Will a slight variation in thickness cause problems when laying out dovetails
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Tagged: dovetails
After cutting my pins on the end board, I stood the top board on end and made it flush to locate the knife wall for the dovetail. I made a small knife mark at each end but when I put my square on them (using it on the reference edge like a good boy) the two knife marks didn’t quite line up ( off maybe the thickness of a pencil line). The end of my pin board is dead square to the reference edge so I suppose my top board isn’t quite the same thickness from one side to the other. My question is, should I use my square to mark a line that splits the difference, or use a straight edge to make the knife wall between those two marks, or try to adjust the thickness of the top board? I would think that hand planed boards would often not be exactly the same thickness from one side to the other on a board that is almost 8 inches wide. I feel fortunate that I was able to get it within a pencil line.
Thanks,
Don Hatcher
I would mark and cut for the thinner, and then clean up the sides after the glue has dried. Which you would probably be doing anyway.
Before you cut it measure and plane to the same thickness. Should only take a stroke or two.