[JavaGeek]

Hello All,
I am considering buying a dovetail jig, either the Porter Cable 24" Omnijig 77240 or the Leigh D4R.

I want to route 1/2" stock for drawers and boxes 3/4" stock for cases.

Does anyone own the Porter Cable 77240?

How well does it work?

How much work do you have to go through to change stock thickness?

I noticed a review on Lumberjocks (the forums software won't let me include the link) where someone said it handles 1/2" stock poorly and you must buy new stops. Then again, I found more than 1 review that said the Leigh D4R can't do single pass half-blind dovetails (despite videos showing the technique).

I am hoping to just take the pain now and buy a premium jig and hopefully never buy one again. I like the design of the omnijig and it looks really well built although I haven't ruled out the D4R.

Thanks,
Steven

 

[Ralph Barker]

If I had the space to have a permanent dovetailing station, I'd buy the OmniJig in a flash. It's fairly large, and heavy (about 60#, as I recall), so it's less convenient to move around that the 4200-series jigs. Both PC jigs have "mini" templates for use on thin stock - down to 1/4", as I recall. I don't know if the Leigh jig has mini templates, though. The OmniJig (and the Leigh DR4) offer(s) variable spacing, of course, which offers greater flexibility, but more set-up effort.

The OmniJig owner's manual can be found here:

http://www.deltaportercable.com/jigs/omni/A24502-11-16-07-EN.pdf

 

[JavaGeek]

Took a look at both

So I was ready to get the omnijig online and I stopped by Rockler for something else.

Holy sh*t that's huge!!!!

The Leigh D4R is tiny in comparison. It's literally 1/3 of the weight (22 vs 75 lbs). The omni jig is nearly 44"w x 19"d. The Leigh box is 36" x 8" x 8"

I still prefer the design of the omnijig, but I don't even know if I have enough space for it!!! The PC takes up over 3x the volume than a Leigh.

I have a pretty small shop, so a PC may just be too huge and cumbersome for my space needs. I guess my first project with it would be a crate to put it in when not in use so I could reclaim the space.

 

[Ralph Barker]

So I was ready to get the omnijig online and I stopped by Rockler for something else.

Holy sh*t that's huge!!!!

The Leigh D4R is tiny in comparison. It's literally 1/3 of the weight (22 vs 75 lbs). The omni jig is nearly 44"w x 19"d. The Leigh box is 36" x 8" x 8"

I still prefer the design of the omnijig, but I don't even know if I have enough space for it!!! The PC takes up over 3x the volume than a Leigh.

I have a pretty small shop, so a PC may just be too huge and cumbersome for my space needs. I guess my first project with it would be a crate to put it in when not in use so I could reclaim the space.

Yep. That's why I was saying I'd need a permanent dovetailing station for it. My back couldn't take lifting it up onto the bench every time I wanted to use it. But, all those pounds are, as they say, feature rich.