Micro Jig 360 Sled Kit | Should You Spend $25 On This Kit?? Lets Build It and Find Out
Vložit
- čas přidán 16. 07. 2024
- Should you spend 25 dollars on this kit? Quality solution or silly gimmick? DIY table saw sled. Follow along with me as we figure out if this is a fast, easy and inexpensive solution to building a table saw cross cut sled from scratch? We cover the tools needed, procedure to build and check out the final product. DIY table saw sled.
amzn.to/3Fj4rBq
This is not a paid promotion, I bought this kit with my own money.
==Power tools are dangerous! Please work safe!==
00:00 Intro
00:17 Tools Needed Overview
01:29 Sled Body
02:01 Relief Cut Before Routing
03:43 Dovetail Route Sled Body
04:17 Install Guide Bar
06:37 Build The Fence
08:38 Final Check and Quick Demo
09:06 Thoughts and Conclusion
11:02 Thanks For Watching!! - Jak na to + styl
Nice review. Be sure to check out our entire MATCHFit dovetail line if you like the 1-1/2" Track Screws that came with the 360 Sled Kit.
We will point out that we do NOT recommend using AC grade plywood for any sort of jig or sled, and yours can be seen to be rocking on saw top in several parts of the video. A flat sled base will improve all of your results. At least 11 layers for 3/4" plywood.
Microjig! Thank you for watching and commenting on my video!!
First time to this channel. I love that you're not one of those woodworkers with every tool in the book. Much more realistic, I suspect, than most woodworking channels I've seen, and certainly closer to my experiences when I was working wood.
Adam! My beautiful wife would tell you I have tons of tools! In reality I only buy tools when I need them. Stretch that over 25 years and it really adds up!
One of the most honest, and well explained, reviews I’ve ever seen. Thanks so much.
Your comment made my day! More reviews on the way. Thanks for watching!!
I like the Microjig Product Line... But, I too, prefer a 24" long miter bar for my jigs!!
Very informative, & well done - Thks for sharing!
Thank you for the comment!
I just built mine today. But, my mind don't like the box, so I free handed it. I cut my board the size I want to use on the right hand side of my blade. I chose not to install the miter guide, mostly because I could see what you found out just looking at it, it's way too small for my big board. So I made a "free sled" which rides against the TS fence. I never measured the slot distances. Mine are rectangles rather than squares and I just guessed at the spacing of the center and side cuts. They are probably not square or perpendicular but I doubt that matters with this system.
On the left side of the blade, I'm making a sled that will use runners made from plastic cutting board. Mostly it is for zero clearance and equal level, but I can always move the jigs to either side.
The slotted runners you like are great. I have a friend who will 3d print them for me for a dime a dozen, so I'm all set with those. I plan to process certain shapes with my small scrap boards and I am building a series of jigs that will all fit on the two sleds at the same time. I can take any scratch board and make them any desired shape without adjusting or changing the jigs when I'm done.
I'm excited about mine so far. I used it today to prep boards for a project. I can already see the need to clamp boards with non-matchfit clamps to speed production up. But, that's better than storing all the different whole jigs I would otherwise need.
Blunt, honest review! Thanks! I like their dovetail system, and yeah, the slots are a lot of time, but well worth it. My critique is the length of the guide rails. I want them longer:. no wiggle room! I like my fingers and hands.. 😆!!
Thank you John! I too have grown fond of having fingers! 👍
Thanks for the advice.
Thanks for watching!
I've wondered about these kits. Thank you for posting. I will pass on this thanks to this review.
Glad it was helpful! Thanks for watching!
Keep producing videos.. You have a talent for it.
More videos on the way Tom. Thanks you!!
The length of the miter bar probably works out better for smaller saws (my table saw top is 19.5 inches square).
I hope my hypothesis is correct 🙂
Bought the same kit. I love the dove tail system and have found many uses for it but I hate that zero play slider. You are exactly right, it’s too short and it binds.
Thanks for the comment Bryan! I’m thinking maybe a store bought guide bar shoot out video in the near future. There’s a lot of options out there. Thanks for watching!
Well done sir
Thanks you Sir!
Thanks👍. I think I’ll buy the Kreg instead for the length and stability.
I’ve been pretty happy with all the Kreg products I’ve bought so far. I should probably check out the sled too. Thanks for watching!
