This solves every crappy table saw fence!
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- čas přidán 30. 04. 2024
- Elevate your woodworking game with Shopfix as we guide you through the process of building a custom auxiliary table saw fence for your table saw! 🛠️ In this detailed tutorial, we'll show you step-by-step how to enhance the precision and functionality of your table saw with this DIY project.
#woodworking #diy #tablesaw
🌟 Why an Auxiliary Fence?
Discover the advantages of adding an auxiliary fence to your table saw. From increased accuracy to expanded capabilities, this DIY upgrade will take your woodworking projects to new heights.
🔧 Materials and Tools Showcase:
We begin by showcasing the materials and tools you'll need for this project. Follow along as we guide you through the selection of quality materials and essential tools to ensure a successful build.
⚙️ Building with Precision:
Watch as we delve into the construction process with precision and clarity. We'll provide detailed instructions on measuring, cutting, and assembling your auxiliary fence, ensuring a snug and accurate fit for your table saw.
🪚 Enhance Your Woodworking Skills:
This tutorial isn't just about building a fence; it's an opportunity to enhance your woodworking skills. Learn valuable tips and tricks along the way that you can apply to future projects.
🎓 Adjustability and Customization:
Explore the versatility of your new auxiliary fence by understanding how to adjust and customize it to suit different woodworking tasks. From bevel cuts to dadoes, we've got you covered.
👍 Like, Subscribe, and Share the Woodworking Wisdom:
If you're ready to take your table saw to the next level with a custom auxiliary fence, show your support by giving this video a thumbs up, subscribing for more woodworking insights, and sharing the woodworking wisdom with your fellow craftsmen.
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I used a section of 2080 aluminum extrusion to achieve the same goal, although I drilled holes through my original fence, as it was damaged in delivery, with a massive dent in the middle. The new fence was then held with 3 dome headed bolts, and thumb nuts on the reverse side. I am able to slide it back and forth depending where I need, and I can use the same stop I made for my cross cut sled if I need to do repeatable partial cuts. Only drawback with extruded aluminum is it can be deformed if you really crank down hard on bolts, so a thumb nut is best. Even then, don't go all hulk on it, as a distorted fence spoils your day. Thankfully I found this out on a piece of off cut.
Thanks! I’ve been battling numerous square issues with my Dewalt jobsite. This fixes one of them 🙌🔥🙌
You’re welcome!!!
Great idea! I've been thinking about this for a little while. Bow came out with some nice fences like this but they're quite expensive and this is a very simple build plus easy to store. As an idea, you could rebate a second c channel on the front face to be able to attach a feather board pointing down to the table top to help keep pieces going through cleanly. Particularly handy on longer pieces, even ply where you need to stand further back from the infeed.
That’s an awesome idea. I didn’t think of adding anything to the front of the fence yet. A front t-track could come in handy for many reasons but feather boards would definitely be the most useful! Thanks for adding your thoughts!
Thank you for sharing. Can you please provide detail on your dust collection device for DeWalt miter saw?
Yeah I can try to do a video on that soon!
Thank you.
You’re welcome, thanks for the comment 👍
Great idea. That is my one of my main complaints coming from a Biesmeyer style fence which was so easy to attach auxiliary fences to compared to the DWS 7491 which is so thin and awkward.
I like the dewalt table saws but the fences are so small that sometimes keeping a long board straight against the fence can be difficult. These kind of auxiliary fences help out a ton with that problem!
Useful idea especially for portable table saw fences. Maybe using extruded aluminum like 8020 would help with a humidity independent surface, one that can be registered to the scale of the TS, and provide necessary tracks to attach anti kickback rollers and other attachment options, and a longer fence for larger panels if so desired.
Yeah! Great ideas! I think extra aluminum would definitely keep it straighter over the seasons!
Thanks for this idea. My DW 745's fence is square uverall, but the extrusion is concave ! I think I'll utilise good quality ply for mine since I don't have planer/jointer.
You’re welcome! I’d recommend using mdf, usually you can find really good flat 3/4 mdf panels at the stores.
Good luck finding good quality ply these days. I live in a town that has a Lowes, a Home Depot and a Menards and all they have is overpriced trash.
I somewhat agree. I think your best bet is to find some flat mdf as those boards tend to be more consistent in their quality.
I had a similar issue with my dewalt fence due to deflection in the extrusion. i took apart the fence and filled the extrusion with hardwood and a couple of threaded inserts for accessories, etc.
