routing neck dovetail question

[Greg Martin]

Ive been questioning conventional wisdom on why the neck block dovetail couldn't be routed before gluing to the rims. it seems doable and the jiging would be very simple compared to building a bulky fixture to hold the body in place and template to center line. you would have to trim the ends of the rims but that also seems easy doable. Id love to hear more on this .

[Bryan Bear]

Keep in mind I have never done a dovetail neck joint; everything I am about to say is speculation on my part. I have seen kits with the do email already cut in the heel block. It always seemed tricky to me. I would think it would be difficult to glue the heel block to the sides 100% perfectly aligned in each direction. Even if I got it properly alighned with the centerline, how would I know how high up to glue it to the sides. I always end up sanding the rim down to my final shape including the top of the heel block. How would I account for how much I sanded off and the actual thickness of the top? It is not like the classical style where the heel block/neck is the Sarto g pouring that everything is built off of.

It could be that the dovetail takes care of these issues in a way that I don't understand because I have not done it. . .

[Michael Lewis]

There are various methods to get everything lined up, or correct along the way as you progress through the assembly process. The final result is your answer, and the idea is to make the answer what you want it to be,

I glue in a solid block and cut the dovetail mortise after the body is together. This method seems to be predictable and easy to understand, so I use it.

[Mark Langner]

" I have seen kits with the do email already cut in the heel block."

There's a fun auto-correct, I assume! (do email = dovetail?)

Interesting question, as I find the dovetail jig one of the less stable and most difficult to use of any I have made.

[Michael Lewis]

Mark, maybe it's time to remake your fixture. This operation can be frightening if it moves under stress.

[Patrick Hanna]

I've done two dovetails and neither involved cutting the mortise before gluing in the block.. One was completely hand cut. I doubt I'll do that again. The second had a routed neck block and a hand cut and pared dovetail tenon on the neck. Both worked well, but were fussy to get aligned in all the axis. On the second, I did something that is probably unconventional. I glued in the neck block and then routed the mortise before putting on the top and back. I could use a smaller routing jig that way. After installing the top and back, I still had to laboriously cut and pare out the top plate at the entrance to the mortise, but it was very achievable. There are probably a number of reasons why this method should not be recommended, so I'm not recommending it. I'm just saying it worked for me and I wouldn't be afraid to do it that way again.