Being a mechanical joint, a dovetail does not rely on glue for strength in drawer box construction. The glue is only needed to keep the joint from sliding apart sideways. To avoid hydraulic problems, I just apply a thin coat of glue to the diagonals of the joint and leave the rest of the joint dry.
Does a dovetail joint need glue?
Michael Dresdner: The only areas that require glue on dovetails are the diagonal faces. All the diagonal faces are long grain, all the square faces are end grain, and all the flat faces abut end grain. Therefore, you need only apply glue to the diagonal faces on the tails or pins, or both.
Do you glue sliding dovetails?
Sliding dovetails provide several advantages over a dado joint. First, they’re stronger because they don’t rely solely on glue. Second, the shoulders of the dovetailed piece hide the edges of the slot, much as a tenoned workpiece hides a mortise.
What are the rules for dovetail joints?
The shoulder line should be fractionally bigger (0.5mm) than the thickness of the wood to allow for a little overhang when the joint goes together. Mark out the two ‘half-pins’ at the edges on the first piece of wood. The ‘pins’ are the bits of wood between the tails so there are two half-pins; one each side.
Do you need to clamp dovetails?
I bang them together with a rubber mallet. I always make sure the side beieing assembled is down on the surface of the table to avoid splitting. In other words I’m hammering the pin board into the tail board not hammering the tail board onto the pin board. No need for clamps if you dovetails are tight.
Does a dovetail joint need glue?
Michael Dresdner: The only areas that require glue on dovetails are the diagonal faces. All the diagonal faces are long grain, all the square faces are end grain, and all the flat faces abut end grain. Therefore, you need only apply glue to the diagonal faces on the tails or pins, or both.
What glue to use on dovetails?
My preference is to glue up dovetails with traditional, hot hide glue. I use it only on the flat grain surfaces, and a bit sparingly. You will need to work quickly.
What is the weakness of dovetail joint?
The disadvantages of dovetail joints are that they can be fairly difficult to mark out and cut, and if they are made badly these joints lose the advantages listed above. Depending on the project, function, and design, there are a number of different types of dovetail joints to choose from.
What are the disadvantages of a sliding dovetail joint?
The disadvantages of dovetail joints are that they can be fairly difficult to mark out and cut, and if they are made badly these joints lose the advantages listed above. Depending on the project, function, and design, there are a number of different types of dovetail joints to choose from.
Is a sliding dovetail strong?
The sliding dovetail joint has a number of advantages: it’s mechanically strong, provides a decent amount of glue surface, is reasonably easy to machine and is attractive when assembled.
How tight should dovetails be?
If you can use your fist as a hammer to nudge them together, they’re just right. By the way, when you realize they will fit nice and snug, (hopefully by the time they are less than half way down) take them apart and don’t put them together again until you glue them.
Is dovetail the strongest joint?
Dovetail is arguably the strongest joint in millwork. It’s made so that it can’t be twisted or pulled in any direction except for one. This means that it’ll take more force to break or damage the joint. Because of the preciseness of each piece, this joint is held into place without the need for extra reinforcement.
Is a finger joint stronger than a dovetail joint?
For box joint, some people put a lot more fingers than it is possible to do with Dovetail. In this case, the gluing surface is larger, and the joint is likely stronger. Also, some find a way to hide a finish nail in the joint. Dovetail has the advantage of a mechanical lock independent of the glue.
What makes a dovetail joint so strong?
The dovetail joint is very strong because of the way the ‘tails’ and ‘pins’ are shaped. This makes it difficult to pull the joint apart and virtually impossible when glue is added.
Is dovetail joint permanent?
The strongest and most permanent right-angled joints made in wood are the ‘dove-tail’ joints, as illustrated below. The so-called tails and pins fit together to form a secure joint. Glue may be applied to the mating surfaces.
How difficult is a dovetail joint?
Hand-cutting a dovetail joint is kind of a woodworking high-wire act; one slip of the saw or chisel and the joint either won’t fit together or will look sloppy. It takes a lot of time to master the ability to cut dovetails quickly and well (by hand or machine), without a lot of fussing around.
When did they stop using dovetail joints?
By 1730, through dovetail joinery was abandoned in English furniture making in favor of the lapped construction. As furniture became more refined, furniture makers began to take pride in the construction of their drawers as well.
Do you need glue for wood joints?
There are several types of wood joints that do not require glue, including dovetail joints, mortise and tenon joints, and wedged through-tenon joints. These joints rely on the interlocking of the wood pieces to create a strong connection without the need for adhesive.
Do dowel joints need glue?
Wood dowels are a traditional and effective means of jointing wood. Over time the glue that is used to tighten the joint dries out and erodes leaving a vacuum and loose joint. The joint becomes weak and can eventually separate if not glued back in place. It becomes a repetitive process if wood glues are deployed.
How is a dovetail joint assembled?
Sliding dovetails are assembled by sliding the tail into the socket. It is common to slightly taper the socket, making it slightly tighter towards the rear of the joint, so that the two components can be slid together easily but the joint becomes tighter as the finished position is reached.
How tight should a dovetail joint be?
If you can use your fist as a hammer to nudge them together, they’re just right. By the way, when you realize they will fit nice and snug, (hopefully by the time they are less than half way down) take them apart and don’t put them together again until you glue them.
Does a dovetail joint need glue?
Michael Dresdner: The only areas that require glue on dovetails are the diagonal faces. All the diagonal faces are long grain, all the square faces are end grain, and all the flat faces abut end grain. Therefore, you need only apply glue to the diagonal faces on the tails or pins, or both.
What is the weakest joint in carpentry?
A butt joint uses a simple technique whereby two pieces of material are joined together at their ends, without any special shaping or cutting. Although it is simple, the butt joint is also the weakest of the wood joinery types.
What is the most popular dovetail joint?
Single-lap Dovetail The single-lap (known to many folks as a half-blind dovetail) is the best known of the dovetails since it’s used to join the front to the sides of a drawer.
What is the strongest joint in woodworking?
Mortise and tenon joints are widely regarded as one of the strongest and most reliable woodworking joints. They involve creating a mortise, or a hole, in one piece of wood and a tenon on the end of the other piece, which fits into the mortise.
How deep should sliding dovetail be?
Sliding dovetail cutter selection: If it is a full-width joint, the slot depth-of- cut should be no more than 1⁄3 of the board thickness, so as not to significantly weak- en the board.
