I am looking for ideas for a new compound miter saw station. I just purchased the 12" Porter Cable with laser lines and want to build a permanent station for it. Any suggestions appreciated.
Thanks guys,
Blair
I am in the process of changing over to a permanent system. I build three benches. One for the saw, a 7' left side and a 30" right side table. The left and right side tables are higher than the saw table so that my fence system is level.
My saw is a 12" Dewalt slider and the bench for the saw is 35" deep. I would like it a few inches deeper but I could not afford the extra space. The left and ride side tables are 30" deep and I now realize that I should have made the left side 35" deep also. I was concerned about not being able to reach the upper wall cabinets but it was the wrong decision. As it is now, wide boards only rest on about 5" of table on the left side. I will fix this soon.
I am still working on dust collection. I am about to install a wide collector through the bench top and I am playing with plywood to create the most efficient hood.
I left the benches open on the bottom so that I can make rolling tool boxes to fit.
If you would like some pictures, or any additional information, just give me shout
Bob McBreen
Norm just made one on New Yankee Workshop this past weekend. Actually I'm sure the episode was probably a rerun with plans readily available. Nice saw, BTW. That's the one I have. Be sure to double check the laser alignment every 10 cuts or so... It drifts easily and often.
If I had room for a permanent station, I'd simply build a long row of cabinets with a recess for the saw, and employ a fence along the left side with starret tape and a stop block. One feature that is important to me in a miter saw station is the overall height. Most stations are too short. I like them high, up where I can see what I'm doing. But that's just me. :-)
Brian.
Bob -
I have the Bosch 4412 and have built a station for it... For a hood, I am using "foam core" sheet available at office and art supply stores. The stuff is very light, very easy to cut with a box cutter (Ashcroft, are you MONITORING?) and easy to tack together with tape or hot glue. If nothing else, it is easier to work with than paneling or plywood for experimenting, then you can use the parts as a pattern once you've come up with an efficient design for your set-up. As an added bonus, I am using the plastic out of 2l soda bottles to soften the inside curves and aid in dust collection. The radius of the bottle and material can be easily worked. I'm either a bubba, or the son of McGyver and Fred Sanford...
Hope this helps...
John Moorhead
Check the latest edition of Wood Magazine. It has one I am going to build.
When I built my smallish shop I had to take into consideration the limited space available. Got lucky in that a friend gave me a set of old (read real wood) kitchen cabinets that I was able to use as both storage and as my benches. I built a frame on the floor from 2x4's to raise them to a better work height, added a 1" thick piece of MDF for the top surface, (and here's the part that leads back to this topic) dropped the middle section so that my mitre saw is level with the rest of the work surface. I then put the other base cabinets in an upside down "L" with a built in table saw allowing me to support and cut sheet stock.
Dave
I simply did this:
It works wonderfully.
Barry
If you need to conserve space then check out this one:
Mike
Hey Blair, I found this plan on the web for a great rolling station with fold-down wings. Perfect for my small shop. I got it started this weekend and should be done soon. I like it better than the wall mounted ones I've seen simply for the portability.
Just FYI, Blair, this is the same one that I was referring to in my post - I didn't have the link to the actual picture though. It really is a great saw station.
I made one from a design in ShopNotes magazine, except I made it longer. It is completely portable, but I made a wall support with three tiangles of 2x4s lug-nut into studs. The station allows miter saw, and fence/support movement/adjustments using aluminum U channel. There is also U-channel in the fences for a stop. The stop gets a lot more use than I orginally thought. Only thing my miter station does not have is dust collection which I may add some day. I like the idea of having the station mobile because of crown molding installations.
Thanks for all the input guys. This is where this group is awesome, in less than a day, my questions are answered.
Thanks again,
Blair
Here's a link to a set of plans that I used to build my miter saw station:
The plans don't include any kind of table to place the stand on, but I found it easy to build one that has casters, making mine mobile. Works great in a small shop.
rob
Rob Jones, Developer Lightspeed Systems
Same one I built a couple of years back ... good, functional, and readily adaptable design.
How much room and money you got ???
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