Christmas Vacation Shop Upgrades

I spent time over the Christmas Vacation doing some upgrades and maintenance to my shop, while also doing actual woodworking projects like the mantle
.

Probably the biggest project was a complete tear-down, cleaning, and lubrication of my Powermatic 66. I posted about that here.

After doing that I added the Wixey Digital Gauge and Leecraft Zero Clearance Insert. It was interesting fitting the insert with the Biesemeyer splitter because I wanted to remove as little of the insert as possible. That worked out well. And I’m getting great cuts from my table saw with my new Freud blade.

Then I wanted a zero clearance insert for my miter saw, so I made one. That was a bit of a pain, but I used the old one for a template. I also added some baltic birch fence extensions, with a t-slot in the back so they can be adjusted easily. It really helped make great tight miters for the mantle. The laser I added is nice too.

I also wanted a drill press table like the ones I’ve seen here on Lumberjocks or the Craftsman one. I made my own out of baltic birch, hardboard for inserts, and some jig hardware. I made five inserts while I was at it.

Wifey got me the Rockler Forstner Bit Set for Christmas, so I hope to put those to use soon.

I also cleaned the planer rollers, installed new planer blades and waxed all my tools. Next I need to sharpen the jointer knives although I’ll probably buy a new set and install those. The set that is installed now will be sent out for sharpening.

The biggest upgrade is the addition of the Jet JFM-5, which I got for $380 delivered. Thanks adam77 for letting me know about this deal. I sold my benchtop model for $175 but I wish I had kept the chisels from it!

-Matt