Portable

dovetail jig
workcenter

© 2009 August Home Publishing Co.

 Shop Built
Tools & Jigs

Dovetail Jig Workcenter

Accuracy, convenience, and storage. You get it all with this simple
workcenter for your dovetail jig.

T he dovetail jig gets a lot of use in my shop. But

there are a few things that can be an inconvenience
when using it. My biggest complaint is that I have to
stoop over to see what I’m doing as I work. Another
problem is keeping the workpieces clamped square.
And finally, when I’m done for the day, I have to find a
place to store the jig and accessories.
The handy workcenter you see in the photo solves
all these problems. For starters, it makes a great plat-
form for any dovetail jig. By raising everything to a
comfortable height, it’s easier to guide the router. Sup-
port bars help keep the workpieces square and position
them properly for accurate results.
Plus, there are some other great features. There are
“wings” that fold down. They make a handy landing spot
to dock your router during use without damaging the bit
or your benchtop. And there’s plenty of storage in the
large drawer down below.
Once you build this workcenter, you’ll find that using
your dovetail jig is a whole lot easier.

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Construction Details STUDDED KNOBS FASTEN
JIG TO WORKCENTER
TOP DURING USE
Overall Dimensions:
14" x 28" x 9" (stored size) ADJUSTABLE STOPS ALIGN
WORKPIECES SQUARE TO JIG

FOLDING WING HORIZONTAL STOP BAR

PROVIDES A RESTING HOLDS END OF LONG
AREA FOR ROUTER DOVETAIL JIG AND ACCESSORIES WORKPIECES
ATTACH TO WORKCENTER WITH
THREADED INSERTS AND RARE-EARTH MAGNET
STUDDED KNOBS SECURES WING IN
UPRIGHT POSITION

OPEN SLOT AT BACK OF

DRAWER PROVIDES CLEARANCE
FOR THREADED INSERTS
AND KNOBS ABOVE
STUDDED KNOBS
SECURE STOP BAR
TO CASE

ADJUSTABLE
STOPS ALIGN
WORKPIECE
WITH STOPS
ON JIG
HANDLES MAKE IT
EASY TO MOVE THE
WORKCENTER FOR
VERTICAL SUPPORT BAR SETUP OR STORAGE
HELPS ALIGN WORKPIECE
WITH FACE OF DOVETAIL JIG
HINGE FITS IN SHALLOW
RABBET TO PROVIDE
A FLAT CLAMPING SURFACE NOTE: WORKCENTER
MADE FROM !/2" PLYWOOD

RARE-EARTH MAGNETS JIG AND ACCESSORIES

KEEP DRAWER CLOSED CAN BE STORED
IN THE DRAWER

SIDE SECTION VIEW { Tucked Away. The large drawer is sized to hold the jig,
(DRAWER STORAGE DETAIL) templates, support bars, and knobs. And with the wings
folded up, the workcenter stores neatly away.

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Strong & Sturdy Case
In the drawings below, you’ll see
that the workstation starts out as
a simple box. As a matter of fact,
it’s a lot like a cabinet with a top,
bottom, and two sides. But unlike a
normal cabinet, the front is a solid
panel. And the back is open for the
large storage drawer.
For now, you’ll concentrate on
building the basic box, starting
with the sides then adding the top
and bottom pieces. Later you’ll add
the folding wings, a handle, and { Compact. With the wings folded up
the storage drawer. and the jig inside, you can store the
There’s one thing you need workcenter away.
to know before you get started.
My workcenter was sized for the It can be tricky to get these
Porter-Cable 4212 dovetail jig. If joints to line up so the case ends
you have a different jig, you may up square. To get around this prob- { Home Base. The folding wing
need to make some adjustments to lem, I cut the top and bottom pieces makes a handy spot for you to set
the size of the case, the height of to the same size, then cut match- your router when using your jig.
the support bars, and the drawer. ing dadoes in both. The next step
Sides. I started on the case by cut- is to trim the waste off the ends of (Here it’s a good idea to have the
ting the sides to size. Then you just the top piece to form rabbets, as hinges in hand so you can make
need to cut grooves for the front illustrated in Figure 1 below. sure the hinge leaf sits flush.)
panel before moving on to the top There are a couple of other Front. All you need to do to make
and bottom pieces. things you need to do. First, the the front panel is cut it to size, then
Top & Bottom. If you take a close top needs a groove along the front rabbet the top and sides to create
look at Figure 1a below, you can edge to capture the front panel a tongue. Aim for a snug fit of the
see how the sides of the case fit (Figure 1b). On the bottom, cut a tongues in the grooves. Finally,
into dadoes on the bottom piece shallow rabbet on each end for the you can assemble the case with
and rabbets on the top. hinges that will be attached later. glue and screws.

