Buy PRAZI PR-3900 ChestMate Dovetail JigPRAZI PR-3900 ChestMate Dovetail Jig Product Description:
- Create your own patter of dovetail arrangements
- Includes indexing guide and pin guide
- Designed for stock thickness of 1/2-Inch-1-Inch
- Creates 3/4-Inch 14-Degree through dovetails
- Simple instructions included; tools required: 1/4-Inch or 1/2-Inch router with 6-Inch diameter base; 5/8-Inch diameter follower bushing; 3/4-Inch 14-Degree dovetail cutter bit; 5/16-Inch straight cutter bit; bench vise and cl-Amps
Product Description
While dovetails are the perfect accent on many projects, few large projects rarely fit the confines of traditional router dovetail jigs. Thats why the Prazi Chest-Mate will be your dovetail jig of choice for those larger projects. The ChestMate is constructed of cast aluminum with clamping components to hold the jig tightly on the work piece during routing. Create your own dovetail arrangements with any width stock (not limited to 24") and thickness ranging from 1/2" to 1". 7 degree and 14 degree through dovetail templates are included with added templates for making four sizes of precision box joints, mortise joints, dowel joints and two sizes of random spaced box joints. Use the simple instructions or DVD to create strong joints with your router. Requires 5/8" x 7 degree or 3/4" x 14 degree dovetail router bit (not included) and 5/16" straight router bit (not included) for dovetail joints, 3/8" straight router bit (not included) for box joints and 5/8" template guide bushing (not included).
Customer Reviews
Most helpful customer reviews
34 of 34 people found the following review helpful.
Ingenious dovetail jig
By Y1
I first saw this product at a woodworking show at pre-ordered one on the spot.And then I bought a second so that I could speed up my dovetailing by having one setup for tails and the other for pins.It works by moving the jig from slot to slot along a spacing index template that you create and clamp to your work piece. At each index position, you zip the router through the jig to create either the tail (or pin) on the piece. When you're done cutting you first set of cuts you clamp you index template to the other work piece, reconfigure the jig for the mating part of the joint, and zip along the same way.PROs:* No fixed templates; you create your own spacing template (with fixed or variable spaced slots)* No fixed templates; you can dovetail work pieces several feet long* Solid construction (I dropped it on my concrete shop floor and it survived)* Removable routing insert to accommodate different dovetail bits in the futureCONs:* Only one dovetail bit supported (at the moment)TIP:* To ensure you line up your template to the work piece in the correct orientation, screw a washer onto the end of the template to keep the work piece flush with your template before clamping it up.
34 of 37 people found the following review helpful.
Great if working with exactly 13/16" material
By Stephen E. Wells
I ordered this from Amazon. Arrived on time. Works as advertised. The indexing board you make is brilliant idea for allowing infinitely variable spacing of through dovetails. Some changes have been made and will now work for a 7 degree dovetail as well as a 14 degree. Have not yet tested the instructions for making 1/2" dovetails. Only tested with a 3/4" dovetail.Now the downsides (as compared to hand cutting the dovetails). It is optimized for 13/16" material. If your material is thinner than that, you have to "pad out" the material to be 13/16" if you want to get the best results from the jig by adding shims to make the 13/16" thickness. If you have a planner, then this is not so terribly onerous as you can get the thickness you need fairly easily. A little less than 13/16" seems to still work okay but if you are working with 1/2 inch stock you will definitely need to shim to the 13/16" thickness.Additionally, you need to be aware that not just any 5/16" straight bit will work for making the pins. You need one with a lot of heft and a long shank so make sure you get one that has a 1/2" shaft and is at least 2 1/2" inches long in total. One of my 1/4" 5/16th bits was only 2" long and could not reach the 1 and 5/16th inch depth required while having enough of the bit in the collet to be safe. Additionally, another 2 1/2 inch long 1/4" 5/16th bit had a real tendency to flex when it was at the 1 5/16th inch depth you have have to get to.When cutting the pin boards, you will need to take four or five very shallow passes with the 5/16th straight bit to get to the total depth required. Course, as far as I know, you don't have this option on the 3/4" dovetail bit so be aware you are hogging lots of material in each tail so go slow and be very careful. Don't skimp on the bit or you will regret it. Make sure the dovetail bit is extremely sharp and of very high quality.All in all, this is a good product and I enjoyed using it. Just realize the limitations and you will be fine. If you don't have a planner to make the needed shim boards when working with 1/2" material, this is not a good choice when compared to hand cutting.My two cents worth.
13 of 14 people found the following review helpful.Chestmate fills a niche.
By toolmanlh
I purchased the Prazi Chestmate becuase I wanted the flexibility of the variable spacing of the dovetails. I work in a cabinet shop where we have a large Grizzly dovetail machine as well as a 24" PC fixture. They both work great but DO NOT offer a choice of spacing the pins and tails. Boring!My first attempts produced a very nice fitting dovetail joint although it took a little trial and error. The first test pin fit very snugly. Using that setting across a project of 19" made for a joint that didn't want to go together. After re-adjusting for a slightly looser fit and re-cutting the pins, it all went together very nicely. I'm sure that my next project will go much faster knowing what I learned from this initial project. That being said, this IS NOT a production piece of equipment. If you want to produce all your drawers for a kitchen remodel it would do it but not as efficiently as one of the many other fixtures that are available.However, if you are like me and want to make variable spaced dovetails without spending a fortune, this jig will do it very effectively with only a small learning curve. Oh, and one other point ..... because of the way the jig works, with the piece being cut backed up by wood front and back, there is virtually no tear out or chipping.
Latest Price: See on Amazon.com!
More Info: See on Amazon.com!
See Customers Review: See on Amazon.com!
