A
dowel is a solid cylindrical
rod, usually made from
wood,
plastic, or
metal. In its original manufactured form, a dowel is called a
dowel rod. Dowel rods are often cut into short lengths called
dowel pins. Dowels are employed in numerous, diverse applications including
axles in toys,
detents (e. g., in
gymnastics grips), structural reinforcements in
cabinet making, and supports for tiered
wedding cakes. Other uses include:
- As furniture shelf supports
- As moveable game pieces (i. e., pegs)
- As supports for hanging items such as clothing, key rings, tools, toilet roll dispensers and picture frames
- To precisely align two objects in a dowel joint: a hole is bored in both objects and the dowel pin is inserted into the aligned holes
- As a core to wrap cable or textiles around