That’s interesting that you were able to take it apart and upgrade it like that, that’s for sharing that idea!!
That's exactly what I did with mine. I kept hitting it with a belt sander until it just fit nice and snug with a piece of very hard jatoba, AKA Brazilian cherry.
@@_ShopfixIt worked on my old DWS-744.
Nice! Glad it worked!!
That was a nice solution. Very nicely done video.
Thank you 👍
No, Actually its a poor patch to a problem and not a solution. he only increased his inaccuracies,
Good job. It would also be reasonable to remove the out of square with a hand plane. But that did the trick. Thank you sharing.
Thank you, yes you certainly could do that. Thanks for adding your thoughts 👍
Fantastically simple way to add all sorts of jigs to the fence and I've already got the exact same clamps
Someone else mentioned that very same thing! They said that you could inlay a t-track on the front to mount feather boards. What kind of jigs were you thinking of adding?
@@_Shopfix I was thinking specifically about a tenon jig but you would have to have any easy way of sliding it and the existing clamps may get in the way
I don’t have a tenoning jig yet! I need to build that next!
Can you please clarify how you might use set screws rather than a shim to bring the bottom of the fence out more? Where would you put the set screws and what would they butt up against?
Excellent... I've been putting off making a fence extension for my DWE7491 but this makes it sooooo simple that I no longer have an excuse. Thank You... I think. Hahahaha... Thumbs Up Brother... Great Video... Saved...
You’re right, it is so simple that Im wondering why I didn’t make it sooner.. The idea just didn’t pop in my head until recently. Also thanks for the comment, I appreciate the feedback 👍
AWESOME IDEA!!!! PERIOD
Thank you, I wish I thought of it years ago haha
@_Shopfix exactly.. same here... then you know everything is 'square' and you can still protect your fence and can always make another!!!!
@@k.a.haugen3680 for sure, and I thought having a tall fence was going to get in the way on other cuts but after using it I realized that it also helps keep your push still aligned when ripping thin pieces because you can just butt the push stick right up against the fence.
@_Shopfix no one actually thinks about the bottom of the factory fence... it is actually 'hollow'... and will flex inward over the use of the fence because people use 3/4" stock all the time... but the fence it 1" - 2"... so it will flex inward... you found that out and have fixed it!!!
I use MDF on my 75mmx75mm fence post on which I welded a 50mmx50mm angle iron as slider.100% square in all seasons.
This is excellent. Several good ideas in one video.
Thank you, glad you enjoyed the video!!!
No, Actually its a poor patch to a problem and not a solution. he only increased his inaccuracies,
The idea is great but it is poorly executed. Do not use wood for reference material. Wood warps and changes size with humidity.
Instead of milling one large chunk of lumber with potentially still some moisture in it that might warp over time, I think I'd rather take two planks and glue them together, then go through the process of million perfect 90's. Each board will counteract any future distortions in the other. Also, strongly attaching any additional fence to a substandard Dewalt fence is going to just duplicate the problem. The shim is a good solution, but if you still have to do that after using such a thick chunk of wood, you probably could have gotten away with doing the same thing with a much thinner piece. I might prefer using a removable adhesive between them such as silicone, since it would dry with the wood flat on the table, and automatically adjust to whatever space was between the auxillairy fence and the Dewalt fence. Another addition I'd make on table saws without a cabinet top around them--and am making on my own jobsite 7491, is to attach a plank to the underside of the lumber as an infeed support, and another on the outgoing side as an outfeed support.
With weather and humidity fluctuations, will the fence remain true after a while?
I think if you use a board that’s acclimated to the climate of your shop I think it will be plenty accurate throughout the year. Someone mentioned you could add aluminum to the back to reinforce the fence.
The simplicity of your design is great. One concern though. Your t-track is mounted about an inch above the saw fence. Even with good hold down clamps you are only bracing the top. This is extremely difficult to square it to the table top and maintain that alignment for any period of time because the bottom is not supported at all.
Perhaps cutting dovetail grooves from the bottom edge and using the "L" type clamps to give support throughout the height of the insert would maintain a square and better clamping to the fence!
I love it - the second edge will be perfectly parallel to the other (jointed) edge once it has been ripped on the table saw by running the jointed edge along the fence which is so crappy that this project was started in the first place.
Well I see what you’re saying but I already adjusted the fence to be parallel to the blade. The new fence corrects the squareness to the table saw surface. Even with the fence not perfectly square to the table saw surface you can still get parallel cuts as long as the fence is parallel to the blade. Not ideal though and that’s why the new fence comes in handy!
