Popular Woodworking 2005-02 № 146, страница 52

WOODWORKING

ESSENTIALS

BY NICK ENGLER

CHAPTER

Customize Your Table Saw

There are dozens of table saw accessories you can mount on your machine to make it safer, more accurate or extend its capacity. Some can be purchased, others can be made

by you. By carefully choosing these options, you can soup up your old table saw or customize a new one.

The most common additions are a reliable rip fence, a cut-off system (either

an improved miter gauge, miter sled or sliding table) and roller stands or out-feed supports. But there are lots of other accessories, many very affordable, that I'll share with you in this chapter. You can pick and choose what will work best for you on your table saw.

A Better Rip Fence

Perhaps the most beneficial customization is a replacement fence. Many very good rip fences are now available from table saw manufacturers - many as standard equipment. This is a great improvement from more than 10 years ago, but the better fences aren't always included in the base model of the saw, but rather they're offered as an upgrade.

There are also a number of good-quality, aftermarket rip fences that can

SMOOTH TIP:

Keep Things Sliding

No matter how many cool accessories you add to your table saw, if you have difficulties moving the wood past the blade, it's no good. Make sure the table surface is clean and lubricated to provide effortless material movement. There are a number of good dry (that's the important part) lubricants on the market. You can also use paste wax or paraffin wax (canning wax from the grocery store) to treat the top. This doesn't have to be a daily chore, but put your lubricant to work whenever you start a new project.