Sliding Dovetails by hand

There are a couple of different ways to construct sliding dovetails. In the small wardrobe I am currently building, the construction relies for strength on through dovetails on the upper ends and a panel with sliding dovetails at the lower ends. For this reason, the sliding dovetails run the full width of the sides, rather than only have a short dovetail opening into a dado.

I have been forming these dovetails this way for a few years now, and looked to find the easiest, quickest method. The construction of these sliding dovetails is documented below.

Step 1 – use a dovetail plane to form the tails.

I stop planing when the side wall angle reaches the outer edge. This is the same width as the board.

Step 2 – Mark out the upper line of the sliding dovetail using a panel gauge.

Step 3 – Mark out the depth of the pin (taken from the tail)

Step 5 – Measure the width of the tail base

Step 6 – Transfer this to the cutting line

Step 7 - use a saw gauge for the pin (this one has a ratio of 1:6)

I prefer using a mitre saw. Its length helps keep the cut straight. It is also easier to maintain a constant depth of cut. This saw is 11 ppi crosscut. It is slow but creates a clean line.