bushwacked Posted September 18, 2014 Author Report Share Posted September 18, 2014 A jigsaw will do, since you will clean up the edge on the table saw. They are usually a bit less than a circular saw, and are handy for a lot of jobs. Especially if you don't have a band saw. Slow, though. so a cheap like $40 jigsaw would be good enough since I am going to clean it all up on the table saw? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhighlander Posted September 18, 2014 Report Share Posted September 18, 2014 so a cheap like $40 jigsaw would be good enough since I am going to clean it all up on the table saw? It will get you by, but if you do a lot of plywood work, I imagine your patience will wear thin. I would consider it as only a stop-gap measure for this application. You will certainly want a circular saw, eventually. Kikki is right about the track saw, but I get by with a regular circular saw and a shop-made plywood track, since I am a low-volume hobbyist. If I made more stuff, especially from sheet goods, a decent track saw would be on my short list. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woodbutcher74 Posted September 18, 2014 Report Share Posted September 18, 2014 I know I joined a little late but as far as your runners, if you go to a dollar store you can usually find plastic cutting boards that are thick enough and cut your own. I have found some for a buck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ridnharley Posted September 18, 2014 Report Share Posted September 18, 2014 Craigslist for a used circular saw. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jfitz Posted September 18, 2014 Report Share Posted September 18, 2014 Once or twice a month is more than often enough to justify getting a circ saw. The real make/break of a circ saw is the blade, so you might have to invest in a better one. I got tired and frustrated of breaking down full sheet goods on my TS so I avoid it as much as I can. I keep a circ saw with a decent blade and fold-out stands in my garage - break down plywood there before bringing into my (basement) shop. I plan to make real break-down station that will flip up against the wall, just haven't gotten to it yet. Some type of dust collection is a goal, since the circ saw throws dust all around. IMO "soft" maple is just fine for runners. I used it for years with no problems, but when I rebuilt my sled I went with UHMW runners. In general, any hardwood you have 'on hand' is fine. Once fitted, I put a nice coat of wax on them to help minimize any issues with movement due to moisture. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bushwacked Posted September 18, 2014 Author Report Share Posted September 18, 2014 Here are some progress pics so far today ... As you can see I went with a jigsaw for bow to save some money. Cordless which is ok but the cut quality is amazing as you can see :/ All straight and pretty again ... Quick little.mock up before lunch. The boards are not centered and there will be a 2" gap between the fence and end of the base. The fence is about 43" on each side. Front piece is 6" tall and back is 3" tall made with soft maple. Is that too short? It hits where the bevel comes down .. should it be.another 16th higher? I still need to router the edges and make them nice to the touch and work on my rails. Need thoughts on the video below ... Is that too much wiggle? Sent from my old phone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jfitz Posted September 18, 2014 Report Share Posted September 18, 2014 Nice work. - you might want to reconsider only 3" for the front (leading) piece, at least right in the middle. Mine is that tall to the sides but increases to about 5" where the blade will cut. - The runner doesn't look too short. Remember, it'll be attached to the bottom of the sled so all you need is for it to drop down far enough to engage the 'meat' of the miter slot. In fact, you don't want it too tall or it'll lift up the sled from the table. Just shim it up (I used pennies underneath as shims) when attaching it. - Too much wiggle - depends how you attach it. You want the runners to be snug in opposite directions - i.e. the left runner should prevent the sled from shifting at all to the left (so it should be snug against the left side of the miter slot), and the right runner should prevent the table from shifting at all to the right (i.e. it should be snug against the right side of the slot). You can do this by shimming the runners appropriately before dropping the sled onto them and attaching. Looking good!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bushwacked Posted September 18, 2014 Author Report Share Posted September 18, 2014 Nice work. - you might want to reconsider only 3" for the front (leading) piece, at least right in the middle. Mine is that tall to the sides but increases to about 5" where the blade will cut. - The runner doesn't look too short. Remember, it'll be attached to the bottom of the sled so all you need is for it to drop down far enough to engage the 'meat' of the miter slot. In fact, you don't want it too tall or it'll lift up the sled from the table. Just shim it up (I used pennies underneath as shims) when attaching it. - Too much wiggle - depends how you attach it. You want the runners to be snug in opposite directions - i.e. the left runner should prevent the sled from shifting at all to the left (so it should be snug against the left side of the miter slot), and the right runner should prevent the table from shifting at all to the right (i.e. it should be snug against the right side of the slot). You can do this by shimming the runners appropriately before dropping the sled onto them and attaching. Looking good!! Thanks for the feedback!! Question though ... when you say you might want to reconsider only 3" for the front (leading) piece, at least right in the middle. Mine is that tall to the sides but increases to about 5" where the blade will cut. do you mean cutting the front down to 3" on the sides then moving it up to 5-6" inches where it will be cut? If so, is that just to take some of the weight off the sled since it will be big and bulky enough as it is? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..Kev Posted September 18, 2014 Report Share Posted September 18, 2014 Runners look good - You should increase the height of the front - At least where the blade goes thru (as previously stated by John) - That way if you have thicker material on the sled, you won't weaken that spot of the sled Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CessnaPilotBarry Posted September 18, 2014 Report Share Posted September 18, 2014 I use 1/4" plywood for runners. I learned the tip in a Will Neptune class. Plywood runners run on very hard end grain, which burnishes with wax, and just seem to last and last... It's better that your runners don't go all the way to the bottom of the slots for several reasons, the bottom of the slot may not be that smooth, and the "tee" section of the slot means there's nothing to run against at the bottom. Also, if your sled floor doesn't sit on the saw table, you risk potentially flexing the floor and throwing the accuracy off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jfitz Posted September 18, 2014 Report Share Posted September 18, 2014 do you mean cutting the front down to 3" on the sides then moving it up to 5-6" inches where it will be cut? If so, is that just to take some of the weight off the sled since it will be big and bulky enough as it is? exactly. In other words....make the front piece as tall as the back piece.....but you can, if you want, trim the left and right sides to be shorter, to save weight. You want to be sure you have at least some material above the kerf when cut with the blade at the highest setting you'll use. You could do the same with the rear piece, but that's where you'll most likely attach clamps or measuring tapes, etc, so a plain old piece the same height all the way across might make sense. