Wanna turn your basic circular saw into a precision cutting machine?
Believe it or not, there is a way to get extreme precision with your circular saw for a small investment of some scrap sheet goods, screws and wood glue. You can build one of these babies and use it to break down sheet goods with no hassle and minimal measurements.
So, how do you do it? (click on images for larger sized views)
Build yourself a Sawboard. I found this plan on the Internet and decided I just had to build one for myself. I have an 8 foot model, and wanted a shorter one for use on smaller pieces. So, that’s what I built recently in my shop.
First of all, I took this scrap of B-C plywood lying around the shop. It’s 4 feet long, and about 22 inches wide. I ripped a 4 inch wide piece on my table saw and sanded the edges of what would become the top edge to prevent any splinters.
Next, if there is any bow in the pieces, put them so the bows cancel each other out and the sheets will lay flat once screwed together. I put on a good bead of wood glue and used 3/4″ screws to hold the pieces together. Now, you have to remember to keep this piece roughly centered on the bottom piece, and allow at least the distance from the edge of your circular saw base to the blade on both sides. The precision comes from the next step.
Once you have the pieces screwed together, what you want to do is set the edge of your saw’s base against the fence and make a cut. You will automatically have a guide that will be the exact distance between your saw’s base edge and the blade. It’s genius!
To use the Sawboard, mark where you want the cut to begin and end on a peice of sheet stock. It doesn’t matter if you want a straight cut or an angled one, because the saw will give you a perfect cut. Clamp it down with the edge of the guide over the two marks and cut away.
If you clamp the Sawboard to the ‘keeper’ side of the cut, the jig actually presses down on the wood fibers, keeping them from lifting. A pretty nifty idea.
To get the best out of the jig, just lay the piece you want to cut over a pair of wooden saw horses, and set the depth of the blade a little deeper than the thickness of the keeper and the jig so you barely score the top of the saw horses.
Simple and elegant. I love it!
On the flip side, this is where the bigger clamps call home. This is where I go when I need the muscle to glue up big projects.
The router is one of the most versatile tools in the shop. Edge jointing, profiling, joint cutting, pattern cutting… you name it, and the router is up to the task.
The “system” actually consists of three jigs. The main jig itself, which is used in tandem with a router to cut the spline grooves into the workpiece with a perfect one degree taper, and the Spline-making jig, used on the table saw to cut splines using whatever species of wood you choose. This jig also the matching one degree taper incorporated into it so that the splines will fit tightly into the grooves. The third jig is called the Corner Inlayer. It is also used with your router, and allows you to cut a perfect “mini-dado” of whatever width and depth you choose, but at an angle exactly perpendicular to the corner itself, versus from one of the flat sides of the workpiece. This jig is normally optional, but right now they are running an online special that includes this jig at no additional charge.
The Kehoe Jig was invented by Larry Kehoe out of one part necessity, and one part frustration. According to Kevin Jaynes, owners of the company, ” . . . . while in the middle of building an oak desk, he was dreading hauling out his dovetail jig to build the drawers because he had never found a dovetail jig that was not slow and cumbersome, and he hated test cuts. As he was walking across the basement shop floor with the traditional dovetail jig in his hands, he had one of those “Flash Of Genius” moments where he actually saw the jig in his minds eye; the jig that would eventually become the Kehoe Dovetail Spline Jig. Larry told me he had seen it ‘in remarkable detail, especially the taper.”
While the joint is similar in many ways to traditional dovetails -and creates a strong joint – the beauty of it is that the Kehoe Jig can be used in boxes made of materials such as plywood – since the cutting of the spline grooves doesn’t expose the material’s end grain.
Today, the Kehoe Jig continues to be a useful and interesting jig with an even brighter future. Kevin and Terry have already made three prototypes of variations of the jig, and are about a month away from releasing the first one. “It’s along the same lines, but cut’s smaller splines in a pattern closer together. Perfect for the smaller jewelry boxes, small drawers, and small humidors like many of our customers make. The current jig does this as well, but this one will just make it all the faster and easier. We also have a 28” coming right on the heels of that for larger projects.”
Besides looking like an interesting jig to cut dovetails with, the story of Kevin and Terry has captured my attention. “We’re one of those rare American mom-n-pop shop manufacturers that are still making a go at it. We are making some dramatic improvements in the jig kit, and are also committed to keeping the manufacturing 100% within our borders. We are woodworkers ourselves and have dealt with many online suppliers over the years. It has been our experience overall, that most woodworking supply and tool companies have excellent customer satisfaction. Customer satisfaction is our first priority as well, because we believe that’s the foundation of any business.”
Sure, they don’t have power cords or spinning blades. But, you’d be surprised how many injuries hand tools can cause.