estesbubba Posted February 2, 2015 Report Share Posted February 2, 2015 On my last table saw my crosscut sled could handle up to 25" wide boards but was a beast to wrestle around. I still plan on building one this size for big panels but think a smaller one will be used a lot more. So what would be a good smaller size? I thought about one to handle 13" boards but wonder maybe even smaller? Any else have 2 sleds and what sizes are they? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TerryMcK Posted February 2, 2015 Report Share Posted February 2, 2015 Yes Mike my current one that suffices for most of the work I do is 16" wide and 23 1/2" long. It won't me my last incarnation as I've made many in the past. Essentially it comprises a 3/4" plywood base with two 4" x 2" softwood fences. I won't go into the details of how this is made as there are many tutorials on the internet. The saw kerf slot is at 5" in from one edge. There is only one mahogany runner on the base as European saws with sliding tables only have one mitre slot to the left of the saw blade when viewed from the operator perspective. I don't believe that you actually need to have two runners as they are prone to binding if the mitre slots are not precisely parallel. You may also notice the piece of blue tape on the fence. This is just to micro adjust the fence so the cut is exactly square. This saves having to mess around with unscrewing the screws underneath and readjusting. That is just a waste of time and tape works just as well if the fence is slightly out of whack. If I had one improvement to this it would be making the cutoff side slightly deeper probably 12" instead of the stated 5" making the overall sizes of the sled 23" x 23-1/2" long. I find that cutoff pieces fall when the are cut off instead of staying on the sled. You can scale your crosscut sled up or down accordingly but I find (even at the current relatively small size) it works very well and does not take up much storage space. I also attach sacrificial 1/4" thick ply to the fence as the kerf slot wears (they do) with some double sided tape. When that wears I take it off and attach another or just put another on the existing as currently shown. When the entire sled is worn out just make another. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brendon_t Posted February 2, 2015 Report Share Posted February 2, 2015 No sir. I use one sled for everything. Never really thought about needing another. I guess imo, the added heft of the full sized sled translates to more control on small pieces. . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodenskye Posted February 2, 2015 Report Share Posted February 2, 2015 Mike I would just have one sled that could handle a 24" wide panel. Me personally would take 12" or less to miter saw, anything wider would go to 24" version. I would make a separate sled for miters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Tom Cancelleri Posted February 2, 2015 Popular Post Report Share Posted February 2, 2015 HIGHWAY TO THE ^ I had to, first thing that popped in my head when I saw the picture. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TerryMcK Posted February 2, 2015 Report Share Posted February 2, 2015 Lol. I've seen those "safety" boxes that some people put on the exit zone of a cross cut sled. Except they are made from wood... And the saw can go thru. So Danger Zone in big letters it is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brendon_t Posted February 2, 2015 Report Share Posted February 2, 2015 Lol. I've seen those "safety" boxes that some people put on the exit zone of a cross cut sled. Except they are made from wood... And the saw can go thru. So Danger Zone in big letters it is. I have a box on mine that I glued 80 grit sand paper on. Even without looking, My fingers know where the no go zone is by feel. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dwacker Posted February 2, 2015 Report Share Posted February 2, 2015 My experience with sleds is pretty minimal. For years I just ganged miter gauges and it worked well. After getting popped by L&I I made a straddle type sled with a plastic guard across the top and a goofy box type tail. After getting popped again I went to a single runner on the right side of the blade. Its really grown on me and I like it much better than the massive dual runner sled. Its light, doesn't take up much space and works just as well for any size up to about 30" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coop Posted February 3, 2015 Report Share Posted February 3, 2015 Terry, the blue tape, the thickness itself is what squares up the piece? I like the part of using ply as a sacrificial piece! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jerry_in_SD Posted February 3, 2015 Report Share Posted February 3, 2015 I have two sleds. One can cross cut a panel up to 27", the small one up to 15". I only did two for a crazy reason. My bench sits behind the saw and I can't use the bigger sled because the runners hit the bench. Since 95% of the time, the small sled works, I don't need to move my table saw which I need to do for the large sled. Would I do both if I didn't have this problem. Na. I would build a dedicated dado sled instead. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dwacker Posted February 3, 2015 Report Share Posted February 3, 2015 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan S Posted February 3, 2015 Report Share Posted February 3, 2015 I have two sleds. my every day sled can handle up to 18", and pretty much lives on the saw. Since I have a bandsaw, I almost never rip on the table saw unless the board in question is to unwieldy for the bandsaw. I've made 3 or 4 sleds this size. http://www.dans-hobbies.com/project/tablesaw-crosscut-sled/ My second sled handle up to 42" or so, but really only get used for table tops or large carcass work. It's based on a design I found in a FWW article. http://www.dans-hobbies.com/2010/01/13/giant-crosscut-sled/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdwerker Posted February 3, 2015 Report Share Posted February 3, 2015 I use a square for small stuff up to 10" or so. Used to use a sled for 10" to 25". Since I got my sliding crosscut table I only use sleds for specialty cuts in small production runs. I would guess a 16" capacity sled would be convienent and easier to maneuver . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
estesbubba Posted February 15, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 15, 2015 Got my 2 sleds built today. You guys think SealCoat shellac or Waterlox for a finish? Just looking at doing a single coat to seal the wood and leaning towards shellac since it dries a lot faster. Then I'll put the t-tracks in the sleds. 13" capacity sled is .001" square over 12" using 5 cut method. 25" capacity sled is .000" square over 12". Both sleds are smooth in the miters and have no slop so happy how they turned out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pwalter5110 Posted February 15, 2015 Report Share Posted February 15, 2015 I see pictures of everyones shop, and I'm instantly jealous. Nice shop, and nice sleds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
missioninwood Posted February 15, 2015 Report Share Posted February 15, 2015 I have two sleds as well. One can handle cross cuts up to 16" and the other is small: originally built for tenon work with a 1/2" dado stack. As with all jigs, I try to keep them super simple. I am sure as time goes by I will modify, upgrade, and/or replace these two. I say make what you need and store it if you plan to use it again. Biggest issue I have with jigs in general is finding them--several years after their initial creation--and not knowing what they made were for. miw Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhighlander Posted February 15, 2015 Report Share Posted February 15, 2015 I would shellac underneath the bottom, then wax it. Leave the working surface bare so stock doesn't slide around too easily. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brendon_t Posted February 15, 2015 Report Share Posted February 15, 2015 I would shellac underneath the bottom, then wax it. Leave the working surface bare so stock doesn't slide around too easily. I don't finish either side of my sled. I like the work surface to hold work in place but also like the table side to have a bit of resistance. I use Johnson paste wax on the runners and that's it. My last one I shot with rattle can shellac and it glided too well. I felt that if I pushed, it would just keep going. To little friction imo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trz Posted February 15, 2015 Report Share Posted February 15, 2015 image.jpg Basically what Norm uses. Although some of his earlier ones had the fence on the far side of the sled. I think Norm called them panel cutters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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