Table Saw Jig

A table saw jig can maximize the potential use of your table saw, as well as make you safer as an operator.  Your table saw can be one of your most versatile pieces of woodworking equipment.  Jigs are always good for efficiency and accuracy, especially with repetitive tasks, so the effort you make to create (or purchase) a table saw jig will be well worth it.

Here are just some of the jigs that can be used with your table saw:

• A trammel-arm jig is the solution for cutting a perfect circle.
• A miter gauge can be used for cross-cutting boards on the table saw, adjusting the fence for cutting different angles.  It’s handy for making compound angle cuts.
• There is a miter jig that can cut very accurate miters and allow for precision in joining, as with frames.  The stock is held firmly in place for each 45-degree cut and an adjustable stop assures that multiple cuts will match.
• A cross-cut “sled” is useful for any large pieces that require very straight cuts.  It can cut longer pieces that the miter gauge cannot.  The table saw blade tends to pull work away from the fence when a typical miter gauge is used, and this leads in inaccuracy in cuts.   The sled has two runners under it that slide in the table saw’s miter slots so that the piece stays perfectly square to the blade.
• A tenoning jig can guide pieces in an upright position past the saw blade to cut tenon “cheeks”.
• Tapering jigs are available for making tapered table legs.  Its graduated scale makes it possible to make consistent angles.  You can also make this type of table saw jig yourself with MDF and hardwood scraps if you want to do a particular project.
• A special spline-cutting jig can create perfect mitered frame corners or cabinet doors, for example.  You can make this jig with plywood.  It’s basically a cradle and an extension fence.

Other jigs that you can find plans for or purchase are – feather board, outfeed roller, rip jig, zero clearance insert and push block.  There have been many innovations in table saw jigs, such as the table saw “jointer jig” which can do a lot of the work of a jointer.  Without making the big investment of buying a jointer, your table saw can give you the flat, true surface you need but don’t always get with the lumber you buy.

Whatever your do-it-yourself projects are, you will find that table saw jigs make for quick set-up and give you professional cuts.

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