Thread: Are box joints just dovetails with no taper?

yes

A nifty little tool. Have you ever used it? Was thinking the paper would come adrift very easily.

And what Knurl said.

Thanks for the confirmation.
I've used it on scrap and the paper didn't tear, but then my trowel is pretty sharp. Rusty, luckily, but still sharp.
Do you reckon it would be any good for those twisted japanese dovetails?
Or any other sort of joint?

That's a nifty website and thanks for giving me the link.

Given that the paper template is two dimensional it wouldn't work unless you are making straight cuts. What do the other guys think?

Fantastic site Blocklayer.. I like the wood calc, just have to drag my computer to the workshop now.

Hey Knurl
I'm not a woodworker, so I dunno much about dovetail joints and all (although, as every blocklayer will tell you, I (they) are (were) the best blocklayer there ever was. Except of course, for Paul Skaines, who really was)
but the template is only 2 dimensioanl until you fold it over the end of the wood, when it becomes 3 dimensional.
..............
At least I think it is.
.....
Is It?

From giving it a cursory thought, I think a folder paper overlay should work for any joint that can be marked out on the surface of a piece of wood. In many cases it would be easier to see than a knife line (on dark endgrain for example). You'd have to make sure that the printed line is thin though for the cuts to be accurate: the thinnest that your printer can print and still be visible.

On the web software: what about making the GUI inputs edit fields instead of drop-down menus, so that fractions can be entered, e.g. 2.75mm, instead of 2mm or 3mm?

Also: maybe you could produce two versions of the template with 'X' marks where the waste is to be cut out. Then users would know which side of the cut lines to place the saw kerf.

Great idea Zenwood. It is easy to get confused about which side of the line to cut if you don't mark the waste with an X. I always do it on both sides - it only takes seconds but a mistake can waste hours and good timber.