you use. You can cut all parts on the same end.

This was so difficult to put into words that I do not know if it will make any sense to you but I tried.

How is your pattern routeing going?

Allen
 
Last edited:
I believe the 4210 is the same as the 4212 just comes with different templates.

I may be wrong, but I believe the offset that comes with the jig is not going to work with the miniature template. You may have to make a spacer to get them to line up correctly as I believe the offset that comes with it is for 1/2 inch dovetails.

As for the skinny up and down, to me that is normal. Amounts to not having either your board the perfect dimensions for the template or not evenly spaced. Personally, I stick to just the left side of the template (which you are doing I suspect), but going to the right side would make the "skinny" one stay on the bottom. Just be sure to mark all your boards up front.
 
Thanks for the advice guys.

Travis, the miniature dovetail template came with a set of offsets (end guides?) to substitute for the ones that came with the jig.

I swapped them out, but I can't center the piece of wood with the last slot on either end. So, I moved the piece in to center it, and then slid the offset up to meet the wood. Did this on both ends.

Allen, I have an approach avoidance woodworking technique, if something is causing a problem, I try for awhile and then let it rest while I do something else. So, the pattern routing was set aside for the dovetail jig work. While I was waiting for input from you guys I started installing knife hinges on a cabinet that I"m building for LOML. The drawers are going to go inside the cabinet so I'll have to get back to them eventually. Right now I'm sanding -- Love the ROTEX

Jay
 
Jay,
I am currently dealing with exactly the same problem where the drawer front/back board does not line up with the drawer side. :huh: :dunno:
Page 10 of the manual tells you to center the workpiece between the farthest finger to the left and the nearest finger to the left of the template (this is eyeballing it). I even go as far as using a caliper to make sure there is an equal distance between the fingers. I called Porter Cable and described the problem, but they were not able to help. Thinking about it, once the tails board is centered and the left offset guide is set and tightened, it should not matter if it's not perfectly centered. If it's off center by, say 1/64th, then when the pins board is registered against the offset guide and routed, it also should be off center by the same amount and the boards should line up.
I think the most important thing is to mark the inside and the outside of the boards to make sure that you mount them in the jig correctly.

You can see in this picture how my boards do not line up:

 
Henry

thanks for that! going to have to look through it again but lots of great information there,

Alex, you're having the same problem I am, except that I am using the minature template.

I got a reprieve, LOML, said that she doesn't want drawers inside the cabinet, just shelves, so the project can continue without me pulling out my hair over the drawers, but that doesn't mean I don't have to figure this out!

Jay
 
I called Porter Cable yesterday and described the problem to someone who knew a thing or two about the jig. He said that I was cutting through DT by the book. At one point he thought that my drawer front and side were different widths. In this case only one edge would be misaligned, whereas in my case both edges are shifted to one side. I went ahead and remeasured both pieces anyway and they are both the same width. At this point we had exhausted all the possibilities. Then I asked him if it's possible that the template itself is off; he said that he has never seen such thing, but it's possible. When the template is flipped 180° to cut the pins, the pins fingers have to be in perfect relative alignment to the tails fingers. Long story short, PC is sending me a new template and I hope it solves my problem since I am ready to throw the jig against the wall.
 
Alex and Jay,

The offset or stop controls the issues you are having. Tweak the setup of the offset and you'll be good to go. It can be repositioned at slight angles changing the relationship of horizontal to verticle offset.

It would be nice if there was a positive way to lock down the front of the offset (like a screw, PC!). I had the same problem on the left offset. After 10 or so test cuts and tweaks of the offset it started working just fine. I'm not sure just what I did to get it right but it works and I don't want to move it now!! :)

The right side worked fine on my first attempt.

The discussion of best drawer sizes in the woodsmith (see above) video was great. Since the templates have only one spacing, the drawers have to be built to certain sizes for best results.
 
Last edited:
Jay,

Me too! :)

I really like the idea of the stablizer for the vertical pieces. I think that is where it's most possible to make errors setting the wood into the jig. Two contact points should make that a lot more accurate.

Nothing wrong w/ having a place to store all the parts, either!

John...
 
John Hemenway said:
Alex and Jay,
The offset or stop controls the issues you are having. Tweak the setup of the offset and you'll be good to go. It can be repositioned at slight angles changing the relationship of horizontal to verticle offset...
Click to expand...
John,
I was under the impression that since the offset guide is "L" shaped, all you have to do is make sure that it's flat on the top of the jig when you tighten the screw and it will self-align. Would have been nice if they made the offset guide longer.

Since we are on the subject, the manual does not mention anything (unless I am blind) about the left offset guide and when/how to use it. :huh:
 
Alex Berkovsky said:
John,
I was under the impression that since the offset guide is "L" shaped, all you have to do is make sure that it's flat on the top of the jig when you tighten the screw and it will self-align. Would have been nice if they made the offset guide longer.

Since we are on the subject, the manual does not mention anything (unless I am blind) about the left offset guide and when/how to use it. :huh:
Click to expand...

Not having the manual in front of me, I'm working from memory :doh: --
The offset is flat but it does have a small amount of play in it and can be rotated about the screw. If there was another screw in the vertical part of the 'L' it would be more secure. It's not a big deal, just something you need to be careful with in setup.

Since any error here will show up as a mis-aligned joint, this is where I'd go if the side was above or below the front/back.

As to the manual and left offset guide, it's used just like the right side, except on the left side ;) . Perhaps PC was trying to save a tree and being terse? :dunno:
 
I finally solved the problem. :) I am using 2 routers (one for each bit) to cut the through dovetails. The straight bit was not centered in the bushing and was causing the front and side of the drawer stock to be offset by the amount that the bit was off center.
 
Alex,
Thanks for the info. I'm rearragning my shop ( building cabinets, workbench ) then I hope to get into the DT jig. THanks foryour posting, it will be a big help... Let us see some when you get'em goiing... Thanks, Ken
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top