My problem with the Leigh dovetail jig
#11
Hello everybody
            I have this problem is almost two years and still not solved. Leigh tried their best but could not find the problem.
I have Leigh super 18 dovetail jig. I always get shift when I try to assemble the box the last piece will not fit exactly always gets shift by 4 to 5mm difference I have made my adjustment correctly but still no luck . the guide bush set to no 10 I kept playing with it but no luck what so ever.
Dose any body have dovetail jig like that or run into problem like that.
I have attached some video so everybody can observe this unsolved phenomena
Thank you 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ORinvztr7JA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xgg90DIUQIQ

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#12
Wow, that's quite a bit off. I don't really have any thing to help...especially if Leigh doesn't have a suggestion (they know their stuff). I know with my D4 I was having alignment problems and one day i decided to just start from scratch. I completely went through the set up again to make sure it was done correctly, then I made sure the bushing and bit were centered to each other. In my case it solved my problems...but it does sound like you've went through this already. I hope someone has an idea. Good luck!
I started with absolutely nothing. Now, thanks to years of hard work, careful planning, and perseverance, I find I still have most of it left.
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#13
That bit sure doesn't look centered. Maybe it is the camera angle but it looks off by about 2mm.
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#14
I have the D4 and have had a similar problem, although not nearly as bad as yours. My misalignment is usually about 1-2 mm. Unfortunately, Leigh support gave me some suggestions, but in the end, could not help me resolve the problem. I hate to say it, but I have had better support from other vendors. It seemed they didn't give 100% to make sure their product was working for me. I've gone though the setup procedure numerous times. I've also centered my router bit using a centering tool. Still a small misalignment. As a result, the D4 sits unused. I can do a better job hand cutting my DT's. However, your router bit does not looked even close to centered. You should try to resolve that, then check alignment.
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Worse than ignorance is the illusion of knowledge.
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#15
[quote pid='7443849' dateline='1489056564']
Phil Thien
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[quote pid='7443863' dateline='1489061712']
That bit sure doesn't look centered. Maybe it is the camera angle but it looks off by about 2mm.
[/quote]

^^^
This.  Looks to me like your gap is present consistent for each dovetail.  I think your bit isn't centered.
Still Learning,

Allan Hill
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#16
LOML tells me I'm old and half blind, so I won't argue, but it looks pretty centered to me, but seeing that multiple people have called this as your problem, you can assure center with a Bosch router using the Bosch router centering cone It's easy enough to follow instruction on it, and it can get your bit dead nutz centered. You might try it, if the bit is centered, and you are still off that much check back.

BTW posting the video is genius, this is one of those things without seeing it, minds could paint a lot of different pictures.


In the video below Tom Hintz suggest changing out your baseplate to one that is more adjustable, then use the centering pin to find dead center. If your Bosch doesn't allow any movement with the collar you are using for the router jig, this might be a better choice.


Worst thing they can do is cook ya and eat ya

GW
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#17
(03-09-2017, 05:49 AM)alsayyed Wrote: Hello everybody
            I have this problem is almost two years and still not solved. Leigh tried their best but could not find the problem.
I have Leigh super 18 dovetail jig. I always get shift when I try to assemble the box the last piece will not fit exactly always gets shift by 4 to 5mm difference I have made my adjustment correctly but still no luck . the guide bush set to no 10 I kept playing with it but no luck what so ever.
Dose any body have dovetail jig like that or run into problem like that.
I have attached some video so everybody can observe this unsolved phenomena
Thank you 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ORinvztr7JA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xgg90DIUQIQ

I had a similar problem and i have solved it. Keep the pins with screws facing up. Cut pins on one side of jig and tails on opposite side. Do not flip fingers upside down. Rotate horizontally.
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#18
Alsayyed, thank you for posting the second video about the centering cone! I will be getting a DT jig soon. Now I think I will also get the cone to begin with.
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#19
I suspect your fingers are not set correctly. On the pinboard you have a half pin on one side but not the other. Usually the jig is set for a "balanced" joint. Usually there is half pin on each side of the pin board with full tails in between.
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#20
(01-09-2019, 01:27 AM)bandsaw Wrote: I suspect your fingers are not set correctly. On the pinboard you have a half pin on one side but not the other. Usually the jig is set for a "balanced" joint. Usually there is half pin on each side of the pin board with full tails in between.

The only thing I can add is that I have the 24" Leigh jig, and I dread when I have to use it.  I am meticulous with the set up but something is always off just a little bit.  Not like what you are describing or showing, but still off a bit.  My finished drawers will not sit flat on the bench, they are sort of cupped one way or the other.  I always have to clamp them diagonally one way or the other to get them to be dead-on straight which does not make sense to me.  They need to be dead on straight to slide in and out of a carcass properly.  I don't really like the manual either, which typically gets good reviews.  I feel like there is way too much detail.  If you have to trouble shoot one small problem, it may be described over 2 pages.  Its like, get to the point!

The only other thing I will add, which I don't think will solve your problem, is to move the router in and out of the jig straight in and straight out.  The tolerances on the bushing are not tight and if you move the router in sort of a circular motion on the way in and out, that will affect how tight or not the pins and tails come together.
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