Advanced Box Joint Jig - new to me!

[KC7CN]

It's been a long time since I have posted anything - please accept my apology if this has already been posted.

I like box/finger joints and have always been fascinated by the variety of jigs to make them! I recently ran across this Advanced Box Joint Jig while searching Google, and noticed a recent update (February 26th, 2012) regarding the addition of available plans. Be advised that I have no affiliation with this product plan!

Videos & Plan link: http://www.ibuildit.ca/Sales/sales-2.html

Details contained in above link: How to cut the metal (or wood) finger comb with videos. (and a note about the update notice to the plan with video above).

http://www.ibuildit.ca/Workshop Projects/Jigs/advanced-jig-2.html#pge-2

On a side notes - I believe the table saw in the videos is shop made! There is an earlier, larger, version of this jig that uses a fence guide instead of a miter gauge bar. This looks like a neat jig! I don't know how long it's been around, but would be interested to know if anyone has made or used one like it.

-Don

 

[junquecol]

Don, welcome home. Alan (in little Washington) has a new adjustable box joint jig that Incra is supposed to have out very soon. Search here for some of his posts concerning his jig.

 

[Alan in Little Washington]

Still waiting, but the I-BOX should be out any day now according to the info given to Woodcraft Corporate.

I believe the jig that Don posted was designed by or with the assistance of Mathias Wandel. Heisz made some improvements to Wandel's jig and was given permission to sell kits and/or plans. I don't think he sells kits any more.

If built and used carefully it looks to be an effective jig. You will notice, however, it will make box joints with a range of finger sizes, but only if they are a multiple of 1/8". That is significant since it means- (1) it won't make joints with odd width fingers (3/16", 5/32" etc.) or ones that are not an exact multiple of 1/8", which may not be a problem for most users, but, and this is very important (2) the jig depends on the dado blade width being set precisely to a multiple of 1/8". That may require considerable playing around with different thickness shims. If you plan to cut multiple boards at one time like he does, you must take great care ensuring the offset spacer used with two of the boards is precisely sized as well. I noticed the joint he cut in the first video was a bit loose. He mentioned he set the blade for a loose joint for the video. I didn't see anywhere that the jig could be micro adjusted for a tighter or looser joint.

A note on construction- I wouldn't attempt to make the "Division Plate," which is a critical part, by relying on a standard TS fence and scale strip- a fence equipped with a Wixey or an INCRA fence would be a better choice.

Bottom line, like I said above, it will work, but it suffers from the same issue as 95% of all box joint jigs- they can't be easily adjusted to the dado blade/router bit kerf size. None will cut unlimited finger widths easily, only a few will make fingers in multiples of 1/16", but most only cut fingers that are multiples of 1/8"

(There is one exception )

 

[KC7CN]

Thanks for the information about the Advanced Box Joint Jig. I also noticed the lack of micro adjustment! My current jig is like the one pictured below. I modified it to use a dial indicator and added a bottom support for the stock, but it doesn't work as good as I would like. I like the idea of cutting all four sides at once, but have never tried it; thanks for the tip on the spacer block! And I was also skeptical of relying on simple table saw fence adjustments for division template. One thing is for certain, it looks like the author has had a lot of fun making these jigs, and I appreciate the very nice video. Wish he lived closer - I need more woodworking buddies!

The new I-BOX jig looks very interesting, but I have not seen anything about it with detail; look forward to seeing it.

-Don

Still waiting, but the I-BOX should be out any day now according to the info given to Woodcraft Corporate.

I believe the jig that Don posted was designed by or with the assistance of Mathias Wandel. Heisz made some improvements to Wandel's jig and was given permission to sell kits and/or plans. I don't think he sells kits any more.

If built and used carefully it looks to be an effective jig. You will notice, however, it will make box joints with a range of finger sizes, but only if they are a multiple of 1/8". That is significant since it means- (1) it won't make joints with odd width fingers (3/16", 5/32" etc.) or ones that are not an exact multiple of 1/8", which may not be a problem for most users, but, and this is very important (2) the jig depends on the dado blade width being set precisely to a multiple of 1/8". That may require considerable playing around with different thickness shims. If you plan to cut multiple boards at one time like he does, you must take great care ensuring the offset spacer used with two of the boards is precisely sized as well. I noticed the joint he cut in the first video was a bit loose. He mentioned he set the blade for a loose joint for the video. I didn't see anywhere that the jig could be micro adjusted for a tighter or looser joint.

A note on construction- I wouldn't attempt to make the "Division Plate," which is a critical part, by relying on a standard TS fence and scale strip- a fence equipped with a Wixey or an INCRA fence would be a better choice.

Bottom line, like I said above, it will work, but it suffers from the same issue as 95% of all box joint jigs- they can't be easily adjusted to the dado blade/router bit kerf size. None will cut unlimited finger widths easily, only a few will make fingers in multiples of 1/16", but most only cut fingers that are multiples of 1/8"

(There is one exception )

 

[Alan in Little Washington]

The new I-BOX jig looks very interesting, but I have not seen anything about it with detail; look forward to seeing it.

-Don

Its gotta be out any day- I got a production copy of the full-color I-BOX Owners Manual in the mail today! I'm getting excited now!

 

[BWhitney]

Its gotta be out any day- I got a production copy of the full-color I-BOX Owners Manual in the mail today! I'm getting excited now!

I got an email from their Field Operations Manager on 15 February estimating ship time of 1.5 - 2 months with announcing the tool in 4-6 weeks. I expect Alan is right that it is just around the corner now! I am also getting excited!

 

[Alan in Little Washington]

Latest update from the factory last week- it will be another 2 - 3 weeks. The DVD is taking longer than expected and the reason for the delay. That is understandable since the I-BOX and what it can do breaks new ground in many respects.

Last week they sent me a photo of the DVD label- at least that is done!

 

[rcflyer23]

Looking forward to seeing this in action. I love my Incra Fence and am sure between you(Alan) and Incra this will be on my wish list soon.

 

[Russ Denz]

Alan,
I've been patiently waiting since you first announced it and now I'm curious: has it been priced yet? Just wanting to know if I should refinance my mortgage - lol.

 

[Alan in Little Washington]

Alan,
I've been patiently waiting since you first announced it and now I'm curious: has it been priced yet? Just wanting to know if I should refinance my mortgage - lol.

Russ,

I have been less-than-patiently waiting!

The only figure I have seen is $150, in a Wood Magazine online blurb from last year. That could be "retail", "MSRP", etc., I can't say, but you know how that goes. The "street price" will hopefully be lower. I'm just not in the loop on those things and don't want to speculate about that or the possibility of "introductory" pricing. Retailers other the INCRA will have their own pricing, too. I don't know who and when others will start carrying it, but I know Woodcraft has signed on.

I will say, we were shooting for something less, because there is a trade-off between price-based revenue and volume-based revenue. It may seem a little high, but when you compare its quality and features to the Woodsmith jig and price with that jig and a lot of other products on the market, it is a real deal!! Though they are nice, look at what you get (a chunk of anodized aluminum) and the price of some of Woodpeckers' "One time only" widgets, or look at some of the expensive plastic or MDF woodworking accessories out there! As we progressed through this project, I was truly shocked how quickly the overall cost goes up with every little nut and bolt, even though some of those parts cost only a few pennies!

As to reviews, Wood Magazine has had a retail-ready prototype for a number of months, but only had an early draft of the manual which I wrote. They were/are waiting for the finished manual and DVD before doing a review. I believe our very own Tom Hintz (New Woodworking dot com), will also review it in the near future.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it!