parallel guide for DeWalt track saw

Collapse
This topic is closed.
X
X
 
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts
  • JimD
    Veteran Member
    • Feb 2003
    • 4187
    • Lexington, SC.

    parallel guide for DeWalt track saw

    I really like my DeWalt track saw but I've noticed there are more "extras" available for the Festool including a parallel guide. The parallel guide is used to make consistent rips like you would make with the rip fence of a table saw. I want it for making cabinets and a workbench for my shop and possibly for kitchen and bath cabinet projects.

    I saw this thread on Sawmill Creek:

    I haven't seen one posted yet so I though I would post one. I looked pictures at of the Festool ones and they appear to ride the side of the plywood. I like the ones from Seneca Woodworking because thy ride on top of the plywood. The DeWalt track does not have the channel to make this happen. Attaching anything to the track eliminates the use of the 2nd cutting side. I decided to use 1/2" 80/20 because it is ridgid and I can't see cutting anything thinner than 1/2. You could probably use 1/4 "


    It looked like just what I wanted. The pictures are great but there isn't much discussion of how to make it. So I thought I might add that discussion in this thread. I also think the basic method of construction could work for Makita or Grizzly track saws.

    First I started to get the pieces. I found the 80/20 at Amazon. They just act as a middle man, the supplier was 80/20.INC. If you google 80/20 you'll find them. I couldn't get their website to work for me, however, so I just bought from Amazon. You want 25-5013 and I bought two pieces 900mm long. That's about 36 inches.

    I also placed an order from McMaster Carr. I ordered a 6 inch by 6 inch piece of polycarbonate, their 8574K281 (1/4 thick), some 8-32 nuts you press in I plan to use with the polycarbonate 95117A444, ABS bar 1/2 by 1 by 12 inches 8712K119, and a small piece of aluminum 1/2 by 1 by 6 inches 8975K11. Total for the merchandise was $18.

    I placed my last order this week and don't have it yet, I'm hoping it arrives today. I bought a mini hold down clamp (2) 45692, self adhesive rules, 69116 & 69124 and a couple cam clamps 58252 total cost was $39.95.

    I forget exactly how much the 80/20 was but it was around $35. So I spent about $100 on parts. Seems like a lot but the Festool guides are about $250.

    The hard part, at least so far, is to make the little pieces that slide into the DeWalt tracks and screw to the 80/20. I wanted to try the plastic for it but the inventor of this setup used aluminum so I bought that too. To help with setup, I made some hickory pieces about 1/2 by 12 by 3/4 and 7/8 wide (two different pieces). I tried making it thicker than 1/2 but it wouldn't slide in freely.

    I found my thin kerf ripping blade (Freud 24 teeth) was about 1/64 thicker than the track material. I cut the slots in the little 1/2 thick blocks by raising the blade about 1/8 inch and setting the rip blade 1/4 inch away. I tried the cuts in the wooden blocks first. I adjusted a couple times before I was happy with the setup. That and tapping the holes in the 80/20 was as far as I got last Sunday afternoon. A 10/24 tap can be run directly into the hole in the 80/20 - you don't have to open them up with a drill bit.

    This morning I started figuring out exactly how wide I wanted the little blocks, how long they should be, and drilling the holes Took all morning but part of the reason was my drill press table wasn't fastened down. I am still setting up the new shop so that slows down working in it. I cut a piece of the hickory, took a stab at the width ripping it on the table saw and set up stops on the drill press and drilled the holes. I got it to narrow and the holes were not right. So I made a couple more blocks before I got it right. Then I ripped all the wood I had left and the plastic to width. I also ripped the aluminum on the table saw using the same Freud ripping blade. It needed a little filing to clean it up but the saw cut it fine - I went slow. The RAS did not cross cut it well, however. It wanted to climb cut. I cut the second piece with my Bosch jig saw.

