A $30 crosscut sled that made my cheap table saw cut square
Difficultymedium
Time2 hours
Costabout $30
Why
My jobsite saw's miter gauge had enough slop to make picture frames impossible. A crosscut sled fixes that for the price of a sheet of 1/2" plywood and a hardwood scrap.
Build
- Mill two runners from hardwood to fit your miter slots snugly. Wax them.
- Glue and screw a 18x24" plywood base to the runners while they sit in the slots with playing-card shims under them.
- Attach a tall rear fence with one screw, then square it to the blade using the five-cut method (search it, it is worth learning). Add the rest of the screws.
- Front fence just holds the sled together; it does not need to be square.
- Screw a block of scrap over where the blade exits the rear fence so you cannot push your hand through.
What went wrong
I used pine for the runners the first time. They swelled in summer and the sled stuck. Use oak, maple or UHMW plastic.
Materials
- 1/2" plywood 18x24"
- hardwood for runners
- 3/4" plywood for fences
- screws, glue
Tools
- table saw
- drill
- square
- calipers (nice to have)
#table-saw#jig#crosscut-sled#woodworking
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💬 5 comments
5 comments
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Followed along, got it done in about twice the time quoted, but it is done and it works.
Should be the same procedure, the part moved slightly but the steps match.
Bookmarking. I have exactly this problem and was about to pay someone.
Can confirm, the cheap part is the one that fails. Replaced mine twice before reading this.
The embedded video is clearer than the official service manual, which is a little embarrassing for the manufacturer.