Plastic fence attachment

[Howard]

Hey guys! Just became a proud owner of a BT3100 and I'm ready to go. I have seen fence guides that are made out of some kind of slick plastic so the wood slides without friction when ripping. Where do I get one of these? Can I make it myself? Thanks!

Howard

[scorrpio]

This stuff is called UHMW-PE (Ultra High Molecular Weight PolyEthylene). It can be bought in various size stock from various plastics sites and stores, and it doesn't cost a lot.

[Wood_workur]

quote:Originally posted by Howard

Hey guys! Just became a proud owner of a BT3100 and I'm ready to go. I have seen fence guides that are made out of some kind of slick plastic so the wood slides without friction when ripping. Where do I get one of these? Can I make it myself? Thanks!

Howard

You can make one yourself, out of UHMW, Ultra High Molecular Weight, Plastic, which is aviable from Rockler, and a lot of other woodworking supply stores. You will also want to use two of Jeff's nuts (that never gets old) to attach it to the fence, and I would recoment using t-bolts, and attaching it to the top slot on the ripfence, and using two nuts and fender washers.

Another, easier, option is to get the UMHW wear strip, which is a tape, and put it on the rip fence, and replace it when necessarry.

http://woodworker.com/cgi-bin/FULLPR...ARTNUM=813-784
http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?page=1580

Edit: scorrpio just beat me. His post wasn't there when I started typing

[Ken Massingale]

Welcome to the forum, Howard.
ken

[drumpriest]

Rockler also has a wide slip tape. It's a roll of this stuff with an adhesive backing. I just picked up some to play with trying it on my desk writting surfaces.

[Howard]

The tape looks like a good answer. Should make a secondary fence out of some hardwood and apply the tape to that? Or can you apply it directly to the aluminum?

Howard

[gmack5]

Welcome Howard,

Congratulations on the acquisition of your BT3100 and welcome to the "family".

The "slippery" surface (UHMW-PE) that you mentioned would work best if applied to a Sacrificial Fence (Baltic Birch would be a good choice), maybe a little taller than the stock fence, held in place with a pair of T-Nuts from Jeff's T-Nut web site http://t-nuts.com/bt3c/ .

One of the first things you need to do, after you get your BT3100 Saw assembled is, following your Owner's Manual, go thru the entire set-up proceedure, step by step, in the sequence laid out in the Manual. Each set up proceedure builds on the preceeding one, so you MUST keep them in sequence.
Usually the Saw is set up properly, right out of the box, but you should still check it as this gets you familiar with all the adjustments on the saw and assures you that everything is as it should be.

Here's some free plans that'll keep you busy for a while. http://www.woodworkersworkshop.com/r...ex.php?cat=102

And here's some additional information about your Saw that you may find useful.

Regardless of what you've read or others have told you, NEVER NEVER use any wax or lubricant on your saw that contains Silicone, this includes all automobile waxes and polishes and most spray-on furniture polishes. The reason is simple, most of them contain Silicones and they will make your projects difficult to finish.
Silicones repell liquid, making "fish eyes" in your finishes, this will force you to remove the Silicones from your project and start over. That stuff (Silicone) migrates all over every where, don't ask me how, it just does.
If you put it in one place, eventually it will be all over the
entire saw.

Your best bet is to use a "dry" lubricant, such as Teflon (PTFE), Powdered Graphite, or Candle Wax for the Raising/Lowering and Tilt mechanisms below the table top.

Then use either Johnson's Paste Wax, Minwax's "Finishing Wax" or Butcher's Wax on the working surfaces, table tops (All three of them) and the Rip Fence.

Do NOT Wax the Front and Rear rails or the Miter Fence. As a mater of fact, you may want to glue 220 grit sand-paper to the front face of the Miter Fence, cause you don't WANT things to slide on there.

You might also want to check out the "Articles" section on the www.BT3central.com site. Lots of good maintenance information on your saw and some of the Jigs and Fixtures that BT3Central members and others have designed for it. Located here: http://www.bt3central.com/articles/ The only thing you'll need to access the information is a recent copy of the Adobe Reader (It can be downloaded from the BTcentral site). One of the Articles mentioned is a "Check List", written by Jim Frye. You can find it here: https://www.sawdustzone.org/articles...nce-check-list

This list contains all the different areas on your saw that need to be periodically inspected or given some sort of special attention. In other words, a "Preventative Maintanence Check List" or PM. Performing this PM on a monthly basis would be a good idea. One of the other things you'll find there is an on-line copy of the User's Manual in downloadable pdf format (a handy thing to have).

Something you might think about is the use of a set of Draftsman's Triangles instead of the Carpenter's Square that they show in the Owner's Manual for setting up your saw.
An accurate Carpenter's Square is almost a myth!
A good one will cost you quite a bit of money, $40 - $75, or more. I would recommend that you consider using a pair of Draftsman's 30 -60 and 45 degree triangles instead. You'll find they're not near as expensive and are far more accurate than a run-of-the-mill Carpenter's Square. The 30 -60 triangle should have one 12" leg and the other leg would be 9" long. The 45 degree triangle should have at least 8" legs on either side of the 90 degree corner. That way either one can be put up against the side of the Saw Blade without touching the saw teeth.

Just remember, regardless of which measuring instrument you choose to use, check it(them) to be sure they're accurate. When checking the Miter Fence for Square to the Blade with a triangle, use the 12" 30-60, if possible.

One of the other "tricks" that I've discovered is to take a piece of "Wax" paper, fold it several times and rub it in the grooves that the "T" nuts that lock your Rails in place ride in. Makes the Rails move smooth as Butter.

Last, but not least, don't forget to paint the RED line!
It's a line that extends the line-of-sight from the saw blade to the front edge of the table to remind you NOT to let your Miter Fence or your FINGERS get in the way of the saw blade. Just put red paint, nail polish, or what ever, in the grove that extends towards the operator from the front edge of the saw blade.

You might also want to check out the "FAQ" shown in the link below.
http://www.bt3central.com/forum/topi...TOPIC_ID=12490
It'll answer a lot of your questions.

[Howard]

I really appreciate all the great tips! I knew just getting it out of the box with what Ryobi provided was going to be the cheapest part of the setup. There are so many great attachments and jigs to be had, I can hardly wait! I'm going to print off your note. Too many great ideas to commit to memory. My memory especially!

Howard

[lcm1947]

Welcome aboard Howard. I don't know why I said " aboard " like this is a ship. Well that doesn't matter, what matters is you've got yourself a very fine tool and one that I'm sure will bring you years of pleasure and fun not to mention neat stuff to build. I know the feeling of putting that tool together and just being overwhelmeed with what to build or do first. Great feeling isn't it. Well, have fun and be seeing you around. Watch those hands and fingers.

[monte]

Welcome to the group Howard. Enjoy your new saw.

[mater]

Welcome to the forum Howard. I hope you enjoy it.

[Howard]

Well, I made the mistake of going over to my local Woodcraft store yesterday []. Man o man, could I ever spend some money in there! You know things are expensive when they have a "will finance" sign on the power equipment . Otherwise, they did have some of the UHMW plastic so I'm going to get some good plywood and rip it down to 3", and apply the tape. There is a ton to learn about the capabilities of my saw but that's what rainy (or sunny for that matter) days are for...

Howard