    I think hickory pieces would work. The ABS may be a little more durable. They don't slide as easily as the wood or aluminum, however. I put the aluminum on the 80/20. It slides well and should resist damage better than the others. But if I was starting again, I might just use Hickory.

    Before I did the work on the blocks, I glued up a piece for the stop blocks out of some hickory flooring scraps. I'm about to go cut them into the configuration of the stop blocks. It's cold here but the glue should still be set up enough.
    Last edited by JimD; 02-28-2015, 01:19 PM.
  • bigstick509
    Veteran Member
    • Dec 2004
    • 1227
    • Macomb, MI, USA.
    • BT3100

    #2
    Great right up, looking forward to pics of final assembly. For some reason photos always make a build a little easier for me. Your explanation of the process makes thing much clearer then op on sawmillcreek.

    Mike

    "It's not the things you don't know that will hurt you, it's the things you think you know that ain't so." - Mark Twain

    Comment

    • leehljp
      Just me
      • Dec 2002
      • 8429
      • Tunica, MS
      • BT3000/3100

      #3
      Originally posted by JimD
      I think hickory pieces would work. The ABS may be a little more durable. They don't slide as easily as the wood or aluminum, however. I put the aluminum on the 80/20. It slides well and should resist damage better than the others. But if I was starting again, I might just use Hickory.

      Before I did the work on the blocks, I glued up a piece for the stop blocks out of some hickory flooring scraps. I'm about to go cut them into the configuration of the stop blocks. It's cold here but the glue should still be set up enough.
      When I made wood pieces like that, I used maple if I had it, cherry if I didn't. Both are smooth grain. Maple is harder, but Cherry will do.

      We had some left over toy building blocks (maple) from when the kids were small and after loosing several, growing up and abandoning the toys, I kept them and they make great parts like this. Many of the blocks are/were about 1 1/2 in thick and different lengths and sizes.

      I have a few boards of cherry in different sizes, some 2" some 3"+. My Japanese friend used ebony, but that stuff is expensive. He made dovetail guides among other things with his. It is hard and it is oily which seems to lube well. There are other hard oily woods that might benefit, if you have it. Since I don't have much, I use cherry or the maple blocks.
      Hank Lee

      Experience is what you get when you don't get what you wanted!

      Comment

      • JimD
        Veteran Member
        • Feb 2003
        • 4187
        • Lexington, SC.

        #4
        I think hard maple would work but I'm leery of cherry. It isn't as hard. Both maple and cherry like to split more than hickory and hickory is harder than either. I happened to have hickory flooring scraps so I used them. Hickory is also heavy, each 22 square foot box of flooring weighed 70 lbs.

        I built the stop blocks this afternoon but my package from Rockler didn't show up. I ordered 5/16 cam clamps and need 1/4 so I will have an issue anyway. I tried 1/4 toilet bolts I had and they work fine with wing nuts. It doesn't take a lot of pressure to lock the stop blocks in place. The little mini clamps are also 5/16 but I think I can change them easily. No sure it will be that easy with the cam clamps. We'll see.

        I had trouble with the clear plastic cursor pieces. The OP used little nuts that you push in (at least that's what it looked like). I've never used them before but got some and gave it a try. I drilled it with regular twist bits and the plastic kept wanting to twist up the bit. I ruined two pieces that way. Then I tried forstener bits. A 3/8 was a bit oversize but OK to resess the big end and a 1/4 was about right for the piece you press the nut into. So the short message is drill a stepped hole with forstener bits and forget using twist bits.

        The only other difficulty I had was with getting the hole for the toilet bolt that holds the stop block in position in exactly the right spot. I eyeballed it, got it wrong, and then shifted the hole the wrong way. Finally I figured out what was going on and moved my fence on the drill press the right direction and drilled a hole at the other end. I don't know how to do this easily, making a spare stop block to experiment with would be one way. But if you don't get hung up on appearance, you have four locations you can drill on each stop block but you may have to live with a hole in the wrong place being visible. I think I can live with it but if it bugs me too much, I'll make another.

