Lost Art Press

Bashing out Dados by Hand

Posted on by kalevogt

With Chris out of town this week, Megan and I determined this a perfect time to wreak havoc around the shop. And by “havoc,” us nerds mean finally getting around to finishing my first Dutch tool chest. In this video, Megan demonstrates her dado cutting process using hand tools while I film. What if my chest shelf is cupped? How do I ensure I am at the baseline all the way across? What is the most entertaining way to bash out my dado waste? Megan answers all of these questions and more. Make sure you watch the end of this one.

— Kale

p.s. I’m the newbie here; you’ll be hearing more about me soon!

24 thoughts on “Bashing out Dados by Hand”

  1. I just saw this video on You Tube…It was clear, concise, and informative…Well done folks! I like seeing how things are done. Look forward to more.

    2. Green! My favorite color, I’ll be using General Finishes “milk paint,” basil color. We have some extra in the shop from Chris using it on a past chair. I’m thinking black on the hardware.

      1. A woman after my own heart! My mom had 3 girls in a row and color coded our stuff to tell whose was whose, mine was green and it stuck (helps that I look good in it 😉

        I have a soft spot for women in “traditionally male” occupations having been an icebreaker 50 years ago, some guys can be funny about women with dirty hands and callouses, but that tells you whom not to bother with. Have fun and keep on trucking!

      2. Great stuff Kale, I know a lot of us can’t wait to see you learn a grow in your woodworking knowledge and skill. Soon you’ll be telling us the right way to do things!

        1. Oh my goodness… I love that color! Now to convince Chris and Megan…

          2. If you would like to kill 2 birds with one stone and like kelly green, try some viking linseed chrome green, I haven’t heard that they have experience with that brand yet. The color is the same as the green stick LAP may have to charge strops and buffers and also available in Allback and Ottesson.

  5. What I also love about this video: the instant thought is “why not just use a dado stack on the tablesaw, or a power router with a straight cutter”

    by the time you’ve faffed and fiddled to get the power tool set up, found your hearing protection, set up the dust collection device, tried to get a fence set up to guide the tool. Fiddled the depth of cut.

    You’d already be long done with backsaw, the chisel and the router plane. And its quieter!

  6. You’re a newbie, and already bashing out waste. It took me years to get that far — and I still can’t say that I bash in an entertaining manner. Good for you. I look forward to following along.

  7. I have not seen grooves or dados cut like that before. I will have to give it a try. Thanks

  8. Always nice to get a chance to teach owns hands some new, or refresh them since they’re so far apart sometimes.

  9. Great first post, Kale!
    And great concise lesson on dados. Have fun building your tool chest!

  12. I sometimes put a small bevel on the underside of the shelf if its a bit too tight or plane the thickness of the board down on the bottom. Is this an acceptable way of fitting the shelf? Are there issues with this in the long run?

    1. That’s what I do, too – a few cross-grain passes at a slight angle with my block plane, until the shelf fits. It’ll never show.

  13. A very useful and instructive short film, this, for which thanks, and delightful to get to hear your (written) voice, Kale! Here’s to a continued happy tool chest build!

    Cheers,

    Mattias

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