Library › Joinery › Japanese joinery ·
Ari kake (dovetail beam housing)
What is an ari kake joint? · Hardware · basis: Xem Studio design — geometry computed in the generator from traditional proportions
Also called: ari kake, 蟻掛け, dovetail housing beam, dovetail beam joint, japanese beam to girder joint, junta cola de milano viga, Schwalbenschwanz Balkenanschluss
Exact dimensions. True size, with no printing tolerance added.
- length
- 80.0 mm
- width
- 80.0 mm
- height
- 20.0 mm
Notes
- Woodworking joint drawn for 3D printing: the parts lock together by shape, so a print can be joined without glue or screws. Drawn at true size with the parts line to line (zero gap) in their assembled position — add your printer's fit allowance to the mating faces (your AI or slicer can do this).
- A beam end dovetailed into the side of a girder, dropped in from above — Japanese framing's standard beam-to-girder joint.
Ari kake size chart
| dimension | value |
|---|---|
| stock | 20 × 20 mm square |
| parts | girder, beam |
| dovetail | 8 → 13 mm, 10 mm deep, upper 15 mm of the beam |
| assembles | the beam drops in from above |
| holds | the beam from pulling away from the girder |
Where the files are
Other publishers' files are linked, not hosted. "verify" = check the license at the link before commercial use.
| Xem Studio | Joinery design (geometry computed in the generator from traditional proportions) | web | Xem Studio design |
Free files
★ Free files 3 parts. Xem Studio design: free to use, print and sell things from; not to be republished as files. Xem Studio Design License. index.json
| ari-kake-dovetail-housing-girder | Girder with a dovetail socket open at the top | STEP · STL |
| ari-kake-dovetail-housing-beam | Beam with a dovetail on its upper 15 mm | STEP · STL |
| ari-kake-dovetail-housing-assembled | All parts in their assembled position (each part its own solid) | STEP · STL |
https://xemstudio.com/mcp to Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor or any MCP client (free, no account, one minute) and it can look up exact sizes, mating fits and free STEP/STL from every chat.Plain text: sheet.txt · JSON: /api/geometry?object=ari-kake-dovetail-housing

Fits with
Questions
Why only the upper part?
The lower part keeps the girder strong; the dovetail at the top resists pulling out.


