On Sat, 18 Apr 2015 16:10:29 +0100
"Nick" wrote:

Of course you will, natural curiousity has been sparked up.
Then have a look at blind secret mitred dovetails. Never tried this
as I've never had the need but imagine it's possibly the most
complicated woodworking joint.

now i will have to look
i may have seen one while look at blind and 1/2 blind dovetails
i at least understand blind mitred but the secret part needs
research

maybe that refers to the time spent making the joint and the fact
that most artisans keep that a secret

mark twain said something like a good impromptu speech takes more
than 3 weeks

we wood artisans could say a good blind secret mitred dovetail takes
as long as needed


50+ years ago I was taught to cut pins first and then use the pins to
mark directly onto its partner the tails using a marking knife.

other poster was taught this way too

I imagine a dovetail would be quite worthless in anything but a
hard/dense timber.

i think the application makes a big difference
other wood might make sense in some cases
the size too could factor in


Traditional timbers for me are oak, beech and ash. Sadly elm is just
not available. Homegrown stuff is getting harder to find but some
decent quality stuff can be found.
Works well enough for me.


i strive for cheapest and go with it
cheap matches my budget as does free