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Next, Beth loosens the fence locking knob and adjusts the fence so that it is 1 7/16"
from the front edge of the clamping bar. This is an important adjustment since it gives us
the starting point for making the dovetails. She checks that the distance is accurately
set at both ends of the bar.
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Using the rule is easy but since this measurement will always be the starting point and
because it is so important, I ripped a scrap of 1/4" plywood to 1 5/16". This
can be laid of the flat of the adjustment bar's ledge and then the fence can be adjusted
and clamped in one easy motion.
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Next,
Beth installs the through dovetail template. She wants the "Rockler" name up and
the "Tails" marking facing her.
These small T-slot nuts (inset) slide into the template (arrow).
Once installed, push the template back against the stop and tighten the knobs on both
sides.
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This plastic
"L" is attached with four screws and can be adjusted to serve as the left guide.
I have made the black piece light grey for visual purposes.
To adjust it, you have to gain access to one of the screws by removing the
front clamping assembly below the arrow — that is the blue bar with the round locking
nuts and the locking cam that Beth is holding in the picture below.
The instructions say to remove this and the template to loosen the four
screws that hold the edge guide. That is once clumsy maneuver. You need the template in
place to set the board correctly and removing the bar assembly is a lot of work for
resetting the guide — and there are two springs that love to get free. This is an
awkward procedure. Clearly, it would work well for the 1/2-blind dovetails which
this unit was initially designed for.
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That
brings us to how I suggest one sets the board for routing tails. It is pretty easy —
you center the workpiece on the template. You can use the left slot or any slot.
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Here
is a close-up of what Beth is seeing. You can center by eye or by feel. This works for the
tails only. Thankfully, you do the tails first.
When you have it centered, lock the vertical board with the cam lock. The
board is now set but there is no left guide.
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The
next step is to raise the upper clamp and move that 7 X 10" 1" thick board
forward until it is pushed against the vertical board and aligned with the left
edge of the vertical piece.
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Now, lock this in place using the upper cam lock. This board now becomes your left edge guide and a backer board for
reducing tearout when you are making the pins and the tails. This upper clamp stays
locked for all the pieces to be cut so the guide board you have positioned will not stray.
Let me make a brief note about the two cam locks. They make clamping boards
very easy and fast but when the unit was right out of the box, these handles locked
in the opposite direction — over the template and right in the way of the router.
They are simple to turn around and should be adjusted so they clamp as they do in our use
— away from where the router must travel.
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Now it
is time to get the router ready. We will install the dovetail bit that came with the jig.
It is a 1/2" wide by 8o dovetail bit. You can also see that Beth has
installed a7/16" guide collar. That will guide against the template's fingers.
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The
bit depth needs to be set to allow for the thickness of the template and for the thickness
of the stock. The instructions say to scribe a line on the stock using another piece as
the thickness. Beth has lowered the bit to this line and then added a little bit more so
that the pins and tails can be slightly proud. The little extra will be sanded away after
glue up.
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Beth
will cut this test board of poplar to see if everything is set right.
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