Woodpeckers Dowel Press

[gtrboy77]

I just watched a really neat video on this thing that came out last year. While I didn’t agree with the $400 price tag, it looked to be like something that I could find use for in my shop. Do any of you Woodnetters have any experience with this thing?

[Rob Young]

I just watched a really neat video on this thing that came out last year.  While I didn’t agree with the $400 price tag, it looked to be like something that I could find use for in my shop.  Do any of you Woodnetters have any experience with this thing?

Make a dowel plate (or buy one, will still be way less than $400).  Add two "feet" made from stout blocks of wood, a little taller than 3". Attach feet to dowel plate. Make dowel blanks about 3" long.  Put all into large bench vice and crank down to push blank through dowel plate.

Just did this last night to make some 5/8" walnut dowels to experiment with how they might look in another project. Turns out, they should be smaller so just push them through the next hole down in the plate.

I get better results doing this than using a mallet/hammer to pound the dowels through.  And it is quiet.

Works best when you "rive" the dowel blanks from some straight grained wood.  Safety tip for dealing with the small stock, when splitting it with a chisel, hold the small pieces vertical in a handscrew clamp. Place the chisel on the endgrain of the blank and give it a whack.  

Heck, you could build a bench (laminated construction lumber), buy a brand new Record 52 clone, buy a LN dowel plate and buy a few chisels for less than the $400 to get the Woodpecker's gizmo.

[AHill]

While Woodpeckers makes decent quality stuff, I think there are much cheaper alternatives for just about anything they make, including their dowel press.  The biggest drawback I see is you are limited to a 6 inch dowel, no matter what diameter you choose with the Woodpeckers dowel press.  OTOH, there's a practical limit to the length of dowel you can drive through a dowel plate before the dowel stock buckles.

[Tony Z]

Seems pretty high priced! Through the years, I've succumbed a few times to their tools, always well made, high price point, and generally something I don't think of to use.

Not aimed at Woodpecker, but as advice to new(er) woodworkers here, get ye a copy of Robert Wearing's book "Woodworking Aids" (not sure of exact title). Infinitely cheaper to knock something out for the project at hand.

As far as the "dowel maker", I got a LN dowel plate, and it works well those few times I needed it over the past decade I've had it. BUT, far cheaper to look online for a handful of species specific dowels.

[Tony Z]

Seems pretty high priced! Through the years, I've succumbed a few times to their tools, always well made, high price point, and generally something I don't think of to use.

Not aimed at Woodpecker, but as advice to new(er) woodworkers here, get ye a copy of Robert Wearing's book "Woodworking Aids" (not sure of exact title). Infinitely cheaper to knock something out for the project at hand.

As far as the "dowel maker", I got a LN dowel plate, and it works well those few times I needed it over the past decade I've had it. BUT, far cheaper to look online for a handful of species specific dowels.

[Peter Tremblay]

I just watched a really neat video on this thing that came out last year.  While I didn’t agree with the $400 price tag, it looked to be like something that I could find use for in my shop.  Do any of you Woodnetters have any experience with this thing?

I asked a machinist buddy of mine to drill a few holes in some heavy scrap stock.

He sent me a dowel plate with 1/4, 3/8, and 1/2 holes alone with some nifty countersunk holes on the end of the stock to mount to a board.

I cut square stock to the desired size then sharpen one end to fit into the hole without pressure.

Then I get my heavy mallet and drive it through.

The dowels are not as pretty as the video shows (I just watched it) but it was free.

I think any scrap metal stock, over 1/4 thick, will work great.  Just drill some holes and your ready to go.

I never use contrasting dowels for joinery (usually draw bored mortise and tenon) so I just cut up scrap for the dowels.

[MarkSingleton]

As BrokenolMarine posted elsewhere, and Father Peter posted above,
making dowels does NOT require a huge monetary investment.

[Bill_Houghton]

In my observation, Woodpeckers is pretty good at solving problems no one realized existed - I mean, no one, after hundreds of years of thousands of people doing woodworking.

[Tony Z]

In my observation, Woodpeckers is pretty good at solving problems no one realized existed - I mean, no one, after hundreds of years of thousands of people doing woodworking.

Agree, but sometimes the hook of their ad copy does hook you! As I posted earlier in this thread, newbies and experienced alike should seek out a copy of Robert Wearing's "Woodworking Aids and jigs". Easy to find a used copy on Amazin for a few bucks.

[Peter Tremblay]

Agree, but sometimes the hook of their ad copy does hook you!  As I posted earlier in this thread, newbies and experienced alike should seek out a copy of Robert Wearing's "Woodworking Aids and jigs".  Easy to find a used copy on Amazin for a few bucks.

You're right.

Some of their tools just look like fun to use!

I've been close to pulling the trigger a time or two.