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Surfacing rough lumber without a 16" jointer

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Forum topic by GaryK posted 260 days ago 3261 views 53 times favorited 70 replies Add to Favorites
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GaryK

8482 posts in 470 days


260 days ago

Topic tags/keywords: jig planer router jointer

If you don’t mine a little extra work, you can save money on lumber by buying it rough.

This will sometimes get you a little extra wood. For example 8/4 surfaced lumber is 1 3/4”
thick because it has been smoothed on both sides. Rough lumber would be an actual
2”. Now if the board is really flat you may be able to get a 1 7/8 thick board out of it.

Anyway the problem is that most people don’t have a wide enough jointer to smooth
one surface flat so that you can run it through your planer. This is how I do it.

I finally had my workbench clear of other projects so I thought I would share with you how I surface
rough lumber without the jointer. Now this method can work with almost any width lumber. I have a 13”
planer so I use that as my limit even though you can do wider boards as I will explain.

First you need a jig. I made mine 10’ so that I could do up to 9’ boards.
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It’s basically a long narrow piece of plywood with a couple of guides attached upright along the length.
I added a stop block at each end to keep from over shooting with the router. Laying across are a couple
of sticks I use when I don’t want to route the entire surface.

Here is a closeup of the hook added to the end.
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Then I made a sled on wheels to mount the router on.
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The slots allow me to move the router to any position from the middle all the way to the right.
Then just rotate the sled 180 degrees you get to the other side.
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I use a 1 1/2’ bottoming bit
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Now it time to start with your lumber. I use small wedges to keep if from rocking.
I use a level as a straight edge to try to get both ends as level as I can.
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Then I use pairs of wedges to keep the piece in place while routing.
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Then I set the router depth to the lowest point on the lumber. If it’s really bad I take
two passes. Then I route the entire length of the board keeping about 1” from the edge.
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Then flip the router around and make a second pass along the other edge.
At this point if you board is narrow you can just surface the entire surface and you are ready for the planer.
And if you didn’t have a planer wide enough you could flip the board over and do the other side.
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If you have a really wide board as I do here and you don’t want to make a ton of chips you can use
those two strips of wood I showed you earlier and use them as spacers in the two grooves you
just milled. The blue tape is to keep them in place as I move it around.
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I use them like you would use a planer sled.
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After you are done you have one side perfectly jointed. Then just flip it over and take it to thickness
as you normally would.
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Here you can also see the Wixey planer gauge upgrade on the right side of the planer.
.

-- Gary, East TX -- The longest journey begins with a single step.

View Bob #2's profile

Bob #2

1944 posts in 503 days


260 days ago

Excellent Gary. It’s been on the back burner forever here. I’m glad you prodded me again.
Very nice cradle. Just the right size for my shop too.

Bob

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

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Thos. Angle

3236 posts in 444 days


260 days ago

Really great instructions, Gary. Thanks for the tips.

-- Thos. Angle, Owyhee Design, Oregon

View Max's profile

Max

5852 posts in 755 days


260 days ago

This is great, thanks Gary.

-- Max "Desperado", Salt Lake City, UT

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Karson

12889 posts in 882 days


260 days ago

Great tips Gary. Nice job on the design and implementation.

-- Karson Southern Delaware karson_morrison@bigfoot.com

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Peter O

632 posts in 356 days


260 days ago

Very good idea! I’ve done something similar, but without the wheels and carrier strips. You’ve definately taken this idea to the next level.

-- Coffee is best with a fine layer of sawdust on top. -- http://www.north40custom.com

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mot

4837 posts in 518 days


260 days ago

That’s perfect Gary. I’ve read about this, but didn’t know anyone that had tried it. cool.

-- You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation. (Plato)

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Rymann

11 posts in 260 days


260 days ago

This is brilliant. Very cool.

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Dorje

1743 posts in 479 days


260 days ago

What a great strategy!

-- Dorje (pronounced "door-jay"), Seattle, WA

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rikkor

7604 posts in 356 days


260 days ago

That’s a heads up method for jointing and planing without multi-thousand dollar tools. Good blog.

-- Maplewood, MN

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Russel

1229 posts in 421 days


259 days ago

Ingenuity is a good quality to have. This is a very well explained method of getting that first surface right. Thanks for the post.

