# Finally got me a little band saw... What are your favorite jigs or recommended jigs?



## AngieO (Jul 9, 2012)

Well… Been playing in the shop. Moving things around. Making a little sawdust. Been an awesome day. AND… I finally picked up a little band saw. It's nothing special. Just something to start with. It's a Dewalt table top. I think it's 7 1/2". So I've been making adjustments. Getting it set up. Seeing what it can do. I figured that the first thing I'll probably do is make some jigs for it. So… this is the best source for… well… anything woodworking so I came here first. Would love to hear what jigs you might suggest.

First question is probably going to be… what are you going to make? Well… I don't know. My son is in a Pinewood Derby so the first thing it got used for was to shape the car. But I have a stack of wood that needs to be used up so I'm open to ideas.










Oh… I did make this as well… LOl. Just found a piece of scrap and cut 'er down.










It made me want to go back and try making a cross cut sled for my table saw. Making this rail for the miter slot was a lot easier this time around.


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## GT350 (Dec 22, 2012)

I don't see a fence so if you don't have one, that would be the first thing I would make.
Mike


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## boxcarmarty (Dec 9, 2011)

Angie, You're gonna need a fence…..


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## JoeinGa (Nov 26, 2012)

Yep, I agree… make one o' these










Oh wait. OOPS! Wrong kinda fence!


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## Alongiron (Jan 10, 2011)

Angie

The 2 jigs that I use the most with my band saw is a circle cutting jig and a re-saw jig. There are many plans online for both of them. Some easy to build others not so easy to build. My Circle cutting jig allows me to cut circles from 8" diameter all the way up to 36" diameter and cuts perfect circles. FYI The first time you cut one you will think that is the coolest thing ever!! Building a fence/re-saw jig will allow you to make many cuts more safely on the band saw then doing it on the table saw. So look online or maybe try the shop-notes portion of the woodsmithshop website. Looks like a nice band saw. One bit of advice…make sure that you use some good blades on it..it will make all the difference in the world. My favorite blades are the "wood slicer" blades from Highland woodworking

Have fun!!

Steve


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## iamcliff (Jul 4, 2012)

Sweet. Looks like you got a good deal. A band saw is definitely the next "big" tool I need.


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## AngieO (Jul 9, 2012)

joein10asee…. LOL!!!

iamcliff… I've wanted one for a while. This is my starter one. I'm sure I'll want something bigger later on. But I'm excited to have this.

alongiron…. if only I had some Cherry to resaw…lol

Looks like a fence first and then maybe a circle jig. 

Being able to resaw is probably what i wanted it most for.


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## Alongiron (Jan 10, 2011)

Angie

I could meet you at the Cracker Barrel in Seymour one day and bring you some Cherry if you like? I think its about half way for both of us!

Steve


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## BertFlores58 (May 26, 2010)

Angie,
I can see that you have already the slide piece. Get a piece of flat board and attach that piece. Cut it by sliding it to the band saw and there you have a cutting slide that you can use for cutting miters for frame or slice some pieces of wood by just adding some guide pieces, stops and many others on the flat board.

Hope that would help.


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## patron (Apr 2, 2009)

here is a table and miter jig fence system
(i have seen a few of these but can't remember 
who did them sorry)
you can make easy
notice the table has a runner in the slot
to keep it from moving round










and the miter gauge has a fence on it
it runs in a dado across the new table
and can be moved back and forth for rip widths
and turned slightly for blade drift

i saw another with a dado parallel with the blade
and you use it regular for cross cutting

with both dado's you get the best of each

the table can be removed if you want to tilt the metal table
(or just cut a bigger hole by the blade
so it doesn't pinch the blade when it tilts)
but it makes it hard to keep small pieces from dropping in there
and jamming the blade


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## Loren (May 30, 2008)

I recommend you read this book:

http://www.amazon.com/Band-Saw-Handbook-Mark-Duginske/dp/B005B1EC6Q/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1366332739&sr=1-3

It's the one I read early in my woodworking. I checked it out
from the library and read it cover to cover. It shows how
to make a micro-adjustable fence, how to cut dovetails
and tenons. There are newer, stripped-down versions
of the same book flogging newer band saw designs and
accessories, but I haven't read those so I can't say whether
the same excellent jigs and tips are in those.

