Modified Paulk MFT Workbench and Miter Saw Stand

[BillyG]

I just finished building a modified Paulk workbench, sized at 32" x 72" for a basement shop.  I used 3/4" BB ply for the top and bottom and 1/2" ply for the ribs.  The holes are 20mm with 96mm spacing, bored with the OF1400 and indexed track.  The bench can be flipped over and the bottom side has no holes and can be used as an assembly table when you don't want to get glue squeeze out in the dog holes.

I also finished a modified Paulk miter stand for the Kapex for fixed use in a shop, sized 24" x 72" with 80/20 extension rails.  I did not like the Paulk design with the 3-1/2" plywood ribs running the length of the miter saw stand, effectively blocking usage of the cubbyholes for storage in the stand.  Instead, for rigidity and support I used 1" square thick wall (0.125") steel tubing as rails, and tapped and threaded them for attachment to the plywood.  The steel rails sit inside the bench but are lower than the oval openings in the bench, so they don't interfere with tool storage in the bench.  I saw no need to bore 20mm holes in the stationary top and instead I dadoed the top for Incra track that is used for the rail extensions and the Festool clamps.

Here are a few finished photos below.

 

[gxgn]

Very nice, how do you like it? Does it move on the sawhorses or you clao it somehow?

 

[BillyG]

And here are a few build photos of the Kapex saw stand.

Billy

 

[BillyG]

I have a long build thread on Breaktime 3 where I go through all the steps, templates for the oval openings, laying out and boring the 20mm holes using the OF1400 and indexed rail, cutting the dados using the OF1400 and rail -- from both sides of the rail -- and many other aspects of the build at the link below (sorry -- I'm not reposting all the photos here!)

http://forums.delphiforums.com/breaktime_3/messages/?msg=1695.1

Billy

 

[BillyG]

And for lagniappe, there's a quick drill press table I built.

Cutting slots for T-bolts for the drill press fence:

Top of drill press table:

Bottom of drill press table:

Back edge of drill press table:

Billy

 

[BillyG]

Very nice, how do you like it? Does it move on the sawhorses or you clao it somehow?

I like it a lot -- the workbench is heavy enough and the sawhorses are stable so it doesn't move -- but the sawhorses are temporary.  I am trying some adjustable height leg approaches but maybe I'll put together legs using 80/20 extrusions.  I would like to keep the area under the table open for vacuums and other tools so I don't want 8 angled sawhorse legs...  4 vertical legs would be nice if I can get the stability.  I may drill some holes on the un-holey side of the table for locking into legs.

Billy

 

[Billedis]

Love the dog BillyG.  Bill

 

[BillyG]

Love the dog BillyG.  Bill

Do you mean the dog under the workbench in the Breaktime 3 photo?  That's a classic photo of someone else's bench -- I wish I had that content looking dog!

Billy

 

[BillyG]

I bought the miter saw fence tape from Oregon Rule.  It is high quality steel tape with a great adhesive.  Much better than the Kreg tapes.  I cut the 80/20 auxiliary fence with the Kapex using an aluminum cutting blade so it has extensions I can remove.  I attached the tape across the extension joint:

And then I cut the tape at the joint.

The tape is aligned so it shows the exact distance from the blade.  All I have to do is line up wood at the length I want on the rule and cut.  No need for offsets or stop blocks or sight indicators.  This is where I line up the tape with a precise 12" cut mark scratched onto the 80/20 extrusion.

Adjustments are easy if I use a blade with a different kerf.

Billy

 

[wow]

NICE!

Very professional job and write-up. I am going to bookmark this for when I am ready to build my cutting table.

 

[JimD]

Looks great!  I want a top just like that.  I bought the Woodrave jig to make the holes.  I wanted Baltic birch but had forgotten it comes in 4x8 sheets too.  Maybe I'll do that.  I also have to make a new workbench for my RAS and CMS.  I am planning on holes on a side portion for clamping a wooden board for a crown stop.  You should be able to clamp a board with your tracks. 

My workbench top will go on top of a rolling cabinet.  I need tool storage.  I will also leave it detachable so I can move it to lower elevations when that's what I need for a project.  It's normal height on the bench will be 1/4 inch shorter than my table saw.  I will also make the Paulk style cross cutting setup.  I could do crosscuts with dogs but I want the stops for accuracy and repeatability.

 

[BillyG]

Jim, rolling cabinets are good!  The 3/4" BB is really metric, of course, so it's 17 or 18mm.  4x8 BB can be hard to find but some places can special order it.

I made a template for cutting the oval openings and that really helped the look and consistency of the openings.  The OF1400 did a great job with that.  My Bosch routers aren't getting much use these days, except for the Colt trim router.

There are lots of details and tradeoff discussion on the thread http://forums.delphiforums.com/breaktime_3/messages/?msg=1695.1

The template is underneath the piece being routed.

The template works with different length oval openings.

I routed shallow 1/8" deep dados and rabbets in the workbench tops and bottoms for accurate registration of the ribs.  Ron Paulk does not do this but I found that it greatly helped assembly and glue-up.

Billy