So is that the problem, you wish to cut things that are smaller than the width of the sawboard? I usually pin the sawboard down with 18g brads.
When you refered to laminate did you mean worktop or flooring?
Doesn't atter now as I've improved the SB with its own clamping system.
The one below is designed for doors(big enough to go the full width of door) and can be used for the smaller jobs also(Made of 5/8 MDF. The white dots are for wingnuts and bolts to shorten the length of the clamping depending on the size of the work thats being cut,these wingnuts bolts will be countersunk into the top of the wood so the saw can pass freely along the SB. The bottom is made of two pieces of MDF and the narrower piece is for sitting in the jaws of a workmate but doing a door on the floor has enough clearance off the floor so as to not have the saw blade near the floor.
Basically its a SB clamping sleeve you open up the clamp, slide the door in or wood, align the SB edge as you normally would then tighten the wingbolts.
Eventually I'm going to replace the wingbolts with these instead...
Nice idea.
But (you knew there would be a but).
If the base is made from 16mm MDF the circ saw loses 16mm depth of cut. So my Makita 165mm saw which starts off with a 52mm DOC is now reduced to
36mm - not enough to cut a worktop or a fire door or a 6 x 2.Hmmmmm.
Its not going to be like mine..
18 mm ply so its self supporting.. double sided so you can make angled cuts on one edge.. screw holes in it to support a strip of wood to clamp narrow work.. screw holes to put a 4x2 along the edge was the last mod.. I needed a feather edge board so I cut one off a 6x1 board.. 2" deep cut on each edge and then use a hand saw to join the edges.
So use your loaf where the boards thickness is concerned,I've given you the idea what material you use is down to the persons needs or saw. Beats the shit out of using ForG clamps does it not. :-) with this you just open the workmate jaws and plop it in and tighten the jaws or just use it on a milk crate or two for doors.
Heh! there's no difference except its a self clamping SB,the top SB has not changed.
I've also designed a similair board for a Jigsaw,ie no wandering of the saw. ;-)
Maybe, the clamping action is a little different. With F or G clamps they clamp the actual work to the SB directly. With this bolt through method the clamping action is not supported and will have a tendancy to bow the SB away from the work in the middle. This may or may not be a problem but worth bearing in mind with a thin SB.
So what is the base made of? 16mm MDF or something thinner?
Buy a Makita 4341 & you won't need one :-)
Which base are you on about Dave? the base for the saw or the lower base of the clamp?
If its the base for the saw then use the maximum thickness you are allowed for the saw and use halfround bolt heads in the countersunk holes instead of normal bolt heads.
When I say wandering I mean guiding the Jigsaw in a straight cut
It wont be a problem because of the weight of the saw travelling along the SB guide.
The bit that the saw baseplate runs over, not the bit it runs against or the bit that clamps into the Workmate.
How thick is that bit?
Damn thats a small bladed saw you have there.
Since you need a 3/16 base then it won't do your saw,my max DOC is 65mm so my base is 1/2 or 5/8 with enough DOC for worktop and doors.
You have to have enough thickness in the base to allow for countersunk bolts.
Er! 3mm not 3/16,did you not realise this DOC before you bought the saw?
I bought a Worx jigsaw last year, regretted it ever since. The bloody thing cuts at a good 20 degree angle between blade and body, variable depending on material being cut. On thicker materials (like a door) the far end of the blade wanders off in all directions compared to what I can see on the top surface while cutting. Almost unusable except for cutting up firewwood - total wast of money!
A new one is high up on my shopping list, although not used frequently so don't want a high use professional jobby. You sound happy with the Makita Dave, any others you think worth looking at?
Not wishing to rain on your parade but I don't have any trouble with a small pair of g clamps (handles downwards of course). I know my saw body clears them at max depth of cut so I don't feel inclined to spend time purpose building anything. What I did do was make a T square for trimming doors. For a square cut it doesn't need to be fixed to the workpiece at all.
Fine,not everyone wants to work the way others do and to be honest pissing about with G clamps and the SB is frustrating when you're trying to line up the pencil line to be cut. Wereas my clamp just slips over the workpiece,align to the pencil line,tighten the wingnuts and thats it.
I have a hardboard spacer to set the blade/batten distance. Fine if I remember to take it with me.
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