The Jig That Started It All
"Necessity is the mother of invention" or as our founder and CEO, Ken Grisley, fondly says, "Laziness is the mother of invention". In 1980, frustrated with hand cutting through dovetails, and with no reasonable alternatives, Ken set out to develop a method that would help him rout dovetail joints quickly, easily and accurately.
The result was the first ever, infinitely adjustable through dovetail router jig, the Leigh TD515. From humble beginnings in a small garage workshop in a northern BC logging town, Ken, and his wife Joan, founded Leigh Industries in 1981, to manufacture and market the new jig.
The 12″ TD515 was immediately successful in Canada and the United States. Within a year, it became apparent that woodworkers wanted greater jig capacity and in response, Leigh produced a 24″ version, the TD514L, the following year. What followed was a series of innovative products that put professional joinery within easy reach of the weekend hobbyist.
Additionally, it could rout sliding dovetails, angles, compound angles and inlaid dovetails. The D1258 was available in 12″ and 24″ widths with an increased board thickness capacity of 1¼″.
