wonderful - thank you so much for this ... like you say these "5 minute dovetail" videos teach nothing - your video here should be one of the most viewed in the woodworking community, for people like me who love to learn FOR FREE from vastly knowlegeable people like you ... thanks again
+duncan wallace Thanks Duncan. One of the aims of my videos is to address all the things that can go wrong, mainly because I been there and done that myself!
I had to wait to watch the video but just eighteen minutes in I find the way you set the workpiece in the vice so as to be sawing straight down a great tip. It's the way most of us are use to sawing and puts to use the muscle memory we have already developed.
Thank you Christopher this is just what I needed. Watching some of these guys zip through the process and then seeing what I can manage to do was destroying my confidence. It's the equivalent of taking driving lessons from a gran prix racer, it is thrilling to watch but brother a novice shouldn't attempt it.
Good stuff Christopher. I agree with your point about speed - that is secondary and comes with practice. I've just finished an oak larder unit with 4 big drawers - 80 pins in total. First joints were painfully slow, but by the end I was rattling along and achieving fairly decent results. I don't want to see another dovetail now for a while though!
Chris, I just ran across your UA-cam Channel and viewed you Introduction to Slow Dovetailing video. Excellent instruction, Chris. You detail every aspect of cutting dovetails by hand. I have seen many, many videos on handcut dovetails, but I have to say your video is the very best I've seen for both instruction and technique. Thanks for posting, Chris.
+Fine Woodworking of South Carolina Hi I thought I had replied to your comment earlier but don't see it. Thanks for the positive comment, I glad you liked it.
Excellent video, thanks for uploading! As a beginner, this level of detailed instruction is invaluable. What wood are you using in the demonstration? I've been practicing in cheap pine as I don't want to ruin a beautiful and expensive piece of hardwood but I find the inside of the pins (the horizontal piece if the board is vertical in the clamp if that makes sense) if much rougher than yours. The fibers are all over the place. Is that just the wood I'm working with or am I doing something wrong?
+Brian18741 Hi Brian I hope you get this, I thought I had replied but can't see it. |I think I was using beech. The problem with using pine is the big difference in hardness in the annual rings. The soft biuts tend to compress under the hard bits so the cut get rough. Beech is one of the cheaper hardwoods and is fairly uniform in grain so good to practice on, as is poplar if you can get it. The other cause of an uneven surface is trying to cut just using arm strength, you tend to wobble the chisel around to get it to cut. Better to tuck you elbow into you hip and move your body to achieve the cut, it comes with practice!
I'm not sure there is a problem with only having a cutting gauge. Certainly it's the best for marking dovetails as it leaves a very precise mark. Not sure what it would be like when marking with the grain, you may find the mark is a bit thin and difficult to spot. But then that is the case with the wheel marking gauges and many people favour them.
Christopher Tribe Thank you for your answer. I imagine with the grain there may be tendency to throw me off my mark towards the direction of the grain. I'm going to try it out!
wonderful - thank you so much for this ... like you say these "5 minute dovetail" videos teach nothing - your video here should be one of the most viewed in the woodworking community, for people like me who love to learn FOR FREE from vastly knowlegeable people like you ... thanks again
+duncan wallace Thanks Duncan. One of the aims of my videos is to address all the things that can go wrong, mainly because I been there and done that myself!
I had to wait to watch the video but just eighteen minutes in I find the way you set the workpiece in the vice so as to be sawing straight down a great tip. It's the way most of us are use to sawing and puts to use the muscle memory we have already developed.
+mwilson70201 Hi I'm glad it was useful.
Thank you Christopher this is just what I needed. Watching some of these guys zip through the process and then seeing what I can manage to do was destroying my confidence. It's the equivalent of taking driving lessons from a gran prix racer, it is thrilling to watch but brother a novice shouldn't attempt it.
Good stuff Christopher. I agree with your point about speed - that is secondary and comes with practice. I've just finished an oak larder unit with 4 big drawers - 80 pins in total. First joints were painfully slow, but by the end I was rattling along and achieving fairly decent results. I don't want to see another dovetail now for a while though!
Chris, I just ran across your UA-cam Channel and viewed you Introduction to Slow Dovetailing video. Excellent instruction, Chris. You detail every aspect of cutting dovetails by hand. I have seen many, many videos on handcut dovetails, but I have to say your video is the very best I've seen for both instruction and technique. Thanks for posting, Chris.
+Fine Woodworking of South Carolina Hi I thought I had replied to your comment earlier but don't see it. Thanks for the positive comment, I glad you liked it.
Best guide yet!
The video looks to be being really really well received. Great work..
+World Of Woodcraft Thanks
Very helpful! Thank you for taking the time to do this.
I like your dove tail marking jig - very clever :)
Thanks for the kind words Chris.
Thanks Chris for a very good video.
Very informative video, thanks Chris
Nicely done - very informative Thanks!
Excellent video, thanks for uploading! As a beginner, this level of detailed instruction is invaluable. What wood are you using in the demonstration? I've been practicing in cheap pine as I don't want to ruin a beautiful and expensive piece of hardwood but I find the inside of the pins (the horizontal piece if the board is vertical in the clamp if that makes sense) if much rougher than yours. The fibers are all over the place. Is that just the wood I'm working with or am I doing something wrong?
+Brian18741 Hi Brian I hope you get this, I thought I had replied but can't see it. |I think I was using beech. The problem with using pine is the big difference in hardness in the annual rings. The soft biuts tend to compress under the hard bits so the cut get rough. Beech is one of the cheaper hardwoods and is fairly uniform in grain so good to practice on, as is poplar if you can get it. The other cause of an uneven surface is trying to cut just using arm strength, you tend to wobble the chisel around to get it to cut. Better to tuck you elbow into you hip and move your body to achieve the cut, it comes with practice!
Thank you for this great video.
Thank you. Now to practice.
If I only got a cutting gauge, what could be the case where it's going to be a problem?
I'm not sure there is a problem with only having a cutting gauge. Certainly it's the best for marking dovetails as it leaves a very precise mark. Not sure what it would be like when marking with the grain, you may find the mark is a bit thin and difficult to spot. But then that is the case with the wheel marking gauges and many people favour them.
Christopher Tribe
Thank you for your answer. I imagine with the grain there may be tendency to throw me off my mark towards the direction of the grain. I'm going to try it out!
excellent video! Very informative
+HerringBone Glad you liked it.