-- When you give someone a chance it may well be their last.

View Chris 's profile

Chris

1221 posts in 473 days


259 days ago

Best version of this jig I have ever seen… Thanks!

-- Chris

View gene's profile

gene

2132 posts in 366 days


259 days ago

Thanks Gary, The step by step was great.
God bless

-- Gene, a Christian in Virginia

View Bill's profile

Bill

2512 posts in 643 days


259 days ago

Great tutorial Gary, along with a nice method of “jointing” a flat surface on a board. It looks like a great idea for those of use with a smaller jointer.

-- Bill, Turlock California, http://www.brookswoodworks.com

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Sam Yerardi

51 posts in 377 days


259 days ago

Good work , Gary. Nice pictures, too!

-- Sam

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jcees

465 posts in 281 days


259 days ago

That’s a keeper. I’m going to borrow that one real soon. I usually crosscut near-to-size then work one side dead flat with hand planes then feed the rough side to the planer on a sled. Your jig handles long boards and can easily be adapted for shorter stock. Sweet! This one will be a major labor saver on the days I don’t have the time to push a plane. Nice job.

always,
J.C.

-- "Imagination is more important than knowledge" -- Albert Einstein

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Grumpy

5597 posts in 333 days


259 days ago

Great way to recieve a good result Gary. Thanks for sharing.

-- Grumpy - "Always look on the bright side of life"- Monty Python

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Zuki

851 posts in 559 days


259 days ago

Geeze . . . good work there G-man. Excellent pictures and text. Explained it very well indeed.

-- The significant problems we face cannot be solved by the same level of thinking that created them

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JJackson

76 posts in 564 days


259 days ago

Gary,
You spent a lot of time designing this and building it and I think you have done a great job. Nice work!

-- Jeff, Indiana

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Mike309

11 posts in 270 days


258 days ago

Thanks Gary, you have solved one of my problems. Excellent.

-- Mike

View Tony Z's profile

Tony Z

134 posts in 272 days


258 days ago

Nice. I’ll trade you for my RAS. That’s a sweet jig. I’m definately building one of those. I like the idea of the runners in the grooves.

-- Tony, Ohio

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jockmike2

4130 posts in 728 days


258 days ago

I wish I’d known about this sooner, I ripped 4 or 5 12 ft bds that were just too wide for my planer. The only other thing like this I’ve seen is one Mark DeCou used to flatten some wide boards. He had the same basic set up but just went back and forth to flatten his board. This is cool, no it’s way cool. mike

-- Mike. Profisher50@yahoo.com

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Gofor

57 posts in 269 days


258 days ago

Not having a power jointer (I have been using hand planes), I will definitely use this tip. Thank You for posting it!!

-- Go http://ncwoodworker.net/pp/showgallery.php?cat=500&ppuser=730

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SPalm

723 posts in 364 days


258 days ago

Good Job.
I be it would work well for surfacing cutting boards too.

-- Stevethepeeve -- I'm no rocket surgeon

View GaryK's profile

GaryK

8482 posts in 470 days


258 days ago

SPalm – It should work great for cutting boards. I hadn’t thought of that.

You could do many at the same time also.

Easier to sharpen a router bit than planer blades after cutting endgrain.

-- Gary, East TX -- The longest journey begins with a single step.

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patrick miles

131 posts in 295 days


258 days ago

Wow, outta my league for now any way” That;s sweet I had a hazy dream once about a shop like yours!!!!! I’m still hearing it from the little lady about saw dust everywhere. . Some day O’ one of these days… All work now is still on site. Two thumbs up on this project it’s the thing us rookies drool over…...

-- PJM.`·.¸¸.·´¯`·.¸¸.·´¯`·.¸ ><((((º> why's there a light in fridge and not the freezer? , aka, the wood hunter.aka tigermaple5

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GaryK

8482 posts in 470 days


257 days ago

Another note. If you buy rough lumber, see if you could find someplace local to mill it for you.

I have a place about 30 miles from me that will surface both sides for 7 1/2 cents a BF. That’s $7.50
per 100 BF. ( Why board foot and not linear foot I don’t know?)