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick A McQuay Posted September 19, 2014 Report Share Posted September 19, 2014 so a cheap like $40 jigsaw would be good enough since I am going to clean it all up on the table saw? Never buy a cheap jigsaw. Buy a cheap circ saw. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bushwacked Posted September 19, 2014 Author Report Share Posted September 19, 2014 Never buy a cheap jigsaw. Buy a cheap circ saw. Just curious why? Won't cheap either way still suck? Sent from my old phone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..Kev Posted September 19, 2014 Report Share Posted September 19, 2014 Because you'll use the circular saw less and it really only makes straight cuts. A jig saw can come in handy for a lot of different cuts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bushwacked Posted September 19, 2014 Author Report Share Posted September 19, 2014 Because you'll use the circular saw less and it really only makes straight cuts. A jig saw can come in handy for a lot of different cuts. Ah gotcha ... What are some good jig saws I should look into? Would a dewalt circular saw be good enough? Sent from my old phone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric. Posted September 19, 2014 Report Share Posted September 19, 2014 Once again I'll take an opposing position. I don't think a jigsaw has to be of high quality. I have the Festool and every time I use it I wonder why I bought it. Yeah it's nice to use but usually I'm just hacking down rough lumber or roughing out a circle in the middle of a panel for God knows what reason. There's always gonna be more work to do after a jigsaw cut, whereas a circular saw will more often be used for cuts requiring more precision and with the hope of being close to a little sanding after the cut and that's it. Cheap circular saws are very frustrating. I think middle-of-the-road would be okay for either tool. Junk is never a good idea as far as I'm concerned, and that goes for anything, not just tools. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..Kev Posted September 19, 2014 Report Share Posted September 19, 2014 Circular saws are not that expensive, even for a decent one.. Look at a Skil or a Makita worm drive and it will last you forever. When you really get into this stuff, you'll start looking at Festool track saws. By the way, Dewalt and Grizzly both make a track saw as well. As for jig saws, there are a bunch of options there depending on your budget. From Skil to Festool. Again, just depends on your budget and what you want. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick A McQuay Posted September 19, 2014 Report Share Posted September 19, 2014 Just curious why? Won't cheap either way still suck? Sent from my old phone using Tapatalk Some things you can get away with but cheap jigsaws, handsaws, and tablesaws are frustrating and worse than not having it at all. Cheap circ saws and bandsaws are better than having none. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beechwood Chip Posted September 19, 2014 Report Share Posted September 19, 2014 I like my DeWalt circular saw - I buy a lot of blades for it so I'm always using a sharp blade with the right number of teeth (rip, crosscut, ply, melamine, etc). I really like my Bosch jig saw. Very little vibration. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdwerker Posted September 19, 2014 Report Share Posted September 19, 2014 I am still happy with my 15 year old Bosch jigsaw. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CessnaPilotBarry Posted September 19, 2014 Report Share Posted September 19, 2014 I'm also still happy with my Bosch... This will sound odd, but I actually use it on every project. It lives at my lumber rack, as it's my favorite method for roughing out parts from rough stock. Since rough stock usually has various curves and surface defects, using the variable speed jig saw is a safe and easy way to cut down large boards with no risk of kickback, getting the SCMS blade stuck in the stock (DAMHIKT), or having to move and maneuver large stock on the bandsaw. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bushwacked Posted September 19, 2014 Author Report Share Posted September 19, 2014 Thanks for all the thoughts .. I will definitely need to do some more research on the topic haha. So in the world of hand power tools ... Are products across the board made at the same level? Ex: does Makita make all their tools the same quality or is their circular saw really good for that price range and their jig saws a bad? ... Like is each tool brand dependent? Sent from my old phone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..Kev Posted September 19, 2014 Report Share Posted September 19, 2014 Quality and preferences are not the same in my opinion. I really like their circ saw for instance and hate their routers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bushwacked Posted September 19, 2014 Author Report Share Posted September 19, 2014 Quality and preferences are not the same in my opinion. I really like their circ saw for instance and hate their routers. True ... But if I can figure out what's quality I can slowly learn what I prefer from each. I just don't want to go the patch of crap non quality tools. This early in the I'd at least like to start out middle of the road. Not festool and not chinas finest falling apart after one use. Sent from my old phone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
..Kev Posted September 19, 2014 Report Share Posted September 19, 2014 Good on you for that! Obviously you'll have to do your homework to figure out what you want. People will give you their opinions and you'll have to decide who's opinion to value and who's to take with a grain of salt. I just said I don't like Makita routers but, I'd bet there are some on this forum who love them. As for the circ saw, I've had 2 my entire life. The first was a skil worm drive that really got a lot of abuse. When it finally gave up, I was really in need of one as I was roofing my shop at the time and couldn't find another Skil locally. I bought the Makita with hopes it would get me thru the end of the job. To my surprise, I've been super happy with the saw and it's held up very well. I put a nice blade on it and used it for nearly all my early woodworking projects. I bought a track saw about a year ago and the old Makita has only been out a couple times since for outdoor projects. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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