How about using the shim with the thickness planer instead of making it a permanent part of the fence?
I’m not sure, that might be tricky. I think the shims allow you to move things around and dial it in without making any permanent changes. In hindsight I think imbedding two bolts on either side that can be adjusted would be a smart way.
Instead of using a shim, doesn't the aluminum fence have an adjustment to kick out the bottom of it?
I wish, the dewalt table saw fence on my model and many other table saw fences cannot be adjusted vertically square to the table saw’s surface. Mine can be adjusted horizontally so that it’s parallel to the blade but cannot be adjusted in the way you’re mentioning.
Is there a way to drill out a threaded hole for a hex nut 🤔
I’m sure that would be possible
This is a terrific idea! Thank you for sharing an effective solution for squaring a fence.
I have this same problem and I'm going to fix it now! 👍
I made a fence like that for my DeWalt table saw. The added weight caused the fence adjustment mechanism to break. Not repairable. So I bought a new table saw. The fence-less one is collecting dust. Hope you have better luck.
Oh dang, nothing like the solution being worse than the problem, sorry that happened to you. I’ll be crossing my fingers that it doesn’t happen to me!! So far so good 👍
Thanks Conor 🇦🇺👴🏻
You’re welcome! Cheers!
WOW! I just made my improved fence to fix the original. I used 6" wide mdf that is 3/4" thick but your method is way too simpler and i only saw this video day after completing mine. Doh!!! Great idea thanks
You’re welcome!!
Great job with an easy upgrade.
Thank you 👍 simple is best
The idea is great but it is poorly executed. Do not use wood for reference material. Wood warps and changes size with humidity.
I have a sawstop jobsite saw. The fence is rarely square to the blade, and when i lock it down it moves off my measurement.
Some table saws have an adjustment to the mechanism you lock the fence down with, sometimes you have to loosen the pressure so it doesn’t lock so hard that it moves the fence.
@@_Shopfix thanks, I will have to check that out.
You’re welcome
great work!
Thank you 👍
Make the fence only like 4 inches high and you can make it perfect 90' with the saw itself
Are you meaning like rip the board on the table saw so it’s perfectly aligned? Because that’s pretty genius.
great simple idea
I appreciate the comment!
Yet another idea on fixing Dewalt’s garbage tsaw fences. It’s a pity you cannot adjust for 90. Mine leans to the blade just like yours. Not sure exactly how I’m going to remedy the situation yet, but your idea seems simple and solid. Thanks👍🏼
I know! They have an adjustment to line the fence up with the blade but I have no idea why they wouldn’t add an adjustment to make it square with the table? You’re welcome, hope you get it fixed!
@@_Shopfix I was going to try a piece of 20100 x 1000mm T Slot Aluminum Extrusion, as I don’t have a joiner. I know it can be done without one, but it’s tricky. The extrusion will give me approximately 40”x4” fence with extra slots for top and side clamps to use feather boards etc… I just hope quality control isn’t asleep when I place my order.🤣 But, I think I’ll give your method a try for a higher fence. I’m going to redo my kitchen soon, and that stock fence just won’t CUT it. So… thanks again!
Seems a little harsh to call them garbage. I paid $300 for my 745 w stand four years ago and I’ve gotten a few thousand cuts from it. Are they all perfect? No, but if it’s important I can usually fix things with a hand plane-which has improved my skills in that area. For the money, I feel the Dewalt is one of the best products I’ve ever purchased. At least one can see if they like woodworking before spending on a higher level saw.
Seems a little harsh to call them garbage. I paid $300 for my 745 w stand four years ago and I’ve gotten a few thousand cuts from it. Are they all perfect? No, but if it’s important I can usually fix things with a hand plane-which has improved my skills in that area. For the money, I feel the Dewalt is one of the best products I’ve ever purchased. At least one can see if they like woodworking before spending on a higher level saw.
I agree, for the money you can’t beat a dewalt table saw. Hence why I still have mine!!
I think is a solution for some table saws, but your saw is dewalt, meaning that the fence is considerably better than cheaper table saws, I’d like you try this trick on an Ozito, or Ryobi table saw, you’ll see the trick is not for every crappy table saw as the title says
I think with slight modifications it can be adapted to them all, I can’t see why not?
Excellent idea!
And nice tools no matter what people say.
Hey thanks, they certainly are decent tools, they get the job done and that’s all that matters.
The idea is great but it is poorly executed. Do not use wood for reference material. Wood warps and changes size with humidity.
