Trend Guide Clamp T Square

[Gill]

I would use my Trend guide clamp much more if it was easier to set square to an edge. I can never set it accurately! To overcome this, I’ve made a simple T square guide to help set the guide clamp accurately.

It started off as two pieces of 12 mm plywood with two square edges. One was then set on top of the other at 90º to make a simple T square. I then screwed them together.

A couple of notches had to be cut in both the upper and lower rail of the T square to allow the end of the clamp to fit. I laid the clamp in position, marked its position against the plywood, then removed the screws and cut out the notches. Then I screwed the T square back together.

It’s a very simple jig which I’m hoping will serve me well for years to come.

Edit: On re-reading, this seemed even less clear than it is now, so I've changed some phrases .

 

[DaveL]

Gill,

Good idea, you appear to be getting into much bigger stuff these days. :shock:

 

[Gill]

Indeed I am, Dave. Last summer I made a biltong box, a cabinet for drying meat in the same way that beef jerky is made. It does its job admirably, but the woodwork wasn't very pretty because I'm a novice at large scale stuff and it was made out of whatever I had lying around. I didn't dare post a picture of it here!

I now have more time to focus on woodwork (someone is sharing my domestic commitments ) so I'm going to attempt a few non-scrolled projects. I received an Andrew Crawford book last Christmas and I would love to make some of his boxes, but I need to create a few little accessories first to make life easier.

It's not much by the high standards of this forum, but it's a start .

Gill

 

[Karl]

Nice one Gill. I've been thinking about something similair myself - I cut a lot of 600mm wide boards to length, and it's important to get the cut square. Upto now i've been using my combination square with a 600mm M&W rule, but you've got to be really careful about putting pressure in the right place on the stock of the square.

Cheers

Karl

 

[seanybaby]

Gill, I love biltong, can we see a pic please? I usually buy my biltong from ebay, but would like to save a little cash and make it myself. How does your home made stuff compare to the real thing?

 

[DaveL]

It's not much by the high standards of this forum, but it's a start .

Now that is a very nice box, I have made a number of boxes like that, as requests from people who have seen one on the side.

 

[Gill]

Thanks guys .

Karl - it sounds as if you're encountering the same sort of problems as me before I made this jig. I didn't have enough hands to keep everything aligned. This T square has helped me a lot. Later, I might inscribe the square's fence with marks to indicate where various router bits line up.

Sean - I hope this thread helps .

Gill