Doweling jig production run, $25 to $35

[Phil Thien]

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I'm going to be building another tool stand from "dressed" two-by-fours.  These are two-by-fours that I run through the jointer/planer to get nice (square) stock.  The resulting sticks measure 1-1/4" by 3-1/4".

I've made these sorts of tool stands a number of times for both myself and friends/family (they make popular small workbenches/tables), and I've used all sorts of joinery from pocket screws to biscuits to dowels.  Dowels are my favorite, by far.  They're super-strong, and they make alignment of the pieces during glue-up a snap.

The problem is, most doweling jigs aren't great for 3-1/4" wide boards, they're typically setup for 3-1/2" wide stock.  I want five 3/8" dowels in each joint and want to move quickly.  While I do have a method for doing it with my expensive/heavy commercial doweling jigs, it does require an extra step that if missed, can lead to mistakes.

As I've posted before about my ingenious (if I do say so myself) template-based doweling jig, I decided to cut a custom template for this project.

This is a .1" thick (or so) polycarbonate template that works with the steel spacers I use as bushings.

The template is cut on my CNC router so the hole-to-hole spacing and the hole-to-edge spacing is accurate to a few thousandths of an inch.  Additionally, the holes in the template are so precisely cut as to make the drill bushing fit with a sort of tactile "snap" when inserted.

I figured as long as I'm doing it, I'd make the jig double-sided, so the other side offers the more conventional spacing at 3-1/2" wide.  It can be used for more conventional doweling jig applications (or if you don't want to dress your two-by-four boards).

I made some test joints and the accuracy is astonishing, the pieces come together in a piston fit.  If you know my history, I'm a bit into doweling jigs, I know of what I speak.

One advantage of this design is the relatively light-weight nature of the materials, making it easier to handle with one hand while you clamp it to your workpiece with the other.

Another advantage is the nearly indestructible nature of polycarbonate, which means the thing can repeatedly fall off the bench and be put right back to use.  My heart would stop if I dropped one of my spendy aluminum doweling jigs on my concrete floor!


If anyone wants one of these jigs, I'll sell a complete kit that includes:

(1) The CNC router cut polycarbonate template, wooden fence, mounting screws, and an Allen wrench
(2) Drill bushing made from a steel spacer press-fit into the plywood block

all for "only" $35 including shipping/handling.

All you need to supply is a 3/8" drill bit, and a stop collar.

If you want to save $10, I'll supply a kit that includes everything but the two wooden pieces for "only" $25 (including shipping/handling).  I'll provide instructions for making the fence and the bushing holder (involves cutting some small pieces of wood, drilling holes, pressing the bushing into the block).  Besides some small pieces of plywood and a way to cut them, you need a drill press, a 7/32" drill bit for the holes in the fence, and a 31/64" drill bit for the bushing hole, to complete the kit successfully.

If you want two units, take $5 of each.

I guarantee accuracy and your satisfaction, otherwise ship it back at my expense and I'll give you your money back.  I don't even care if you use it for a month and then send it back, I'm that convinced you'll be thrilled with the accuracy of this thing.

I'm not kidding you when I say this thing positions dowels every bit as accurately as any of my $150+ commercial doweling jigs.

And you're giving-up nothing over those expensive jigs, I can show you how to reference off holes so you can drill an entire string of dowel holes along the edge of a board, if you like.

This will be a limited production run, I have enough materials still left on the CNC router's table to make eight jigs.

If interested, PM me here and I'll provide payment details (PayPal address).


The assembled unit.  The template is precision cut from nearly indestructible polycarbonate plastic (the same stuff they use to make riot shields and bullet-proof "glass").
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One of my test joints ready for assembly.  I made a bunch of test joints, the accuracy of this jig never disappoints.
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An assembled test joint.  Note that the faces and edges are PERFECTLY flush, requiring no additional sanding.
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Drilling the edge of a board.  To align the jig, simply use a straight edge (I actually use the small block the drill bushing is in) to align the edge of the template with the end of the board.  Clamp the jig and then move the drill bushing from hole to hole, and drill your holes.
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Drilling the end of a board.  Clamp and drill as above, it doesn't get any easier!
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[Phil Thien]

Thanks everyone for the faith, four have been sold and I have enough materials for four more.

Will be shipping Monday or Tuesday.

Setting the fence for 1-1/4" stock couldn't be easier:

(1) Just place your stock on the bench
(2) Loosen the screws on the jig, push the template all the way down to the bench
(3) Snug the screws, and you're ready to go

If you want to achieve an offset (1/8" or 1/4" or anything), place a piece of scrap of the same thickness as your desired offset under the stock in step #1.  Voila.


Here I am setting the fence for 1-1/4" thick stock.  You can measure w/ a rule, this is just easier/faster when using dressed two-by-four material.

   

[Phil Thien]

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As you can see, I reworked the design a little bit...

(1) The tabs (tabs are little pieces of plastic that remain after machining, to keep the part in place so it doesn't chatter against the bit that is withdrawing from the channel) were a PITA.  Even though I cut them off with a very sharp diagonal cutter, they leave a hump that can interfere with registration (causing rocking).  You can file or deburr the workpiece but it isn't great, you can still get a hump on what is a reference edge.

(1a) Once I decided to take the template OFF the fence and clamp the template directly to the center of a workpiece (as in making a mid-span stretcher), it occurred to me that sawdust could interfere with registration.