Is there any concern about a piece that larger expanding or contracting and throwing off squareness? Should i use a certain type? Maybe plywood is best
Good thought, I’m not sure what would expand and contract the least. Maybe a flat piece of mdf would be best? I have so much thickness in my fence that I could just run it over the jointer and through the planer again later on if it ever gets out of alignment 🤷♂️
I wouldn't think it'd be a big deal - I'd be more concerned if it bowed over time but then a pass or 2 back through the jointer/planer would fix that up pretty quick. The wood will expand across the width and less so the thickness but presuming it does so across the board equally, square should be maintained. But always a good idea to check for square anyway even on a regular fence. I was thinking of using 2 sheets of formply for mine, plane one surface of each to remove the formica, glue them up, then you've got a slick surface to run your piece along that hopefully won't warp through the seasons. It's a great idea though
Yeah that’s what I was thinking, you could easily do a single pass over the jointer and it’s back to being perfect again.
I have a DWS-744 that looks similar to that one. I had to replace the front motor bearing on mine and the back bearing was good but bone dry. I popped out the little nylon cover with an exacto knife and cleaned it with brake cleaner and packed it with polyuria based grease. Never use moly based wheel bearing grease on electric motor bearings.
I did this repair on my saw years ago and it still works great I replaced the brushes while I was at it. Google search will tell you what the proper grease is. It should be either blue or green. I used Lucas Xtra Heavy Duty. Contrary to what they say the grease does not last for the life of the bearings. It's a little tedious but you can access the bearings without removing to regrease them.
Another improvement you can do with this saw is order a soft start and retrofit it in there. The soft start is made for a different brand miter saw but it can be installed into there and makes it really nice and cuts down on wear. I'm planning to install one on my DWS-779 miter saw as well, it will fit but it's tight. Honestly being contractor grade saws these things should come with soft start from the factory.
Wow those are incredible improvements! Very well done!
Lovely clear instruction.Iv'e subscribed.TO PERFECT future content SCRAP the Crappy music.We want to hear about your craftsmenship not distracting music, we go out to the workshop to get away from that.Terry from ENGLAND.
Thank you. I can understand that, I can definitely produce some new content without music.
👍
Wood is going to move on ya. Just take aluminium profiles and stack them. As straight or straighter and won't move on you that much.
Are you saying attach the aluminum profiles to the back of the wooden fence? Or use aluminum instead of wood?
What it doesn't fix is the bigger problem of the fence not being exactly parallel to the blade.
Most table saw’s including this one have adjustments that can be easily made to make the fence parallel to the blade. So that had already been adjusted.
The problem I have is that when you lock the fence into place its alignment is never consistent and there is no way to adjust it once its locked@@_Shopfix
Is it locking too tight or too loose? Some table saws have an adjustment for the tightness of the locking mechanism which may need to be adjusted on yours.
@@_Shopfix Its simply a lousy table saw with a locking mechanism which does not work consistently regardless of the setting.
2:48 as you can see at the bottom of your square... the tables on these newer Dewalt tables saws (newer = since 2018-ish) are ridiculously unflat.
The simplest aspect of any tool should be a flat surface. I have an old ryobi plastic body saw that has a cast aluminum surface. The saw was so flat you could put drps of water on it and they'd just bead up and sit there.
Shame on Dewalt!
(FYI, even the overpriced sawstop portable saws have the same problem.)
I can’t believe even the saw stop models have the same problem!!
If my table saw is poor because of a bad fence, what makes you think I will have a jointer and thickness planner to make a new square fence?
You don’t have to necessarily mill a piece of lumber to do the same thing. You could get a flat sheet of mdf and rip a few strips out and glue the strips together.
Just go to your local Lowes or home depot and grab a 4s piece of stock
Then you'll only need to cut it down to size needed
All of his machines are poor too
@@Todjcam don’t remind me 😂 man I’m due for some serious upgrades, I think that’s going to be my next series of videos. How to make enough profit woodworking to upgrade to a bigger shop and bigger tools.
That’s exactly my situation guy
I’m surprised you still have all your fingers
You and me both.. I thought I’d be in the stumpy nubs club by now haha
Shopsmith did this 50 years ago ....but ok
I didn’t know that! Those shopsmith machines are really cool though.
The only cure for a cheap fence is a new fence like a Vega U26 or U50. Wood swells and warps over time and with humidity.. Wood changes size, even stabilized wood changes size with humidity, temperature and time. So wood is a poor material to make a reference gauge out of. You solved nothing and only increased the inaccuracies. You still have fence slop and nor you have doubled it. You have no repeatability without very careful re-measurement.
