Shortening a wide extension table

[Tom Henderson2]

Hello everyone. I have another dumbo question about tablesaws.

Is there any reason a saw with 50" fence and exension table couldn't be cut down to fit a smaller space?

I'm shopping for a tablesaw, and have found a few with wide (50") extension tables. THat is great when cutting wide stock, but I have very limited space.

Cutting the fence rails seems like a sin but should be doable. And the tables are just wood construction, so should be easy to cut down or replace with one of a different length.

Or am I missing something?

Thanks in advance.

-Tom H

[Jim Heffner]

You might want to just make a table extension out of BB plywood and
cover it with melamine for a slick surface instead of cutting the one you have. As to the rails, what type do you have? If you are using the Biese type, no problem to cut them, but if decide at a later time that you need them, you could have the pieces welded back together and put it back on the saw. If you are using the aluminum type rails, and decide to cut them,
don't discard the cut-offs, you may want to extend them(later on) and they would probably harder to find than the steel rails and angle iron type would be.

[Bruce Collins]

I had the same problem with my Jet saw. I ended up cutting off part of the backside rail so I could get to my router table. While it may lower the value of the saw, there are no other issues -sometimes you got to do what you got to do!

Bruce

[Frank Martin]

I did cut the fence rail and built my own extention table. No problems at all.

[Tom Henderson2]

Thanks Jim.

At the moment I'm shopping for used equipment; so don't have a specific make/model in mind. My space is limited and would probably need to cut down the wider tables if that is what I buy.

Extending again in the future is not a big consideration.

Thanks for the post. I figured that cutting down the fence rails and table (or replacing with a new table) was doable, but thought I'd make sure....

-Tom H .

[Rick Lizek]

I'd cut it and hinge it like a drop leaf table. That way you get both benefits and keep the value of the saw. I've done this for several friends.

[Brian Penning]

I'd cut it and hinge it like a drop leaf table. That way you get both benefits and keep the value of the saw. I've done this for several friends.

Rick>>Got any photos? I'm having trouble visualizing hinging the front and rear rails and one's fence gliding over it.

[Rick Lizek]

No photos. It's pretty easy to do with a Bies type fnece. The front rail on Bies is taller than the back rail so a spacer is put on the back rail to bring them into the same plane. Hinges go on the front and rear rails and slides like you find on any drop leaf table will work. Do a simple sketch of the drop leaf table and draw the extension table of the saw over it to visualize it.

I'd be willing to bet the my drop leaf folding version would be a popular option if it was sold that way. Many folks don't have room for a 50" fence but having the option in a pinch would be very handy. The ones I did for friends have gotten quite a bit of attention and have had several request to do others but I'd have to charge and they won't pay my rate.

[Randal Stevenson]

Another option is the classifieds here. You may find someone wanting to trade.