        This isn't a terribly hard build but there are a number of things where you don't have much flexibility. The holes for the bolts on the stop blocks, the grooves in the block at the end of the 80/20, the holes in the block at the end of the 80/20, and the holes for adjusting the cursors versus the nut locations. You can allow a little extra clearance and solve some of this but I tried talking more time and making scrap pieces for most of these situations.

        Sorry but pictures are probably a week away unless I decide to mess around and take some shots of the incomplete guides. Thanks for the interest and comments.
        Last edited by JimD; 02-28-2015, 07:16 PM.

        Comment

        • JimD
          Veteran Member
          • Feb 2003
          • 4187
          • Lexington, SC.

          #5
          Pictures added

          I noticed something watching a Ron Paulk video this morning. He uses the green brand but modified the parallel guide so that the stop block end will sit partially on top of the wood being cut. For Festool, that meant a metal tab on top of the stop block. For me, it meant a glued on block. I added a little window so I'll be able to see if the wood is back against the stop. These aren't done, they need a clamp so you can secure them to the DeWalt guide and I will probably use a cam clamp to lock them in position. I also am not happy with the cursor pieces. I should have cut the plastic after putting the slots for adjustment in the stop blocks. I have plenty of plastic so I'll probably remake these. I also don't love the thickness of the top of the blocks. They have about 3/4 of wood on top which seems like at least 1/4 inch more than necessary. I may wait and use them a bit before making new ones.
          Attached Files
          Last edited by JimD; 03-01-2015, 07:09 PM.

          Comment

          • JimD
            Veteran Member
            • Feb 2003
            • 4187
            • Lexington, SC.

            #6
            Ok, some pictures of the finished guides including first usage. The first photo shows the completed guides on a coffee table where I calibrated the scales. I used the steel ruler in the picture to set the stop 12 inches from the edge of the track. Then I put pencil marks on the 80/20 so I could remove the stop and put the stick on ruler on. Then I put he stop back and moved the cursor to get it precisely aligned. That worked very well. I had to trim the plastic a little during this calibration but didn't have to remake the cursor pieces.

            The next picture shows the cursor. It is easy to read despite the thickness of the stop block. I think it's fine at 3/4 inch but I also think it could have been 1/2 inch. That picture also shows an extra hole for the clamping bolt for the cam clamp. It wasn't in the right spot. Doesn't bug me enough to make another stop. I should have made the cursor plastic pieces a little narrower. They are 3/4 wide and 5/8 would be better to keep them out of the way of these bolts for the clamp. A cam clamp looks nice but a simpler knob would work fine, perhaps better.

            The last couple pictures show the guide in use. I am making Woodsmith's shop vacumn/dust deputy cart this weekend. The first cut was at 36 inches. Easily within the capacity of this guide (but outside the capacity of the Festool $250 guide). I didn't notice it at first but the 1 1/2 inch tall knobs I have on the clamps holding the guides to the track were too high and obstructed the plunge action of the saw. That might have contributed to me being off 1/16 inch at one end on that first cut. On this project, that wasn't unrecoverable. I noticed what was happening and switched to wing nuts and had no further problems. Remaining cuts were within 1/64 inch, same as with a table saw. I did not mark the wood, I just set the stops and cut.

            The capacity of these guides, as is, is from about 11 inches to over 36 inches. I will probably add little 1/2 inch square by 12 inch extensions to the sides of the stop so I can do narrower rips. They will screw into brass inserts in the side of the existing stops so they are easily removable. The guides are very usable as-is, they just won't do narrow rips.

            Those of you with tracks that don't cut on both sides can do something like this more easily. The festool and other guides (precision dogs I think is the website) latch to the outside edge of the track instead of the underside of the track. Guides like this add significantly to the functionality of track saw IMHO. They allow you to cut based upon stops instead of pencil marks. For me, that is always more accurate than marking and cutting.
            Attached Files

            Comment

            • bigstick509
              Veteran Member
              • Dec 2004
              • 1227
              • Macomb, MI, USA.
              • BT3100

              #7
              Thanks JimD, great write up and build pics. All the benefits of the green tools at a more reasonable yellow tool price point.

