To make dovetail drawer boxes in Mozaik, add a new drawer box in the Libraries tab, turn on Dovetail Construction, and set your pin depth in the dovetail setup menu. From Mozaik 14.1 onward, this lets manufacturing shops size dovetail boxes correctly and pull accurate parts straight from the cut list — whether you cut them on a machine or by hand on a jig.
This guide follows Mozaik's official walkthrough. Watch the original on Mozaik's channel:
The short version
- Check your drawer guide and clearance settings so Mozaik calculates the box width correctly.
- Add a new drawer box in Libraries > Drawer Boxes and turn on Dovetail Construction.
- Open Setup Dovetail Construction and set your pin depth.
- Drop the box into a cabinet and confirm the width and pin depth in the cut list and 3D view.
Step 1 — Confirm your guide and clearance settings first
Before building the dovetail box, review the drawer guide hardware so Mozaik knows how to size the box. In the video, the guide is a Blum 563H undermount slide, set with a clearance of 3/16″ from the edge of the drawer box to the inside of the cabinet (or inside of the face frame) on each side. Because that clearance applies to both sides, the finished box ends up 3/8″ narrower than the opening.
The guide can be marked as side mount or undermount, and that choice tells Mozaik how to calculate the drawer box width. Set this correctly up front so the rest of the math falls into place. The Blum 563H is an undermount slide, so it's flagged as undermount in the library.
Step 2 — Create a new dovetail drawer box
Open Libraries > Drawer Boxes, then choose Add in the upper-right corner to start a new box. Give it a clear name — the video names it “hand cut dovetail” so it's easy to find later.
You can left-click the image area on the left to bring in your own reference picture (for example, a half-blind dovetail). This is purely a visual reference for the library entry.
At the bottom of this screen, set up the box's standard sizing:
- Standard heights — the video starts at 4″ and steps up in 2″ increments (4, 6, 8, 10) and ends at 12″.
- Guide lengths — the Blum 563H undermount guide in the example comes in lengths of 9, 12, 15, 18, and 21.
- Clearance — set to 5/8″ in the example.
Tip from the video: use the blue question-mark (?) icon for built-in help on each of these bottom settings.
Step 3 — Turn on Dovetail Construction
On the right side of the drawer box screen, select Dovetail Construction. Turning it on reveals a new option: Setup Dovetail Construction.
Before moving on, also set your bottom recess and bottom dado depth here so you don't forget them — these control how the drawer bottom seats into the box.
Step 4 — Set your pin depth in the dovetail setup
Choose Setup Dovetail Construction to open the dovetail drawer setup menu. The key value here is the pin depth — how far the pin reaches into the front of the drawer box.
In the video the pin depth is set to 5/16″, then changed to 1/4″ to demonstrate the adjustment. Pick the value that matches how you actually cut your dovetails, then select OK.
With dovetail construction on, the sides of the box die into (enter into) the front and back, while the front runs the full width of the box — exactly how a half-blind dovetail goes together.
Step 5 — Verify in the 3D view and cut list
Drop the dovetail box into a real cabinet and check that the numbers are right.
- 3D / top view: Open the product's 2D/3D view, switch to the top view, and measure the pin. It should match whatever you set — when pin depth is 5/16″ you'll measure 5/16″; change it to 1/4″ and you'll measure 1/4″.
- Cut list: In the example, the box is assigned to a face-frame cabinet with a 44″ opening. Because the box is configured to come in 3/8″ under the opening, the cut list reports the box at 43-5/8″ wide — exactly 3/8″ less than 44″.
Once those numbers check out, the dovetail box is ready to run, and your full cut list — every part — comes out correct.
Why this matters for your shop
If you cut dovetail boxes on a dedicated machine or by hand on a jig, setting them up properly in Mozaik means your part sizes are calculated for you and your cut list is accurate the first time. That's the streamlining benefit Mozaik added in version 14.1.
Get it done-for-you
You can set this up yourself using the steps above. If you'd rather skip the setup, PAC's Mozaik training and done-for-you services can help — phillanton.com.
Full disclosure: this guide is published by Phill Anton Consulting.
FAQ
What Mozaik version do I need for dovetail drawer boxes?
This dovetail drawer box setup was introduced in Mozaik 14.1 for manufacturing customers.
How much narrower than the opening will the drawer box be?
It depends on your per-side clearance. In the example, a 3/16″ clearance on each side makes the box 3/8″ narrower than the opening — so a 44″ opening yields a 43-5/8″ box.
What is “pin depth” and where do I set it?
Pin depth is how far the dovetail pin reaches into the front of the box. You set it in Setup Dovetail Construction, and you can confirm it by measuring in the top view (5/16″ and 1/4″ are shown in the video).
Can I use this if I cut dovetails by hand?
Yes. The video specifically calls out shops cutting dovetail boxes “on a hand jig or a hand machine” — set the box up this way and Mozaik gives you the correct cut list regardless of how you cut the joints.