3650 Extensions

[Richard Spain]

I have a Ridgid TS3650 and desire to add cast iron extensions. I am probably over thinking this but I have a couple of questions.

1) If I were to add an extension to one side would the saw become off balance or unstable?

2) If I were to add an extension to both sides would the additional weight stress the lift mechanism.

Thanks! :)

[Ralph Wiggum]

I have a 3650, I replaced the left wing with a Bench Dog router extension. I then took that wing and added it to the right side of the saw. Love the extra room, and filled in the space in the rails nicely. No problems with stability, but I guess the weight of the router may balence it out. No problem with the lift, but I don't use it very often.

[Jack Wilson50]

I have a cast iron extension on each side of mine and the lift works fine.

[Richard Spain]

Thanks for the information. I don't want to make things worst by making improvements.

[Butch Edwards]

I have a cast iron extension on each side of mine and the lift works fine.

same here....I dig your avatar,too!!!
where are you located?

[Jason White]

Do you mean extensions in addition to the ones that already come with the saw?

Jason


I have a Ridgid TS3650 and desire to add cast iron extensions. I am probably over thinking this but I have a couple of questions.

1) If I were to add an extension to one side would the saw become off balance or unstable?

2) If I were to add an extension to both sides would the additional weight stress the lift mechanism.

Thanks! :)

[Richard Spain]

Yes. I am looking to expand the existing surface size. Have you done this with a 3650?

Richard

[john bateman]

I would think there might be a problem with sagging when you bolt a new extension onto the old one. That's a lot of additional stress on those 4 bolts which hold the first extension onto the main table. There is also a rod on the right side that helps align the front and rear rails. You would have to accommodate this somehow, too.
http://benchmark.20m.com/reviews/RidgidTS3650/Ridgid_Hero.gif

[Ryan Cassidy]

I have the 3660 and am considering doing the same thing. I was too curious about the extra weight. My router is on the right hand side, but I would move it to the left hand side if need be to balance out an extension.

Ralph - Did you just drill and tap the holes on the stock extension? It's only got holes on one side. Curious. If you have any pictures that would be great.

With regard to that Rod - if you add in the extension, you won't need the rod anymore. It's basically there to prevent "flex" that far out. The table extension will do that for you. I don't even have the rod on mine as I've never had a problem with this flex.

Cheers,
Ryan

[Jason White]

No, but I did replace the left wing with a Bench Dog cast-iron router table and left the old extension wing sitting in a corner collecting dust.

I think trying to add that wing onto an existing wing would make the saw too tippy, unless you replace the existing fence rails with something long and beefy like a Biesemeyer setup (with legs on the end of it).

For what it's worth, I've never felt like I needed longer crosscut capacity on my tablesaw. For longer stock, I usually use my miter saw or track-guided circular saw.

Just my $.02.

JW


Yes. I am looking to expand the existing surface size. Have you done this with a 3650?

Richard

[Jack Wilson50]

same here....I dig your avatar,too!!!
where are you located?

Butch,

I live in Northern Virginia; but I was born and raised in Southern WV near Charleston.

[Ralph Wiggum]

Yes I drilled new holes on the outside edge of the right wing, then bolted the other wing right up to it. I also used the factory hole in the wing to bolt to the rail. No added legs, and the wing doen't quite reach all the way to the end of the rails so you can put the rod back in if it makes you feel better having it.

[Ralph Wiggum]

Alright I cleaned the crap and dust off it.

[Richard Spain]

looks good Ralph. I do you have any deflection when the router is installed?

Richard

[Ryan Cassidy]

Thanks for the pictures Ralph. Looks Great! I might have to do some wrenching this weekend :-)

Ryan

[Jason White]

Looks good!

Question: When you wheel it around and occasionally hit a bump, does the saw ever look like it wants to tip over to the right? Does the saw feel balanced?

My big concern would be with the saw tipping over (especially on those narrow steel legs).

Jason


Alright I cleaned the crap and dust off it.

[Art Moore]

Although I didn't add cast iron, I did add a 1-1/2" MDF router extension to the right side. The saw did become a little tippy if you weren't careful. I would recommend adding legs to the right side of the saw, or building a mobile saw cabinet and ditching the Hercu-Lift.

[Jason White]

That's what I did.

I trashed the Herc-u-lift and steel legs and put the saw on a wooden base with locking casters. The saw is much more stable now and I was able to get it up higher, making it more comfortable for me to work (I'm 6'4" tall, so this was important).

I still haven't figured out an ideal dust-collection and drawer configuration yet.

This is just the prototype....

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?p=1006813#poststop

If you do add the additional cast-iron wing, I suppose you could build a base like mine and add braces on the end to support the wing.

Jason


Although I didn't add cast iron, I did add a 1-1/2" MDF router extension to the right side. The saw did become a little tippy if you weren't careful. I would recommend adding legs to the right side of the saw, or building a mobile saw cabinet and ditching the Hercu-Lift.