Crosscut Sled

[Brendon]

Here is a new crosscut sled I made for my table saw constructed from melamine-faced particle board, MDF and hardwood.
There are double flip-stops on the fence and perspex safety guards.
Removable, sliding hold-downs complete the accessories.
A plastic sleeved bolt tightened into the t-slots of the saw table at the appropriate spot ensures that the sled
stops at the correct position.
I have put a comprehensive post detailing the calibration of the fence on my blog, which may be of interest to those unfamiliar
with how to do this. I cover the 5th cut method and the dial indicator method in that post.
The fence itself is constructed from a build-up of MDF pieces glued together. I chose MDF for its stability. I then fitted a hardwood face to the fence to ensure a good registration surface.
One end of the fence is fixed with a bolted pivot which enabled the calibration to be done.
A micro-adjuster was made and fitted at the other end of the fence, again to facilitate the calibration.
Good calibration of the fence is imperative for square cuts to be maintained.

[rossbotics]

Nice Job Brendon
And very well explained about your calibration

[Brendon]

Thanks Doug,
The calibration post on my blog takes a bit of reading. I felt it was too much to put up on this forum.
Thanks for taking the time to read it.
Your comment is much appreciated.
Cheers
Brendon

[ncollar]

that is one of the nicest sled I have seen in a long time. I love mine and would not be without if after using it.

[Brendon]

Thanks for your comment. Much appreciated. A good sled is essential.

[Jon]

Another excellent Brendon build along similar lines is his award-winning Radial Arm Saw Table:

Radial Arm Saw Table by Brendon

tags: saw, table

[Thelt]

Very nice build. As a beginner in this sort of build, I'd like to see or describe how to build the micro adjuster on the sled so that adjustments can be made to insure the back fence is square. I'm really not clear on how this is done. Thanks again for the great build of the cross cut sled.

[wback]

Brendon, Thanks for this great idea. I made already a couple of sleds, but yours is the best.

[Brendon]

Thanks for that. You are very kind.
Brendan

[Brendon]

Thanks for your interest in this project.
Here is a picture of a simple micro-adjuster:
In its simplest form it is a metal bracket drilled and threaded to take a small bolt and fixed behind the free end of the fence. The micro adjustment can be made by turning the bolt a quarter turn and so pushing the fence forward a tiny amount. Note in the picture, the clamp to the right of the adjuster. This is used to hold the fence in place temporarily until calibration is complete, at which time the fence is permanently screwed from underneath and the clamp removed.
I hope this is helpful.
Brendon
If you want to discuss further feel free to private message me.