Drawing heavily on the designs I found here I designed my own version of the MFT/3 Sysport cabinet. I especially liked Steve Rowe's design, but took his feedback that he'd rather have the extra space on the side instead of the front so it would be shallow and wide instead of deep, perfect for clamps and maybe a small shelf for dogs, and I put this opening on the non-cutting end of the table so it wouldn't get dusty. The height keeps it at the level of the MFT on its own legs so I can join a future second MFT. The MFT sits on it's own feet (not the webbing), I'll add alignment blocks soon to keep it from sliding off, but so far it doesn't seem so inclined. I left the back wide to store guide rails and the fence, but it is deep enough to hold Systainers if I change my mind. I used cheap drawer slides which significantly reduced the project price, but oversized them so I get full extension and can open them, but not quite enough for the lid to go vertical and stay open. I used double locking casters bought on Amazon which happen to be 100mm floor to top of plate. The plywood is from Home Depot and not baltic birch, but seems stable enough. I put the pocket holes on the outside so they'd angle in and away from the edge of the top and base to get them into more meat. I cut the cleats to keep the Systainers in place out of maple on the band saw and glued them in place - that was a pain in the neck, but it works. The hose Systainer on the left was extra tall so I didn't have room for a shelf for the top Systainer, but I can live with that.
My version of the MFT/3 Sysport cabinet
- Thread starter sprior
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Thanks. One of my design goals for this cabinet was to see if I could make it cheaper and still have all the features. I figured if the Chaos Theory video could use cheap drawer slides then so can I. I didn't want to pay $100 for a set of casters. This is a utility table and shouldn't be crazy expensive (that's what Festool is for). I did leave the back side open for things like guide rails, but yes it is deep enough to fit more Systainers if I change my mind. I should point out that in order to get the full extension with cheap slides I needed to make the Sysport side 16" deep and use 16" slides, the back side isn't quite that deep so if I did change my mind I'd just have to use the more expensive real full extension slides.
It might be a bit fiddly, I'll have to work with it a little to see - after all I just finished building it yesterday so I don't know what works yet. I'll probably grab a chisel and slope in the edges a bit so it'll work when I'm close but a little off. The good news is that I noticed that the drawers don't quite extend out enough for the lids to open all the way, they do open enough to stay open by themselves which may be fine. The bad news is that the front rail guide is directly over the right stack of drawers and that guide does prevent the lid from opening enough to stay open, will have to see what to do about that. When I was designing this I thought I was going to have up to 6 drawers so saving $10/drawer made a difference, but since it worked out to only 3 drawers I'm more willing to go for the more expensive slides if it makes a difference.
Go for it! Once I finished planning (I spent a lot of time contemplating options and checking dimensions) and started building it took me about 2 1/2 days, but I could probably do it faster next time. I planned all the dimensions in advance in metric, cut all the pieces at once, and didn't test fit anything until just before final assembly. My only issues were a slight bend in some plywood and pocket hole joints that slipped a hair when screwing, but all the pieces still fit well.
Timtool
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It depends on how deep of a space you have behind the drawers, but in general you need 350mm of extension for the lid to stay open without having to turn the knob.
For that you need 550mm slides, that makes quite a bit of lost space in this type of sysport (not so much with wall mounted ports)
Or else 350mm full extension drawers will do.
How about nailing a piece of wood behind the systainer on the drawer, that way you can first butt the systainer against it and lower it on the locks?
For that you need 550mm slides, that makes quite a bit of lost space in this type of sysport (not so much with wall mounted ports)
Or else 350mm full extension drawers will do.
How about nailing a piece of wood behind the systainer on the drawer, that way you can first butt the systainer against it and lower it on the locks?
Since the front rail guide sticks out from the edge of the cabinet, could you not move (or add) your retainers a little more forward to give that particular systainer a little more clearance room. Yes, all the systainers would now now longer be flush, but.... and since the front guide is already out there the systainer shouldn't be in your way.
Guilliaume woodworks
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whats your idea on holder? Pic. or drawing?sprior said:
ART at WORK
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ScotF said:
Hay Scott,
just go for it.
it is the best thing I have done to sort out my Systainers and have a mobile MFT /3 in the workshop. Some times its just 20 cm to one side or the other makes all the difference.
I raised mine up which meant I dont have to bend so much and I got more systainers under the table.
It is a pleasure each time I use it and Im still tinkering with bits here and there.
I would strongly recommend you consider making the construction under the table longer so you can build a support on the right of the MFT. This has been discussed in many improvements for the table. The right side is to short, work falls off to easily.
Also look on ebay or equivalent for cheep full extension runner. It makes sense in the long run. Ease of use is important to me.
Hence me buying festool.
good luck
Pip
For the TS55 holder I've seen ideas where bolts slide into the side rail of the MFT and a vertical side goes down the height of the saw meeting up with a horizontal piece the width of the saw with a small raised lip to prevent the saw sliding off. Some triangular piece would go in front to reinforce for strength, no back piece so it doesn't get in the way of the power cord and hose. Since the side of the cabinet is there for support it should eliminate any twisting stress on the side rail. I'll probably build this in a few days and will post a picture in this thread. As for the boom arm, I have no idea yet beyond having it grab the back rail.
Here's the TS55 holder I just added. It's probably overkill, but I like overkill. Held in place with 2 bolts in the side track of the MFT it comes off in seconds. It doesn't interfere with the power cord or hose, and the raised edge hides the plywood and prevents it from sliding off accidentally.
Wooden Skye
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Sprior,
Very nice addition, I am designing MFT sysport cabinet and this is a great addition I overlooked. If you don't mind me asking, what are the overall dimensions? Did you do anything to secure the MFT to the top of the cabinet?
Bryan
Very nice addition, I am designing MFT sysport cabinet and this is a great addition I overlooked. If you don't mind me asking, what are the overall dimensions? Did you do anything to secure the MFT to the top of the cabinet?
Bryan
The dimensions of the top and bottom of my cabinet are 1155 x 770mm which allows the four MFT feet to sit on the top, but the side rails are unobstructed (you can clamp something vertically). Right now the MFT is just sitting on the top without fasteners and doesn't show any sign of slipping, but I've got something in mind - I'm thinking of making round corner stops which bolt into a T-nut in the top so they capture the MFT from sliding off, but can be unscrewed and leave a flat table top - Sparktrician and I have been bouncing ideas back and forth. As for the TS55 holder, I didn't measure anything, just sat the saw on top of a piece of plywood, left a margin, and make a square cut. I like the angle cut for the support, keeps that angle (which has no structural value) out of the way and was of course trivial to cut with the MFT - just mark the intersection points and cut that line.
Wooden Skye
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Sprior
Thank you.
Thank you.
Another difficulty I'm running into is that I'd like to add a drawer to the top of the open end and that cavity is 9 3/4" deep and I'm having trouble finding a 9" drawer slide - so far they seem to go down to 12" at your local big box store and 10" at Rockler. Anyone know of a cheap source?
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