Incra i box for making box joints

Sean Farrell

I had my eye on this www.youtube.com/watch?v=3QESurntvaE

Handy for what i intend to do. And please dont say .."make ur own"...just too fiddly. I would be interested to see what others think of it. Plus does the mitre bar on the jig fit all standard router tables?..it says so...so i guess it must. Ohh dam it i 'll come out with the truth.....I'm ashamed to say that i bought a cheap Chinese made Dakota powered router table. Its full title being the magnificant (DK2080). I wanted to make small boxes with box joints...i searched for a finger joint jig online and saw that the best on offer was the Incra i box......a bit pricey ...but seems a versatile jig. Now I'm worried the Mitre track on the "magnificant" DK2080 wont take the mitre bar of the Incra.
I saw somthing online about a shopsmith version of mitres slots/bars for the Incra i box..but i dont understand it. So did anyone get the jig and how did it go for u if so. Oh and please dont say "Build ur own router table that will take the mitre bar if the Incra" I'm just not good enuf......yet!

peter bermingham

That jig don't look to bad at all as for it fitting the table i think their all standard enough sure if it didn't fit get a guide made up have you see this jig https://www.leighjigs.com/home.php The Leigh will give you more options on making boxes it will do fingers and dovetails

Sean Farrell

Thanks for the reply Peter....With Leigh jigs comes the expense....u buy the expensive jig then comes all the pricey templates...i was looking for a one off reliable jig that would be simple to attach and does'nt involve over the top costly accessories. With leigh u fid u want to buy all their range and kind of get caught up in their wares...I don't want to get caught in that trap.

recipio

Sean, I have the Incra I box and it is a great piece of kit.
It has one 3/4" ( 19mm ) sliding bar and you need an aluminium track on your router table to use it. You can buy these separately and re-insert it in your router table if you want to. I have an American saw which has the slots milled as standard and use it with a dado head.
The great advantage with the Incra is that you mill a trial cut and then calibrate the jig off that. That compensates for any minute discrepancy in the cutter and eliminates the wear and tear you get on the home made jigs.
Cutting finger joints is a very precise art - any hairline gaps stand out a mile so the jig is a great investment imho.

Sean Farrell

Hi recipio, its nice to be back. I don't think the sliding bar on the Incra jig is going to fit on my Dakota engineering masterpiece...by the looks of things it won't. Anyway onwards and upwards. Last year ,recipio, u gave me good advice and encouragement on some projects ..thanks for that...any chance i can pm you with some of the resuls.

Sean Farrell

I tried doing finger joints with a jig i made a long while ago....i achieved this...its so,so...not great at the bottom....thats where the reliability of the iNCRA comes in. I guess i need a new router table with the incra i box.

recipio

Sean Farrell wrote: »

Hi recipio, its nice to be back. I don't think the sliding bar on the Incra jig is going to fit on my Dakota engineering masterpiece...by the looks of things it won't. Anyway onwards and upwards. Last year ,recipio, u gave me good advice and encouragement on some projects ..thanks for that...any chance i can pm you with some of the resuls.

Sean, the Incra should fit the Dakota router table ( PM sent ) They are both American.

Sean Farrell

I rang around and i found that the best prichttp://www.woodworkersworkshop.co.uke for the Incra i Box to be £159.95 + £15 shipping. Check that crowd out ....i think i posted the URL rite there....anyway i'll put it up

recipio

Sean Farrell wrote: »

I rang around and i found that the best prichttp://www.woodworkersworkshop.co.uke for the Incra i Box to be £159.95 + £15 shipping. Check that crowd out ....i think i posted the URL rite there....anyway i'll put it up

Unfortunately they have the only agency this side of the pond. You will find it on US sites but as usual its probably not worth the hassle. All Incra products are expensive but very well made. I bought mine from them.

Sean Farrell

Thanks for getting back to me...always reliable recipio....I think for what i intend to do and with the reliability of the Incra its worth the expense,as long as i take good care of it i guess......now for router cutters. Spiral bits i was told are best for finger jointing...less breakout they say. But there are upward spirals and downward spirals. So if i was going to use a good spiral cutter on the router table, with the i box which spiral cutter would be best for the job? God those boxes better be good after i break into my piggy bank.

recipio

Sean Farrell wrote: »

Thanks for getting back to me...always reliable recipio....I think for what i intend to do and with the reliability of the Incra its worth the expense,as long as i take good care of it i guess......now for router cutters. Spiral bits i was told are best for finger jointing...less breakout they say. But there are upward spirals and downward spirals. So if i was going to use a good spiral cutter on the router table, with the i box which spiral cutter would be best for the job? God those boxes better be good after i break into my piggy bank.

