There are dozens of different ways to cut a dowel, from using a $10 handsaw to a double-headed dowel that costs thousands of dollars. But most of us home woodworkers choose something in between. We want precision, of course, and speed would be nice, but we don’t want to have to spend a lot of money or be limited to a small range of sizes.

No template is perfect for every type of spike under the sun, but there are a few that we can select for our consideration. These are my criteria for choosing a herringbone template.

1. Spike length.
Any jig that cuts the end of the tenon vertically, such as the Leigh router jig or Delta table saw jig, will have the machine’s depth of cut as a limiting factor. For a 10″ table saw, this means shanks up to 3″ long. On a router, it is the length of the exposed router cutter.

On a band saw there is no length limitation, only that the width of the workpiece is less than the height below the blade guard.

2. Spike thickness
If you use a template that uses templates, then you are limited to the size of those templates. For new build projects which probably won’t be a problem, but may be if restoring an older piece. Most people in North America use inches as their unit of measurement, while most of the rest of the world works in millimeters. Being able to use either system is sometimes very advantageous.

3. Accuracy and consistency
Consider how the template actually works. Are both cheek cuts references to one face, just like you would with your hand, or are they references to two different faces? The latter is common, where you have to rotate the workpiece to cut the second cheek, but this is inherently inaccurate. If your workpieces are a slightly different thickness, then your dowels will be too. Some will be tight and some will be loose and will require a lot of adjustment to get it right. Also, the spike will always be dead center, whether you want it to or not.

4. Machine safety
Many tenon jigs, especially those designed for use on table saws, require the user to remove the riving knife because it gets in the way. The riving knife usually holds the blade guard, so the user is exposed to unnecessary risks. Be sure to choose a template that allows for easy operation but preserves your personal security.

5. Versatility
If the template you choose can be used for a variety of tasks on the shop floor, you’ll get an added benefit. For example, will it also cut flanges or joints in half, or perhaps keyed miters? Can it handle offset spikes or twin spikes, or is it a one-trick pony?

6. Set-up speed
Almost all dowel jigs can be trusted to produce accurate dowels, but how easy are they to set up? Some templates take longer to set up than to use for a batch job. It is not only the fit of the shank that must be taken into account, but also its position within the thickness of the workpiece. This is especially important when making face frames. If the dowel is not in the right place, the fabricator will have to plan the faces of all the rails and the backs of all the studs to get everything flush. On some jigs, moving the dowel further, say, 1/32″ requires repositioning both faces of the dowel separately, so adjustment and position becomes a matter of trial and error.

7. Speed ​​in use
Once the jig is set up, how fast does it cut the tenons? A jig that cuts the cheeks and shoulders in one cut, rather than nibbling 1/8″ at a time, will be faster to use.

Once you’ve satisfied yourself with the dowel jig issues above and found one that ticks all the boxes for you, you need to decide whether to buy one off the shelf or build your own.

There are many plans online, some free, some not, but most of them, at least in my opinion, fall short, especially in the speed of setup and security in use departments.

And many of those available on the market have serious capacity limitations, as well as configuration and security issues of most others.

With speed, safety, accuracy and versatility in mind, I developed the Ultimate Tablesaw Tenon Jig and later the Ultimate Bandsaw Tenon Jig. There’s no bare table saw blade to risk your fingers on and both jigs are quick to set up and use. Also, I’m not restricted to having the tenon dead center, I can make it match the mortise if it’s not dead center, and if the tenon isn’t quite in the right place, I can move the whole jig in one place. accurate and precise. enough to line it up properly and do so without losing the fit of the dowel in the process.

I also found it easy to use for twin dowels and split-half joints so it ticks all the boxes for me and others have said they would never go back to their old cast iron model. Sure, buying one is quick, but making your own as a project in its own right is very satisfying, especially when the end result is so much better.

It looks complex when you first see it, but each part has a particular function and is quite simple in itself. If you find it too daunting, start by making one of the many free designs available on the net. But see if you can improve on the original design, keeping in mind some of the issues raised above.

So no matter how you decide to cut your tenons, make sure your template cuts them right the first time every time.

Happy woodworking!