Slider bar for bandsaw table

A lot depends on the type of bandsaw you have, industrial machines tend to have just a couple of variations of t-slots So it might be possible to get a length of bar from an engineers supplier. However, with hobby tools there seems to be no standards, so getting in touch with the machine maker might get a result, alternatively try to get a couple of strips of material to fit the major and minor slots and rivet them together. If you know anyone with a miller - vertical or horizontal they might be able to mill a few strips for you. You could try the D&T dept. of your local high school if they still have that kind of machinery about but I believe many have scrapped that type of equipment in favour of laser cutters and 3D printers.

Richard

You could make one from a piece of straight-grained hardwood - a 5 minute job on a table saw - although do you actually need the T shape? A rectangular piece of hardwood that accurately fits the slot should be fine for a bandsaw. If you really want some vertical retention then you could put some "ears" in 3 or 4 places on a rectangular bar so that they run in the grooves.

Why does it need to be T-bar? When I made my cross cut sled for my table saw I just bought some aluminium strip of the appropriate width and used that. Works a treat.

Some of the tool shops will do slider bars typically designed for 19mm slots:

(many machines only have a plain slot anyway)

Alternatively you can use steel or ali strips of the right width, and then "tune" the fit by centre punching the *top* of the strip near the edges to peen out a small amount of material from the sides to make the strip wider. (and a file or stone to make it narrower again)

Thanks for the replies.

As pointed out by various posters, I was probably making it harder than it needed to be. The slot is 14mm X 5mm, allowing a little play, so as not to be tight as a gnat's chuff. Wickes sell steel bar in precisely that profile, so a simple solution. I can fix some studs into the bar to give fixtures for the jig at table level. Job done.

Cheers.

Bill.