After seeing the “Grooving Dowels on a Tablesaw” tip in the last issue, I thought I’d share an approach that I’ve been using for years to groove dowels up to 1⁄2" in diameter. My trick is to use a “collar jig” that has a feed hole through the axis, with nails projecting into the hole to create the grooves as the dowel is fed through the jig. I have several of these, each one suiting a particular dowel diameter.
To make a collar, drill through the axis of a 11⁄4"-long section of 11⁄4"-diameter dowel, using a bit that matches the diameter of the desired dowel size. Next, lay the collar on its side and use a 1⁄16"-diameter bit to drill a hole completely through, intersecting the main hole at its center, and exiting the opposite side of the collar. Insert a 4d finish nail through each side hole, far enough for the tip to project into the center hole about 1⁄32". Slide the collar down a length of dowel to create two opposing grooves, then reorient it 90°, and take a second pass to create a total of four grooves in a dowel. That’ll do it.