It got you to make a pretty cool project. So that's something. Look for some HDPE to use as an engineering material. Places that make signs may have scraps of it and plastic cutting boards are made out of it too. You can make nice saw runners out of HDPE. Could probably make those dovetail nuts out of the stuff too. I've bought a couple of used cutting boards for pocket change. I've also melted my own. But that's somewhat involved to do.
The sign store is a good tip! Never would have thought of that. Thanks for watching my video Paul!
I’ve printed these in the past and that worked well.
Good job, Mike. Seems like making the jig was a project. How did my grandfather make such beautiful things without all these jigs/aids?
Your way back in the archives now Meat! This was the vid that got me started doing reviews. It wasn’t meant to be a review really. Just a predesigned project so I could work on improving camera angles and dialogue. Just turns out half of the kit wasn’t very good and I went on a little rant at the end. Views shot up to about 35k and realized I was on to something. I used these dovetail bolts in the other sled vid on here and I really love that simple design. Thanks as always!
@@ProjectsForAllReviews I'm catching up. If that was your first, you are way ahead of most CZcamsrs. Your product was much better. I like your style and integrity. Plus, I don't know anything about Chicago (except for Wednesday night on NBC) and didn't realize there were that many single family homes so you're showing me the good side of your town.
I can imagine that the plastic on these will wear over time, requiring them to be readjusted once in a while, until the edges become rounded and uneven, and they become useless. Only time will tell.
I recently bought a couple of proper aluminium 1' x 3/4" (300x19.3mm) adjustable rails with removable lock washers (or whatever they are called, they prevent the rail from being pulled up and out of the track) at $13.55 each ( DKK 89,-). I haven't gotten around to using them yet though, as I need a new top for my router extension thick enough for a proper 3/4" T-track.
Hello Henrik! I can’t speak to its longevity. It is plastic but does feel like a quality piece. I’m pretty sure it’ll get another shot in a future vid. Thank you for watching!
MicroJig tries to tell you ‘their’ dovetail bit is unique and a bit different (specifically for the “MatchFit” system). Has anyone tried or compared “theirs” vs a common dovetail bit?
I never bought the Microjig branded bit so can’t tell you. I used an inexpensive Skil brand bit from a set for multiple projects with no issue at all.
The main difference is that it removes the sharp edge at the base of the dovetail. There is a roundover on the bit itself. That helps avoid splitering and such as you use your jigs more and more. I've used both and if it's a jig that I use often, then the microjig bit is worth it. My other ones have all had some level of breakage and splintering along that sharp edge. If you only use it infrequently then it probably doesn't matter much. I only use the microjig bit when I'm building a long term use piece so I don't dull it completely. I make a lot of throwaway jigs and i use cheap throwaway dovetail bits for those.
You could ease all those dovetail grooves with sanding, but it would be a lot of sanding and for me the time savings of the microjig bit is worth it.
Hope that helps.
At 2:15 you said you don’t have a router table, but at 7:27 that looks like a router table, lol
I meant a full size table with the capacity to cut the dovetail channels through the middle of that plywood. A few videos after this I review the Kobalt and it breaks on camera. Thanks for watching!
نفس العيب حصل معايا في فلتر الزيت ، الكاوتش اللي علي الفلتر كان فيه انبعاج بسيط ، ادي لتسرب الزيت ، و لكن توكيل فورد مشكورا و المهندس المسئول / محمد عبد الله غير لي الموتور علي حساب الشركه ، للامانه الوكيل كان فكري و هو الوكيل السابق لفورد مصر .
What do you think of that Kobalt router table a year later?
I've been looking at lower priced router tables and it seems like the best deal.
Planning on a review vid on that kit in the next few weeks. I ended up with that Kobalt after missing out on a holiday Bosch deal at the depot. The price is ridiculous, it’s like you bought a cheap router and got the table for free. For the price you really can’t go wrong. I’m not a power user but it’s done everything I’ve asked so far. I’ll dig deeper in the review. Thanks for watching!
Edit: When I typed this I hadn’t checked the current price at Lowes. At $180 I’m on the fence whether I’d recommend it. I paid about $130 3-4 years ago. Review for this will drop next weekend. Thanks again
@@ProjectsForAllReviews Thanks for the reply, I'll sub and keep on the lookout for that review.
