My Saw Table

[Mumda]

I posted this in the Fine Woodworking forum but Matthew said I should post it here also.

Here's what I built for my saw table.

It holds a 4x8 sheet and breaks down to easily be carried. It costs 1/2 sheet of plywood and a pair of folding saw horses.

This is NOT my design; I saw it on the internet some time ago.

 

[Eli]

Sweet. What's the depth of those battens?

 

[Mumda]

It breaks down real easy to this.

 

[Matthew Schenker]

Mumda,
Welcome to the forum.  Hope you have lots of projects and ideas to share.

Thanks for coming in and sharing the saw table.  The subject of saw tables is one of the ongoing topics in the Festool world!  I was interested in having you share your concept especially because of the way the whole table breaks down.  Many of us have limited shop space (I know I do) and so it is great to have a cutting table that can be put away in pieces like yours.

If you get a chance, tell us more about using this table -- what it's like in action.

Stay in touch,
Matthew

 

[Mumda]

The plywood was ripped to 5" for every part. It could have been 4" I'm sure, but I wanted extra when it gets wore out I can rip off 1/4" and expose new surface.

After assembly, it's so strong I can actually sit on the middle of it on a small piece of scrap plywood.

I like this design for many reasons but mainly because it allowed me to easily pack it up and carry it to a jobsite, which was a job of cutting a bunch of 1/4" prefinished Cherry veneer panels. The saw system and table set-up worked flawlessly with that flimsy 1/4" stuff.

I purchased the saw and rails specifically for this job from this guy who I think is lurking around here: www.accuratesystems.biz

 

[Eli]

Excellent, thanks, that was the dimension I was looking for....

 

[Dave Ronyak]

Mumda,

How did you cut those 2 1/2 inch deep notches?  Have you any recommendations on how to most efficiently cut the notches?  If you are using a Festool only shop, it seems that some jigsaw or handsaw/chisel work may be needed.  In contrast, a radial arm saw could make those notches quick and easy.

Dave R.

 

[Mumda]

I laid out each slot then rough cut them on the miter saw. I then cleaned up the bottom of each slot with a jig saw.

 

[TahoeTwoBears]

Good morning,

Can I ask what the lengths of the battens are? How about the plywood size (1/2" or 3/4")?

Thanks for the help,

Mike

 

[jonny round boy]

Good morning,

Can I ask what the lengths of the battens are? How about the plywood size (1/2" or 3/4")?

Thanks for the help,

Mike

Mike, looks to me like 3/4" ply. And since it holds (and is made from) an 8'x4' sheet, I guess that the long bits are 8' and the shorter bits are 4'.

I'd say rip 6 pieces from an 8'x4' sheet, all at 5" wide.

4 of these six are the long pieces. The other 2 are cross-cut in half, making the 3 shorter sections, and one shorter section left over. This is ripped lengthways to create the 2 flat-lying pieces which are fixed to 2 of the 3 short pieces to form an inverted 'T' section (that sit on the saw horses).

Since Mumda hasn't posted since this, (s)he may not be around at the moment, hence I thought I'd post my 'guesswork'.

 

[TahoeTwoBears]

Thanks Jonny,

I was guessing about the same, but in his post, he mentioned that he did it with a 1/2 sheet of plywood. I was eyeballing the 5" dimension and couldn't wrap my mind around how to do it in half a sheet.

Mike

 

[jonny round boy]

Thanks Jonny,

I was guessing about the same, but in his post, he mentioned that he did it with a 1/2 sheet of plywood. I was eyeballing the 5" dimension and couldn't wrap my mind around how to do it in half a sheet.

Mike

Yes, the 5" brings it to 30" for the 6 strips, not 24", so it's slightly more than 1/2 sheet... Unless you drop it down to 4" depth (which Mumda suggested was possible), in which case it's exactly 1/2 sheet  ;D

 

[Eli]

Since originally reading this, I've been thinking that maybe you could combine function betw/ this table and a guide rail carrying arrangement, where the broken down table parts get packed around the rails for transport.

Haven't fully fleshed the idea out, but obviously the table battens would need to be the width of a rail. The long ones would at least. The shorter cross pieces could be half width and sit on the top half of the long ones when assembled.

 

[TahoeTwoBears]

Excellent idea! 7 1/2" should do the trick. Of course things get a bit heavier (but stronger), but that sheet of plywood is pretty much history anyway. Might as well use it up.

 

[Eli]

I think you'd need to route grooves for the actual guide part of the rail in the face of the batten, to make the whole thing pack flush, but hey, that's what the rail's for right?

 

[TahoeTwoBears]

I was thinking to just reverse the rails with a protective cloth between, and a couple of straps around the whole mess. Now you want me to get fancier, and I'm thinking that I'll need something much nicer than plywood.

 

[Eli]

Like what ? UHMW plastic?!

 

[TahoeTwoBears]

I was thinking of some exotic form of balsa to help my back out.

Still it would have to have a lot of strength and look good too..........

Eli,

More seriously, you asked after the dimensions earlier. Did you build one? Happy with it? or would you change something?

Mike

 

[Eli]

I'm still building it in my head Mike. I have an onsite shopfitting (a bar! I've been waiting for this job for six months!) coming up in the new year, but a house move between then and now. No more building things for the moment, I just finished a little job.

How about paulownia for yours? A little stronger than balsa. Actually, lexan might work. It would look like your rails were sandwiched in laminated glass..... You could route your name in mirror writing on the backside.....

 

[Steveo48]

HAs anyone gone ahead and actually done this?  It looks like a fantastic idea for a large portable table.

Steve (Go Blue Hens)