Vacuum Fence for Slider

Finally finished my vacuum tall fence for my slider.
Made of commercially available parts from companies in the CNC industry.
Aluminum T-slot plate 16” x 24”
4) 4” x 4” aluminum pods
pneumatic switch
powered by vacuum pump from Vacuum clamping systems.

The objectives for this fence were to accurately cut box tops off boxes, cut reliefs in thin wood for box bottom aprons and to be used as a bench top holding jig.

I make a lot of boxes and have tried every way possible for cutting boxes in two. With this fence and vacuum pods combined with a diamond thin kerf blade, I don't think there is a better method. Too many reasons to list.
This fence far exceeded my expectations and is just another enhancement to the utility and safety of a slider especially for small work.
Another realized benefit is the plate/pods for bench work. The holding power, speed of changing work positions, and accessibility to your work without traditional clamps is a game changer for me.
Attachment 414146Attachment 414147Attachment 414148Attachment 414149Attachment 414150Attachment 414151

You make beautiful boxes. Very nice execution, both in the box, and in the fixture.

Which vacuum pump is that?

John - Nice setup - Where did you buy the aluminum pods?

Thank you Bruce.
The pump is from Vacuum pressing Systems. It’s called the “Professional” model

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Mark Hockenberg

John - Nice setup - Where did you buy the aluminum pods?

---

Purchased the plate, T-nuts, and pods from “Clampusystems”. They were great to work with.

Wow! Very nice!

John, really cool. Thank you for posting this!

that's clever. well done

Great solution, John!

Awesome. I need to make a clamping fixture for the slider for cutting veneer. I HATE using a veneer saw. I made a fixture from MDF but it's way too heavy

Thanks everyone for the compliments.

Joe, a little over a year ago, I switched from commercial veneer to shop-sawn veneer. I like mine at 1/16”. For me, it is so much nicer to work with. One benefit is i can cut it on my slider using the AirTight clamps, a diamond blade, and a sacrificial piece of wood on top of the veneer. This pic I am cutting the top and bottom veneers for a panel.
Attachment 414263

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by John Sincerbeaux

Thanks everyone for the compliments.

Joe, a little over a year ago, I switched from commercial veneer to shop-sawn veneer. I like mine at 1/16”. For me, it is so much nicer to work with. One benefit is i can cut it on my slider using the AirTight clamps, a diamond blade, and a sacrificial piece of wood on top of the veneer. This pic I am cutting the top and bottom veneers for a panel.
Attachment 414263

---

what brand are those clamps, thanks?

The brand is called “AirTight”
Airtight.com

Lol............

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by john sincerbeaux

finally finished my vacuum tall fence for my slider.
Made of commercially available parts from companies in the cnc industry.
Aluminum t-slot plate 16” x 24”
4) 4” x 4” aluminum pods
pneumatic switch
powered by vacuum pump from vacuum clamping systems.

The objectives for this fence were to accurately cut box tops off boxes, cut reliefs in thin wood for box bottom aprons and to be used as a bench top holding jig.

I make a lot of boxes and have tried every way possible for cutting boxes in two. With this fence and vacuum pods combined with a diamond thin kerf blade, i don't think there is a better method. Too many reasons to list.
This fence far exceeded my expectations and is just another enhancement to the utility and safety of a slider especially for small work.
Another realized benefit is the plate/pods for bench work. The holding power, speed of changing work positions, and accessibility to your work without traditional clamps is a game changer for me.
Attachment 414146Attachment 414147Attachment 414148Attachment 414149Attachment 414150Attachment 414151

---

What a beautiful piece! It's so real that the figure in the ground seems to be , not wood ,but churning hot summer air !

John, great post, thx for sharing, love innovation like this!

a few questions.

I too am contemplating how to cut veneers...
I always assumed the kerf loss of a TS blade would create to much waste for cutting veneers??
What diam blade in your Slider? What is max. height u can cut?

I considered a slider with a wide diam blade, 16", instead of a bandsaw for re sawing. Any input would be much appreciated.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Will Blick

I considered a slider with a wide diam blade, 16", instead of a bandsaw for re sawing. Any input would be much appreciated.

---

By the time you consider the portion of the blade that will always be below the table, your re-saw height would not likely be more than about 6.5" or so with the 16" blade. Not really an ideal situation for re-sawing, IMHO. My slider has a 12" blade and my max blade exposure is about 4.5" or so.

