Hey guys, I am drawing up some plans for a couple parts I want to make, and they will require some small dovetails in 6061. Max width will be 1/4", 60 degree included angle. I have looked around online and found one at Brownell's for $30, but since I've never used a dovetail cutter before, I thought it might be a good exercise to make one out of O1 (which I have on hand) and try it out before potentially trashing a perfectly good cutter. I will need to cut a total of approximately 30 inches of dovetail. My plan is to use a hex block and put either 3 or 6 flutes on it. However, I haven't been able to find any tutorials on making a small dovetail cutter, only larger insert-based ones. My questions are as follows:
- How much relief should side and bottom edges get?
- How do I determine how far past center to cut the flutes?
- What is the best way to sharpen the small, triangular flutes after heat treating?
- Should the corner of the cutter be slightly rounded to reduce the risk or ruining the tool in use?
Yes, I'm a total noob in this area, so please, school me!
- How much relief should side and bottom edges get?
- How do I determine how far past center to cut the flutes?
- What is the best way to sharpen the small, triangular flutes after heat treating?
- Should the corner of the cutter be slightly rounded to reduce the risk or ruining the tool in use?
Yes, I'm a total noob in this area, so please, school me!