Review on 🔩 Miller Dowel O12D11-40 Pack of 40, Stepped Oak Dowels, 1/4 inch Diameter, Ideal for Stock up to 1 inch Thickness by Bob Fasho

I finally tried these Miller dowel pins on drawers. I've used them in other applications, mainly shelving, but have hesitated to use them in upscale furniture projects, although I tested these dowels on scrap pieces a long time ago and they worked with no problems. I was concerned about the length of the hole I needed to drill and the likelihood of the drill bit flying out of the wood during the drilling process. When a person spends hours milling expensive lumber, the last thing they need is a long, ragged hole in the side of the box. But the dowels worked fine. The drill drilled straight and correctly every time. I fixed the parts of the box with a special vice at a 90 degree angle and drilled holes with a hand drill. I also followed the advice on the line and didn't glue every inch of the dowel plus into the hole. Miller Pins are designed to be held with glue only in the top third where the ribs are cut. That saved me from a lot of problems. In my previous tests, I covered the dowel with glue, which caused quite a mess to install. By only covering the top, the build speed has increased. Adjusting the dowel itself holds the drawer together. Overall pretty amazing. One problem I had was a crack at the top of the hole. I was drilling Baltic birch plywood and it split at the top of the hole leaving an ugly result. I tried adding painter's tape but that didn't help. The defect occurred in about a quarter of the holes. To fix this I had to mix sandpaper dust with glue to get a good match with the wood. For the most part it worked and the drawers look nice. The drawers were warped, so the defect is not revealed until the drawer is opened and closely inspected. Even from a distance of two meters only the nice rounded end of the dowel is visible, pointing outwards, giving a nice accent to the piece. AD2