Building a Miter Saw Station

[Carl10]

You can save some money on the T track by going with Orange Aluminum. I have bought several from them and am quite pleased. http://www.orangealuminum.com/index.php/...length=857.

Also, not sure why you are going to use the 1030 extrusions. I have seen others using them and they look great but it seems like major overkill for a stop system. I was going to incorporate them into my miter saw until I tried to think how I would use it and I realized I only needed a T track for a stop system. Then I thought about all the dust that would collect in all those grooves and that did it for me. The other thing that sealed it for me was the 80/20 parts were not too expensive but the shipping was a killer.

Overall the setup looks awesome and I agree with the other comments either top would look great and more than serve your needs.

Keep us posted and post some pictures when it starts to materialize.

Carl

[texaswally]

OK, I downloaded it from the 3D Warehouse directly into Sketchup 17. Looks great, only one question: what about dust collection? Miter saws can generate a lot of saw dust.

[teetomterrific]

OK, I downloaded it from the 3D Warehouse directly into Sketchup 17. Looks great, only one question: what about dust collection? Miter saws can generate a lot of saw dust.

I will run 4" spiral pipe in the gap between where the cabinets meet my shop block wall and the workbench tops and penetrate the cabinet with metal elbows. The 4" elbows will connect to 4" flexible hose and then connect to an 8-gallon steel drum dust separator with Rockler Dust Right® 4'' Dust Separator Components.  The Miter saw cabinet top will have a Big Gulp Dust Hood mounted under it and connected to the dust separator. I will also have a 2.5" flexible hose that connects to the LS1013fl miter saw. All of that will connect to my spiral pipe DC design for the shop which will be powered by a Grizzly G0441 3 HP Cyclone Dust Collector.

[teetomterrific]

You can save some money on the T track by going with Orange Aluminum.  I have bought several from them and am quite pleased. http://www.orangealuminum.com/index.php/...length=857.

Also, not sure why you are going to use the 1030 extrusions. I have seen others using them and they look great but it seems like major overkill for a stop system.  I was going to incorporate them into my miter saw until I tried to think how I would use it and I realized I only needed a T track for a stop system.  Then I thought about all the dust that would collect in all those grooves and that did it for me.  The other thing that sealed it for me was the 80/20 parts were not too expensive but the shipping was a killer.

Overall the setup looks awesome and I agree with the other comments either top would look  great and more than serve your needs.

Keep us posted and post some pictures when it starts to materialize.

Carl

Carl, Thanks for the tip on Orange Aluminum . It looks like it will be really useful and I'll order some for making jigs but I want the heavier-duty T-track for the table top that uses 3/8-16 bolts instead of 1/4-20. Too bad Orange Aluminum only has a 1/4-20 T-track.

I hear what you are saying about the 80/20 1030 extrusion being a dust collector. I wish they a80/20d a 1"x3" version with one side smooth like the 0.50"x2" 2012. I had not actually been through checkout to see what the shipping cost would be and you're right, it is ridiculously high. I'll keep looking around for a better extrusion but if I don't find anything I like better I'll probably go with it still. I plan to check if I can get it from a local supplier that sells 80/20 extrusions to my company's maintenance/engineering and avoid shipping altogether.

Pics to come probably in a few weeks... 

Tom

[KLaz]

For my miter station, I used 3/4" melamine for the top surface.  It's built up underneath with 8/4 poplar as a frame and trimmed out with birch.

Very strong!

Plus the melamine is slick so stock slides easily when cutting.

Sorry, but this is the best pic I have right now of my miter station.  I made the fence from melamine as well and is held down with knobs and 1/4-20 threaded inserts.  Kreg sliding track and stops on the top.

[PaulJohnstone]

I am going to suggest something different, of course, it is what I did.


Buy two sections of Fastcap Best Fence at 100 each, and one stop and the tape measure.
To the left (or right) of your mitre station, permanently fasten the fastcap extrusions (you can go up to 10 feet, I cut mine to slight larger than 8 foot capacity_. Now you have a repeatable system for cutting the same length that is wonderful. No need to put butcher block on the side with the fastcap stuff.
I put wall cabinets up to use that "wasted space" that is needed for the miter saw to be offset from the wall. Do whatever you want to the other side.
It is best to permanently fasten the miter saw to the table as well, so you do not have to keep readjusting.

