12-19-2006, 12:36 PM
I've been toying with some new ideas for my sled ever since I made the last one. Getting together with TwoBye last week to build his gave me the mental push I needed to go ahead and make a new updated version.
Here's the new one and I'll explain the upgrades but the basics first: Sled base is 3/4" Baltic Birch Ply. All other wood is some Paduak I had out in the tent. Tracks are all from Incra.
Ok, here's an over all shot. Pretty much the same layout as the old one.
Now....... some of the improvements I decided to make with this one.
First...... I've almost completely cut through the safety block on my old one. All the little cuts into the block every day gradually make it through. For this sled, I made the safety block moveable. When I start to cut through it I'll slide it over for a fresh spot. When I don't have any fresh spots left, I can simply install a new one.
The zero clearance inserts are still here, but I've added a moveable section of the fence to allow for a constant ZCI at the rear of the cut as well. In this pic, I have the 1/2" insert in and the fence section is locked into place to match the cutting path.
I don't cross cut a ton of large pannels so the distance from fence to fence hasn't changed on this version, but I was always finding myself needing to move the stop block further to the left than I had fence to move it. I also didn't want a super long sled, so I added a telescoping section to the fence. Normally I have 22" to the left of the blade - but with the fence section extended I now have up to 36" to the left. There's a hex bolt tucked down through the upper scale that locks the lower one in place..
I added a secondary hold down t-track as well. Now one on each side of the blade. The track on the left is closer to the blade than on my old sled because the hold down wasn't reaching some pieces.
Lastly, I added a miter fence. I may not use it much becuse I alredy have a good Incra, but figured the ability to keep things on the sled might be worth while. There's a threaded insert that one end of the fence attaches to.
The other end of the fence is guided by a T-slot. The T-bolt for the knob can be removed at an opening near the rear fence.
With the shorter front fence I have almost 90* of swing for the miter fence. If I end up using it a bunch, I'll add a stop block to it.
So there it is........ my latest sled. I really enjoy making jigs for the shop and my sleds have become a sort of "flag ship" for me..
Thanks for taking a look. Now it's time to start planing for the next one.
Here's the new one and I'll explain the upgrades but the basics first: Sled base is 3/4" Baltic Birch Ply. All other wood is some Paduak I had out in the tent. Tracks are all from Incra.
Ok, here's an over all shot. Pretty much the same layout as the old one.
Now....... some of the improvements I decided to make with this one.
First...... I've almost completely cut through the safety block on my old one. All the little cuts into the block every day gradually make it through. For this sled, I made the safety block moveable. When I start to cut through it I'll slide it over for a fresh spot. When I don't have any fresh spots left, I can simply install a new one.
The zero clearance inserts are still here, but I've added a moveable section of the fence to allow for a constant ZCI at the rear of the cut as well. In this pic, I have the 1/2" insert in and the fence section is locked into place to match the cutting path.
I don't cross cut a ton of large pannels so the distance from fence to fence hasn't changed on this version, but I was always finding myself needing to move the stop block further to the left than I had fence to move it. I also didn't want a super long sled, so I added a telescoping section to the fence. Normally I have 22" to the left of the blade - but with the fence section extended I now have up to 36" to the left. There's a hex bolt tucked down through the upper scale that locks the lower one in place..
I added a secondary hold down t-track as well. Now one on each side of the blade. The track on the left is closer to the blade than on my old sled because the hold down wasn't reaching some pieces.
Lastly, I added a miter fence. I may not use it much becuse I alredy have a good Incra, but figured the ability to keep things on the sled might be worth while. There's a threaded insert that one end of the fence attaches to.
The other end of the fence is guided by a T-slot. The T-bolt for the knob can be removed at an opening near the rear fence.
With the shorter front fence I have almost 90* of swing for the miter fence. If I end up using it a bunch, I'll add a stop block to it.
So there it is........ my latest sled. I really enjoy making jigs for the shop and my sleds have become a sort of "flag ship" for me..
Thanks for taking a look. Now it's time to start planing for the next one.