              Mike

              "It's not the things you don't know that will hurt you, it's the things you think you know that ain't so." - Mark Twain

              Comment

              • JimD
                Veteran Member
                • Feb 2003
                • 4187
                • Lexington, SC.

                #8
                Mike,

                Thanks for the kind words. I am still debating the need for narrower rips. If I add on little pieces I could do them but the wood being cut will be under the track so I won't be able to see if it is up against the stops. If I don't use the clamps for the track to the parallel guide, I could gain close to 3 inches smaller rip (so down to ~8 inches) and everything I can rip without going under the track with the stops. I may just do that for the occasional narrow rip. As long as I have a table saw (right now I have 2) there isn't any huge need for ripping with the track saw. I do like using it - but I also still like my BT3100.

                Jim

                Comment

                • atgcpaul
                  Veteran Member
                  • Aug 2003
                  • 4055
                  • Maryland
                  • Grizzly 1023SLX

                  #9
                  General question about making parallel cuts with track saws. If I'm ripping sheets with my TS, I just need to set the fence at one location. After the rip, I know I've got a board that has parallel sides.

                  With a track saw or when I rip down big sheets with a circular saw and straight edge, I've got to line up my guide on two different points. I never feel confident I'm getting parallel edges and then I do the final cut on my TS.

                  So with track saw systems, how do you ensure that you're getting a really good (I'm not saying perfect because I'm sure at some microscopic level my TS cut isn't exactly parallel, but pretty darn close) parallel cut? It would seem you could be off if you're reading on one side of the scale or the other.

                  I could see something like the Incra interlocking system being useful for ensuring parallel cuts.

                  Paul

                  Comment

                  • twistsol
                    Veteran Member
                    • Dec 2002
                    • 2893
                    • Cottage Grove, MN, USA.
                    • Ridgid R4512, 2x ShopSmith Mark V 520, 1951 Shopsmith 10ER

                    #10
                    With the Festool parallel guides and theoretically with any based on the same concept, you can slide them next to one another on the guide rail and after one is set, make sure the other is lined up with it, then move the adjusted guide to the edge of the board you are cutting.

                    The reference edge must be straight and the resulting cut will be parallel to the reference edge. It will not necessarily be square to the ends unless you are certain the ends were square to the reference edge.
                    Chr's
                    __________
                    An ethical man knows the right thing to do.
                    A moral man does it.

                    Comment

                    • JimD
                      Veteran Member
                      • Feb 2003
                      • 4187
                      • Lexington, SC.

                      #11
                      I checked my first few cuts and other than the first one when I was having an issue with the height of the knobs, they were the same at both ends. As has been said, it depends on setting the parallel guides to read the same, a one time adjustment, and then moving the stop to the same point on each. That can be checked (slide together and check by feel), you don't have to use the scale but I did. Moving two stops instead of one rip fence has, perhaps, some error potential. I would argue that is offset, however, by the fact that the rail forces the saw through the wood in a straight line. I occasionally have the wood drift from the rip fence slightly which doesn't happen with the track saw.

                      Stated another way the stops of the parallel guide are much easier to set correctly than it is to mark both ends of the board so you can get the track at exactly in the right place on both ends. At least it is for me. It is much more analogous to setting the rip fence or a stop on the radial arm saw.

                      Track saws can do very square cross cuts too. Festools MFT has a hinged attachment for a track to locate it at right angles to the side of the table. I plan to make Ron Paulk's crosscut guide after I make a bench based upon his design. The crosscut capacity of Ron's bench is 4 feet. Mine will probably be about 3 feet. It also uses stops so you can do repeated cuts of exactly the same length.

                      So track saws can do both parallel rips and square cross cuts.

                      Comment

                      Working...