So for #1/1a, I changed from straight edges to a profile including an arc, so now you have a three-point reference, and sawdust has somewhere to go (slide it back and forth, the sawdust gets trapped in the crevices.

(2) The polycarbonate was a little too thin.  Although I didn't have any problem drilling my holes, I later found a dressed two-by that was slightly out of square, and the polycarbonate too easily bent/conformed.

I didn't have any thicker polycarbonate, but had some .25" (nominal) cast acrylic.  I cut one, and the stiffness is a plus, you can actually use the assembled jig to test your stock for square (provided the fence is cut square).

I was a little concerned that the acrylic wouldn't be durable enough, but I did go outside and whip test pieces at the ground for a while, throwing them as hard as I could.  The edges can chip if thrown really hard, that is about it.  Repeatedly Falling off the bench should result in zero damage.

Also, I like the fact that the acrylic doesn't scratch so easily.  The polycarbonate is a softer plastic that scratches if you look at it wrong.

(3) The holes for the bushing, sized to be tight, were unnecessarily snug.  When the bushing heats up from repeated use, it gets harder to insert.  Also, having to push and pull the thing into/out of holes is a drag once you get going.  I enlarged the holes a smidgen, perfect.

I've had orders for five of these (and I think one more pending order).  I still need to cut the actual templates I'll ship and make the fences.

I don't foresee making any other changes, so I'll be cutting and shipping shortly.

Next time around, though, I'm going to finalize my design, make a few, and THEN sell them.  I didn't intend to use you guys as a Woodnet Kickstarter.

[Herb]

Pm Sent!

[digger]

Very nice Phil 


PM Sent

[Phil Thien]

I have commitments for nine or ten, which is okay because I have enough acrylic for about twenty.

BUT, I think I'm going to stop taking any more requests at this point and just make sure I don't have any problems cutting the units for which I have orders.  I don't want to end-up with a worn bit causing problems or something of that nature.

If I can cut more, I'll cut a few extras but no guarantees I'll have any additional above what I've committed to.

One more note:  I will be using a slightly longer block for the drill guide.  A longer block with a centered bushing covers the unused template holes during drilling, so you don't have to clean chips as you go.  Also improved would be the registration for perpendicular holes.  Finally, safety if the bit did would catch (which hasn't happened to me but there is always a first time), the block will spin only a few degrees and then get caught by the connector bolts.

[Phil Thien]

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This evening I cut 12 templates.

The discerning eye will identify:

(1) One of the templates was biffed due to wife breaking the cardinal rule:  Don't interrupt me during setup, wait until the machine is cutting.  Ugh.

(2) Yes, that is an Ariel towel under them.  Mermaids are hot.

I did peel the paper off so I could perform some quick quality control checks.  While they are cut by a CNC router and should be identical, I didn't want to ship a problem times eight or nine.  Quick checks look great.

Went to the dollar store and bought envelopes for the templates to provide a little protection against scratching while shipping in the padded envelopes.

Kind of an interesting experience, I've never made a batch of anything like this, not for others.

[Plumb Bob]

PM sent.

[JDS30]

PM Sent

[Phil Thien]

They're all packed up and ready for my wife to start shipping.

Two last-minute changes:  (1) I offset the holes in the fence and the drill guide so that you can easily hit the center of a 3/4" board on the 2nd side (the conventional or "non-dressed 2x4 making" side) of the jig.

Here I had put all this time into making sure this is a great tool for making benches/tables, I had ignored the other side of the jig entirely.

Did I toss a bunch of already made parts into the scrap bin?  Did I cause one more delay before giving the stuff to my wife?  Guilty as charged.

When using either side of the jig, remember to set the fence with the stock and spacers, don't bother measuring anything.

Just follow these steps:

(1) Loosen the screws (these are Allen-head furniture screws, BTW, and I didn't include Allen keys in the package figuring you guys should all have Allen keys).

(2) Set your stock flat on the bench, and set the fence on top of the stock.  Push the template all the way to the bench and snug the screws.

If you're using dressed 2x4 material (so 1-1/4 x 3-1/4"), you're done, make a test joint and you're off to the races.

If you're using the conventional side of the jig, and your stock is 1-1/2" thick, the jig holes will be centered in your stock.

"Oh no," you say, "I don't work with a lot of 1-1/2" stock."

No problem, use a shim in the process if you want your holes centered.*

Let's say you're using 3/4" stock.  Just add a piece of 3/8" wood between your stock and the fence when you're following steps #1 and #2, and your holes will be centered in your stock.

*With this jig, dowel holes needn't be perfectly centered, the face of the wood is your reference.  Get them close, or obsess as much as you like, it is up to you.  If you really want to obsess, stacks of playing cards make wonderful shims.

*****

What about an offset, like a table apron to a leg?  Let's say we have aprons made of 3/4" stock and legs that are thicker, and we want to create a offset/reveal of 1/8".  No problem.

First, use the 3/8" shim under the fence to get the dowel holes centered for 3/4" stock, and drill your aprons.

Now use a 1/2" shim (or add a 1/8" shim to the 3/8" shim) to reset the fence, and drill the table legs.

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This has been fun, a few others have asked for jigs and I already allocated all eleven I have made.  Don't worry, I'm going to make more.