My version for a right angle rail jig

[big K]

First off, I need to say hi to everyone here. This is my first time posting.

I have recently taken into opening my own shop for custom woodworking. Don't know if I can make it work financially or not, but I am going to give it a try.

I own and use a couple of Festool tools, namely the TS 75 and a Domino. I use the 75 primarily as a substitute for a panel saw, to crosscut ripped plywood to length for cabinet construction. I have never been very impressed with the Angle Unit the Festool sells for use with their rails; just doesn't look very sturdy or reliable for daily shop use to hold the rail dead square. And for what it costs, I would expect it to be absolutely reliable. So I made made my own version for just that purpose, inspired by one I saw in an article of "The Journal of Light Construction". My jig originally started out with just the aluminum arm hard bolted to the rail, but that didn't prove to stay dead-nut square. I thought that the 6 machine screws and nuts (3 in each U-channel of the rail) would have been a pretty solid connection, but that wasn't secure enough apparently.

So I just finished adding the maple blocks and a 3/8" ply angle arm to try to lock the rail and fence into a square configuration. Is it going to be as fool-proof as I want and expect it to be? I certainly hope so, i. e. I will let you all know after a month or so of steady use. I think that the new "tri-arm" looks rather clunky, but if it works I bet that I will get used to it.

Anyways, Just thought that I might share this. I see that Dave Lame is starting to design something for his rail, so maybe this will help him. I have been following wow's evolving design process, but I couldn't wait for it to mature. And I fear that his design will end up costing quite a bit more then he is presently thinking, but I am still watching, and I might still be interested.

 

[tallgrass]

Do you find the toggle lock a problem of is this meant for a particular material thickness?  I like the look, it has the look of an early aircraft industry tool.

 

[big K]

The Bessey clamp is one of their new self-adjusting clamps, an STC-HH70. They clamp a range of material thicknesses, which make them much nicer for today's variable thickness materials. These clamps make shop jigs so much easier and faster to use that they are all I use anymore. The jig originally had an older style Bessey clamp with a quick-adjust on it, but that was just to clumsy and cumbersome to use because every sheet of plywood is just a little different in thickness, plus I also use this rail for cutting  1/4" material for the cabinet backs. Last night I used this rail to cut down 2 pieces of 3/4" ply stacked, without having to adjust the clamp (though I did use a couple of quick-clamps to keep the ply from slipping during the cut). I also changed the original pressure pad for this one that doesn't flop around on a ball pivot, the soft rubber tip is more secure then the original hard plastic cap on prefinished plywood. The toggle clamp helps to lock the jig in place, reducing the possibility of the rail slipping out of place during a cut. It is actually very easy to use and quickly becomes second nature, almost automatic. I did set the tension to be fairly high for the clamping action because I work a lot with prefinished maple veneer plywood.

The Festool rails are fairly light weight. Even in 1/4" aluminum the arm is quite heavy by comparison. (I was concerned that a thinner aluminum would bend to easily when dropped, adversely affecting the squares' accuracy, something that will eventually happen no matter how careful someone is with their tools.) So I drilled out all of the holes to reduce the amount of mass attached to the rail thereby giving the entire jig a better sense of balance. The arm is still quite strong and it has remained straight and true.

As a side benefit, I have scribed a couple of reference lines for common cabinet base lengths on the arm (34 1/2" & 35 1/4"), and find myself making pencil marks on the arm when I have to cut several pieces of a particular length. The pencil marks wipe off easily and cleanly when I am done with them.

As a side note, I have also replaced the older-style Bessey clamps on most of my other shop jigs with these newer models, including the MEG PRODUCTS 32mm line boring jig. These newer Bessey clamps are just that much faster and nicer then the old ones, in my opinion.