Make a Homemade Dowel Center Fixture From Wood Scraps
Trying to keep track of the exact center of something is a bad idea, especially when you are working with dowels. This DIY dowel centering tool is cheap, easy to make, and works great.
You can buy tools to help you locate the dowel center from the store, but in this video from Toolify YouTube, host Criss shows you how you can cheaply turn two pieces of plywood into one. Assuming you already have some basic workshop tools and wood glue, the only ones you might need to order are a few all-purpose blades ( Kriss uses these OLFA 5010 AB-10B 9mm Silver Snap-Coated Blades ) … After you have attached the two pieces of plywood and the glue has dried, it is enough to make a few cuts at an angle and glue the blade in the center. If you want to find the center of the dowel, place it in the corner of the tool and tap it lightly with a hammer. Then turn the dowel and do it again. The blade will leave subtle marks that intersect to show the exact center of the dowel.