US Govt to confiscate Leigh FMT jigs!

[Jane & David]

OK, that may not happen for a very long time. While we're waiting, maybe an FMT user could answer a question:

When using an FMT for cutting tenons on multiples of something small like spindles, how do you position each one to the right height? I see that the first one is set to height by positioning it up against the sliding plastic crosshairs thing (sorry). But I was hoping that successive parts could be positioned without removing the router from the jig - in my shop I often can't find a place to put anything down without moving stuff that got there first. So do you have to find a place to put the router and set each part with the crosshairs or is there some other provision for multiple small parts? I'm hoping Leigh or one of you has solved this "problem".

TIA PDX David

[Charley]

I've owned my FMT for a bit over 2 years now and have streamlined several steps when using it.

The crosshair piece is the normal way to set the height, but I have made multiple pieces on several projects by building a wood holding/locating fixture under the table and then placing an alignment mark on it. I then put a mark at the correct place on all of the pieces to be machined. The lower plate that you clamp to has holes in it for bolting on any kind of fixture that you choose to make. When placing a new part into the FMT, I just align my marks. This has proven more than accurate enough to satisfy my needs.

I built a stand (sort of a small table) out of scrap that I place behind the FMT, straddling the vacuum hose. The top is at the same height as the top of the FMT. When I remove the router from the FMT I just move it back and set it on this stand. When I first got my FMT I was using a Ryobi RE600 3 1/2 HP (13 lb)router with it. After lifting the router on and off a few hundred times on the first day of production I found that my arms wouldn't go up above my shoulders any more. I solved this problem by building the stand and also by buying a DeWalt DW618 router, which is almost 1/2 the weight of the RE600.

Charley

[Jane & David]

Thanks a lot - I knew someone must have thought this through and come up with something sensible. Sometimes when I can't seem to fire-up enough brain cells, my solutions to problems get a bit over-elaborate.

Thanks again, PDX David

[Charley]

Glad to help.

Next time don't put me in panic mode by saying the Feds are confiscating FMTs.

Charley

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[Jane & David]

Sorry for the shock, but I was having trouble setting the hook :-) I posted the question a couple of times with no response, so I thought some attention-getting device might help. Below the belt, of course but it works. I blame it on the years I spent working with advertising people.

Thanks again for the help.

PDX David

[Charley]

Sorry, I don't get to spend time here every day, and when I do I usually only look at what was posted on that day. I guess my timing was wrong to catch your previous posts. You can e-mail me direct if you have any additional questions, but use the word "Leigh" in your subject line to get my attention. I look at my e-mails more frequently, but get a lot of garbage that I just trash, unless I recognize either the sender or the subject.

Charley