CH

"Chuck Hoffman"

25/12/2004 1:32 AM

Crosscut sled

Just finished making a new crosscut sled. Cut a piece of 3/8" X 3/4" oak
for the miter slot runner, carpet-taped it to the back of the 1/2" ply sled
bottom and attached it in place with screws. Cut a piece if hard maple for
the fence, screwed down one end and squared it up with my accurate framing
square. Clamped it in place and installed another screw to secure the other
end then put a third screw in the middle. Trimmed off the edge of the sled
and test cut some wide plywood panels. They came out perfect. Flipped them
over to check and they were still perfect.

First time I've EVER gotten it right on the first try.


This topic has 11 replies

MJ

Mark & Juanita

in reply to "Chuck Hoffman" on 25/12/2004 1:32 AM

24/12/2004 11:14 PM

On Sat, 25 Dec 2004 02:30:45 GMT, "toller" <[email protected]> wrote:

>
>"Chuck Hoffman" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>news:[email protected]...
>> Just finished making a new crosscut sled. Cut a piece of 3/8" X 3/4" oak
>> for the miter slot runner, carpet-taped it to the back of the 1/2" ply
>> sled
>> bottom and attached it in place with screws. Cut a piece if hard maple
>> for
>> the fence, screwed down one end and squared it up with my accurate framing
>> square. Clamped it in place and installed another screw to secure the
>> other
>> end then put a third screw in the middle. Trimmed off the edge of the
>> sled
>> and test cut some wide plywood panels. They came out perfect. Flipped
>> them
>> over to check and they were still perfect.
>>
>> First time I've EVER gotten it right on the first try.
>>
>You did better than me. Mine is off by about a half degree. I have to fix
>it, but haven't gotten around to it.
>

Found mine was off slightly -- tuned it with a couple of layers of tape
near the blade slot on the offending side. (I was off about 0.005 in 3")

Sd

Silvan

in reply to "Chuck Hoffman" on 25/12/2004 1:32 AM

26/12/2004 1:29 AM

Roy Smith wrote:

> A good thing when making a sled is to plane a small bevel into the
> forward lower edge of the fence before attaching it. You end up with
> something that looks like this:

Hey, that one's a keeper, and a forehead slapper. Duh. Why didn't I think
of that? Just like LV's saddle square too, and umpty scadillion similar
critters.

--
Michael McIntyre ---- Silvan <[email protected]>
Linux fanatic, and certified Geek; registered Linux user #243621
http://www.geocities.com/Paris/Rue/5407/
http://rosegarden.sourceforge.net/tutorial/

Sd

Silvan

in reply to "Chuck Hoffman" on 25/12/2004 1:32 AM

26/12/2004 1:32 AM

[email protected] wrote:

> I hope that middle screw is out of line with the blade....

Hoo boy. Mistake #1. Then for Mistake #2, I had the brilliant genius
rocket science idea to use a piece of angle iron to reinforce the fence.
Oh yeah, brilliant, absolutely brilliant.

I still have that piece of angle iron I cut out of the middle of that around
here somewhere. Got a pretty a you please ATB notch cut out of it.
Carbide is good stuff. Amazingly, it didn't even seem to dull the blade
all that much, and I have done more damage hitting nails.

Version #3 or #4 finally worked out perfectly.

--
Michael McIntyre ---- Silvan <[email protected]>
Linux fanatic, and certified Geek; registered Linux user #243621
http://www.geocities.com/Paris/Rue/5407/
http://rosegarden.sourceforge.net/tutorial/

LB

Larry Blanchard

in reply to "Chuck Hoffman" on 25/12/2004 1:32 AM

26/12/2004 10:01 AM

In article <[email protected]>,
[email protected] says...
> > I hope that middle screw is out of line with the blade....
>
> Hoo boy. Mistake #1. Then for Mistake #2, I had the brilliant genius
> rocket science idea to use a piece of angle iron to reinforce the fence.
>
>
Actually, the angle iron isn't that bad an idea. But it goes on the top
back of a fence so the blade never gets high enough to touch it :-). A
1" angle iron and a 4.5" high fence, for example.

--
Homo sapiens is a goal, not a description

DB

Duane Bozarth

in reply to "Chuck Hoffman" on 25/12/2004 1:32 AM

25/12/2004 9:32 AM

Chuck Hoffman wrote:
>
> Just finished making a new crosscut sled ... came out perfect ... on the first try.

What's that story about pigs, sight and acorns???? <VBG>

Great! Feels good when it works, doesn't it! :)

CH

"Chuck Hoffman"

in reply to "Chuck Hoffman" on 25/12/2004 1:32 AM

25/12/2004 3:11 PM

When I built my tenoning jig it was off slightly. The rail would be just
proud on one side and just shy on the other. Didn't measure how far it was
off. Took two tries but it's fixed now.

