Showerthought: I just hit 300 dovetails without a single major blowout

I've been cutting dovetails by hand for about 4 years now, mostly doing small boxes and drawers for clients around Richmond. Last night I counted my joint log and realized I've done exactly 312 dovetails since I switched to a 1:6 angle, and not one of them had a chip or crack on the pins. Has anyone else tracked a specific joint count and noticed a point where things just clicked?

2 comments

2 Comments

abby_martin287d ago

Man I've been cutting dovetails for about 6 years now and I still feel like I'm one bad chisel slip away from snapping a pin clean off. My joint count is probably around 150 and I've had at least 3 major blowouts where I had to glue in a patch and pretend it never happened. That 300 streak is serious wizardry if you ask me. I bet your chisel is sharper than my best kitchen knife and your marking gauge probably doesn't wobble like mine does. I'm honestly just hoping I hit 50 clean ones in a row before I retire.

spencer_wood7d ago

Ha! That patch and pretend routine is way more common than people admit. I think the real trick nobody talks about is having a sacrificial board clamped behind your work so when you do slip it just gouges that instead of your nice dovetail.