I have an older Craftsman table saw and I want to make some zer
clearance table inserts out of some 1/4" MDF. The problem I have i that the top of the 10" blade is almost even with the top of the table How does one get to install the insert without killing himself
-- silver_18038
Got an 8" dado stack? If so, use one of the 8" blades, not a chipper, to make the initial cut.
You can also route out enough clearance for the 10" blade with a router if need be.
If you don't have an 8" dado set, a 7-1/4" circular-saw blade would do the job as well.
That's really the easiest, especially if you have a router table.
I too have an older Craftsman TS. What I did to cut the zero clearance inserts was to install a 8" blade on the saw, then raise it to cut the slot. I then re-installed the 10" blade and finished the cut. Hope this helps.
Paul T.
snipped-for-privacy@milmac.com (Doug Miller) wrote in news:35xli.300$ snipped-for-privacy@newssvr17.news.prodigy.net:
Well, maybe two, installed side by side. They really are narrow kerf...
Patriarch
Perhaps it wasn't a 10" saw when it left the store. They sold quite a few
9" saws as well.I don't know how old my Craftsman is, but it does have a repulsion induction motor which was discontinued in 1953. I mention this fact because there is ample room between the top of a
10" blade and the saw table.And, my saw will only accept a 1/8" insert.
Jim
Depends on the blade...
I'd check out what you can BUY, first..
I just bought 2 for my Ridgid/Craftsman TS for about $20 or $25 each from Lee Valley... Ok, they lied to me about them fitting my say, but I got them to work.. *g*
Even if you make your own, check out the pictures of the factory made ones.. For one thing, you'll notice that they come as "left or right" cut... Why? They have the slot started for you, so that you can install it over the lowered blade and then raise the blade...
mac
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I'll bet I can crank out 10-12 of them in the amount of time it took to get yours to work!
The first one takes all the time, the rest of the stack takes just a few minutes. I've got 'em made for common bevel cuts, different dado widths, etc... Some even have glued-in splitters.
Weird plate thickness? Rout a rabbet all the way around the bottom edge, to set the insert slightly below the surface, and bring it back up with leveling set screws.
As Swingman said, use a single dado end blade to make the initial cut, if necessary. They're not furniture, no need to get fancy, just whip 'em out.
Some table saw book I read had this procedure.
-- Mark
Damn few (any?) will have large enough arbor hole to get on the tablesaw shaft, though...
Here's what I do: Put the stock insert in the saw; Lift up one end so it is slightly raised above the table. Bring the fence over til it just touches the raised insert. Lock the fence in this position. Raise the operator end of the stock insert slightly above the table, and clamp a block of wood to the fence that is just touching the front of the insert. Drop the insert into place. Put the new ZCI on top of the stock insert, with it's front end touching the block of wood. Clamp a second block to the fence on top of the ZCI. Hold the ZCI in place with a push block, start the saw, raise the blade, & cut the slot.
You probably could, Barry... because you're done them before and know what you're doing... You probably have a source for hi-tech slippy-slidy material for it near you..
I wanted it NOW for a new TS and didn't want to design and make one with whatever materials I found lying out in the desert... I'm learning the TS to improve my turning... I really don't want to take time off from turning to reinvent the wheel to save a few bucks..
I needed 2.. zero tolerance, which I could probably live without, and dado, which I figured might save a finger someday... If I ever need one for a bevel cut, after I learn what that is and if I have a need for it, I'll decide to build one..
Though I also love building jigs and stuff, I'm not interested enough in the saw to build one to save $40...
mac
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Buy a cheap 8" blade to make an initial cut and if necessary, with the 10" blade installed but not turning, hand cut some width of the initial cut to allow the top of the 10" blade to protrude. Then it's only a matter of turning the saw on and completing the cut.
What material? My inserts are waxed plywood.
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Understood.
I just wanted to make the point about duplication for the lurkers. NEVER make ONE of a cheap, useful item while the stuff is set up.
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Cool.. I can get plywood in Mexicali.. Only 3 hours away.. It would/wood only cost about 15 gallons of gas and half a day to save a few bucks by making my own..
mac
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Don't you have any mesquite down there that you could resaw, let dry for a year, shape it to fit your insert, etc...? :)
That's why property is cheap.
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Sort of a "sore" topic...
Everyone told me about all the ironwood and mesquite "laying around the desert"....
We almost bought a desert rail to go get some... real rational thinking, spend 8 or 10 thousand bucks to go find a few bucks in wood.. lol
Went on 3 "scouting" trips with the local 4x4 club here and didn't find ANYTHING usable..
Being in the middle of a huge desert reserve, you can only take down wood, and what little there was on the ground was old, termite munched, rotted and a great home for scorpions and rattlesnakes...
We're going to Yuma soon for a shopping trip... She goes to wally world, etc... I go to Lowes and harbor freight...
I've found that the best way to smuggle lumber across the border is to bury it in groceries.. lol
mac
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