Craftsman ZCI

[Steve Gojevic]

Has anyone bought the Craftsman ZCI from Woodcraft (#124214)?

Does it have the hold-down clip at the rear?

Also, I noticed from the picture that it does not have the screw slot in the front. Am I supposed to drill this hole, or does it not use the screw?

Thanks
Steve

[Ronald Blue]

I just make my own out of wood. Keep lightly sanding the edges until it slips in snugly after I have roughed out the basic shape. I run the stock through the planer to get it to thickness. The only dicey part is the 10" blade doesn't lower quite far enough to clear but you could get a smaller blade such as an 8" to cut the opening. This has worked very well for me. I make several when I do it.

[Lee Schierer]

You don't really need the clip at the back. If you hold down the ZCI with a push stick while you raise the blade up through it for the first cut it won't move after that. Here's one I had made out of aluminum with a replaceable wood insert that I posted a few years ago here on SMC. Craftsman ZCI (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?10839-New-zero-clearance-Insert&highlight=craftsman)

You also don't need a slot at the front but you do need a countersunk screw hole for the hold down screw.

[Steve Gojevic]

Here is my ZCI:

I made an aluminum frame with a cutout for both a regular blade and a dado blade. The ZCI aluminum is 1/2" thick and I used the mill at work to cut down the edge and ends to fit the insert ledge on the saw. I removed the holddown tab from the Craftsman insert and screwed it to the new ZCI. Also I drilled and tapped 4 holes for the height adjustment allen screws that were in the Craftsman insert (bottom view):

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I then cut a dovetail-edged slot for the replaceable wood insert. The dovetail keeps the wood in place. Note the sloppy fit of the wood piece, this was just a test piece I cut. Actual pieces will be made more precisely:

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Here is the bare aluminum frame installed in the saw:

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Finally, here is the complete ZCI installed on the saw. Again, the wood piece was a test piece and isn't even long enough. I hope to make a few real wood inserts in the next few days:


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Lee, thanks for the pictures of your insert. It gave me the general idea of how to make the insert.

Steve

[Rich Engelhardt]

I bought the Ridgid version of that Leecraft ZCI from Woodcraft a few years ago.

I finally got around to making a pile of them myself out of 1/2" thick MDF using the Leecraft as a template.
It's super simple.

They're snug enough fit that they don't need anything to hold them in place after giving them a few coats of clear finish.