Porter Cable 7116 Omnijig 24inch Dovetail Machine  Product Reviews

"I bought a 7116 omnijig and a adjustable through dovetail template from Tool Crib and the first one came to me with a grossly deformed aluminum casting. I don't know how it ever made it past quality control because I noticed the defect as soon as I opened the box. I called Tool Crib and they had UPS come and pick it up at no expence to me. Fed EX delivered the second one and a look at the box had me worried. It was badly damaged, and upon opening it I saw that the styrofoam packing was completly destroyed. Luckly there was no damage to the omnijig.I watched the video (it seemed intimidating) but I started to play with it and get familiar with it. After about 4 hours of set up and making test cuts I made 8 drawers.They came out OK for my first attempt. I think if I buy some good measuring instruments to make set up more precise and easier and after getting more familiar with this jig it will become easy to use and will produce quality joinery."

"This jig is great. It cuts perfect dovetails. However, it does take some time to set it up. Unlike others who say they were making perfect dovetails in 15 minutes, it took me about three hours. I consider myself an intermediate woodworker, but had never used (let alone, seen one up close)a dovetail jug before this. Definitely watch the complimentary video PC includes. The manual doesn't come close to the value of the VHS tape. In fact, I watched certain sections 5 or 6 times and kept going in and out of the shop between viewings ! Everytime I had it about perfect, I'd screw it up by fine tuning it some more ! My biggest problem was getting the left & right side the same (template & router depth adjustments). Backing in/out the 9/16" nut spacer is a little bit like a guessing game. However, after about 10 test cuts I got it just right. Simple tip: It's true that you might need several scrap pieces for test cuts, but it's easy to simply use 2 approx. 16" long stock and keep cutting off an inch of unwanted/non-fiting test cuts and repeat the process.It is also important to remember that your stock must be in increments of 7/8ths to have a half pin on top and bottom of your joint. While others here have expressed regret over this restriction/requirement, I don't see any problem with it. You just have to remember this before you design your project.The cam locks work great. They are easy to adjust. After spending a few "quality" hours with this jig I feel like I've been using it for years. It would be great for mass production jobs."

"The Porter Cable OmniJig is simple in it's design, and is substantially made. The dovetail template is a fixed design. The spacing of the dovetails, are not adjustable. If you have a drawer that is 5 3/8" tall, you will have an odd spaced pin. The ideal are pins that are balanced on the top and bottom. Preferably a half pin top and bottom. With the Porter Cable jig, you could have a tail instead of a pin at one end, or odd balanced pins. The Leigh D4 dovetail jig on the other hand gives you infinite spacing capabilities. That kind of adjustability comes with a price for additional set up time. I want complete adjustability, so I can make the outside pins perfectly matched, and then balance the interior pins and tails to whatever spacing I choose. Additionally I have complete control over the size of the pins and tails themselves. It also accepts specific yet different degree angle dovetail bits. I'm not a yeah this, and a boo that. I like the speed of the omnijig, and the adjustability of the D4. If I was building drawers in a production shop, and time is of the essence, then the PC is the choice. If I was building a custom order, with choice woods, and an even choosier customer, the Leigh would be my choice. The Omnijig is a well made heavyweight piece, designed to do half blind joints. Through dovetails require a different optional, and expensive jig. Still not with adjustable capabilities. The Leigh D4 is lighter and also well made, comes with through, half blind, and sliding dovetail capabilties right out of the box, all at the price of the base Omnijig unit. The PC dovetail machine was proudly pictured on the front page of the October 2002 Woodworkers Journal magazine announcing their ultimate guide. They reviewed the different jigs. With the Omnijig, they mentioned, that like, almost all half blind jigs, they are designed around a 14 degree dovetail. In order to get the depth of cut needed at that angle, the jig uses a 3/4" bit. The reviewer stated, "To me, the resulting dovetail looks rather coarse". On the other hand WJ magazine, states, " The jigs that go both ways, especially the super flexible Leigh jig, earn a space in my shop." Myself, I bought the Leigh D4 with a complete 15 piece set of Leigh factory special router bits, that are custom designed for dovetailing (many different sizes and lengths, and shaft size) for less money than the cost of the PC Omni and optional PC Through Jig. I would also strongly advise you to get their 8mm and 1/2" collet set, instead of the 1/4" and 1/2" shaft size bits, because of the substantially increased strength, yet giving you the capabilities of the smaller pins. You will need an optional 8MM collet for your router to use them. Smaller tighter joints requires slimmer bits, and instead of 1/4" bits with more vibration, which is solved with 8mm bits that give you substantially more shaft size, while still maintaning a small enough size for the smaller template, yielding tighter spacing, and smoother cuts. That is why the international standard for the smaller shaft size is 8mm instead of 1/4". Back to the OmniJig. If my needs grow to production standards, I will be adding the PC Omnijig to my arsenal. Quite simply the advantage to the OmniJig is that you can take your project and put it in the jig, and put out evenly spaced dovetails pre set to the restricted size of the template, without having to run sample cuts to set up the machine. If your running odd lots all day long, that is a major speed difference. If you making large lots of the same size, the initial set up for the Leigh is no longer important, and will result in a balanced job, without the loss of time. I really like my Porter Cable equipment, it is well made, I just think that something as relevant as the contained information should be explained, in addition to the well deserved 5 star reviews."

"The Title of this review says it all. Installing spark plugs in a car is harder than setting up this machine. Everything you need to get to, in order to adjust this machine, is out in the open and very easy to get to. Both the upper and lower cams have a nice even pressure. The templet is superb, and adjusting this machine is a breeze. The demensions and the math are already figured out for you, and the quality of the dovetails are perfect...Not great, not good, but perfect. It took me about 10 minutes to set the machine up, and about 3 or 4 cuts to fine tune it, and we were trucking! If you buy this machine, here's a few points that will make it a very pleasent experience. First, Watch the video. It makes operating this machine very easy. Second, You'll need a porter-cable router. You can use others, but the math has been figured out for this one. Third, you'll need a depth gauge. If you have these, you'll be cutting dovetails in 15 minutes. I have a craftsman comination dovetail jig, and let me tell you, putting it up against this porter-cable, is like putting Bambi up against Godzilla. It's about time that someone made a dovetail machine that really worked without becoming a computer scientist and act like your trying to figure out the formula of the atom bomb in order to operate it. It is very expensive, and now I see why... It works! I love this machine, and I am totally satisfied. Hoss, if you want to make perfect dovetails without a lot of headaches or frustration, then buy this machine. Thanks Porter-cable for making a beautiful machine, and thanks ...for carrying and selling this machine Very happy and satisfied, ..."