Table saw top gouge repair

[David Bergman]

I accidentally put a gouge in my unisaw cast iron table top when the router I was using slipped. It put a 1/2" wide by 6" long gouge in the top. The depth varies, but it 1/8" deep at its worst point. Of course I won't rout wood using the table saw as a base anymore!!!!

It hasn't caused any problems, but I would like to repair it. Any ideas? Would epoxy suffice?

Thanks in advance. david.

[Al Weber]

I've done that a couple of times now. I used JB-Weld successfully. It is an epoxy product. I made the repairs several years ago and they haven't deteriorated at all. The only downside is they are black or dark gray and so pretty obvious to the eye. Maybe there is a gray product out there somewhere.

[mickey cassiba]

Devcon is a two part metal patching compound that we used in machine shops to fill old tapped holes(stripped threads, mis-drilled holes, etc). When fully cured it machines just like steel. The color is not that bad off from cast Iron either. Be aware, there are two (maybe more by now) compounds available, aluminum and steel grades. The aluminum works just as well as the steel but is much lighter in color. Both are pretty pricey.
HTH

[Chris Tsutsui]

Ive filled holes with JB weld. I also used JB weld to attach heatshinks to insulated chips for small amplifiers. It's like an epoxy with metal filler.

There's a mythbusters episode where they build a table out of angle iron using nothing but JB weld and then drop a bowling ball on the table and basically every joint breaks apart... So contrary to the claims of JB weld's packaging, it is not a substitute for welding. :)

[alex grams]

Mickey, is this the Devcon product?

Devcon Plastisteel Epoxy (http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_12605_SPM5692332903P?sid=IDx20101019x00001 a&ci_src=14110944&ci_sku=SPM5692332903)

[Stephen Cherry]

Is the damage all below the plane of the surface of the cast iron top? If yes, I would just live with it. Low spots usually don't really hurt anything but your pride. High spots need to be scraped off. Plus, it may be tough to sand down the epoxy without causing a dip in the iron.

[Matthew Sherman]

Ive filled holes with JB weld. I also used JB weld to attach heatshinks to insulated chips for small amplifiers. It's like an epoxy with metal filler.

There's a mythbusters episode where they build a table out of angle iron using nothing but JB weld and then drop a bowling ball on the table and basically every joint breaks apart... So contrary to the claims of JB weld's packaging, it is not a substitute for welding. :)

Little off topic, but JB Weld probably isn't the best conductor of heat. For heatsinks I would recommend thermal adhesive. Something like...
http://www.arcticsilver.com/arctic_silver_thermal_adhesive.htm

[Jamie Buxton]

Bondo. It sticks to steel -- that's why they repair auto bodies with it. It isn't expensive. It sands nicely.

[Dave Cav]

I've used JB Weld to repair holes in cast iron with pretty good success. I had one drill press table that had a lot of extra holes in it and the center hole was wallowed out, and JB cleaned it up pretty good. It has good strength in compression and sticks pretty well to clean cast iron, so I wouldn't worry about it coming out or breaking up.

[ian maybury]

+1 on a polyester car body filler. Bonds well, and sands easily.

:) You could of course go the whole hog as somebody posted of doing on FOG recently - he used a two pack automotive polyurethane acrylic lacquer to level minor depressions in his jointer (?) tables.

Smarter than it might sound, that stuff is very tough and after flatting you can choose the finish you want (matt/satin/whatever) depending on what you use to cut it back. No more corrosion either.

Not sure how it'd do long term, but it may well be fine....

ian