Removing the blade guard and anti-kickback knife on a table saw seem like you are just asking for trouble. I realize this is the only way that you can use a dado blade in your saw though. Any thoughts on this. That big blade spinning around with no covering is very menacing looking. Anyone have experience with safer ways to make dado's & rabbits, like with a router?
I have been woodworking seriously since 1978. I have yet to buy a set of dado blades.
You can use a router to cut your dado's.
Quick and accurate, take a sample of the wood that will fit the dado, set it on edge at the location that will receive the dado, clamp 2 boards on either side of the sample, remove the sample and use a router with a top bearing flush trim bit to route out the material between the two boards that you clamped.
Yes it is dangerous! But a necessary evil. If you want some type of protection when using a dado set, then you really need an overhead guard. This will at least hopefully remind you not to put your hands near the blade. Another option is the GRR-Ripper. It can be used to provide further protection when working with exposed blades.
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Dean Bielanowski Editor, Online Tool Reviews
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That menacing look is a good thing, as it definitely demands respect. However, and considering one is used for non-through cuts that can almost always be safely handled with proper techniques, push blocks, and sacrificial fences, a dado stack may be statistically less dangerous than a regular blade.
For dadoes and grooves in casework I almost always use a dado stack, if for no other reason than the time factor involved over using a router. And it may well be worth considering that a relatively dangerous operation that can be done in less time and with less effort, and with the same amount of safety consciousness, ultimately means less exposure to the danger, particularly when performing repetitive tasks with woodworking machinery..
I bet you I can set up and route a single dado to "accurately" fit a particular board 3 times faster than you can set up dado blades and make the cut. Or a variety of widths with 1 bit.
I can show you a great router jig to cut a variety of any sized dados 1/2" or wider. The jig takes about 20 seconds to set up accurately.
I agree that set up is easier with a router table, but actually cutting them on a table saw is so much faster and easier.
Hmm. I think you may have missed Leon's post a while back on ABPW
- I saved the pix and posted them (with a drawing) at
slot in the bottom boards? Wouldn't a simple bolt hole suffice and width adjustment be handled by skewing the setup? Worst case scenario, if the holes in the bottom boards didn't work out, then one could cut the needed slots. But, Leon's setup does look much cleaner. It's quite the neat jig actually. Thanks.
Although the single hole and the skewing to change width is an interesting idea, the slots in the bottom enable the jig to change cutting widths and the top slots allow the user to tighten each side of the "T" to the edges of the board to receive the dado. This in effect squares the jig to the work and insures that the dado is cut at a 90 degree angle to the edge of the work.
Semi-newb here... I recently used my router table for dado and rabbet work. The results were great. I will continue to do them in this manner. It did feel a bit safer, but I bet a router injury would be just as painful as a TS injury. The safest accurate way is probably with a dado plane.
I suspect the vast majority of people who use a TS and stack for dadoes do so because of the TS fence and weight. I've used a stack for dados too, but my stack was a cheapy and now is dull.
I haven't made a hand held router dado jig, but I would make a double sided one so I won't ruin a board if it drifts. I am interested how everyone measures dado locations. Do you measure to the center, top, or bottom of a dado? IE How can you get precise shelf arrangement top to bottom?
SS
Morris Dovey wrote in news:QnJIc.519$ snipped-for-privacy@news.uswest.net:
There used to be video of Pat Warner doing a similar procedure, on the FWW site. Made it pretty clear how this works safely.
That said, the appropriate manner of dado cutting certainly depends on the task(s) at hand. I'm glad to have several methods, and tools, available to me.
Patriarch
"patriarch snipped-for-privacy@nospam.comcastDOTnet"
Exactly, I have seen it, he uses a square IIRC to align 1 guide board and uses the sample piece to locate the second board.
My jig has limits in that it will allow cross cut dado's up to about 24". If you want several grooves down the length of a 6' board the stacked dado blade might be a better choice.
router injuries tend to involve the rapid conversion of chunks of flesh into hamburger. DAMHIKT.
Neener: My routers came with guide/fences to make it even easier to do that. (-:
BTW: I added a pair of 3/4" x 3/4" aluminum angles to your jig design to allow me to use plain (no bearings) bits.
Nice and simple Leon. I want to make a pair.. One question - why is there no washer under the wingnut?
-Jack
Thanks Jack
Actually there are washers under the wing nuts. The wing nuts, washers, and bolts are 5/16" sized. I wanted them to be finger friendly. If you look very closely at the top middle picture you can see the washers.
My latest router that I bought 3 weeks ago came with a guide fence.
So, are you letting the shank of the bit rub up against the aluminum edges? Seems that would open up more capabilities of using much smaller bits for thin material also. How has that been holding up for you?
Well, however it's constructed, it's a good practical jig if I've ever seen one. I'm sure there must be a commercial version similar in construction around somewhere, I'm just surprised I haven't seen one before. Maybe I need to get out more. :)
Hard to tell from the pictures. Is it made out of plywood to eliminate chances of warping, or did you consider it unnecessary to consider a particular type of wood to minimize the chances of it happening?
Use feather boards to hold the work piece in place and use push sticks. Stand off to one side while pushing the work piece through.
Thunder
Thank you ... I'm getting all red in the face here... Shucks. I have never seen a comertial one quite this simple. I confess that I mixed about 5 or 6 ideas together about 4 years ago to end up with this design. Originally I used a guide bushing and common straight bit but with errors that can stack up there I later and by Earl Creels suggestion opted for the Top bearing flush trim bit. It seems that Morris may have still a better plan to use Aluminum angle stock to edge the guide arms and not use a flust trim bit at all. I am waithing for his details on this.
1/2" Baltic Birch 9 ply. I wanted it to be stable and last.Since none of the dimensions are really critical as long as the clamps or bolts do not interfere with the path of the router I would advise to make the shorter "T" end of each half out of a wider piece of stock. Maybe 6" wide. I think mine are 3 or 4 inches. The router bit does cut in to the T as it exits the wood being cut. A wider T would IMHO add a little strength to the end of the T that the bolt goes through. The hardest part of making this jig was to insure that each half was assembled squarely.
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