Also, put dust collection in the hood surrounding the miter box.. Even if you can't use it right away.. plan ahead.

On the side that you don't put Fastcap stuff, you might want to use the Kreg Klamp Track so you can use their bench clamps.
Or put dogholes in , so you can use a multitude of workbench stuff.. If you use the left side with the fastcap stuff, there is really no need to have a miter saw fence the right side .. I have never seen the need to have one.

[BloomingtonMike]

I too used 3/4" melamine and the kreg sliding miter track kit plus a few extra pieces and adapted their table design to a data center server rack on its side. I added a fridge and two ball bearing cheapy tool boxes underneath.

 I like the designs with drop in tools that can also use the same table space (mortisers and pocket hole machines etc).

[BrentDH]

I think your plan looks very nice.  I have been planning something similar in my mind for a few years but have not gotten around to actually building it yet.  Since I haven't actually built it my comments are only based my thoughts and not from any practical experience.

• If you had your choice of Top material would you choose Birch or Maple?
  

Personally I would go with maple because I think it would be harder and less prone to damage.

• Other than cost, what if anything do you see as a downside to this design
  

I find drawers more useful than doors, so I would put more drawer cabinets in place of the door cabinets

• Is there anything that you think I should do differently to improve the design?
  

1.  This idea is going to be a little difficult to explain because it seems to go against everything everyone does on a miter saw station.  Everyone seems to want to put a fence along the entire length of the cabinet.  I have concluded that that is unnecessary.  The fence that comes with the saw is more than long enough to properly align the work piece to get a square cut.  First, it will be necessary to periodically check them for proper alignment with the saw fence because if the edge closest to the saw moves forward your work will not slide past it (immediately obvious) and if the part far away form the saw moves forward you will not get 90* cuts (not immediately obvious).  Additionally, having that really long fence actually can cause a problem rough cutting a slightly bowed board because you have to be careful which way it is bowing and put the convex side against the fence to prevent binding.  A board is rarely bowed so badly that this causes a problem on the 18" or so of actual saw fence.  I have a fence on my existing set up and I intentionally slide it back about 1/2" out of the way to make sure my board is registering only on the saw fence and not on the fence extensions on the bench.  Finally, the fence extensions in the table are just going to be in the way for setting anything on the bench top. 
The only advantage I can see for these extension fences is that it gives you a place to put a stop block to cut consistent length boards.  This is why I still have the fence on my existing set up.  By moving it about a 1/2" back I can still put a stop block on it.  So instead of mounting the stop block to a fence why not just mount it to the work bench top?  My plan is to use a t-track like you have shown that runs parallel to the front of the bench and about 1" or so behind the saw fence.  Then I would build a flip stop thing that mounts to the t-track and has an arm that will either flip up out of the way to cut any length board or flip down onto the top such that it extends beyond the plane of the saw fence to act as a stop.  It is difficult to put into words but hopefully it makes sense.  This would eliminate the 6 t-tracks perpendicular to the front, several knobs, and the extruded fence.

2.  I have been planning on making the center lowered area where the saw rests adjustable in some way.  I haven't figured this out completely but I want o make sure that I can accommodate a new saw in case something goes wrong with my existing model.  I would make a tray supported on all four corners with threaded rod or a bolts that allows me to adjust both the height and the level to match the extension tables on each side.

[teetomterrific]

I think your plan looks very nice.  I have been planning something similar in my mind for a few years but have not gotten around to actually building it yet.  Since I haven't actually built it my comments are only based my thoughts and not from any practical experience.

• If you had your choice of Top material would you choose Birch or Maple?
  

Personally I would go with maple because I think it would be harder and less prone to damage.

• Other than cost, what if anything do you see as a downside to this design
  

I find drawers more useful than doors, so I would put more drawer cabinets in place of the door cabinets

• Is there anything that you think I should do differently to improve the design?
  

