As I start to delve more and more into this crazy hobby, I find myself
wanting to try dovetails in the worse way. I don't have plans on
buying a $400 jig for my dad's old router because I don't have any
plans on making tons of dovetails..yet.

I want to be able to eventually learn how to cut them by hand but I am
also chomping at the bit to try it with a ruter, too. After reading
the recent thread about the cheap-o HF jig, I ran across this thing
called the "DoveTail TemplateMaster" and information can be found at
this site: http://www.stots.com

Does anybody have any thoughts on this thing? It costs $40.00, so it
won't break the bank but, at the same time, I don't want to waste my
money!

Another reason I want to get this is because I gagged a couple weeks
ago when I went to use the Japanese pullsaw my sister bought me for
Christmas two years ago. I was all ready to do some practicing just
cutting some straight lines. When I took the cardboard covering off,
there staring back at me was my poor, poor saw! Two chunks of teeth
each about 1/2" long were completely broken off! Turns out my
nine-year-old daughter was using it and, when she saw it wasn't
cutting straight down the line she drew on a scrap piece of wood, she
tried to sort of force it back to the line and must've snapped the
brittle steel. She got scared and wrapped it up again and didn't tell
me. I wanted to scream but how can you do that when she is trying?
No big deal...I will just buy another one. She can mess around with
the broken one until she gets better.

In any event, I would like to know what thoughts there are on this
Dovetail Template product.

Thanks!

Ray -

I've had the template master for a couple of years now, and I'd buy it
again. The jig is for making templates, so you are using their jig to make
a jig to make dovetails. Once you're done, setup is minimal for being able
to knock out dovetail joints pretty quickly.

I've heard a number of complaints about having to use the jig to make a jig,
because it IS an extra step. Well, it is, but you do save time on the back
end.

Stots is a scaredy cat with the lawyers, so he has a bunch of legal BS about
the use of his product. Ignore it, tear off the EULA tab and get to it.

I would buy it again and consider it a good value. I would however, also
purchase the bits that he sells with the unit. It makes things far faster
incase you don't have the right angle bits available locally (8 degree or so
as I recall)

Hope this helps

John
"Ray Kinzler" wrote in message
om...
As I start to delve more and more into this crazy hobby, I find myself
wanting to try dovetails in the worse way. I don't have plans on
buying a $400 jig for my dad's old router because I don't have any
plans on making tons of dovetails..yet.

I want to be able to eventually learn how to cut them by hand but I am
also chomping at the bit to try it with a ruter, too. After reading
the recent thread about the cheap-o HF jig, I ran across this thing
called the "DoveTail TemplateMaster" and information can be found at
this site: http://www.stots.com

Does anybody have any thoughts on this thing? It costs $40.00, so it
won't break the bank but, at the same time, I don't want to waste my
money!

Another reason I want to get this is because I gagged a couple weeks
ago when I went to use the Japanese pullsaw my sister bought me for
Christmas two years ago. I was all ready to do some practicing just
cutting some straight lines. When I took the cardboard covering off,
there staring back at me was my poor, poor saw! Two chunks of teeth
each about 1/2" long were completely broken off! Turns out my
nine-year-old daughter was using it and, when she saw it wasn't
cutting straight down the line she drew on a scrap piece of wood, she
tried to sort of force it back to the line and must've snapped the
brittle steel. She got scared and wrapped it up again and didn't tell
me. I wanted to scream but how can you do that when she is trying?
No big deal...I will just buy another one. She can mess around with
the broken one until she gets better.

In any event, I would like to know what thoughts there are on this
Dovetail Template product.

Thanks!

I've had it for several years. It makes 1/2" dovetail and box joints
very well. Figure on another $35-$40 for a couple router bits and an
hour or two to get it going . See www.woodshopdemos.com for more details.

Ray Kinzler wrote:

As I start to delve more and more into this crazy hobby, I find myself
wanting to try dovetails in the worse way. I don't have plans on
buying a $400 jig for my dad's old router because I don't have any
plans on making tons of dovetails..yet.

I want to be able to eventually learn how to cut them by hand but I am
also chomping at the bit to try it with a ruter, too. After reading
the recent thread about the cheap-o HF jig, I ran across this thing
called the "DoveTail TemplateMaster" and information can be found at
this site: http://www.stots.com

Does anybody have any thoughts on this thing? It costs $40.00, so it
won't break the bank but, at the same time, I don't want to waste my
money!

Another reason I want to get this is because I gagged a couple weeks
ago when I went to use the Japanese pullsaw my sister bought me for
Christmas two years ago. I was all ready to do some practicing just
cutting some straight lines. When I took the cardboard covering off,
there staring back at me was my poor, poor saw! Two chunks of teeth
each about 1/2" long were completely broken off! Turns out my
nine-year-old daughter was using it and, when she saw it wasn't
cutting straight down the line she drew on a scrap piece of wood, she
tried to sort of force it back to the line and must've snapped the
brittle steel. She got scared and wrapped it up again and didn't tell
me. I wanted to scream but how can you do that when she is trying?
No big deal...I will just buy another one. She can mess around with
the broken one until she gets better.

In any event, I would like to know what thoughts there are on this
Dovetail Template product.

Thanks!