Another thin slice jig ?

If you need to cut extremely thin slices that are equal in thickness, you have to have a way to set a distance between saw blade and left stop opposite fence. You never want to use your fence for this because the cut is too narrow and you can’t use a push stick for that and also the cut will jam in between fence and blade and that’s a disaster. So you need a jig like this. The thickness is determined by setting a distance between the ball bearing and saw blade. Now you use the wide part of the wood against fence to push it into blade for equal thickness cuts.

-- Router è ancora il mio nome.

Very nice and very nice design. Did you create the plans or find them somewhere?

-- We are the people our parents warned us about.

Thank you. This forum and wood working magazines are full of these jigs. I just used the ball bearing instead of usual screw. Rockler also makes a commercial version which has a extremely small bearing.

-- Router è ancora il mio nome.

Vonhagen , you make the cut and move the fence over each time.
It’s like slicing proscuitto

-- A mind, like a home, is furnished by its owner

Pics are easier than words
Cheers Blaine.

Bob

-- A mind, like a home, is furnished by its owner

It looks like the wood is into the blade before contacting the bearing. For the first cut you must put the blade down and move the fence so the wood is exactly between the bearing and fence.

I assume you then shim between the fence and wood for the next cut or move the fence.

What is the thinest you have cut?

Steve.

Blaine – could you explain a bit about your secondary fence for edge banding?

Steve.

An excellent jig/guide. Thanks for the info!

-- ToGoMan ------ "No ONE of us knows as much as ALL of us." (anon.) ----

The setup bar and shims only get used as a reference. After I move the top of the jig / the bearing against bar or shim, I then slide the jig back way before the saw and lock it down.

It looks like the wood is into the blade before contacting the bearing.

That’s just my narrow push stick ;-)
you can cut slices as thin as 1/32 with a good blade (as in Freud glue line rip blade) and depending on wood if you use dado shims as reference.
Some people attach a stick on ruler instead for measurements.

-- Router è ancora il mio nome.

I’m an idiot! I have one of the commercial Rockler jigs and never thought of using a setup bar or a drill bit for setting the cut width – I’ve always used the rule on the jig and usually have to do three or four tests before it is correct. Duhhhhhhhhhhhh

Nice looking jig and it looks like it will work very well. And isn’t it amazing how just a picture such as you showed will remind some of us that we aren’t nearly as smart as we sometimes think we are!

Jim

-- A veteran is someone who, at one point in his/her life, wrote a blank check made payable to "The United States of America," for an amount of "up to and including his/her life".

Nice work on your version and you know we both get the same result super thin prosciutto…Blkcherry

Router I hope you don’t mind me posting some pictures on your blog. I just recently learned of this jig in a “Best Table Saw Tips, Tools & Techniques” book put out by ShopNotes and built one too. As Router said there are many versions of this jig posted on LJ, shown in WW magazines and available for purchase at Rockler and other such stores. It seems many who read the posts on these aren’t familiar with its use so I thought I would try my hand at explaining with my pictures. Again Router I hope you don’t mind my doing so on your post. As mentioned by several above, the purpose of the jig is to rip thin strips safely and repetitively without having to measure for each cut. With the jig, the thin strip is to the left of the blade, away from the fence. In the first picture, the bearing is against a tooth of the blade to “zero it out”. The jig I made uses an adhesive-backed measuring tape and I set it to zero for my general purpose blade.

Then, you set the gauge to the thickness, say 1/4” for example, and lock it in. Router has a neat idea and uses a brass set up bar to lock in his desired thickness.

Next, and this is critical for safety reasons, you slide the jig in your miter slot, forward of your throat plate insert or at least forward of the blade if you have a short length to cut.

The next photo shows the gauge set for 1/4” and the stock has been set against the fence which has been slid over so the wood is touching the bearing.

Finally, this last picture shows the 1/4” strip being cut.

You push the board all the way through the blade and just keep moving the fence over for additional strips. From what I have read you can keep cutting until the board is down to whatever width you feel becomes unsafe. To me, this is far safer than cutting the thin strips between the blade and the fence. By the way, I continue to use my blade guard for this process. I plan to stop ripping strips when I can’t push the board through with the blade guard in place.

-- On the eighth day God was back in His woodworking shop! Lenny, East Providence, RI

Beautifully illustrated. Thank you Lenny.

-- Router è ancora il mio nome.

Great post on cutting thin strips. This has my seal of approval as far as safety is concern, great work Router*& Lenny…Blkcherry

A picture is worth a thousand words…......I’ve seen the light. Nice jig. Thanks for the tip.

-- Doug, New Mexico.......the only stupid question is one that is never asked!........don't fix it, if it ain't broke!