Advice on sled runners...

[Dennis McGarry]

Ok, I have decided today is the day to make a simple crosscut sled.

Went and got a nice piece of MDF, a 1x4x2' red oak board and a 1x3x1.8' red oak board.

Need advice on making the runners for the ts guide slots. i have the ts of course but the fence on it leaves a lot to be desired, and a band saw.

what is the best or easiest way to make the two runners? I have pine boards I can use for now or rip them out of the oak..

Thanks
dennis

[Jerome Hanby]

I made mine out of red oak. Cut them to width best I could using the table saw and fence. Used the planer to get the strips the right height. Then, I sanded for what seemed like forever until I got a slick fit in the miter slots.

If I were to do it again, I think I would joint the board, cut my strip, then use the planer with the jointed side down to sneak up on the fit.

[Paul Atkins]

Are the slots 3/4"? I used a piece of aluminum that just fit and screwed it to my plywood. The oak ones I had swelled and shrunk during seasons and drove me nuts. I have one for my bandsaw and used uhmw polyethylene which works well too. If you want to use wood I would go with maple as oak just moves too much.

[Richard M. Wolfe]

UHMW is a good material to use for sled runners. If you are going to use wood use a hardwood and the harder the better. Some of the tropical woods are noted for being very hard and having a lot of oil in the wood, which would help sliding. Also I would rub the runners down with beeswax peridically.

[sean m. titmas]

i use a piece of straight grained hardwood ripped a bit wider than needed with a small cove on the side that faces the sled. this way after they are screwed on to the bottom of the sled i can use my block plane to creep up on a tight fit.

[Joe Scharle]

I used to use hardwoods, but now I use the Incra runners. They're adjustable and transferable.

[glenn bradley]

Since you state that you have red oak I assume you are asking how to cut the runners and not what to make them from(?). I have red oak runners on my largest sled (have used alum and UHMW as other mention, all work well).

If your TS fence is a pretzel then clamp a straight board to it shimming as required to get a straight surface. I planed my stock to a fat 3/4" and then ripped a 3/8" strip. Try for the straightest grain section you have. I then used a hand plane to get a tight fit. Mounted the runners and used a scraper to fine tune the width before applying a liberal amount of paste wax. I used BB ply for the sled to save on weight and allow me to shellac and wax the surfaces. Enjoy.

[Vince Shriver]

FYI: Certainly a more spendy alternative, both Incra and Woodhaven offer bars (both adjustable for a slop-free fit) that are made for what you are doing. Incra is aluminium and Woodhaven is nickle plated steel.

[Prashun Patel]

Rip 3/8 sections off the edge of a 4/4 board and then handplane the edge to fit.

Shellac them and then screw into the bottom.

[Sean Nagle]

+1 for using UHMW for runners

[Wayne Jolly]

I have to do a +1 for aluminum runners. I have used red oak and it does "ok". So did some mahogany that I had laying around. But they do swell and contract a bit. Also tried UHMW. Had to be VERY careful how tight I made the screws or the plastic would deform and not fit in my slots. It did fine though. Bought some 3/4x3/8 aluminum had haven't looked back. Just put a little wax on the sides and away ya go.

xeddog

[Paul Ryan]

I think I would joint the board, cut my strip, then use the planer with the jointed side down to sneak up on the fit.

This is the method I used for mine made out of red oak. I agree a material that doesn't expand and contract is nice, but hardwood works too. Don't use pine it is way too soft IMHO. Make them move slick. I made mine so they fit sung thinking the weight of the sled would move them. Well ya that works but when they swell they are really hard to move. I didn't finish the underside of my sled. Just put a couple of coats of wax on it, and a couple extra on the runners as well. The runners are the toughest part, especially with the tools you have to work with. A hand plane would really come in handy if you have one, or even a card scraper. Good luck

[Dennis McGarry]

I have to do a +1 for aluminum runners. I have used red oak and it does "ok". So did some mahogany that I had laying around. But they do swell and contract a bit. Also tried UHMW. Had to be VERY careful how tight I made the screws or the plastic would deform and not fit in my slots. It did fine though. Bought some 3/4x3/8 aluminum had haven't looked back. Just put a little wax on the sides and away ya go.

xeddog

Where would I find 3/4x3/8 alluminum?

Going to try making a couple out of a rip off the oak, for now. A plane would be great, or a jointer. But will have to do it with sandpaper and a flat surface. Thanks for all the tips so far!

dennis

[Vince Shriver]

Where would I find 3/4x3/8 alluminum?

