Tablesaw Wings

[Jerry Bruette]

I'd like to make some wings for my tablesaw, older Craftsman, out of MDF.
Couple questions about doing it.

One is should I band the wings with hardwood edging, say 3/4 x 1 1/2 oak? And the second question is how should I finish the wings? Would it make sense to laminate the top and bottom with formica or could I just shellac and wax the top and bottom?

Thanks
Jerry

[Myk Rian]

Shellac on all 6 sides ought to do it.
How do you plan on attaching them to the table?

[Jerry Bruette]

Myk

Was thinking of using screws through the T2 fence rails. Good idea or No?
That's why I'm considering the hardwood banding.

Jerry

[Bruce Page]

Jerry, I think you will be disappointed. The screw holding strength of MDF is not much better than cardboard. I would look for an alternative material, maybe Baltic birch or something along those lines.

[Bill Huber]

I made one for my old Craftsman when I had it and I did just what you are talking about. I used hardwood for the edges and MDF for the center.
I bolted it to my saw just like a normal wing and then bolted to the fence rails and it worked very well.

But with that said when I got a larger saw (Jet contractor) I found and old Craftsman for $50 and took the cast wings from it and put on the Jet and I like them much better, the weight of the cast makes the saw run smoother.

[Thomas Williams]

I would go with a hardwood edging or a frame. I did this on my old Cman and used melamine for the wing. Worked fine for me.

[Ross Canant]

I would just build the saw into a table instead of adding wings.

[George Sanders]

I have to agree about the mdf. It isn't hard to find an old Craftsman table saw with the cast iron extensions. Even if the saw is toast the wings will still be useful. The added weight really does help.