You will get perfect finger joints with a little practice. You have checked that the 3/4" bar will fit the slot on the table ?
You are absolutely correct about the spiral bits - they give a much smoother cut than the two wing bits. Unfortunately they are a little pricey - but ( as with most things in woodworking ) you only have to buy them once !
I would go for downward spiral bits as they are better in a hand held router and will work fine in the router table also. In theory they 'push' the work away from the router but with the weight of the jig it makes no difference.

Sean Farrell

Downward spiral bits it is so. Its fascinating to learn the ins and outs of how machines operate and the effects they have.
The only thing is ...can u imagine the collection of spiral bits u would amass if u wanted to cover the 3-18mm range of box joints the Incra jig can do. U would have to put them in a bank vault for security. As always its a case of getting what u need first and the collecting as u progress.
I'm having a root for a digital calipers i have hiding somewhere...but on a quick measurement of the router tables mitrebar...i'm out of luck...and as u say recipio....the i box runs on a 19mm alum. track.
The dakota's table top is made of a steel pressing so i cant mill a slot on it. Anyways it gives me a chance to build my own table to my own desired specs
The Dakota 2080 is a intro standard router table....not that costly to buy and i bought it for it s easy router lifting capabilty. Some reviews say its great for the money spent although problems with fence alignment have to be overcome by levelling it with pieces of ply. When i say pieces...i mean slivers.
I'll be using the dakota as a template to build my own table and one of the first specs. will be to rout a rebate to attach the t-track or aluminium track for the incra i box jig.
Onwards and upwards as they say.
My new mantra is now "You only need to buy it once"...so i'll try desist on buying crap in the future and keep my impetuosness in check, I'll write down exactly what i need from a machine to do for me and save up for it. Thanks for the info Recipio.

Sean Farrell

Yep just got an e mail back from Rutlands about the Dakota...the rep replied
"I can confirm that the mitre slot is a standard ¼” track and the mitre bar measures 6mm in height by 15mm in width".......whats that mantra again "You only need to buy it once"....I'll do my research proper next time as they say

Sean Farrell

I've just realised on viewing my posts what a skin flint miserly SOB i am...guess its to do with having loads of family members working in the bank.....ooops too much information there...prone to a tiger kidnapping now....dont fret all the banking family are either all retired, living in a council houses or died pennilees in a paupers grave. lessons to be learnt there!

recipio

Sean Farrell wrote: »

Yep just got an e mail back from Rutlands about the Dakota...the rep replied
"I can confirm that the mitre slot is a standard ¼” track and the mitre bar measures 6mm in height by 15mm in width".......whats that mantra again "You only need to buy it once"....I'll do my research proper next time as they say

Yes, I looked at your photo and it is different to the Dakota table sold by Rutlands. You will have to solve the 19mm track problem somehow. Finger joints are a funny thing. They look best when matched to the size of the piece being made. Typically a small box looks good with 4 - 6mm joints. I wouldn't ever mill big 12 mm joints unless the piece was about 45 - 60 cm ( 18" - 24" ) high.
I found it worth while to set up a dedicated 1/4"/8 mm router table as its a hassle putting small cutters into a big 1/2" router. Something to consider when the lottery win comes in. !

Sean Farrell

I went onto Rockler website just there ...again their box joint jig ..although not as versatile as incra,also runs on 3/4" track. But check out their specialised box joint router cutters ...different and interesting www.rockler.com › Woodworking Jigs › Router Jigs[/URL]
Specialized Router Bits: Box Joint Bits Help Create Box and Drawer Projects

recipio

Sean Farrell wrote: »

I went onto Rockler website just there ...again their box joint jig ..although not as versatile as incra,also runs on 3/4" track. But check out their specialised box joint router cutters ...different and interesting www.rockler.com › Woodworking Jigs › Router Jigs[/URL]
Specialized Router Bits: Box Joint Bits Help Create Box and Drawer Projects

I think you mean the 'Finger Joint cutter' for $89.99 ?
I've never tried it but its very limiting, being confined to one size. It makes the Incra i box look like a bargain !
You will get spiral bits anywhere but I tend to use www.wealdentool.co.uk as their quality is top notch. A 6mm spiral bit is a useful size to get you started.

Double Barrel

This may be out of your price range but the WR is a very versatile tool and something to consider.
The Wood Rat has being around for quite some time -25+ years?- in small and medium production shops. It is the all-encompasing solution to jointmaking, - dovetails, mortise and tenons, housings and a variety of complex joints - plus profile work and moldings.

http://www.woodrat.com

And a new improved version by another company:
http://www.chipsfly.com/category/M.html