1 TOP IS FASTENED B #6 x 1!/4" Fh

WOODSCREW
IN PLACE
WITH GLUE
TOP
AND SCREWS (14 x 24)
NOTE: CASE !/2"-DIA. MAGNETIC
PARTS ARE
!/2" PLYWOOD A WASTE WASHER AND
#6 x !/2" Fh
SIDE WOODSCREW
(14 x 8!/2)

DADO TOP THEN CL

REMOVE WASTE TO
a. FORM RABBET
!/2
b. !/4
!/2 !/4
!/2"-DIA. x !/8"-DEEP
D COUNTERBORE
TOP A TOP
!/4
!/2
FRONT C !/4
(23!/2 x 8!/4)
BOTTOM
(14 x 27)

FRONT FRONT
SIDE VIEW
1!/2
#/32 #/4
SIDE
!/4 RABBET DEPTH SECTION BOTTOM
EQUALS THICKNESS
OF HINGE LEAF 14" PIANO HINGE VIEW
BOTTOM

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 FOLD-DOWN wings 2 !/2"-DIA. HOLE
THROUGH
a. RARE-EARTH MAGNET
ASSEMBLY
With the shell of the case com- HARDBOARD
plete, you can start working on the CENTER AND
8!/2 CUT OUT FOOT #/4
BLOCK
hinged wings at each end. 14 OPENING TO
FIT ROUTER BASE
If you take a look at Figure 2, F
you’ll see that the wings have an TRAY FRONT TRAY
SPACER SECTION F
opening in the center. These cut- CL VIEW
BOX
SIDE
outs serve double duty. With the
wings folded down, the cutouts
make a convenient resting spot for b. #/32
F
E
your router. And when the wings TRAY
are folded up, the cutout provides
TRAY
access to the carrying handle. FRONT
You’ll build the wings first, then
#/4
SECTION
fit the handles in the openings, as H 1!/4 #/4 G
HINGE
VIEW CASE
SIDE
CENTER AND HINGE (WING DOWN)
FOOT BLOCK
shown in Figures 2 and 3 at right. BLOCK
CUT OUT
2#/4" x 7!/2" BLOCK
CASE
Tray. The trays for the wings start OPENING BOTTOM
with a piece of plywood with a cen- #/4
ter cutout. On top of that is a piece
of hardboard with a larger opening 3 TRAY IN CLOSED NOTE: CENTER HANDLE
sized to fit the base of your router. POSITION ASSEMBLY IN OPENING a. TRAY
I cut all the pieces to size first and
then cut the openings.
Cutouts. To make the cutouts,
HANDLE BLOCK
(2!/4 x 7) HANDLE
SPACER
first drill a hole at each corner. A I
jig saw makes quick work of “con-
necting the dots” to remove the I
waste. With these pieces done,
you can glue the hardboard to the
PULL CASE
plywood and move on to the hinge SIDE
block and the foot that supports 6!/2" FRONT
the tray when it’s folded down. UTILITY SECTION
Hinge Block. The hinge block is
PULL
J HANDLE VIEW
SPACER
(2!/4 x 7 - !/4 Hdbd.)
where you’ll attach one leaf of the #8 x 1" Fh
WOODSCREW
hinge. The goal is to have the tray
flush with the top of the case when
the wing is in the upright position. I
found it easiest to attach the hinge
Materials & Hardware
to the case bottom and the hinge A Sides (2) 14 x 81/2 - 1/2 Ply. (2) 1/2"-dia. Rare-Earth Magnets w/Cups,
block first. Then you can glue the B Top (1) 14 x 24 - 1/2 Ply. Washers, and Screws
block to the tray. C Bottom (1) 14 x 27 - 1/2 Ply. (26) No. 6 x 11/4" Fh Woodscrews
Foot Block. The foot block is sized D Front (1) 231/2 x 81/4 - 1/2 Ply. (8) No. 8 x 1" Fh woodscrews
E Trays (2) 14 x 81/2 - 1/2 Ply. (12) 1/4" Washers
so that the tray sits parallel to the
F Tray Spacers (2) 14 x 81/2 - 1/4 Hdbd. (8) Round Knobs with 1/4"- 20 x 3⁄4" stud
bench when it’s in the open posi-
G Hinge Blocks (2) 3/4 x 3/4 - 14 (4) Round Knobs with 1/4"- 20 x 11/2" stud
tion. Just cut the foot block to fit H Foot Blocks (2) 3/4 x 11/4 - 14
and glue it to the tray. I Handle Blocks (2) 7 x 21/4 - 1/2 Ply. Source Information:
Final Steps. The last step to com- J Handle Spacers (2) 7 x 21/4 - 1/4 Hdbd. Knobs from McMaster.com, #1373T57,
pleting the wings is to install the K Front Stop Bars (1) 1 x 201/2 - 1/2 Ply. #1373T58
rare-earth magnets and washers, L Top Stop Bars (3) 31/2 x 201/2 - 1/2 Ply.
as shown in Figure 2. M Adjustable Stops (4) 11/2 x 21/2 - 1/4 Hdbd. Magnet hardware from LeeValley.com,
Handles. The handles fasten to N Drawer Frt/Bk (2 77/8 x 221/8 - 1/2 Ply. #99K3203 (3⁄8" magnet), #99K3252 (3⁄8" cup),
a handle block and hardboard O Drawer Sides (2 77/8 x 131/4 - 1/2 Ply. #99K3262 (3⁄8"washer), #99K3103 (1⁄2" mag-
spacer (Figure 3). They fit inside P Drawer Bottom (1) 123/4 x 223/8 - 1/4 Hdbd. net), #99K3253 (1⁄2"cup) , and #99K3263
(2) 61/2" Utility Pulls (1⁄2" washer)
the cutouts in the trays. I attached
(12) 1/4"-20 Threaded Inserts
them while the wing was closed
(2) 11/2" Continuous Hinges, cut to 14" (w/ Note: Cutting diagram found on page 6
so I could position them properly. Screws)
Finally, you can add the handle. (2) 3/8"-dia. Rare-Earth Magnets w/Cups,
Washers, and Screws

