I need another Dovetail Marker like I need a hole in the head. I have oodles of them. But when I saw the Skunk Tool Works adjustable dovetail marker. It hit that right mix of potentially useful and clever that had my much abused credit card in my hand the day it launched.

It is not cheap at $129, but it has the potential to replace a few of my tools. First off it is a dovetail marker. But it is also adjustable. So the single marker can be set anywhere between 0 and 15 degrees. Common dovetail angles (1:5, 5 degrees, and so on are marked on the tool, allowing you to quickly set it to your desired angle. I checked the 0 degree mark against a square I trust, and that does indeed match 90 degrees.

Do you need a dovetail marker? Maybe not. You can do the job with a bevel, or even lay out the angle on a piece of wood and cut it and use that. So a dovetail marker is a nice to have. It does speed up laying out dovetails, and I use one every time I do. If you compare the price of the Skunk marker to a set of markers from most other makers, suddenly the price looks very reasonable.

Its very solid, and much larger than I expected. It can mark 1 7/8ths down the face of the board, and the top/back piece extends out 2 inches. This means even on fairly substantial pieces of wood, you can mark your tail angle, and the straight line across the top in a single operation.

I’m pretty fond of having a saddle square. Up until now I’ve always had the Veritas in my tool well. A quick way to carry a line around a piece. But the Veritas is only slightly deeper at 2 1/4 inches, but much shallower at 1 1/4 inches. So I think in most cases this will do me a little better when locked to 90 degrees. So that is one less tool cluttering up my tool well.

Assuming the angle you want is covered. It can also function as a nice compact bevel for some operations. Or even a bevel setter.

All and all I like the tool. Clever, compact, functional. Not a must have, but a very handy luxury.

Skunk Toolworks Dovetail Marker It comes in a fairly substantial package Skunk Toolworks Dovetail Marker Very well padded Skunk Toolworks Dovetail Marker And here is the marker. The knurled knob on the front is used to adjust. Loosen it, and then move up and down to the desired position. It holds well. When I played with it, slipping it’s setting was not a problem. Skunk Toolworks Dovetail Marker Commonly used dovetail ratios/angles are conveniently marked out. Skunk Toolworks Dovetail Marker With it set to 5:1 you can see the adjustable side pieces peeking out. Skunk Toolworks Dovetail Marker At 8:1 its now clear what is going on. Skunk Toolworks Dovetail Marker And at 0, it makes a good saddle square. Skunk Toolworks Dovetail Marker My square agrees its at 90 degrees. Skunk Toolworks Dovetail Marker Viewed from the back you see the fairly nifty mechanism. Skunk Toolworks Dovetail Marker Skunk Toolworks Dovetail Marker About 1 7/8 at the top. Skunk Toolworks Dovetail Marker About 2 inches at the front Skunk Toolworks Dovetail Marker Side by side with the Veritas saddle square.