My Festool Table Saw Cabinet

[butzla]

I've recently upgraded my Delta Unisaw to a SawStop 3hp PCS.  A while back, I had made an undermount drawer for my Unisaw which was very handy in somewhat freeing up the top of the table saw of all the junk that tends to accumulate on it.  Pencils, combo squares, marking knives, etc.

When I sold my Unisaw, I kept the drawer, thinking I could transfer it to my new PCS.  However, once I set up the new Sawstop, I realized that the mobile base functions entirely different from my Unisaw.  It jacks up the whole saw and lifts it off the ground, extension table and legs, et al.  Since the drawer is very heavy, I thought it might be too much for the extension table to bear when the wheels are down and active.  So I decided to make a 3 drawer cabinet on wheels that's stands free and clear of the saw.  This will give me a lot more storage as well.  My saw blades are across the shop hanging on my peg board and my stacking dado set is on some random horizontal surface, wherever I left it last.  I always wanted to have some dedicated storage for all these and more. I pondered painting it in the Sawstop color scheme (black and red) but I already had the Festool  paint from a previous project, so why not?  I've showed this to some lay-people (family and friends) and they were all eyes-glazed-over, unimpressed.  They don't understand.  But I'm stoked about having all this badly needed organization!  And of course, I used many of my prized Festools to get 'er done.  I'll document the build but first here's some finished pics:

 

[rst]

That's a nice solution.  I use cheap Sears rolling tool chests to the same purpose by replacing the furnished wheel with smaller ones.  I have six in all, including the one that my chop saw is mounted on with (2) 8' 8020 built extensions.  For $100 or less (scratch & dent), I have lots of drawers and mobility.  In all fairness though, I use mine in a commercial setting and use my time building for my customers more than myself.

 

[butzla]

I know.  Ive got plenty of repurposed cabinets.  But this is one I made for just me.  I think that's why I like it so much.  I wish I had time, money and discipline to make 10 more like it.

 

[dltflt]

Nice cabinet.  Love the T-Loc.

 

[jbasen]

Very cool.

How do you like the Sawstop sliding table?  I've been thinking about getting one.

Thanks

 

[Jamul]

I really like it. It's a great use for that space. I like the handles. Good Job!

 

[Kev]

Not what I was expecting to see based on thread title!

Cool.

 

[butzla]

To get started, I cut all the pieces to size on my table saw.  It's held together with dominos and pocket screws.  Prior to assembly, I glued and tacked on some 1/4" hardwood veneer on the front leading edge. 

 

[butzla]

Next comes laying out the drawer heights and partitions.  I want my dado set to fit in the  bottom drawer.  I made a story stick and marked for height.

Now that I have the drawer fronts and sides dimensioned and the lock miter profiles milled, I lay out for the partitions for my saw blades and the dado set before I assemble.

 

[butzla]

After I had the drawers finished, I thought the saw blades sat a little too low in the drawers so I added some plywood strips in the dados for stops.  This is design on the fly.

The beauty of a cabinet without face frames, is that there's no wasted space.  Here you can see how much drawer is crammed into the carcass. 

 

[butzla]

The back compartment is a perfect size to house my grrr-ripper push blocks.  But I thought they sat a little low by themselves in the bottom.  A lot of wasted space there.  Why not make a tray and tack in some runners?

I used a smaller lock miter bit for the 1/2" tray sides:

 

[butzla]

After I had the drawers all done, I found my crosscut blade was in fact, slightly larger than the ripping blade that I used to lay out the partition width.  I had the stops installed and everything.  How could I deepen the dados with the stops installed?

.......with my miniature router plane from Lee Valley.  This is a very handy little plane, would also make a great Xmas tree ornament!

 

[butzla]

I used these little drawer front adjuster thingies to hold the drawer fronts on....and attach the pulls.  It makes it easy to straighten them and also creates a solid connection:

If you've never used these, you drill the holes with a 20 mm forstner bit and then insert the "templates" you see pictured.  They have a point on them so that when you roughly locate them on your drawer you tap on the back with a shot filled hammer, making a dimple in the wood so you can easily locate the screw hole.  Remove the template and hammer home the drawer front adjusters and attach.  The nut floats inside the plastic so you have some degree of adjustment.

 

[butzla]

I think that's all I have for pictures.  A lot of planning (and materials) went into this cabinet.  It's built to last a lifetime, certainly mine anyways.  Yes, you can repurpose and old cabinet to suit your needs, but building a custom cabinet makes your experience in the shop going forward so much more productive....and enjoyable!

 

[ali]

Beautiful setup and beautiful work.

8) 8)

 

[RobNJ]

Looks awesome. Definitely a good solution to minimize wasted space around a big machine like that table saw.

 

[teocaf]

good work.  very informative detail pictures.
i wonder if from a design and ergonomic standpoint you considered placing the drawer pulls near the top of each drawer instead of centered.  it would look more like a systainer stack and you would not have to bend down as far to pull them out.
the saw with all the options looks really nice too.

 

[ear3]

Great build.  I especially like the efficient saw blade storage.

 

[mike_aa]

[member=3220]Jim Kirkpatrick[/member]
Great looking cabinet and well thought out storage.

It looks like the height was limited to the space under the saw wing.  You didn't mention it but it appears you based the rest of the dimensions on fitting the blades, dado set, and Grippers in that bottom drawer.  Was that your strategy?

Thanks, Mike A.

 

[Motown]

Jim, very cool build...I really like the way you organized your table saw accessories. Question, how are you liking the Veritas router plane? I've lots of cabinet builds coming up and a chisel and hammer are getting old.