So adding $.10 a BF for surfacing would still make it worth it to buy your lumber rough.

-- Gary, East TX -- The longest journey begins with a single step.

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codafile5

14 posts in 252 days


252 days ago

This must be the top project yet, now that makes 14 projects to do, and I havent got all my equipment together yet. as I,m new to the lumberjocks. Expertly provided !

-- Keith, Chester, England

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Joe Lyddon

155 posts in 534 days


239 days ago

That’s a cool shortcut! :)

Very informative…

Thank you.

-- Have Fun! Joe Lyddon - Home: http://www.WoodworkStuff.net ... My Small Gallery: http://www.ncwoodworker.net/pp/showgallery.php?cat=500&ppuser=1389"

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dalec

458 posts in 370 days


204 days ago

Gary,

After your recommendation that I consider a planer over a jointer due to the typical budget and space limitations in my garage/workshop, I finally ordered/received my planer. I looked hard at the Delta and Dewalt 13” planers. Finally decided to go with the Dewalt because of the chip blower and three blades.

I am about to begin flattening some boards, so I did a LJ search of came across your tutorial on this topic.

Have to say LJ is a great resource for beginners. Sure helps with the learning curve.

Thanks,

Dalec

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WoodJack49

189 posts in 245 days


204 days ago

Great post, Gary. Like Chris said, this is the best version of this jig I’ve seen. I’ve had my heart set on an 8” jointer but, this will be much easier to store in my small shop and, much easier on my small budget too.

I’m glad this got bumped back to the top of the Pulse.

-- Jack - Mission Viejo, Calif

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Narayan

8 posts in 206 days


204 days ago

Nice. I’ve seen other versions of this jig which use angle iron for the rails, but I suspect your version yields a superior result.

This is only my third post on this site; hopefully it doesn’t ostracize me. I’m not a militant handtool user.

You could also do this with a handplane or two, which store very nicely :). I only have a 6” jointer (hoping to fix that “problem” soon), so I regularly surface wide boards with a jack and a jointer plane. Takes some skill, yes, but a skill that is very easily learned and pays off for a lifetime.

View GaryK's profile

GaryK

8482 posts in 470 days


204 days ago

Narayan – I don’t use handtools unless it’s the best tool for the job. Seem too much like work :-)

I only have a 6” jointer. That’s why I came up with this method, so I didn’t have to use my jointer at all.

-- Gary, East TX -- The longest journey begins with a single step.

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coolbreeze

105 posts in 217 days


204 days ago

Great idea. I usually rip em all down to 6” so I can joint & plane. Thanks for the tip.

-- Jason, AL

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Bob #2

1944 posts in 503 days


204 days ago

I have a piece of 6/4 cherry that’s a candidate for this jig.
Seems all I do is make jigs.<g>

Thanks Gary

Cheers
Bob

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

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brunob

1389 posts in 651 days


204 days ago

Another winner Gary!

-- Bruce from Central New York

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GaryK

8482 posts in 470 days


204 days ago

This method should show up in ShopNotes sometime soon.

They have already sent me a check for it.

-- Gary, East TX -- The longest journey begins with a single step.

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WoodJack49

189 posts in 245 days


204 days ago

Congrats on getting published, Gary.

-- Jack - Mission Viejo, Calif

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CharlieM1958

4170 posts in 700 days


204 days ago

Great idea and very clear instructions, Gary. But I have to say, I like the idea of paying a guy $7.50 per 100 bf to surface it for me even better!

-- Charlie M. "Woodworking - patience = firewood"

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jm82435

212 posts in 224 days


204 days ago

Congratulations. This is a good technique and great explanation. Thanks for sharing. We can always say we saw it here first…

-- A thing of beauty is a joy forever... - Keats

View GaryK's profile

GaryK

8482 posts in 470 days


204 days ago

Charlie – I found out later that that’s with a $50 minimum. So you better have a lot of wood.

-- Gary, East TX -- The longest journey begins with a single step.

View CharlieM1958's profile

CharlieM1958

4170 posts in 700 days


204 days ago

You are right….that would be a lot of wood. If my math is right, though, $50 would get you 667 bf of surfacing. That seems like quite a bargain if you had that much wood.

(Yes, Gary, I’m obsessed with avoiding any work I don’t find fun.)

