BUILD MOM'S TOPSY-TURVY TABLE SAW

(Page 3 of 4)

March/April 1982
 
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WRAP UP THE DETAILS

To make the first of the two attachments, lay your 26" length of 2 X 2 across the width of the table, and drill a 1/4" hole through each end, at points just shy of the platform's edge. Then run the 1/4" carriage bolts through the openings, slip a body washer over each of the bolts, and secure them with 1/4" nuts. This somewhat crude fence can be used as a ripping guide if you simply slide it over the table platform and lock it in the desired position with the washer clamps.

Constructing the miter gauge might seem a bit more difficult because it involves tapping metal parts. However, it shouldn't prove to be too complicated if you begin by routing a 1/4"-deep by 1 "wide groove across the face of the table, with its near edge 4-1/2 inches from the saw blade. (If you don't have a router, your circular saw-set to the proper depth and run repeatedly across the to-be-cut channel until the 1 " breadth is achieved—will get the task done . . . and neatly, too, provided you take the time to clamp a straight board to the platform to serve as a guide for the saw foot's edge.)

Once you've made the groove, you can drill two 13/64" holes, 1-1/2 inches apart, in the end of the 1/4" X 1 " X 18" piece of bar stock . . . and tap them for 1/4" coarse threads. By boring the same size opening, to a depth of 1/2", in one end of the 7/8" round bar, tapping it, and screwing in a 1 " length of threaded rod, you can then use this miter gauge handle as a lock for the angle-iron swivel head . . . if you shape the base of the latter component to include a semicircle—as shown—then drill a 1/4" hole at the center of the arc and bolt the angle to the bar stock, through the innermost hole. (A body washer placed between the handle and the upper surface of the guide's base will hold the turnable angle section in any position when the grip is twisted into the remaining tapped opening in the sliding bar.)

Finally, to hold the cutting platform in place on top of its four-legged stand, merely drill a 1/2" hole through each leg face, the cross braces behind them, and the struts on the tabletop . . . and then slip 1/2" X 4" bolts into the bores to serve as pins.

To avoid the bother of having to reach under the table to turn the drive motor on and off, you can easily rig up an exterior control by cutting a hole in one of the leg sides, installing a switch enclosure over the opening, and fitting a 20-amp, motor-rated switch—and a cover plate—to the box. Two short lengths of electrical cable with a male cap and a female connector end, wired into the switch, will allow you to plug the saw and the power cord through the breaker for the sake of safety and convenience.

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