So, finally got round to building the jig for the Ryobi.
Here is the problem:
Those six bumps are designed to house the T track of the supplied mitre gauge. Unfortunately they also mean that an off the shelf quality mitre fence won't fit. So they had to go :twisted:
With a little bit of judicious filing and regular measurements with digital calipers, the channel was made a uniform width. Took about half an hour.
Then it was time to trim the white plastic which was to form the runner for my new jig. this was from B&Q - 20mm x 5mm. My Clifton No 7 did me proud in bringin this down to a suitable width - about 19.2mm.
You want a decent fit - not tight, but definitely no slop. Take it nice and easy - one shaving at a time.
Next up - a piece of 18mm mdf. I chose 30" wide by 24" deep. The runner was attached to the mdf, initially with Mitre Bond, and then with 5 screws from underneath.
The whole assembly was then passed through the blade (with the runner in the mitre slot obviously) to give a reference side. This was then used to attach the fence at 90 degrees.
I was feeling a bit lazy, so didn't make the fence adjustable. Plus, this was the first time i'd made this jig, so wasn't sure if it was going to work! I think if I made it again, the fence would be from hardwood, and have some "play" in it to enable fine adjustments to be made.
Having said that, a test cut revealed that my jig has less than 1/64" error over a 21 1/2" piece. Quite good for the first attempt!
I am well chuffed with this jig. It is no Osborne/Incra, but only cost a few quid. It is useful for squaring up sheet materials/boards, cutting shoulders, repeatable crosscuts (using a suitable small fence on the rip fence) etc etc.
Cheers
Karl
