Dove Tail ?

[Eric Hochberg]

So, a dovetail has the angled slot, and a mortise has a 90º slot?

[Arnold Schnitzer]

Originally Posted by Eric Hochberg

So, a dovetail has the angled slot, and a mortise has a 90º slot?

Not exactly; the sides of the mortise are usually about 2 degrees off vertical, like the sides of the neck. This helps hold things together, and it allows the neck sides to be at a constant angle (think of the neck's taper--wide at the bottom, narrow at the nut).

[Eric Hochberg]

Thank you, Arnold!