MFS Hardware for a repetitive cut fence

Dan Clermont

Festool Dealer
Member
Joined
Jan 22, 2007
Messages
1,134
I bought the MFS so I could do repetitive cuts both narrow and wide. I also wanted to use it for dado's, sliding dovetails and such

I am clamp challenged and didn't like reaching below the table so I cane up with a couple of pieces of metal with matching holes for the V-Track.

Basically, I took some bar, tapped some 8-32 threads and then filed the back so it would fit in theV-Groove and slide with no friction. I then took some scrap metal and drilled four holes to attach some T-Bolts into the Threaded bar installed in the V-Groove.

Not wanting the bars to ride on the MFS and possibly scratch them up I placed some nylon washers below the scrap metal.

If I ws to do it again I would only have one T-Bolt and two bolts on the sliding MFS. When I want to move the MFS 700 down the 2000mm Profile I simply loosen off the T-Bolts and slide the unit. Having filed Oblong holes in the top plate I can ensure the MFS 700 is snug up against the 2000mmm profile.

As a test I cut a piece of scrap plywood I had and it was 41.4mm  on each side and the diagonal was 58.5 Pretty much perfect!
 
Great idea!  I just got my MFS so this should be an excellent addition.  Why couldn't you have used the long v-nuts as shown on Jerry's guide instead of making your own for the MFS profile?
 
HowardH said:
Great idea!  I just got my MFS so this should be an excellent addition.  Why couldn't you have used the long v-nuts as shown on Jerry's guide instead of making your own for the MFS profile?

The V-Nuts supplied by Festool would have been fine.

I just happened to have some tapped 8-32 bar already so that is what I used and I already had the 8-32 T-Bolts.

I wanted a fence which did not require a screwdriver to adjust so if you can find T-Bolts in metric near you which fit the  Festool V-Nuts you should buy them and let the rest of us know where you got them.

This was just a  prototype and in the future I'd make the following changes:

- a one T-Bolt system rather then two (I may just cut one of the existing prototypes in half
- some phenolic or something which would allow me to read the metric measurements on the profiles although I'd like to heave the hardware strong enough I could lift the profile extension and MFS700 from the MFT and store it on the wall. Metal hardware would allow that and I am not sure about phenolic

In the future I'll probably pick up some 3mm, 4mm, 5, and 6mm bolts for jigs like this

Thanks for the positive comments

Dan Clermont
 
Dan, feeling dumb as dirt here but are you placing the saw between the two metal pieces you have built? Fred
 
Hi Fred

You use the MFT and the Guide rail attached to the MFT to make the cut.

The extension profile and MFS 700 act as a square fence. If you look in the second pic where the piece of plywood is placed near the MFS 700 and extension profile you will notice the saw kerf

I'll take more pics tonight if you don't understand
 
Hi Dan,

Looks cool, though I'm feeling dumb too: how do you ensure that the MFS system is square to the guide rail on the MFT? Otherwise the whole thing doesn't work...

Poto
 
Read Jerry's guide on the MFS.  It explains it perfectly.  Once you know the MFS is square to your liking, you align the guiderail to the mfs and then would have a perfect 90 to go by.
 
Thanks Howard. I'll check that out (again - must have forgotten since I last read Jerry's opus).

Poto
 
wouldn't a 1/4" or slightly thicker piece of plexiglass or even Lexan do the trick?.  Lexan is bullet proof so one might think it would be strong enough to hold the weight of the MFS and extended profile.
 
WOW, very nice Dan.  It looks like you are going to need to knock out a wall to accommodate the 2000 rail  ;)

Timmy
 
Fred West said:
Dan, feeling dumb as dirt here but are you placing the saw between the two metal pieces you have built? Fred

Fred, I'm guessing that he's cutting parallel to the short rail on the MFS.

Dan, did you use one of Jerry's methods to square it up or do something of your own?

Steve
 
I used Jerry's method of clamping the Long profile to the MFT and then squared up the long profile to the guide rail attached to my fence

I'll try to get into the shop tomorrow and will take some pics

Dan Clermont
 
Here are some pics on how to attach the Extension profile to the MFT and how to square it up for accurate repetitive cuts, dado's, dovetails, mortises (with some stops attached to the guide) and a gazillion other useful things once you think outside the box like tenons.

I apologize for not knowing how to attach text to each picture at this time and will try to figure that out later on. Right now I need to get into work.

Here is how the extension profile attaches to the table. You can either leave the extension profile lose and adjust it square to the guide rail or you can adjust the guide rail to be square to the extension profile

Here is a picture from the top using a square to adjust/confirm you are square

This is how you zero the MFS 700 to the guide rail

Next you'll want to mark your zero reference point

Next you will want to adjust the MFS 700 for your cut point. In my case I adjusted it to 400mm
 
In the previous post I showed how to cut pieces to exact size or multiple pieces to exact size. Same thing goes for routing as shown in this post

This is extremely useful when you want to cut dado's, dovetails, tenons in the same position on two different project pieces

Dan Clermont
 
HowardH said:
Great idea!  I just got my MFS so this should be an excellent addition.  Why couldn't you have used the long v-nuts as shown on Jerry's guide instead of making your own for the MFS profile?

I can't find the part number for those long v-nuts in the catalogue or at Festool USA. Can anyone help me?
 
joraft said:
HowardH said:
Great idea!  I just got my MFS so this should be an excellent addition.  Why couldn't you have used the long v-nuts as shown on Jerry's guide instead of making your own for the MFS profile?

I can't find the part number for those long v-nuts in the catalogue or at Festool USA. Can anyone help me?

The joiners are a spare part.  Part number and contact info are in MFS:  Notes on the MFS thread.

Ned
 
Ned Young said:
The joiners are a spare part.  Part number and contact info are in MFS:  Notes on the MFS thread.

Ned

Thanks for clearing up my confusion, Ned.

Jerry Work's manual calls them special "V" nuts. You call them joiners and the Festool parts diagram calls them "along-binders".  I hope they're all one in the same.

I'm ordering part# 493-235 and hoping to get this

 
Ned Young said:
That's what mine look like.   ;)

Thanks again, Ned, you've been a big help.

Do you know if this part (and the v-nut that goes with it) is available separately?

 
Back
Top