I'm about to build a new bench along the long side of my shed. I have a sliding compound mitre saw which I will use on this and I'm thinking of building-in a lower section just wide enough to sit the saw in so that the benchtop is level with the cutting table of the saw. My idea is that the workbench top will then provide support for workpieces which extend beyond the saw table - which most do of course. When the saw is removed I could place a piece of benchtop over the lower section so that the benchtop is flush right the way across.
My question is: Can anyone think of a reason against this idea? What disadvantages would there be in having the saw mounted down in the bench like this?
I did this, twice! On one side for the mitre saw setup, the other side for the planer setup. That was almost 20 years ago and I haven't regretted it yet.Made the cabinets 8',2',8' for the mitre saw side, 6',2',6' for the planer side. I remove the planer, store in the 2' section,using the 2' 'depressed' top for a 'catchall' for 'tools in use'.. Heck, if it works for you, go for it. If you make individual benches like I did, be sure to use adjustable feet to get everything level though !! jay
Nope. I have that setup. I am planning to redo it some day because I would like a better cabinet design underneath (it currently has only open shelves). Version 2 is likely to have a second "inset" to house my bench-top drill press.
Sliding compound miter saws extend out the back a lot farther than just a miter saw, and typically, the rear part extends beyond the ends of the saw table on either side when cutting 45s and greater miters. You can't just have a simple rectangular cut out lower section for the SCMS to sit down in unless the back of the SCMS is hanging out behind the bench. In order to do full "left" and full "right" angle cuts on my Makita 12" SCMS the following space is required. Note that this saw will cut angles greater than 45 degrees in one direction.
(sorry about the ASCII diagram but it illustrates the point) -------+ +------- ......... | | ^ | | 19 1/2" | 7" 3" | v +--+ +-+ My idea
Just make sure the step for the SCMS is deeper than the "bottom of base" to the top of the SCMS's table. You can always shim the SCMS base UP but so far, no one's come up with a "negative" shim.
Other than the issue noted above - how're you going to attach it to the base when in use and how easy will it be to attach and detach it? - SCMS are NOT LIGHT. How's your back? - where will the SCMS be when not in the bench? - where are you going to store the "insert" when the SCMS is in the bench? - workbench height is normally pretty low - 30 - 34" if you're going to use hand tools on it. But that height is kind of low for the top of an SCMS table and you'll have to bend over more to see where you're cutting. The table of my SCMS is 42" off the ground and my drill press table is about 48" off the ground and I'm between 5'6" and 5'8", depending on what 7-11 I'm walking out of. Higher is better for SCMS, DPs, Spindle sanders and disk sanders. - Universal Truth - ANY flat surface above floor level will soon be "temporarily" covered with STUFF. The wider the uniinterupted surface the bigger the STUFF on it will be. One big thing is often heavier than a bunch of little things which would occupy the same volume. Bigger STUFF also needs more room to occupy when you move it from its current temporary location to its new temporary location. A workshop will nanturally tend towards chaos unless one develops self discipline and self control
ANY workshop, regardless of size, will be filled, given sufficient time and eventually become TOO SMALL. Anyway, here's my SCMS set up. If you have the space, go with a dedicated, single use set up.
I did that- into a recycled counter top. Worked great until I started to fill up the bench. I am a terrible housekeeper. Now, i leave the CMS loose, nothing piles up that way.
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