In any case, your local library may have a book about band saws
and they are probably all pretty good. Like hand planes, 
band saws are "high spirited" tools and take some finesse.


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## BertFlores58 (May 26, 2010)

Angie,
Here is for you….Cutting sled

You may like to start the way I am doing the parquetry.
Enjoy it.


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## kdc68 (Mar 2, 2012)

*AngieO*....How about a circle cutting jig ??

http://www.woodsmithshop.com/download/609/circle-cutting-jig.pdf


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## Grumpymike (Jan 23, 2012)

Hi Angie,
Nice Delta bandsaw … 71/2 inch??? I think it's a 12 inch. measure from the blade to the back of the throat … (the post that goes up to the top wheel) that throat width (blade to post) is the size of the saw.
Yes, build a fence first, mine is a 3 1/2" X 5" angle with support braced to keep it at 90 degrees, I use the short side for general use and the long side for resawing, just clamp it to the table and fine adjust with a tap of the mallet. Make it a bit longer than your table. I used plywood for stability.
Blade tention is important, I raise my guides to 6" above the table and look for 1/4" deflection to the blade. there is usually a guage some where on the saw, but not all blades have exactly the same circumfrence, so the guage reading will very. 
Now for the blades … Alot of folks will tell you that this blade is better than that blade … And they may be right, for the type of work that they do … For us beginners with limited budgets, We will use a mid priced blade and have about three sizes … I use a 3/16", a 1/4", and a 3/4" inch blades for the verious work that I do. The 1/4" is the most used.
When you do finally buy a new blade, you will have to round the back of the blade with a stone so that you can make tighter arced cuts.
Now with all that in mind take a piece of wood and make some cuts, to see what it will do. and have fun safely, keep your fingers away from the path of the blade.


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## AngieO (Jul 9, 2012)

Alongiron…. Yep. Seymour is close enough. Would love to meet you.

Bert… I've watched several videos by that guy but its been a while. I watched one tonight. Thanks for the link to that one. He is the one that made me really want a bandsaw in the first place.

Loren… I will check out that book.

Grumpymike… Lot of good info there.

Patron… Thanks for the pic


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## gfadvm (Jan 13, 2011)

That book that Loren recommended answered all my bandsaw questions when I bought my first bandsaw. A good investment.


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## hobby1 (Feb 10, 2012)

jigs seem to be pretty much covered, but some fun projects to do with a bandsaw, is compound cuts, I have the B&D table top bandsaw, and I was using it to cut 2×2 stock into compound cuttings for legs for my wheelbarrel planters, with some careful feeding of the stock (2"x2") blanks, it was fairly easy to cut these 3D shapes.

I found that the thrust bearing on the bottom would lock up after a lot of cutting due mainly to sawdust in the bearings, then the bearing would get damaged from the blade, so now I replaced the bearing on the bottom, with a piece of flat corion, (had to make a shaft to screw the corion onto), and the blade wore a groove into it, but now the saw runs quieter, and more acurate, also had to make corion blade guides, and put them as tight to the blade as possible, to let them wear into the blade, and this keeps the blade tracking a lot better too, I couldn't do it with the supplied blade guides, due to a lot of friction, all in all a benchtop model is a real nice bandsaw to have for those quick scrolling tasks.

If you couold use yours for resawing, then thats and added bonus for your saw, mine is to weak of a blade guide system to keep proper tracking when it comes to tall boards, benchtops are good tools to work with, have fun with it.


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## roman (Sep 28, 2007)

I mean this with kindest intent but the best jig you can buy, make, is what lies between our ears : )

Making a jig to re-saw boards is fine and dandy, we all make them until the wood takes the band saw blade and twists it into a worthless knot teaching us that following a line drawn upon a board is far more effective.

I cant imagine using or making a jig to square something off unless you dont own a table saw as one is far more efficient then the other

I would just grab scrap wood, and cut circles, cut french curves, and perhaps get a good book with lots of pictures, and practice. Its a very fun and rewarding tool even if the end result is nothing more then food for a wood stove

Nice score


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## toeachhisown (Eddie) (Mar 30, 2011)

http://lumberjocks.com/projects/64803


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