Getti'n jiggy with it

It's important to know your limits. Sometimes I can design something I need to finish a project, sometimes I rely on my woodworking support staff.

Here they were when the shop was very young.
(I always made them wear ties, most of them despised me)

And here they are now - 2011
(Mikey in the center handles most of the dangerous cutting)

I've made a total of two jigs in my life. One was for a lap joint, the other for a recessed clock face. Jigs are relatively easy to make. For this chair I'll need to mortise 4 holes for the connecting tenons. I'll be using a 3/4 double fluted bit, and things need to be pretty darn exact when it comes to cutting the mortises.

My staff searched the Internet for a good design. They saw a few of these types of designs, and it seemed simple enough, adjustable, and low tech. All we needed was a piece of Acrylic (Perspex in European terms) to act as the base, and two wood guides for the sides.

Here's the design we're going to copy

This jig makes it easy to see what's being cut, as it's clear, and I can make very small adjustments to the guides.

An hour later and I've finished the base. Tomorrow I will try and find two nice pieces of wood for the guides, and some wing nuts and bolts to hold it all together.

Attached to the router

Almost done!