I was thinking it was 7" cut depth for 16"....
so, maybe its less as u suggest..
then u turn the wood 180 deg for a second pass
so, 12-14" total cut height.
If u are not overly concerned about kerf waste, (min. use, low cost woods, etc) seems feasible

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Will Blick

If u are not overly concerned about kerf waste, (min. use, low cost woods, etc) seems feasible

---

Will, I think Joe is using a "diamond" blade with 2mm kerf:
https://www.woodworkingnetwork.com/w...259385541.html

Still about double what a bandsaw blade would be, but not 1/8"...

Thx Dan....
interesting blade!
wow, 75% noise reduction for that blade?
for real? wow, noise is an issue for me...
2mm is impressive, if cuts are clean enough, and u save on cleaning up BS marks...
the difference in loss even less.

$500 :)

(seriously)

Really nice work John! And an interesting set up. I would imagine it's really easy to position the work and just hit the air switch?
If you wanted to make a video of the process I wouldn't complain one bit! 😁

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Will Blick

I was thinking it was 7" cut depth for 16"....
so, maybe its less as u suggest..
then u turn the wood 180 deg for a second pass
so, 12-14" total cut height.
If u are not overly concerned about kerf waste, (min. use, low cost woods, etc) seems feasible

---

Really depends upon the arbor size including the nut and how far up the blade can be raised without interference by the machine top. For veneer work, it may be difficult/undesirable to "flip" because the thin off-cut IS going to move.

Hey guys, again thank you for your compliments. One of my favorite things is to create jigs or fixtures that make “production” woodworking faster, more accurate, and more enjoyable.
-As far as cutting veneer, I make all my veneer at the bandsaw and the widw-belt. I have only used the slider to cut veneer laying flat.
-As far as the diamond blade, I have only used it for particular tasks. The performance is amazing and yes, very quiet. But time will tell if it lasts as long as it is touted to.... 20 times longer?
-I do have a video but Ill need to post in on YouTube first I guesss?
-I do think this setup weather it is vertical or horizontal is such a game changer for production work. Consider routing mortises for quadrant hinges. Each hinge requires 4 separate routing setups. That’s 8 steps per box not to mention the drilling for the screws. So, I found the clamping jig hugely beneficial for operations like this. Routing inlay borders too. Just a flick of the air switch, reposition, hit the switch again and your off to the races. Also, no clamping dents to wory about:).

Here are a few more pics:

Attachment 414873Attachment 414874Attachment 414876Attachment 414877Attachment 414878

Great pix John!!
One of my frustrations with ww is
I dont do production of anything, and always think throughout the long procesess of mortising, etc, If only I had a jig, this would go fast... of course, making the jig would take me 6x longer than doing the one off..... u sure do things the right and efficient way, Kudos...
btw, do you sell your gorgeous boxes? what outlet do you use? Pinterest?

Jim, very valid point.... the cut side will flex after a flip, prob. causing underiable outcomes.

Now, back to the blade... a TS blade that makes hardly any noise...hmmmm... definetly will look into this... yes, the price is a shocker, specially considering I have sooo many un opened blades already.

Thanks Will,
Definitely a little frustrating making jigs, fixtures, and templates to achieve the overall project. Like clamps, we can never have enough jigs��. I guess the modern woodworker spends the same amount of prep time only he/she has to program the CNC?
- I sell all my work through a single company in Hawaii that has 16 galleries in all the Islands and Las Vegas.

If anybody is interested vacuum pods can be ordered from overseas at pretty reasonable pricing

www.vakuumtisch.de

Dave Davies

Beautiful boxes! I would love to see more posts of your work (in the project section?)

Great work John!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Jeff Bartley

Great work John!

---

Thanks Jeff

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Carl Beckett

Beautiful boxes! I would love to see more posts of your work (in the project section?)

---

Thanks Carl
I’ll post some pics of my next box. I have completed the Marquetry for it.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by John Sincerbeaux

Thanks Carl
I’ll post some pics of my next box. I have completed the Marquetry for it.

---

I will look for it! Also, I am wondering what type of finish operation you do on these? I have a project underway which requires a nice finish, so welcome any recommendations. (did post this question in the finishing section). Wish I had your skill on Marquetry and I would incorporate it into my project. Hmmm... there might be a way. Look forward to seeing your work!