1.  This idea is going to be a little difficult to explain because it seems to go against everything everyone does on a miter saw station.  Everyone seems to want to put a fence along the entire length of the cabinet.  I have concluded that that is unnecessary.  The fence that comes with the saw is more than long enough to properly align the work piece to get a square cut.  First, it will be necessary to periodically check them for proper alignment with the saw fence because if the edge closest to the saw moves forward your work will not slide past it (immediately obvious) and if the part far away form the saw moves forward you will not get 90* cuts (not immediately obvious).  Additionally, having that really long fence actually can cause a problem rough cutting a slightly bowed board because you have to be careful which way it is bowing and put the convex side against the fence to prevent binding.  A board is rarely bowed so badly that this causes a problem on the 18" or so of actual saw fence.  I have a fence on my existing set up and I intentionally slide it back about 1/2" out of the way to make sure my board is registering only on the saw fence and not on the fence extensions on the bench.  Finally, the fence extensions in the table are just going to be in the way for setting anything on the bench top. 
The only advantage I can see for these extension fences is that it gives you a place to put a stop block to cut consistent length boards.  This is why I still have the fence on my existing set up.  By moving it about a 1/2" back I can still put a stop block on it.  So instead of mounting the stop block to a fence why not just mount it to the work bench top?  My plan is to use a t-track like you have shown that runs parallel to the front of the bench and about 1" or so behind the saw fence.  Then I would build a flip stop thing that mounts to the t-track and has an arm that will either flip up out of the way to cut any length board or flip down onto the top such that it extends beyond the plane of the saw fence to act as a stop.  It is difficult to put into words but hopefully it makes sense.  This would eliminate the 6 t-tracks perpendicular to the front, several knobs, and the extruded fence.

2.  I have been planning on making the center lowered area where the saw rests adjustable in some way.  I haven't figured this out completely but I want o make sure that I can accommodate a new saw in case something goes wrong with my existing model.  I would make a tray supported on all four corners with threaded rod or a bolts that allows me to adjust both the height and the level to match the extension tables on each side.

Thanks for your thoughts Brent. I understand what you are saying in # 1 which is why I wanted the fence on tracks. I can also use the fence as a backstop for clamped hand work which is another reason for the 6 perpendicular t-tracks. I don't see these bench tops as just for miter cuts and hope to get other use out of them. Pretty much everything you described I have considered. I plan for the fences to not be permanent fixtures and the t-track fence can always be swapped out for wood with a Kreg fence top because of the 3" angle that holds it in place, (the Sketchup plan shows better what I plan there), or even shorter 24"  or 30" fences.

As for idea 2, I've thought about doing something like that too but I would want a single hand crank to raise and lower the top. I just have never found hardware that I would be satisfied with for that. Maybe later on I'll give that some additional attention. If you come up with something be sure to post pics.

More Drawers will be elsewhere in the shop and I have some plastic drawers that will get hidden behind the cabinet doors.

Yeah... Maple. I really like the hardness and low absorbency.

Tom

[teetomterrific]

I am going to suggest something different, of course, it is what I did.


Buy two sections of Fastcap Best Fence at 100 each, and one stop and the tape measure.
To the left (or right) of your mitre station, permanently fasten the fastcap extrusions (you can go up to 10 feet, I cut mine to slight larger than 8 foot capacity_. Now you have a repeatable system for cutting the same length that is wonderful. No need to put butcher block on the side with the fastcap stuff.
I put wall cabinets up to use that "wasted space" that is needed for the miter saw to be offset from the wall. Do whatever you want to the other side.
It is best to permanently fasten the miter saw to the table as well, so you do not have to keep readjusting.

Also, put dust collection in the hood surrounding the miter box.. Even if you can't use it right away.. plan ahead.

On the side that you don't put Fastcap stuff, you might want to use the Kreg Klamp Track so you can use their bench clamps.
Or put dogholes in , so you can use a multitude of workbench stuff.. If you use the left side with the fastcap stuff, there is really no need to have a miter saw fence the right side .. I have never seen the need to have one.

But I WANT the butcher block top! 


In all seriousness, the Fastcap Best Fence is a great product but it would interfere with the other things I want to use the t-track for. If it was a production shop I would definitely consider it but as a hobby woodworker, I'm just not sold on it for my needs. 

Dust collection is definitely planned. I discussed that in detail in another reply. 

If I can fit a couple wall cabinets on either side of the dust hood' I probably will but the dust hood goes on the window wall between two of the windows so they may be very narrow cabinets.

Tom