Going to try making a couple out of a rip off the oak, for now. A plane would be great, or a jointer. But will have to do it with sandpaper and a flat surface. Thanks for all the tips so far!

dennis

Incra, Woodpecker Tool, Woodhaven. Just got to their websites, they have what you're looking for.

[Leo Vogel]

+2 for the Incra and Woodhaven bars.

[Dennis McGarry]

Incra, Woodpecker Tool, Woodhaven. Just got to their websites, they have what you're looking for.


Sweet! WC carries them as well! And they are not that expensive at all!

Now one more question, is it really nessacary to use two sliders in a sled or will one work?

The sled will be no bigger then 24"wide by maybe 18" deep. Plan on making a few for differnt trials with segmenting as well as one for celtic knots

[glenn bradley]

Now one more question, is it really nessacary to use two sliders in a sled or will one work?

The sled will be no bigger then 24"wide by maybe 18" deep. Plan on making a few for differnt trials with segmenting as well as one for celtic knots

The work you describe will be best served by as controlled a cut as you can get. I use two runners on all my sleds but that doesn't mean its a requirement for everyone.

[Glen Butler]

I like saving money using hardwood runners. When you have as many custom sleds as I do, its the way to go.

The way I apply them is the real key to having a perfect sled. I cut my sled down to size, using MDF or birch ply depending on how long I want it to last. I plane the runners to width creeping up on the fit, then I cut them just a bit shallower than the depth of the slot. I put the runner in the slot with a second really thin piece below the runner to make it slightly higher than the table. I spread CA on the runner, butt my sled against the fence, then lower it onto the runners. This way I know my sled is square to the blade and I know my runners are parallel. Leave some weight on it for a short time (usually I sit on it). And you are good to go. No messing with screws and your runners will never come off. No need to worry about excess CA, it won't penetrate the pores of the metal, but a little waxing prior to gluing couldn't hurt.

[Salem Ganzhorn]

Sweet! WC carries them as well! And they are not that expensive at all!

Now one more question, is it really nessacary to use two sliders in a sled or will one work?

The sled will be no bigger then 24"wide by maybe 18" deep. Plan on making a few for differnt trials with segmenting as well as one for celtic knots

I like having more than one sled. For the sled style that straddles the blade yes I think you need 2. If you use wood these are best cut a hair under the width of the slot. Then when you position them use cards or paper to push each one toward the blade so the inside of the rail(s) hug the slot.

For the "Norm" style sled only one is required of course. These sleds are good at different things.

The Norm style works great when you need to crosscut a really big piece. The style that straddles the blade is best for precision and cutting multiple same length pieces with a stop.

Salem

[Scott Schwake]

Somewhere I read that you should orient the grain vertically, so most of the contraction/expansion in the runner occurs top to bottom, instead of across the miter slot. I did that with hard maple on my sled and it's working well so far.

[Michael Schwartz]

Ok, I have decided today is the day to make a simple crosscut sled.

Went and got a nice piece of MDF, a 1x4x2' red oak board and a 1x3x1.8' red oak board.

Need advice on making the runners for the ts guide slots. i have the ts of course but the fence on it leaves a lot to be desired, and a band saw.

what is the best or easiest way to make the two runners? I have pine boards I can use for now or rip them out of the oak..

Thanks
dennis

UHMW plastic. I buy 3/4 x 24 lengths from lee valley.

Two runners are ideal for table-saw jigs.

Just drill/countersink and loosen up the fit if they are too tight for your slot. Apply double stick tape, and wedge them up in the miter slot with some slivers of wood so they are just proud of the saw top. I then drop the bottom panel of my sled on, and carefully lift it out and screw the runners on from the bottom.

After the runners are screwed on, I run a kerf 3/4 of the way through the base of the sled and then very carefully square my fence to it. If its off after the fact, or you bump the sled you can shim with some masking tape to re-square it. Last three sleds I have made have come out dead square the first try.

Use something that is not affected by seasonal movement. I made some runners from oak for a sled and they became too tight from seasonal movement. You could always ease the fit by sanding but then you risk them shrinking and becoming loose, hence why I use UHMW plastic.

You can use hardwood runners and they might work long term depending on climate but I build my jigs and sleds to last as long as possible.

[Vince Shriver]

Sweet! WC carries them as well! And they are not that expensive at all!

Now one more question, is it really nessacary to use two sliders in a sled or will one work?

The sled will be no bigger then 24"wide by maybe 18" deep. Plan on making a few for differnt trials with segmenting as well as one for celtic knots

A sled moving across both sides of the saw blade should have two runners. However, for smaller items some use a cross cut or panel slider that goes on just one side of the blade. Naturally you'd use only one runner for that application.