The dovetail joint is one of the hardest woodwork joint to construct and as its name suggests the joint consists of pins that look like dovetails which interlock into slots.
The pin and slot combination gives the joint greater strength and aesthetics. This is well expained with drawings in the teds Woodworking plans. The work requires good precision and accuracy during the construction of the joints or it may become loose and not great to look at.
These types of joints are most commonly found on the front of drawers or on boxes such as a wooden tool box due to its great strength and very attractive when joints are well constructed.
Dowel joint
Dowel joints are very strong and attractive if like all other joints constructed well. This type of joint is strengthened by using an adhesive and a small piece of dowel. All that is required for this type of construction is nothing more than a drill and some accurate markings. You can get the accurate markings by using a special tool called a dowel centre.
Halving joint
The halving joint is mainly used in constructing a framework. It is fairly difficult to construct as it made up of two channels that interlock and are bonded together with glue and some cases a nail or screw is added for extra strength.
It consists of two pieces of wood that have two channels cut half the thickness of both pieces to produce a flush interlocking joint which allows the two pieces of wood slide past each other.