Magnetic Featherboard

Sometimes clamping a featherboard to the table saw is more trouble than it’s worth. The cast ribs underneath the saw table always seem to get in the way of the clamps. And when I need to move the featherboard just a hair, it’s a pain to reposition the clamps.

To help simplify things, I made a magnetic featherboard that attaches to the table saw in seconds, as you can see at right. The key to this featherboard is a pair of magnetic bases like the kind used to hold a dial indicator (above, left photo). We bought our magnetic bases from Enco Manufacturing. Search their web site www.use-enco.com for Part No. 625-0930 or call toll-free 1-800-873-3626 to order.

Note: magnets do not work on aluminum tables.

The unique feature on these bases is a switch that lets you "turn" the magnetic field on or off. Once the featherboard is in position, you simply flip on both switches to secure it to the saw table. To reposition (or remove) the featherboard, just turn the switches off.

To make this work, a featherboard is attached to an L-shaped support, like you see in the drawing below. After cutting an angled notch to fit the featherboard, I rabbeted each end of the top to fit the magnetic bases. A threaded hole in the top of each base makes it easy to bolt them to the support.

Zero-Clearance Top

Most table saw inserts have wide throat openings around the saw blade. This makes it all too easy for narrow cutoffs to fall in the opening and possibly bind against the blade. Also, since the throat opening isn't supporting the workpiece, you'll often end up with chipout along the bottom face of your board.

To solve these problems, I made a zero-clearance insert from ¼" hardboard. But as you can see in the drawing, the one I made doesn't replace my standard table saw insert, it's simply a large piece of hardboard that I lay over my table just before I'm ready to make a cut.

Here's how it works.

1. Set your rip fence for the desired width of the cut.

2. Lower your saw blade below the surface.

3. Place the hardboard on your table, flush with the fence. Use carpet tape to hold it in place.

4. Turn on the saw and slowly raise the blade. 

5. Position your workpiece and make the cut.

To make another cut at a different width, simply re-adjust the fence following the steps listed above. The large-size board will provide you plenty of room for making a variety of cuts before it needs to be replaced.

Table Saw Taper Jig

Recently, I was building a blanket chest featured in Workbenchmagazine. When it came time to make the thick, tapered legs, I needed a way to make a long, angled cut quickly and accurately. But I also wanted to make sure the taper on both legs ended up identical. So, I made a simple taper jig. The jig makes it easy to position the leg at the correct angle and hold it in place during the cut (see photo).

The jig is nothing more than a plywood base with two support blocks. The base acts like a "sled" that carries the leg through the saw blade. A couple of hold-downs attached to the long support block prevent the leg from shifting.

To build the jig, start by ripping a piece of plywood for the base. The ripped edge will serve as a reference to indicate the path of the saw blade. This same reference edge can be used to align the leg on the base and help locate the support blocks.

To position the support blocks, lay out the width of the leg at the top end, then align this mark with the reference edge on the base of the jig. Next, position the bottom outside corner of the leg flush with the reference edge and trace the outline of the leg onto the base (Fig.1).

Then screw down the support blocks along the layout lines and add the hold-downs (Fig.2).

Now to use the jig, simply push it through the saw blade along the reference edge to cut a taper on each leg.

Small Piece Miter Gauge

I make a lot of small picture frames for gifts. But there's a couple challenges: mitering the small pieces accurately and holding them safely. So I've made a jig designed to help with this. It's nothing more than a shallow box attached to a miter gauge runner.

The runner rides in the miter gauge slots for accuracy, as you can see in the photo. And the workpiece can be clamped to either side of the jig so your hands are always out of the way.

The Jig: To make the jig, cut four pieces of stock for the sides. Rabbet joints at the ends of two of the pieces help align them during glue-up, as shown in the main drawing. (Note: Size the pieces for the box so it clears the blade once it's attached to the runner, as illustrated in the detail at right).

Add Bottom: To strengthen the sides of the box, I glued a piece of ¼" hardboard to the bottom. Finally, glue and screw the box to a wood runner. 

Note: To cut accurate miters with this jig, it's critical to make sure the box is square and sits at a 45° angle to the blade. (I used a plastic triangle to set the position of the box.)

Shop Tip: The workpiece may shift when making the cut even when it's clamped. To prevent this, you may want to attach self-adhesive sandpaper to the sides of the box.

Small Parts Sled

Using a table saw to trim a number of small parts to identical size can be tricky — especially if the cut is angled. But this small parts sled makes it easy and safe.

The sled consists of two parts: a base that carries the workpiece through the saw blade and a pair of fences that position the workpiece on the sled.

Base: The base is a scrap of ¼" plywood (or hardboard) that’s ripped wide enough to accommodate the workpieces, as you can see in Figure 1. (I cut mine 6" wide.) This creates a reference edge that’s used to position the fence.

Note: You can make the sled whatever width is required for the workpieces you are trimming. Just don't move the rip fence once you've cut the reference edge.

Fence: The fence is made up of two scrap pieces. To position these pieces, lay out the line you want to trim to on one of the workpieces. Then, align the mark with the reference edge on the plywood. Finally, butt the fence pieces against the edges of the workpiece and glue them to the base, as shown in Figure 2.

Note: Hot melt glue works great for this.

