Hi,
I am just starting to get into woodworking and have decided to get a
dovetail jig. The choice so far is between a Trend DJ300 and a Trend
CDJ300.

The specs seem to be the same.

Given the choice, which would you go for?


Rick....

Rick wrote in message . ..
Hi,
I am just starting to get into woodworking and have decided to get a
dovetail jig. The choice so far is between a Trend DJ300 and a Trend
CDJ300.

The specs seem to be the same.

Given the choice, which would you go for?


Rick....

Rick,

Stick your post in www.ukworkshop.co.uk
Woodworking forum only, so you should get an informed answer (no
disrespect to UKdiy)

Rgds

Noel

noel dot hegan at virgin dot net

On 5 Nov 2003 07:44:15 -0600, Rick wrote:

Hi,
I am just starting to get into woodworking and have decided to get a
dovetail jig. The choice so far is between a Trend DJ300 and a Trend
CDJ300.

The specs seem to be the same.

Given the choice, which would you go for?


Rick....

I have a Leigh and am pretty pleased with the results that I get with
it. Depending on what you want to do, it does take a while to set
up, but the flexibility is good.



..andy

To email, substitute .nospam with .gl

On Wed, 05 Nov 2003 21:53:55 +0000, Andy Hall
wrote:

On 5 Nov 2003 07:44:15 -0600, Rick wrote:

Hi,
I am just starting to get into woodworking and have decided to get a
dovetail jig. The choice so far is between a Trend DJ300 and a Trend
CDJ300.

The specs seem to be the same.

Given the choice, which would you go for?


Rick....

I have a Leigh and am pretty pleased with the results that I get with
it. Depending on what you want to do, it does take a while to set
up, but the flexibility is good.



.andy

To email, substitute .nospam with .gl

A slight difference in the price I fear, no ?

I wouldn't be inclined to buy Trend gear. I always think it over
priced.

Do Axminster not do an alternative to either of the above ?

Paul Mc Cann

On 5 Nov 2003 07:44:15 -0600, Rick wrote:

I am just starting to get into woodworking

Given the choice, which [dovetail jig] would you go for?

Neither. I really don't see dovetail jigs high up the list of things
to buy.

What are you making ? Why does it need dovetails ? strength or
beauty? What thickness(es) of timber are you going to use ?

IMHO, the dovetail is a joint for things that last a few centuries, so
that they still hold together when the glue fails. It's a high quality
joint, for high quality work. If you start to look seriously at
dovetails, you start to appreciate the quality of really good hand-cut
ones. It's hard to cut good dovetails by router, it's impossible to
cut the finest shapes, and it requires a sophisticated jig to cut any
but the simplest.

So I only use dovetails on the good stuff, and if I use them, I cut
them by hand.

For "everyday" work, I might use the router. But it's biscuit jointed
butts, lock mitre cutters, drawer lock cutters or a finger joint at
most. Only rarely do I set a comb jig up and rout with a dovetail
cutter.

If you're spending money on a dovetail jig, then get either a cheap
one or a good one. A cheap one has fixed fingers and cuts " '50s
style" regular short stubby round-ended dovetails with little hassle.
But it's inflexible and rather ugly. A good one has adjustable
fingers and you'll use it with two cutters in two passes. Katy or
WoodRat are good at this level, although the Katy only works for thick
stock.

I barely use my (expensive) Incra. Useless for this sort of jointing -
it's a pain to use with any board wider than about 6".

--
Die Gotterspammerung - Junkmail of the Gods

"Paul Mc Cann" wrote in message
...
On Wed, 05 Nov 2003 21:53:55 +0000, Andy Hall
wrote:

On 5 Nov 2003 07:44:15 -0600, Rick wrote:

Hi,
I am just starting to get into woodworking and have decided to get a
dovetail jig. The choice so far is between a Trend DJ300 and a Trend
CDJ300.

The specs seem to be the same.

Given the choice, which would you go for?


Rick....

I have a Leigh and am pretty pleased with the results that I get with
it. Depending on what you want to do, it does take a while to set
up, but the flexibility is good.



.andy

To email, substitute .nospam with .gl

A slight difference in the price I fear, no ?

I wouldn't be inclined to buy Trend gear. I always think it over
priced.

Do Axminster not do an alternative to either of the above ?

Paul Mc Cann

I have the Axminster one. It is an absolute PAIN to set up, oh and one of
the eccentric clamp (plastic) bushes broke within days but I've made a
replacement in aluminium (how DO people manage without a lathe ???)

Andrew

Rick wrote:

I am just starting to get into woodworking and have decided to get a
dovetail jig. The choice so far is between a Trend DJ300 and a Trend
CDJ300.

I have a DJ300 (which I bought ages ago before realising places like
axminster existed!). Having said that, I actually quite like it. Well
enough made and with a good solid feel. It has screw down clamps for
fixing the work in place which are very effective but perhaps not as
quick as some of the lever types. It could also do with slightly longer
threads on the clamps for working on thicker stock.

Personally I prefer the "even" look of the dovetails that this type of
jig cuts - but each to his own ;-)

Make sure you have a fine height adjustment on your router if you want
to make for easy adjustment of the joint tightness.

I tend to use my one for making drawers - there are quicker ways of
doing this with a router - but the dovetail adds a nice finish and gives
a very strong joint. You can even find that if you test fit the parts
with too much enthusiasm, you will have a job getting them apart again
to get the glue in there!

As for cutting the beasties by hand - sod that! I will save that task
for people with an ability to saw in a straight line by hand ;-)
(unless there is a hand saw dovetail jig one can make or buy?)