I do like the design and function of this sled but it seems one could have made several "custom jigs" in the time it took to put this thing together. Of course when storage space matters, I suppose less pieces would be better.
Hello Tom! The most time consuming part was getting the channels cut dead straight. It would be much faster with a large router table and a strong router. Once you have that base sled made though the design possibilities are endless. Thanks for watching!
Great video. not worth the $25, but the dovetail bolts are cool.
Thank you for the compliment and for watching!
Those bolts look like something a clever person can make for themselves. I've made dovetail nuts making a do nothing.
add two guilds onto the sled
Without the clamps it's not that clever. If you can't make a sled runner accurately then there are plenty on Bangood or Aliexpress that are various lengths up to 500mm fun you less than $20. I just brought the clamps made my own dovetail keys and used regular bolts plus some shop built knobs and voila I have probably six invaluable jigs I love.
Good review of what you brought but the dovetail slots are mainly for the clamps buy a pair and you will see.
Good tip Richard! The dovetail clamps were originally supposed to be part of the video but I forgot to order them in time. It was for the best I kept it simple. This was my second video and it was a struggle just to keep it coherent. I appreciate the comment and thanks for watching!
You really need 2 full length guide bars ! I've never seen a cross cut sled with only one. Way to much binding.
I completely agree! One short bar seems like a bad idea. I feel more testing is in order so keep an eye out for that! Thanks Scott for watching!
Good review. Looks janky. I don't think I'll be buying one. I'll eventually make my own. There's plenty of people on youtube who've made pretty nice sleds and show ya how. 👍👍 to ya.
You definitely have a lot of options. Thanks for watching!
GIMMICK!! For two plastic runners and four plastic knobs, you spent $25?! Sorry, but you could have bought a 3/8" thick piece of HDPE and made multiple runners from it and some good quality knobs with a metal insert that the screw passes thru. It may just be me. I am always checking prices on materials before building to make sure I am getting the best for the least amount of money. A few years back I bought a case of assorted still knobs, and assort-sized t-bolts from Taylor Tools for $35 and I have made at least 10 jigs using them and have a lot leftover. Unfortunately, that same case is about $50-$60. Gosh, everything has gone up and I don't get it. Not everything is subject to import taxes that are made in China. Many of these companies have US-based warehouses and that is where they are shipped from. I think many companies have artificially inflated their prices and used the issue with Chinese goods as the reason.
Harbor freight ?
No Sir. Bought mine from amazon but probably available at most woodworking stores. Here’s an affiliate link:
www.amazon.com/dp/B07VBBF99D/?tag=projectsfor08-20
Doh! You should have used the left runner, not the right one… (hand is no where near the blade then) and then you can stick another in the right if needed, making a sledge than doesn’t swell and shrink like wooden slides do…..!
Hello Phil! I agree the sled could be built for either side and that's a good point! I figured for the vid Id follow MicroJigs instructions to the letter to represent the product the way they intended and see what it produced. Its a great foundation for customization. Thanks for watching!
They are too short which is why I bought 4. Two for each side. It’s the only way it will work probably.
Hi Sprint! No reason you couldn’t make that work. I’m a take the easy road kinda guy and that probably more fiddling around than I would do. Honestly. Thank you for watching!
Ray Romano looks very different these days, who knew he was a wood worker.
Yeah I hear it but the Wife says no way🤣 Thanks for watching!
@@ProjectsForAllReviews saw the procarpenter measuring tape, probably the best value for money tool in my shop.
I love that thing. So easy to read. I only use the other 10 I have if I cant find it.
SERIOUSLY?! All this time?! I guess I’m the only one that didn’t know you could use the calipers to measure ‘depth’ (via back handle)🙄
I learn things I should have know all the time! Learning is part of the fun!
Gotta love when you’ve owned a tool (or other thing) for many years then one day…your like WTF?! This feature has been there all this time?! Lol
Paying $25 and still needing to do all that extra work? Nah!
Lol! Thanks for watching!
Looks like a lot of work for a mediocre sled. Judging from the small size of it and the runner, a good miter gauge would be better.
Hue your exactly right! But if you don’t want to spend $150-350 and don’t need the pinpoint accuracy it’s a fair alternative. Thank you for watching!
Those videos are BS! I know because I have one….