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I am
ready to make the dovetails. I first mark the center of a scrap piece of wood. It is a
scrap that is the exact same width as the drawer sides.
By the way, Incra has a centering scale that is easy to use. I fall back on
this method, since I am familiar with it and know it works.
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I now center the piece so
that my center mark lines up with the center of the bit. All the dovetail bits have a
small hole in the end. This is used in the manufacturing process and comes in very handy
when centering by eye.
With the piece centered, I bring the fence over and lock it in place.
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With the fence locked at
the center point, I route one cut; turn the board around and make the cut again. If the
centering process is off a bit, the cut will be widened by the amount of the error.
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I can see that
the center is off a wee bit, so I use the Incra micro-adjust feature to center the bit
exactly in the hole.
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With the fence
locked in the new center position, I move the DOVN template (top) so that the
recommended position is under the cursor. In this case, the template detail recommends
"10A".
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Now this step is not an
Incra step but one I developed for making great dovetails in plywood and other woods that
want to tearout. I am using a tenon marker to make a slight cut at the dovetail height. I
do this on all the sides.
If you want to see all the procedures that I use for making dovetails in
"cheap" wood, click here: "Making Perfect Dovetails in Less
Than Perfect Wood".
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The first step in
actually cutting the dovetails is to rabbet the back of the side pieces. I have adjusted
the fence so that 1/2 of the dovetail bit is revealed. That will be the depth of this cut.
A push sled makes the cut accurate and safe.
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I am cutting all the
template's "A" positions. Note that there is a lot of tearout. The front and
back pieces are scrap boards. They minimize the amount of tearout on the inner two boards,
which are my sides.
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I now make the
"B" cuts on the fronts and backs of each drawer. I have set the Incra Stop to be
about 1/16" past the router bit. I will test fit this and adjust this depth
accordingly.
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All the dovetails are made
and fit well, so I move the Incra TS III back to the table saw position. It is time to cut
the dados for the bottom ply.
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I have installed my stacked
dado cutters with just the two outside blades. That gives me a 1/4" groove which is
plenty for the 1/4" plywood I will be using. This ply actually is slightly thinner so
the bottom will float nicely.
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I dry fit one drawer so
that I can measure for the bottom. I want to allow for the dado, but not make it too
tight.
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The Exaktor sliding table
makes it easy to get square, accurate cuts.
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I brush carpenter's glue
into the dovetail surface. It is a great joint for glue surface, so I take time to brush
it thoroughly over the pins.
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I check for square and use
the brad nailer to pin the joints. The brads won't show since the drawers get a false
front added later. With the joint pinned, no clamping is necessary.
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It is nice to have the
drawers done — and fitting so well. Next, I will install the slides, add the drawer
fronts, and hang the doors.
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