UHMW Table Saw ZCI

[George Bokros]

I have a ZCI made our of UHMW and it is not flat. Any one know how / if you can flatten it? It is high in the middle.

Thanks

[Cary Falk]

I woud run it through a drum sander. I f you were closer I woukd run it through mine for you

[Dave Macy]

UHMW is very machinable. I've run it through a milling machine quite a bit.

[George Bokros]

I woud run it through a drum sander. I f you were closer I woukd run it through mine for you

I have a drum sander but the feed rollers, like a planer, will press it down and it will spring back once it exits the sander.

[pat warner]

You can't. Unsupported (not screwed down) it will change shape.
You can joint and plane it but if it's not screwed down it will change shape again.

[Frank Pratt]

UMWH plastic is a good, low friction material, but it's not so good at staying flat. That makes it a poor choice for things like fences & ZDIs. Even if you get it flat, it may not stay that way. Because it moves a lot with temp change, if there is any differential between the front & back it will curve.

[George Bokros]

I read on another site that you can heat it in an oven on a cookie sheet to around 120* and let it sit on a flat surface and it will retain the shape of what it is sitting on.

Gonna try it tomorrow.

[Andy Giddings]

I would try phenolic sheet if you can't get that to work George. Plenty slippery enough

[Dick Mahany]

I gave up using UHMW for ZCI and router table fence inserts where I needed flatness. It was great for lubricity, but it wasn't stable and changed shape with the weather. I switched to Medium Density Overlay plywood (sign board) and couldn't be happier.

[Myk Rian]

Replace it with something more able to be used as an insert.

[keith wootton]

the phenolic i tried to use for a table saw fence was not flat enough to use (and it was expensive). i use hardwood scraps for zci and an eight inch blade (from dado stack) to initially cut thru insert because my 10 inch blade doesn't drop low enough.

[John TenEyck]

Use wood. I like 1/2" Baltic Birch plywood. Waxed once in awhile it's very smooth and slippery. It costs almost nothing, too, which is important because ZCI's wear and must be replaced to function really well.

John

[Dick Brown]

I really like the ones that I made from Corian. Last longer than ply. Second choice is ply with Formica.

Dick

[Wade Lippman]

I really like the ones that I made from Corian. Last longer than ply. Second choice is ply with Formica.

Dick

Geez, I was going to recommend Corian... I use it for everything.



Is the UHMW warped or uneven thickness?

[Alan Schaffter]

You can joint UHMW.

[George Bokros]

I read on another site that you can heat it in an oven on a cookie sheet to around 120* and let it sit on a flat surface and it will retain the shape of what it is sitting on.

Gonna try it tomorrow.

I tried it tonight and it worked. Warmed it up and flattened it on the laminate counter top in the kitchen.