New Dowel Jig - raises Domino comparisons in my mind

[mino]

Exactly. They are becoming niche in a niche industry of small custom shops. DIY and large industry are mostly dowels. Looking at furniture/cabinetry in general there are probably 10000 dowels per 1 loose tenon being used.

Sorry for the possibly inprecise wording.

"Niche" as in in the context of use cases*). And I never stated anything about "becoming". Those use cases are the same for a long time. The precision requirement limitation is the main one. All this in the context of a hobby or a one-man shop who cannot afford a Domino or a DD40 and so looks for a low CAPEX approach that is better than an LR32 router setup yet cheapr than a DD40 class tool.

I am confident that the quantity of people who are looking for a jig like this to save investment into a DD40 that would have an industrial dowel machine in their shop - or seriously consider even a small one - is close to, if not, zero. Hence the comments reflect that assumption.

I stand that dowels for a low-volume maker are simply very niche/specific as far as the range of use cases they offer. That was the message.

As for the jig, I am pretty sure it is fine and may serve well those who need a pretty flexible, if labor-intensive, dowelling jig.

At same, I am of a pretty strong opinion that investing in such a jig *as an alternative* of getting the Domino machine is doing the wrong decision on cost/value. My arguments were raised. No need to agree with them. They represent my annecdotal experience of wasting money for which I could have had a Domino (or DD40) way back, originally thinking very similarly to OP. My excuse is that at the time I was not aware of a D500 being out there.

EDIT:

*)
The only two use cases where I see dowels relying on jigs like this being superior are:
- super-strong cabinetry joints where even three dominoes are just not cutting it => the only reason I did not pass on my dowelling jigs
- super-custom one-offs where nothing else will do => this jig seems accomodating to some of those

For everything else, there are better ways to handle the use cases, the prime of them being a Domino.

To be even more clear, I do not consider the DD40 as an "alternative" to a D500. It just cannot handle all the use cases. The D500 I see as an alternative to DD40 though, same as a more versatile alternative to this jig.

 

[ChuckM]

Snip.

To be even more clear, I do not consider the DD40 as an "alternative" to a D500.Snip.

Hear, Hear!

Nor, for that matter, is a DF700 (even with a third-party kit for using the smaller cutters) a true alternative to the DF500, despite what some may suggest.

 

[luvmytoolz]

Snip.

To be even more clear, I do not consider the DD40 as an "alternative" to a D500.Snip.

Hear, Hear!

Nor, for that matter, is a DF700 (even with a third-party kit for using the smaller cutters) a true alternative to the DF500, despite what some may suggest.

Couldn't agree more, I think that the 4 big boys, the DF500/700, the DD40 and the Zeta P2 are not replacements for each other as they each do something in a specific way that the others cannot or are not practical to do, they do very nicely complement each other though.

I think that even in the smallest shop that does the most modest amount of joinery, one or more of them offers enough in convenience and time savings to be worth buying.

 

[Cheese]

They look nice. I thought they were done on a router table.

Thanks Chuck... [smile] ... 3 different sizes, 3 different designs and 3 different thicknesses all done on a nest. The overall cost is minimal, a 2' x 4' piece of ply, some careful measuring & cutting and some careful indexing of the cutting equipment/tools.

It's pretty easy as long as you're careful and take your time.  [smile]

 

[jeh]

To be even more clear, I do not consider the DD40 as an "alternative" to a D500. It just cannot handle all the use cases. The D500 I see as an alternative to DD40 though, same as a more versatile alternative to this jig.

For the purposes of those reading the thread in the future: I've yet to find a build where the DD40 did not work and yes I had a Domino from the day they were released until buying a DD40 and selling it. 2019 or 2020 with a lot builds since then.

 

[smorgasbord]

To be even more clear, I do not consider the DD40 as an "alternative" to a D500. It just cannot handle all the use cases.

Can you provide us with a couple of examples? I can think of a few examples where the DF500 can't handle what the DD40 can, because the DD40 can handle up to 16mm (⅝") diameter dowels that are 3" long, compared to a max 10mm (3/8") thick domino that's not even 2" long.

Nor, for that matter, is a DF700 (even with a third-party kit for using the smaller cutters) a true alternative to the DF500, despite what some may suggest.

If by "true" alternative you mean handles 100% of the use cases just as easily, then sure. But in that case none of the tools/jigs described here truly overlap 100%. That doesn't mean there aren't overlaps, and for woodworkers operating mostly within those overlaps, they have a choice.

And back to my OP, there are woodworkers for whom a less than $300 doweling jig is at least as good as a $1300 domino. And, maybe even better for some, as the Cam-A-Line jig can handle ½" diameter dowels as long as your drill bit can drill while the DF500 again maxes out at ⅜" tenons only 2" long. And there are cases even within the capabilities of both tools where having two dowels would be preferable to just one domino, strength-wise.

But, that said, the domino is faster, and for some other uses cases better/easier. That said, many home woodworkers probably would relish putting that $1000 towards a good track saw instead.

BTW, I love my DF700 and am happy enough with the adapter kit for 6mm dominos when I do need those, which for my projects has been less often than the longer 10mm or 12/14mm dominos. I especially like the 3 paddles versus 1 paddle on the DF500, and the two-level depth stop has saved my bacon at least twice in not milling too deep on non-balanced domino joints.

 

[ChuckM]

Nor, for that matter, is a DF700 (even with a third-party kit for using the smaller cutters) a true alternative to the DF500, despite what some may suggest.

If by "true" alternative you mean handles 100% of the use cases just as easily, then sure. But in that case none of the tools/jigs described here truly overlap 100%. That doesn't mean there aren't overlaps, and for woodworkers operating mostly within those overlaps, they have a choice.
snip/

By true alternative, in my book, it means a tool that can do most of the functions and most of the time of the other tool that it seeks to replace. After using the DF700 in two projects, I came to the conclusion it was way too heavy for me for the number of mortises I typically do in any project. So it didn't pass the "most of the time" test for me. 6, 4 & 8 dominoes, in that order, are the most common tenons I use, which I buy in bulk packs where available.

I finished this (16 of them), involving over 500 mortises (4mm). I don't think I'd do that "order" if I had only the DF700 with the adapter kit:

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