Table Saw Dovetail Jig - Woodsmith Woodworking Seminars

est-built jigs & fixturestable sawDovetailJig1!/21!/2CROSS BAR(2!/2" x 23" - 1!/2" Ply.)BSECOND:DRAW STRAIGHTREFERENCE LINE ON BASEFROM PIVOT POINTTO OPPOSITEFIRST:EDGELOCATE PIVOTPOINT#8 x 1!/2" FhWOODSCREW1!/2Cutting through dovetails on thetable saw might seem a little out ofthe ordinary. But with this jig, youcan get perfect-fitting joints everytime without a lot of effort. Thearticle starting on page 40 walksyou through the process.The Jig. As you can see, the jig ismade of 3 ⁄ 4 " plywood. Since you’llbe cutting through the base of the6!/48#8 x 1" FhWOODSCREWFRONTEDGE1jig, a crossbar at the fronthelps keep it togetherand stable.To cut both the tails and theangled pins of the dovetail joint,the fence can be indexed. It pivotsat one end and locks in place atthe other to set the proper angle.The face of the fence has a T-trackBASE(16#/4" x 26" - #/4" Ply.)C LARUNNER(#/8" x #/4" - 19#/4")CFIGUREREFERENCE LINEMUST BE SQUARETO SAW BLADETHIRD:LAY OUT ANANGLED PIN LINEON EACH SIDE OFREFERENCE LINETO MATCHDOVETAIL ANGLE(8:1 RATIO SHOWN)for holding a stop block and spacersfor cutting the pins and tails.Start with the Base. The jigisn’t very complicated to build. Itstarts with a plywood base (Figure1). After cutting it to size, I firstmarked out the centerline that willalign with the blade.The next thing to do is drawseveral lines you’ll use later toinstall and locate the fence. Figure1 shows you how to do this. Note:The lines shown are for cuttingdovetails with an 8:1 ratio.Cross Bar & Runner. Next, Iadded the cross bar at the front.And then to fit the jig to the saw,you can add the runner. I useda strip of phenolic I had lyingaround, but a hardwood strip ormanufactured miter bar wouldwork just as well.To locate the runner, position thejig so the blade is aligned with thecenterline of the base. Then markthe location of the miter slot toattach a runner. Be sure to keep thebase square to the saw blade.46 ShopNotes No. 1086!/41