You can use a Vega on this type of Dewalt table saw?
@@MatthewKrieger Vegas have universal mounts. They fit most saws. But You my need to purchase some correct hardware for your saw.
But no riving knife. You are setting a very bad example.
I always use a riving knife as you can see while I’m making the fence. However I switched the blade out to a smaller thin kerf blade to cut out the box top and I couldn’t use the riving knife because the riving knife would be thicker than the kerf being cut out. I should have explained that my bad.
@@_Shopfix And 'my bad' also if this is something you don't normally do. It's just that I am quite keen on people keeping their fingers and people will copy what you do. We all do things from time to time we know carry additional risk, it's part of the game, but if it's routine the routine needs to change if you are not going to run out of luck.
The example you give is one situation where I can see the riving knife would be a problem. On a very shallow cut I can also see that the risk of severe injury is reduced, but also that the likelihood of pinching the blade is increased in lid cutting. The marginal increased kerf on a thicker blade could be accommodated in the layout of the box joints, but I do accept that all operations carry risk. It is simply that I consider a table saw without a riving knife is an unnecessary risk with the possibility of very negative outcomes. I like to save my 'nine lives' for another day!
I really appreciate you looking out for the safety of others. I think if someone has the skill to make such a box and has learned how to cut a box top at that point they probably possess the skill necessary to stay safe with such a cut. I think as you say keeping the riving knife on all the time is a great baseline recommendation for all woodworkers.
You get a crap fence on a crap saw.... here we say you can't polish a turd...... you would be better off investing in a better surfacer as the saw is to rough out timber to be finished on the surfacer and, cut your box lid on a spindle moulder with a grooving saw.....
Well it certainly isn’t the best fence still even with the upgrade but the wood doesn’t care what it looks like, simply put if it’s square and accurate you get precise cuts. I’ve never tried the method you’ve mentioned to cut the box lid I’ll look it up!
Some people have a lot of money and space. Others work with what we can do/get/have. I have finished out a house with with a circ saw upside down in a plywood sheet and a clamped level for a fence.
Much more respect for people who can make it happen with limits than those who can ride thousands $ of tools that practically drive themselves.
Not for Mere Mortals.
So - to fix imperfections in your fence due to buying a cheap table saw your going to use a solid piece of wood that's flat when you install it but changes and moves throughout it's usable lifespan. Riiiiiiiggghhht. Some people should not have CZcams channels.
People work with what they have. Not everyone wants or can afford a better saw. This offers a path to the craft that makes it more accessible, even if it has its flaws. We’re not a nation of industrialists anymore.
I don’t expect it to move out of square enough to make a huge difference, that piece of wood has been in my shop for awhile so it’s acclimated well and the moisture doesn’t change much in my dry garage. Someone mentioned adding a straight aluminum backing or some kind of metal bar to the back to help keep it straight if someone is worried about movement.
Very true, also some of us don’t have enough room to house a larger saw. I have money to buy a new saw but the problem is my table saw workstation is my main building surface and I have storage underneath. I work in a one car garage workshop and housing a larger table saw and losing my workstation isn’t feasible at the moment.
It probably wont move out of square if the wood has reached equilibrium with your shop environment. I have several straight edges and winding sticks that are made from wood and still dead flat and straight. However, I would have opted for a good quality laminated plywood such as Baltic birch instead. Route a T slot and you have the ability to add feather boards, etc. Also, Bow products now makes an auxiliary fence for table saws at a reasonable price. Something to consider.
@@lanceyohe6026 The idea is great but it is poorly executed. Do not use wood for reference material. Wood warps and changes size with humidity. Aluminum extruded square tubing is a much better choice.
Simply put. What material is you OEM fence made out of ? Guarantee its not wood.
Great video, but why use profanity in your title? 😅😅😅
I don’t know, it seemed like a logical title to me haha
Doesn’t really solve ‘every’ fence problem, as it relies on the original fence remaining parallel to the blade in the first place. When the original fence is only attached at the front of the table, and flexes sideways under fairly minimal pressure, then no amount of weight, height, or shims in the auxiliary fence is gonna help 🤔🫤
Well I don’t know what to tell you? You’re trying to tell me it won’t work but I made it and it does work. I wasn’t trying to solve the fence being parallel to the blade there’s already an adjustment on the saw to get that alignment.
You don't know how that fence works. Are assuming wrong.