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 Adding the Support
Bars & Drawer
One of the best features of the work-
center is the pair of support bars
(photos at right). They’re sized to
work in tandem with the clamping
bars on your dovetail jig to help
support the workpieces. And they
include adjustable stops that help
keep the workpieces aligned and
square in the jig. There is one on
the top behind the dovetail jig. And
there’s another on the front, below
the jig. To help you size the sup-
port bars to your jig, now would be
a good time to go ahead and mount
the jig to the case.
Mounting the Jig. The easiest way
to mount the jig is to center it along
the top. Your jig may have a clamp-
ing bed that hangs down the front.
Set this tight against the front face.
Then all you need to do is mark the
mounting hole locations for your jig
and drill holes for threaded inserts.
Before moving on to making the sup-
a. CASE
port bars, fasten the jig in place with
FRONT round studded knobs (Figure 4).
FRONT
STOP
Support Bars. For the support bars
BAR to work properly, they should be
CL
4 1!/2
M WITH #/4" STUD
SIDE
SECTION VIEW
b. CASE
FRONT
FRONT
STOP
BAR
1&/16
Top Stop Bar. Besides
accurate positioning, the
stop bar helps support
the workpiece.
flush with the front and top clamp-
ing beds of the jig. So the height
of the support bars will depend on
your jig’s dimensions.
There’s an important thing to { Adjustable Stops. These adjustable
note here. Some dovetail jigs don’t stops help keep longer workpieces
have a clamping surface that will square in the jig.
extend past the front of the case as
mine does (Figure 4). If that’s the blank large enough to complete
case with your jig, you can eliminate both the top and front stop bars.
the front support bar. The next thing to do is to size
Laminated Blank. To make the sup- them to fit your jig. I used a scrap
port bars, you’ll start by gluing piece in the jig and cut the support
up three layers of 1⁄2" plywood, as bars so they fit snugly between the
shown in Figure 4c. I made my workpiece and the top of the work-
center. Finally, I cut two “ears” at the
M
ROUND KNOB
ends of the top bar that are used for
attaching it to the jig.
AND !/4" WASHER
Attach the Bars. Like the dovetail
jig, the bars are attached to the
workcenter with studded knobs
1!/2 ROUND KNOB and threaded inserts. Once you get
WITH 1!/2" STUD
AND !/4" WASHER the bars locked down tight, the box
L
TOP c.
STOP BAR
!/4" - 20 (3!/2 x 20!/2) K
THREADED 1
INSERT

3!/4
SIDE
SECTION VIEW d.
ADJUSTABLE
ROUND KNOB STOP
M 1
WITH #/4" STUD
CL 6
AND !/4" WASHER 1
ADJUSTABLE 3!/2
STOP 1!/2
(1!/2 x 2!/2 - K #/4
!/4 Hdbd.) FRONT TOP
STOP BAR STOP
(1 x 20 !/2) BAR
ROUND KNOB
WITH #/4" STUD 1
AND !/4" WASHER ROUND KNOB L
WITH 1!/2" STUD
AND !/4" WASHER
SIDE 20!/2
NOTE: STOP BARS CUT FROM NOTE: CENTER JIG ON WIDTH
SECTION
ONE LAMINATED BLANK MADE
FROM THREE LAYERS OF !/2" PLYWOOD OF WORKCENTER THEN CENTER VIEW
BOTH STOP BARS CASE
TOP NOTE: SUPPORT BARS ARE
SIZED IN WIDTH (HEIGHT)
1 TO FIT YOUR JIG

