Anyone have the Rocker dovetail jig? How does it work -- honestly?
I understand that most dovetail jigs (lower-end, sub $150) are such a pain to use that most don't get used.
Also considering the newer Porter-Cable 4212 I believe it is called.
I'm not doing any volume -- should I just learn to handcut dovetails and be done with it?
Ditto. DAGS - from what some owner said, it's an odd sized bit for the PC jig that's perhaps only available from PC.
I was faced with a similar decision and I decided to try doing them mostly by hand. I've gotten to the point where I am not going to buy a cheap power tool or power tool accessory again, especially if I can get a good quality hand tool to accomplish the same thing for less money. I don't make that many drawers or other things that require a dovetail and I can't afford the leigh, so by hand it was.
I got Frank Klausz "Dovetail a Drawer" dvd, watched it, picked my jaw up off the floor and watched it again. I substituted the band saw for the hand saw, but chiseled out the waste. I figure eliminate my cutting ability from the equation at first, perhaps after a few I'll try it with a hand saw and see how it goes.
I literally just walked out of the shop with the first drawer in clamps as I type this. I screwed it up the first time, I stopped for lunch in the middle and when I came back I started cutting before engaging my brain and cut on the wrong side of the line doing the tails. I realized as I was picking up the second side. Oops. So now my drawer is 1.5" shorter than it coulda been. So the one thing I'd suggest in addition to what Frank tells you is mark the waste areas with big X's so you don't screw up like me. After that for a first attempt it went together pretty well, good enough to go in my workbench anyway.
I would definitely recommend trying it, and the video will be helpful even if you end up doing it with a router, I learned quite a bit. There's also something terribly satisfying about hearing the sound of the chisel change as the waste breaks free, and I normally groan when I hear the neanders going about the wood talking to them and whatnot. Very satisfying experience.
-Leuf
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