--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

Paul Mc Cann wrote:

On Wed, 05 Nov 2003 21:53:55 +0000, Andy Hall
wrote:

On 5 Nov 2003 07:44:15 -0600, Rick wrote:

Hi,
I am just starting to get into woodworking and have decided to get a
dovetail jig. The choice so far is between a Trend DJ300 and a Trend
CDJ300.

The specs seem to be the same.

Given the choice, which would you go for?


Rick....

I have a Leigh and am pretty pleased with the results that I get with
it. Depending on what you want to do, it does take a while to set
up, but the flexibility is good.



.andy

To email, substitute .nospam with .gl

A slight difference in the price I fear, no ?

I wouldn't be inclined to buy Trend gear. I always think it over
priced.

Do Axminster not do an alternative to either of the above ?

Paul Mc Cann

Be careful about choosing the £50 ones from Axminster screwfix and almost
anyone else. The build quality and repeatability is poor. Money saved on
the jig will soon be lost in turning wood into scrap.

Yes the Leigh is in a different price league but it is a first class tool.
I bought mine secondhand on Ebay much cheaper than new prices. It is
cheaper in the US if you are every travelling that far. It does dismantle
to make it fit in a suitcase.

Bob

On Thu, 06 Nov 2003 21:05:18 +0000, Bob Minchin
wrote:



Be careful about choosing the £50 ones from Axminster screwfix and almost
anyone else. The build quality and repeatability is poor. Money saved on
the jig will soon be lost in turning wood into scrap.

Yes the Leigh is in a different price league but it is a first class tool.
I bought mine secondhand on Ebay much cheaper than new prices. It is
cheaper in the US if you are every travelling that far. It does dismantle
to make it fit in a suitcase.

Bob



You do have to look at the specs. carefully, and the Leigh does have a
lot more flexibility than the low end products.

I forgot to mention that they also do a very nice finger joint
template for it which fits onto the base instead of the dovetail comb
assembly and is very easy to use - also producing really nice
results..

..andy

To email, substitute .nospam with .gl

Rick wrote in message
. ..
Hi,
I am just starting to get into woodworking and have decided to get a
dovetail jig. The choice so far is between a Trend DJ300 and a Trend
CDJ300.

The specs seem to be the same.

Given the choice, which would you go for?

Rick....

Have you looked at the Woodrat? It's versatile but a little complex at
first - try a web search for info.

Dave S

On Fri, 7 Nov 2003 08:56:59 -0000, "Dave"
wrote:

Rick wrote in message
...
Hi,
I am just starting to get into woodworking and have decided to get a
dovetail jig. The choice so far is between a Trend DJ300 and a Trend
CDJ300.

The specs seem to be the same.

Given the choice, which would you go for?

Rick....

Have you looked at the Woodrat? It's versatile but a little complex at
first - try a web search for info.

Dave S


I looked at one. It's more limited than it appears and not very
sturdy. Not cheap for what it is.



..andy

To email, substitute .nospam with .gl

On Thu, 06 Nov 2003 02:20:22 +0000, John Rumm
wrote:

(unless there is a hand saw dovetail jig one can make or buy?)

Lee Valley do one. Very simple, quite cheap, and works pretty well.
It's a piece of extruded aluminium box with a slopig top surface,
covered in slippery plastic and with a magnet underneath.

--
Die Gotterspammerung - Junkmail of the Gods

"Andy Hall" wrote in message
...snipped
Have you looked at the Woodrat? It's versatile but a little complex at
first - try a web search for info.

Dave S


I looked at one. It's more limited than it appears and not very
sturdy. Not cheap for what it is.
.andy

To email, substitute .nospam with .gl

I picked one up at an auction several years ago, in my experience it's
pretty versatile and seems sturdy enough but I haven't used it a huge
amount. The key seems to be mounting it somewhere sensible but that isn't
always possible; I've got mine on the back of a mobile workbench but it's
not ideal. They're certainly a bit pricey new.

Dave S

On Thu, 06 Nov 2003 21:05:18 +0000, Bob Minchin
wrote:

snip
Yes the Leigh is in a different price league but it is a first class tool.
I bought mine secondhand on Ebay much cheaper than new prices. It is
cheaper in the US if you are every travelling that far. It does dismantle
to make it fit in a suitcase.

Bob



I got mine in Garret Wades along a few other items.I was expecting to
be hit with excess baggage allowance but I was saving plenty over what
the English importer was asking.

Co-incidentally on that visit to NY I suffered a slipped disc. Spent
best part of a week in the hotel room, and I can tell you American
television sucks.

Anyway because of the bad back SWMBO decided we should hit JFK good
and early to bag an exit seat. We were 2 1/2 hours early. We dragged
some poor clerk out to book us on board and he didn't give a s**t
about baggage allowance or anything else, just booked the whole
caboodle through without as much as a second glance he was so eager to
get back to whatever he was doing.

Magic


Paul Mc Cann

Do Axminster not do an alternative to either of the above ?

I bought the Axminster one a few months back and am happy with it.

As others have said it take a bit of time to set up but once done it works a
treat.

Sean

Sean Delere wrote:

Do Axminster not do an alternative to either of the above ?

I bought the Axminster one a few months back and am happy with it.

As others have said it take a bit of time to set up but once done it works a
treat.

Sean

My axminster one turned out to be quite a bit out of square. I made a small box
as a first trial job and when it wa glued up square all the joints gapped. I
ended up stripping the jig down to the bent sheet metal base, gluing a 6mm thick
mdf sheet on the vertical face and then machining the thing square on my metal
milling machine. I'd have sent it back if it had not been many months between
buying it and trying it out for real.
Maybe mine was a friday afternoon one but the build quality, poor instructions
and set/repeatability problems put me off this model completely.
The leigh is a joy to use by comparison and can be got second hand for a
relatively good price if you look around.

Bob