-- Charlie M. "Woodworking - patience = firewood"

View teenagewoodworker's profile

teenagewoodworker

2027 posts in 250 days


204 days ago

wow great instruction. maybe when in have some time this summer I’ll try buying some rough lumber. thanks for the post.

View Tony's profile

Tony

567 posts in 512 days


204 days ago

Nice idea Gary. But as you have a planer, why do you just not use the sledge method to flatten one side of the board, then turn it over and thicken it in the normal way.

This is the method I use for my 15” wide, 8/4 thick and 10’ long oak boards I used to make my table tops. Here is a link http://www.taunton.com/finewoodworking/FWNPDF/011175058.pdf, [Fine Woodworking #175] but I think you have to be a member

I did use your described method once (without the wheels) to flatten a work bench – it worked a dream.

I only ever buy rough lumber – it is a lot cheaper and you can get to use the full thickness especially useful when making curved parts for a project I.e. Chair legs, seat back rails. that 1/4” can make all the difference!

-- Tony - All things are possible, just some things are more difficult than others! - SKYPE: Heron2005 (http://www.poydatjatuolit.fi)

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DocK16

432 posts in 569 days


203 days ago

Another wiinner GK. I only have a 6 inch jointer (long bed Powermatic) but for boards over 6” it just can’t plane them flat and who can afftord an 8 or 10 inch jointer. (I always wondered why the price for a 8 is almost twice that of a 6 incher. I digress, this is a great idea for getting a truly flat milled wide board and I just might have that bottom cleaning bit hangin around by my Legacy Mill. Thanks for the great post.

-- DocK, WV

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ChicoWoodnut

664 posts in 297 days


203 days ago

Gary,

I couldn’t help but notice. Is that a microfiche reader in your shop?

-- Scott - Chico California http://chicowoodnut.home.comcast.net

View GaryK's profile

GaryK

8482 posts in 470 days


203 days ago

ChicoWoodnut – Very observant. I had just bought a new lens for it and I took it down from the attic.
I do genealogy also and have a lot of reference material on fiche.

-- Gary, East TX -- The longest journey begins with a single step.

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DocK16

432 posts in 569 days


203 days ago

Ah Yes Chico I see it now, Microfiche reader? You must collect 8-track tapes too. I think I’ve been chasing you two around this site all night.

-- DocK, WV

View Dick, & Barb Cain's profile (online now)

Dick, & Barb Cain

5047 posts in 781 days


200 days ago

Thanks for the great pictorial, a very handy setup.

-- -** You are never to old to set another goal or to dream a new dream ****************** Dick, & Barb Cain, Hibbing, MN. http://www.woodcarvingillustrated.com/gallery/member.php?uid=3627&protype=1

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HallTree

563 posts in 249 days


200 days ago

Great idea Gary! That idea will allow us, with limited income, to expand our woodworking skills. Thanks.

-- Ron in Osseo, Minnesota

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HokieMojo

330 posts in 210 days


186 days ago

Gary,
It looks like I am going to need to try this out. Do you by any chance know if the bit you mentioned (1 1/2” bottoming bit) goes by any other names? I’ve tried looking some up online to get an idea for prices, but I’m not finding much. Thanks again for this great post. It will really help me get the most out of the lumber.

Also, I do not have a jointer at all, so I think that in this case, the shorter the board you can use when you start, the less material will be wasted so cutting the lumber to the rough sizes first would probably be a good idea. Do you agree with this?
Thanks

View GaryK's profile

GaryK

8482 posts in 470 days


186 days ago

HokieMojo – you can frid the bit here:

http://magnate.net/index.cfm?event=showProductGroup&theID=136

They have then all the way up to 2 3/4”

It you use this method you don’t need a jointer. The length of the board doesn’t really matter unless it’s
warped a lot. Then cutting it into smaller pieces will save you some wood.

-- Gary, East TX -- The longest journey begins with a single step.

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bayspt

77 posts in 186 days


186 days ago

Very good idea. I was going to make one with just runners but I like the wheeled sled. I will also be borrowing this in the near future.

-- Jimmy, Oklahoma "It's a dog-eat-dog world, and I'm wearing milkbone underwear!"