Trim Workpieces: Now you're ready to trim the workpieces. Just slip one in place against the fences and then run the sled along the rip fence.

Note: In my case, the workpieces were mirror images. So when I trimmed them, I could stack the two mating pieces together, as you can see in Figure 2.

Rip Fence Setup Gauge

When trying to make very accurate cuts with my rip fence, I used to check the distance between the fence and my saw blade with a tape measure.

But trying to hold the end of the tape against the rip fence and adjust it at the same time took more coordination than I could muster. So instead I made a simple setup gauge for my rip fence.

My setup gauge consists of nothing more than a block of hardwood and a 12"-long steel rule, see drawing at left.

I simply cut a shallow dado across the bottom edge of the block to hold the rule. Then glued the rule into the dado with epoxy so that it was flush with the edge (back) of the block.

To use the gauge, just clamp it to the rip fence, see photo. This way, the gauge moves along with the fence as I adjust it, leaving me with both hands free to set the fence.

Miter Gauge Extension

Using a miter gauge to cut multiple pieces to identical length on a table saw is easy — if the pieces are fairly short. But if the pieces are long, it can be difficult cutting them to identical lengths. Unless I use an extremely long fence, there’s no place to clamp a stop block. And a long fence would just get in the way most of the time.

To solve this problem, I added a removable extension rail to the wood fence attached to my miter gauge. Then I made a stop block to fit on the rail. 

Extension Rail: The extension rail is a piece of aluminum bar stock that attaches to the back of the wood fence. (You’ll find bar stock at most home centers.) To hold the rail in place, I cut two notches in the bottom edge of the aluminum bar to fit over screws installed in the fence. Tightening the screws will secure the rail to the fence.

Stop Block: Next, I added a sliding stop block. It’s a thick, hardwood block with a wide kerf that fits over the rail. After positioning the stop block on the rail, locking it in place is just a matter of tightening a knob that fits into a threaded insert (see detail 'a').

Miter Gauge - Bookmark -

When cutting miters on my table saw, I sometimes need to change my miter gauge to a different setting, but then return to my original angle to finish the project.

To help me get back to my original setting, I use a piece of tape to -bookmark - the location on my scale, see drawing. Just before I make my first cut, I place a small strip of adhesive tape across the gauge scale and indicator and cut it with a razor blade (so I can reposition the gauge for my next cut). 

When I need to return to my first setting, all I do is adjust the miter gauge so the strips of tape are realigned.

Indexing Jig for Making Featherboards

Featherboards are a great way to hold a workpiece firmly against a fence or table surface. But there's more to making a featherboard than just sawing kerfs in the end of a board. To get the fingers to flex properly, the spacing between the kerfs must be nearly perfect. To make the job easier, I built an indexing jig from just a few pieces of scrap wood in my shop.

The jig is nothing more than a long piece of plywood (backing board) with two saw kerfs spaced 1/8" apart. In one kerf I glued a hardwood "pin" that serves as a index. Leave the other kerf open.

To use the jig, start by setting your blade to a 30° angle and cut one end of your featherboard. Then position the jig on the table, lining up the open kerf with your saw blade. Next secure the jig to your miter gauge with clamps or screws.

Now position your featherboard against the jig, making sure it's pushed up snug against the index pin, see detail "a." Secure the featherboard to your jig with clamps and cut your first kerf.

Next unclamp the featherboard, and again, push it up snug against the index pin. Reclamp and make another pass to cut your second kerf. Repeat this process to complete all the fingers on the featherboard.

Magnetic Stop Block

When cross-cutting short pieces to the same length, I like to clamp a stop block to the rip fence of my table saw. This block provides clearance between the rip fence and the saw blade so the cut-off pieces don't get trapped (and kick back).

But recently, I came up with an idea that avoids the hassle of fiddling around with clamps. Instead I use a magnetic stop block. It's just a hardwood block with a pair of small magnetic catches inserted into one edge, see drawing. Note: If the face of your rip fence is wood or aluminum, simply put the magnetic catches in the bottom face of the stop block.

The magnets hold the stop block securely against the fence. And when I'm done, I simply store the block out of the way on the side of the saw cabinet.

Dado Setup Jig

When making a series of matching dadoes, it's important that the two shoulder cuts align perfectly to the blade. Here's a simple jig you can build to keep your dadoes aligned and accurate.

he jig is a small adjustable hardboard stop attached to a clamping block with carriage bolts and nuts. By adjusting the nuts, you can move the stop in or out to register the cut for the inside shoulder without having to reset the fence between cuts.

Here's how to set up the jig.

First clamp the jig to your fence (Fig.1).

Then mark the dado locations on your workpiece (Detail a) and posi-tion it against your fence so that the dado blade aligns perfectly with the inside shoulder of the dado.

Now, before making any cuts, reposition the workpiece and adjust the hardboard stop so that it aligns perfectly with the outside shoulder of the dado.

Once the jig is set up, you're ready start cutting (Fig. 2). Make the first cut with the end of your board butted against the fence to define the inside shoulder of the dado.

To make the second cut, slide the board away from the blade and butt the same end against the hardboard stop. This defines the outside shoulder of the dado. To complete the dado, clear away the waste between the two shoulder cuts.