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 c. WASHER MAGNET
at the bottom of this page will show AND
CUP
you how to locate and attach the 5 DRAWER
BACK
adjustable stops for your jig. Then you #6 x !/2" Fh
can move on to building the drawer. CASE WOODSCREW
FRONT
!/2"-DIA. MAGNET,
SCREW, AND CUP
DRAWER #/4
The storage drawer slips into the a. DRAWER SCREW
SIDE AND
back of the case. And it’s large !/8 O WASHER 1
enough to store the jig, extra tem- !/8
CL
plates, support bars, and knobs. DRAWER
FRONT 1!/4 N CLEARANCE
(Refer to the photo on page 2.) #/8 !/2"
RADIUS 3 DRAWER BACK NOTCH
Drawer Box. Before I cut the (7 &/8 x 22!/8)
TOP VIEW HANDLE
drawer sides to length, I measured NOTCH
4

the inside depth of the workcenter. N 4%/8

The goal is to have the face of
the drawer flush with the outside
edge of the case. I subtracted the
thickness of a rare-earth magnet,
cup, and washer since these will be
fastened to the back of the drawer
and case. (They will help hold the
drawer closed.)
The drawer front and back are
joined to the sides with tongue and
dado joints reinforced with screws.
After you cut the front and back
pieces to size, cut a groove on all
four pieces to hold the bottom of
the drawer in place.
Notches. Before you glue every-
thing together, you’ll want to
make the handle notches on the
drawer front. And you’ll need to
form a long notch on the back.
DRAWER
b. BACK
!/4" Hdbd.
!/4
DRAWER
!/4
BOTTOM
SIDE SECTION
VIEW
This provides clearance for the
studded knobs that extend into the
case when you attach the jig.
Magnet Catches. The last thing to do
is attach the two rare-earth mag-
nets that hold the drawer in the
case. I installed the washers on the
drawer back, then used them to
locate the magnets inside the case,
as you can see in Figure 5c.
A word of caution here. These
magnets are pretty strong, but you
O
DRAWER FRONT
(7 &/8 x 22!/8)
DRAWER SIDE
(7 &/8 x 13!/4)
NOTE: DRAWER
MADE FROM
!/2" PLYWOOD #6 x 1!/4" Fh
WOODSCREW
NOTE: RARE-EARTH
P MAGNET ASSEMBLY
DRAWER BOTTOM IS FASTENED TO BACK OF
(12#/4 x 22#/8 - !/4 Hdbd.) DRAWER AND INSIDE OF CASE
should still be careful when the
drawer is fully loaded and you’re
moving the workcenter around.
Final Wrap-Up. Now you’re almost
ready to go. Just clamp the dove-
tail jig workcenter securely to
your bench, and get everything
adjusted. Then you’re ready to
start routing great-looking dove-
tails. It won’t take long for you to
appreciate how convenient and
useful this workcenter is.

locating the adjustable stops

Locating the adjustable stops on STOP RANGE

the support bars is a simple pro-
NOTE: JIG TEMPLATE
cess. The first thing to do is find REMOVED FOR CLARITY
the range, or limits, of your dove-
tail jig’s built-in stops. The draw- FIRST: FIND AND MARK
THE LIMITS OF THE JIG
ing shows how I used workpieces STOPS ON THE STOP BARS
clamped in the jig to do this. (You
JIG
can also use a square.) JIG STOP
a. STOP
Once I had the range of my jig’s ADJUSTABLE STOP RANGE
adjustable stops marked on the
THIRD:
support bars, I measured 3⁄4" out- LOCATE THREADED
INSERT #/4" OUTSIDE !/4
side that range. This is where you THE STOP RANGE NOTE: SAME
STEPS WERE
can drill and install the threaded USED FOR JIG
STOP AT RIGHT
inserts. Then I cut a slot in the
!/2 USE WORKPIECE
hardboard stop that was 1⁄2" lon- AS GUIDE TO
#/4 MARK STOP
ger than that range limit I marked RANGE
on the support bars.
Now, with the adjustable stops SECOND: STOP
CUT SLOT !/2" LONGER RANGE
installed, it’s just a matter of align- THAN THE WIDTH OF THE
STOP RANGE
STOP RANGE
ing them with those on your jig.

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Cutting Diagram
M
J J
F F
A B

P
C C E E

D O O 24" x 48" - !/4" HARDBOARD

N N
H G
L K
I I
L
#/4" x 3!/2" - 48" HARDWOOD
L

GRAIN DIRECTION

60" x 60" - !/2" BALTIC BIRCH PLYWOOD

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