How to Cut a Slot in a Dowel Rod In Woodworking
The easiest way to cut a slot, or mortise, in a large dowel is with a homemade jig for your plunge router (with a straight-cutting bit installed). This jig will hold the round dowel rod in place and guide the plunge router along the chosen path. If the slot needs to have square corners, one can easily clean up the rounded corners with a sharp chisel before removing the dowel rod from the jig.
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Things You'll Need
- 2 pieces of 1- by 4-inch lumber, 12 inches longer than the mortise to be cut
- 1 piece of 1- by 4-inch lumber, 6 inches longer than the length of the dowel rod
- Plunge router with edge guide
- Straight-cutting bit
- Sharp chisel
- Circular saw
- Pencil
- Deck screws, 1 1/2 inches
- Power drill with screw bit
- Safety glasses
- Ear protection
Instructions
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Begin by cutting a length of 1- by 4-inch lumber to match the length of the dowel rod with a circular saw. Then, cut two lengths of 1- by 4-inch lumber at 2 3/4 inches and another two lengths of 1- by 4-inch lumber at 12 inches longer than the length of the desired mortise. In other words, for a 4-inch mortise slot, cut these last two 1- by 4-inch boards 16 inches in length.
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2
Place the long 1- by 4-inch piece on a table. Using the power drill, attach the two 2 3/4-inch pieces of board to the ends of the long 1-by-4, forming a very wide U shape. Then, position the dowel rod so that the upper-most rounded edge of the dowel aligns with the top, center of each end of this U-shaped jig and attach to the jig with two screws on each end.
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3
Using a pencil, mark a line on the dowel to denote the top and bottom edges of the desired mortise. Then, position each of the two remaining 1- by 4-inch pieces on their edges, one on each side of the jig so that the center of each 1- by 4-inch piece roughly aligns with the center of the mortise to be cut. The long edges of these two boards should be on the table, squarely butted against the long 1-by-4 at the base of the jig. Attach each 1-by-4 to the base of the jig with a few deck screws.
Notice that the top of each of these two 1- by 4-inch pieces should be even with the top rounded edge of the dowel rod. The base of your router will ride along these two boards as your router bit is plunged into the dowel rod.
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Position the router on the top of these two boards, centering the bit over the mortise. Adjust the edge guide of the router so that it is tight against the outside edge of one of the two side boards of the jig.
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Adjust the plunge depth of your router to the desired depth of cut. Then, turn on your router and plunge the bit into the dowel rod. Keep the edge guide against the 1-by-4 and ease the router forward or backward to complete the slot. When the mortise is complete, ease the bit out of the wood and turn off the router.
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If the mortise needs to have square corners, use a sharp chisel on the rounded corners to complete the mortise.
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Back out the two screws holding the dowel in place from each end of the jig, and remove the dowel.
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Tips & Warnings
The instructions for this jig assumes that the dowel rod does not exceed 1 1/2 inches in diameter. For larger dowels, adjust the 1- by 4-inch base, sides and ends of the jig accordingly.
Whenever attempting any task in woodworking, always wear safety glasses. In addition, when using routers or other loud machinery, wear appropriate hearing protection.
