Translations:AY Honors/Woodworking/Answer Key/148/en

A dovetail joint is made by making "tails" in one piece of wood, and "pins" in the other. In the diagram here, the tails are made in the board on the left, and the pins are made in the board on the right. This joint is very strong and will only pull apart in one direction. It is often used for making drawers and boxes. When making a drawer, the pins are cut in the drawer front, and the tails are cut into the drawer sides. This will prevent the joint from pulling apart when the drawer is opened. A drawer facing is then glued to the front to hide the joint, or the joint can be modified to hide them inherently (these are called "blind dovetails").