I finished my accessory fence for my Craftsman BT saw:
I know it may look like overkill to some of you guys, but I built it around the way I've worked with the stock fence, and what I wished I could do easier and more safely.
First: I know this may bring the wrath of the BT-Faithful mob, but I hated the built in T-tracks used on the BT saws! Even though all four sides of the fence had T tracks, they weren't compatible with any commonly available hardware- even the narrow ones were too narrow for 1/4-20 hardware! - stupid design.
Second: I used the router split fences all the time and, depending on how I had them set, the brackets would often hang over the left side of the fence making it inconvenient to use a push stick while ripping on the saw
I righted the wrong with some Incra T Track on the right side and T TrackPLus on the top.
The new router split fences are mounted to the T track on the right side. They're locked in place with quick release handles and no longer require being trued with a straightedge for every setup.
I made up a set of 1/64" and 1/16" aluminum shims for the outfeed fence to step it out precisely for joining/trimming cuts.
The fence faces are held on to the fence spacers with 1/4-20 bolts and Tee nuts so they can easily be repositioned or replaced. I made up multiple sets of fences, and left the extra long and flipable so that I could use each set for multiple zero-clearance cuts before having to trim or discard them.
Even though the new fence cover is a pretty tight slip fit, I locked it in place using the original T-slots on the right side and some counter-sunk 5/16 bolts.
On the left side there are three 1/4-20 Tee nuts for mounting accessies in the future such as a high fence or long stop blocks.
I know it may look like overkill to some of you guys, but I built it around the way I've worked with the stock fence, and what I wished I could do easier and more safely.
First: I know this may bring the wrath of the BT-Faithful mob, but I hated the built in T-tracks used on the BT saws! Even though all four sides of the fence had T tracks, they weren't compatible with any commonly available hardware- even the narrow ones were too narrow for 1/4-20 hardware! - stupid design.
Second: I used the router split fences all the time and, depending on how I had them set, the brackets would often hang over the left side of the fence making it inconvenient to use a push stick while ripping on the saw
I righted the wrong with some Incra T Track on the right side and T TrackPLus on the top.
The new router split fences are mounted to the T track on the right side. They're locked in place with quick release handles and no longer require being trued with a straightedge for every setup.
I made up a set of 1/64" and 1/16" aluminum shims for the outfeed fence to step it out precisely for joining/trimming cuts.
The fence faces are held on to the fence spacers with 1/4-20 bolts and Tee nuts so they can easily be repositioned or replaced. I made up multiple sets of fences, and left the extra long and flipable so that I could use each set for multiple zero-clearance cuts before having to trim or discard them.
Even though the new fence cover is a pretty tight slip fit, I locked it in place using the original T-slots on the right side and some counter-sunk 5/16 bolts.
On the left side there are three 1/4-20 Tee nuts for mounting accessies in the future such as a high fence or long stop blocks.
Comment