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RusticElements

141 posts in 207 days


186 days ago

I’ve had trouble with this before and didn’t know what to do about it. Now I do. THANX!!!

-- Michael R. Harvey - Brewster, NY - RusticElementArt.com - SpaceAware.org - AnConn.com

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Sawdust2

847 posts in 569 days


186 days ago

After I read Tony’s entry I went and checked the link. I remember reading that at the time and thought that it was a lot of bother.

Your jig is so much simpler.

I just happen to have 4 wheels left over from when I took my old saw table apart.

Lee

-- No piece is cut too short. It was meant for a smaller project.

View sIKE's profile (online now)

sIKE

557 posts in 236 days


186 days ago

I love it, it has been added to the todo list

-- //FC - Round Rock, TX - "Experience is what you get just after you need it"

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Justin D.

22 posts in 200 days


186 days ago

Very nice. This may be a solution I can use. Thanks, Justin

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ShipWreck

40 posts in 235 days


185 days ago

Gary…..... ahhh ummm errr …...... Your good! Thanks for taking the time to post those pics.

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SteveKorz

1335 posts in 196 days


185 days ago

Thanks Gary, another great idea!

-- As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another. (Proverbs 27:17)

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DavidFisher

6 posts in 179 days


179 days ago

very cool. I’ve seen that done other ways before, but not with routing the strips on one side. That seems to be the best melding of the techniques. I’m going to have to give it a try.

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John Gray

690 posts in 367 days


142 days ago

Thanks Gary I favourited it.

-- Only the Shadow knows....................

View Dick, & Barb Cain's profile (online now)

Dick, & Barb Cain

5047 posts in 781 days


142 days ago

I made a similar set up to flatten out a 30” diameter by 12” thick Pine log for a display at a local museum.

so they could show the growth rings.

-- -** You are never to old to set another goal or to dream a new dream ****************** Dick, & Barb Cain, Hibbing, MN. http://www.woodcarvingillustrated.com/gallery/member.php?uid=3627&protype=1

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RedShirt013

7 posts in 144 days


142 days ago

Very cool jig Gary. Better than a sled, I can see how that this will take out slight cup in your lumber too with a planer only and very little work otherwise. Great idea

-- Ed

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Damian Penney

675 posts in 473 days


127 days ago

This post is a keeper, thanks Gary.

-- I am always doing that which I can not do, in order that I may learn how to do it. - Pablo Picasso

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Sac

192 posts in 115 days


113 days ago

Thanks for the ideas here!

-- Jerry, Measure 10 times cut once. Set in the foothills of the Smokey's

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Beeguy

10 posts in 118 days


112 days ago

This one is great. I love pictures and don’t like reading directions. I have done something smaller but I never thought about the wheels on the sled. What a great idea. Thanks Gary!!

I started using all rough cut lumber for my projects. I am lucky enough to have a sawmill (with kilns) just 8 miles away, and if I preplan a little they will surface it for a very reasonable price. But most times I just run up for a few pieces on the spot and have to do surface it myself. It is still better quality and cheaper than what I can buy elsewhere and it is local lumber.

-- Ron, Kutztown, PA "The reward is in the journey."

View GaryK's profile

GaryK

8482 posts in 470 days


83 days ago

I’m curious if anyone has tried this yet?

-- Gary, East TX -- The longest journey begins with a single step.

View Grumpy's profile

Grumpy

5597 posts in 333 days


83 days ago

Gary, plans Now have a members download this Month on tablesaw jointing. May be of interest to you.
www.plansnow.com

-- Grumpy - "Always look on the bright side of life"- Monty Python

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Sac

192 posts in 115 days


82 days ago

Great post Gary as 0% of my lumber is bought rough.

-- Jerry, Measure 10 times cut once. Set in the foothills of the Smokey's

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dsb1829

110 posts in 109 days


63 days ago

Interesting take on the router sled. Any issue with the runout in the caster wheels?

-- Doug, woodworking in Alabama

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depictureboy

73 posts in 124 days


62 days ago

Nice gary, It certainly has some advantages over a full sled jig. thanks for sharing…this definatly goes in my shop project folder.

-- If you can't build it, code it. If you can't code it, build it. But always ALWAYS take a picture.

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