Shopsmith Forums

Thanks, Dusty. The instructions that come with the SCT tell you how to make the auxiliary table, but don't mention mounting it like you did. I'll have to find a piece of 1/2" melamine and make one like you have. Plus, by building my own, I can have one for each of my blades.

"I have often watched Norm use his sliding cross-cut table and wondered why Shopsmith didn't build theirs in a similar fashion. With Norm's, the cutoff point is matched to the blade. He made it long and then cut it off. Therefore the edge of the table equals the "cut line"."

I'm betting that on Norm's table saw, the blade isn't mounted on a quill and blade soesn't move left and right. Some of our owners like to use this adjustment to fine-tune cuts and set-ups and we have to allow for this in the design of sleds and sliding tables.

By the way, I have made a sled along the same lines as Dusty describes for my Delta Contractor's Saw (gasp! -- yes, I occasionally cross over to the dark side) and for a short time the fact that the cut edge line's up with the saw blade is very handy. But after several years of use, changing saw blades and having them resharpened, that edge is now about 1/8" away from my favorite combination saw blade and cannot be used to align stock for crosscutting. Even if you didn't use the quill for fine adjustments and always used the same saw blades and never had it sharpened, the rubber bumper on the way tubes has enough "give" that you can't trust it to reposition the carriage in the same relationship to the headstock each and every time. Each time you set up, the blade will be in a slightly different position relative to the sled.

I agree that Dusty's setup is impressive and extremely useful for reasons other than this. I especially like the fact that it functions as an almost-zero-clearance device and would continue to do so as long as you were careful with your setups, as Dusty described. This would add valuable safety to sawing operations, even if the gap gets slightly wider as time goes on.

Thanks, Dusty -- I'm going to remember to refer to this thread the next time the subject of crosscut sleds comes up on the Sawdust Sessions.

With all good wishes,

Nick,
Since the holes are already there was it designed to be used this was and for the reasons you stated never sold this way?

When I first initiated this thread, I was trying to figure out why the Auxillary Cross Cut Table had four (4) sets of holes for mounting its small plastic miter bar.

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Now I am wondering whether or not four sets of holes is typical. All of the catalogs that I have, that show images of this table, show only two holes (1 set).

What gives?

Dusty
I went and checked mine, it has one set of slotted holes. The slots give about an inch of adjustement. The closest I can move table to the blade is about 1/2 inch away. Also it is only 5 3/4 inches wide yours in the pciture looks wider.
Ed

I can't even find the auxiliary table in the catalog. Does SS even sell it any more?

Good eye, Ed. Mine is 7" wide. So much for universal standards but then mine is 16 years old and things do change.

Bruce, Yes they still make it. Part #555526. It is a gray color now, not white.

Ed, I noticed that Nick used it during the Saw Dust Session today but his only has one set of holes. With only one set of holes, I wonder what the difference is if you swap it end for end? Are the holes centered?

dusty wrote:Bruce, Yes they still make it. Part #555526. It is a gray color now, not white.

Ed, I noticed that Nick used it during the Saw Dust Session today but his only has one set of holes. With only one set of holes, I wonder what the difference is if you swap it end for end? Are the holes centered?

Dusty
I flopped mine all around and it didn't seem to change a thing. I didn't measure but it was no where near touching the blade.

Frankly I'm tempted to either buy or make a sled like the one that was on e-bay awhile ago. It was a full sled with a replaceable piece where the blade cut. So you could replace it every time the kerf wore wide.
Ed

Ed,

If you are referring to the Sliding Table by Rick Woodbury of Apalachia Tool Works it is slick and very well made. I did find time to assemble mine but am yet to use it. Jim