From the Woodworking in America “Instructors” web page, this is the summary of George Walker’s session:
Use dividers to lay out anything, from dovetails to casework
One of the simplest woodworking layout tools is also the most powerful. The are precise. They don’t require mathematics to use. And they simplify many of the layout operation. You layout dovetails quickly and perfectly with dividers, plus you can use them for many other layout chores that would be tedious and prone to error with numbers and math. George R. Walker, the host of two influential DVDs on design and the “Design Matters” columnist for Popular Woodworking Magazine, shows how you can use dividers at every stage of a project, from designing the carcase and mouldings to placing the hardware.
In this video Walker gives the historical background of the divider, and sets the stage for laying out drawers. I had a bad angle to show properly the layout of the graduated drawers using dividers; but you are in luck, because you can read his Popular Woodworking Magazine article “Graduated Drawers”, at this link. Toward the end of the video Walker shows the “classic Doric order” to illustrate proportions (bingo – perfect for using dividers!), stating that it “…contains the “DNA of traditional design…”, studied by architects, carpenters, silversmiths, etc.
— Al Navas
