How to repair inaccurate dovetails

[Bodker]

I'm new in this forum, and I need some help as I've been making dovetails which could need a little help for correct fitting .
Is it possible to add some saw dust to the glue to fill in a ½-1 mm gap?

TIA

Bodker
Denmark
Europe

[munruben]

Hi and welcome to the forum. yes you could mix sawdust with some glue and fill the gaps but I don't think it will look too flush. You could also use CA glue to fill the gaps or Epoxy resin glue mixed with sawdust too but again I dont think it would look all that great. Give it a try and experiment with different methods. Personally I don't hand cut dovetails but use the Gifkin dovetail jig which gives a perfect dovetail joint. There are guys on the forum who do hand cut them and they do an excellent job and one of those guys may be able to give you some advice betther than I can offer. Good luck

[jmk89]

If it really is 1mm, cut a piece of scrap (from the board or using an existing offcut) and make a veneer to push into the gap and fix it with thin CA. It still won't look flash, but it will look better than using a glue/sawdust filler for such a big gap.

If it is a critical joint I would remake it. Either way, just chalk it up to experience - you get better at hand cutting dovetails the more of them that you do.

[orraloon]

Bodker,
Welcome to the madhouse of wood.
You could get away with a sawdust filling if you use epoxy glue but it will look a bit rough.
A better option is to use shims (strips) of the same wood in the gaps. Trim and plane when the glue dries. If you line them up with the grain it will almost look perfect. This is wood glued to wood so is stronger than a void full of glue. I have used this method on a scarf joint that was a bit rough.
Regards
John

[Fencepost2]

If the length of your piece is not critical, you could lop off the offending pins or tails and start again - I have done this with a few boxes where length of width were not too important. Or, as Orraloon just said, glue in some bits matching the endgrain and cut the dovetails again closer to the right size - this could produce an almost invisible mend. I have had to do this quite a lot, and also with tenons that I have cut too slack. Filling with glue and sawdust could work okay, but it will be almost impossible to perfectly match the appearance of the end grain of the wood and so your joint lines will show quite clearly.

[derekcohen]

If you match end grain with end grain, it will be near impossible to pick afterwards. For face grain, match the grain carefully.

Avoid all fillers!

Regards from Perth

Derek

[Wooden Mechanic]

Avoid all fillers!

Lol,

Yeah all I would do is cut a veneer and slot it in. You shouldn't have gaps, isn't that right Derek?

[chippy 71]

[QUOTE=Bodker;1020831]I'm new in this forum, and I need some help as I've been making dovetails which could need a little help for correct fitting .
Is it possible to add some saw dust to the glue to fill in a ½-1 mm gap?

When I served my apprenticeship in the 50s, there was saying, " In glue and dust we put our trust" Tongue firmly in cheek!

Colin.

[Christos]

Welcome to the forum

[Bodker]

Welcome to the forum

Thanks an awful lot for the warm welcome and all the good advises.
I'm sure next time I'm taking on a job like this I'll be more careful in marking and sawing the dovetails.
The thickness of the wood is 50 mm and I did not realise a template and the router could be used for this thicknes.
It was a lot of fun doing it by hand though, and gave me the opportunity to learn about this forum too.

Thanks from chilly Denmark.

Bodker

[Christos]

At the beginning of this year end of last year I completed my first dovetails joint by hand since I had left school some 20 years ago. I had a bit of luck on my side as they came out straight. The gaps I left, figured that it could be a talking piece. Not able to see them unless you open the draw.