"toller" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> "Chuck Hoffman" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> > Just finished making a new crosscut sled. Cut a piece of 3/8" X 3/4"
oak
> > for the miter slot runner, carpet-taped it to the back of the 1/2" ply
> > sled
> > bottom and attached it in place with screws. Cut a piece if hard maple
> > for
> > the fence, screwed down one end and squared it up with my accurate
framing
> > square. Clamped it in place and installed another screw to secure the
> > other
> > end then put a third screw in the middle. Trimmed off the edge of the
> > sled
> > and test cut some wide plywood panels. They came out perfect. Flipped
> > them
> > over to check and they were still perfect.
> >
> > First time I've EVER gotten it right on the first try.
> >
> You did better than me. Mine is off by about a half degree. I have to
fix
> it, but haven't gotten around to it.
>
>

CH

"Chuck Hoffman"

in reply to "Chuck Hoffman" on 25/12/2004 1:32 AM

25/12/2004 6:46 PM

<[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> I hope that middle screw is out of line with the blade....
>

Actually, I'm using a more primitive design. The runner fits in the left
miter slot and the cut line is at the right edge of the sled.

tt

"toller"

in reply to "Chuck Hoffman" on 25/12/2004 1:32 AM

25/12/2004 2:30 AM


"Chuck Hoffman" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Just finished making a new crosscut sled. Cut a piece of 3/8" X 3/4" oak
> for the miter slot runner, carpet-taped it to the back of the 1/2" ply
> sled
> bottom and attached it in place with screws. Cut a piece if hard maple
> for
> the fence, screwed down one end and squared it up with my accurate framing
> square. Clamped it in place and installed another screw to secure the
> other
> end then put a third screw in the middle. Trimmed off the edge of the
> sled
> and test cut some wide plywood panels. They came out perfect. Flipped
> them
> over to check and they were still perfect.
>
> First time I've EVER gotten it right on the first try.
>
You did better than me. Mine is off by about a half degree. I have to fix
it, but haven't gotten around to it.

RS

Roy Smith

in reply to "Chuck Hoffman" on 25/12/2004 1:32 AM

25/12/2004 10:02 AM

In article <[email protected]>,
"Chuck Hoffman" <[email protected]> wrote:

> Just finished making a new crosscut sled. Cut a piece of 3/8" X 3/4" oak
> for the miter slot runner, carpet-taped it to the back of the 1/2" ply sled
> bottom and attached it in place with screws. Cut a piece if hard maple for
> the fence, screwed down one end and squared it up with my accurate framing
> square. Clamped it in place and installed another screw to secure the other
> end then put a third screw in the middle. Trimmed off the edge of the sled
> and test cut some wide plywood panels. They came out perfect. Flipped them
> over to check and they were still perfect.
>
> First time I've EVER gotten it right on the first try.

A good thing when making a sled is to plane a small bevel into the
forward lower edge of the fence before attaching it. You end up with
something that looks like this:

| |
| Fence |
| |
| |
| |
| |
+------/
+------------------------------------------
| Plywood base
+------------------------------------------

The little relief space makes it easier to get a piece of wood flat up
against the fence without tiny imperfections in the corner (or bits of
sawdust) from holding it off the fence face. It's the same reason
squares often have a little cutout at the inside corner.

CH

"Chuck Hoffman"

in reply to "Chuck Hoffman" on 25/12/2004 1:32 AM

25/12/2004 1:34 AM

BTW, Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night.

"Chuck Hoffman" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Just finished making a new crosscut sled. Cut a piece of 3/8" X 3/4" oak
> for the miter slot runner, carpet-taped it to the back of the 1/2" ply
sled
> bottom and attached it in place with screws. Cut a piece if hard maple
for
> the fence, screwed down one end and squared it up with my accurate framing
> square. Clamped it in place and installed another screw to secure the
other
> end then put a third screw in the middle. Trimmed off the edge of the
sled
> and test cut some wide plywood panels. They came out perfect. Flipped
them
> over to check and they were still perfect.
>
> First time I've EVER gotten it right on the first try.
>
>

b

in reply to "Chuck Hoffman" on 25/12/2004 1:32 AM

25/12/2004 10:36 AM

On Sat, 25 Dec 2004 01:32:38 GMT, "Chuck Hoffman"
<[email protected]> wrote:

>Just finished making a new crosscut sled. Cut a piece of 3/8" X 3/4" oak
>for the miter slot runner, carpet-taped it to the back of the 1/2" ply sled
>bottom and attached it in place with screws. Cut a piece if hard maple for
>the fence, screwed down one end and squared it up with my accurate framing
>square. Clamped it in place and installed another screw to secure the other
>end then put a third screw in the middle.

I hope that middle screw is out of line with the blade....



> Trimmed off the edge of the sled
>and test cut some wide plywood panels. They came out perfect. Flipped them
>over to check and they were still perfect.
>
>First time I've EVER gotten it right on the first try.
>


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