Wade Garrett Table Saw Tenon Jigs
johnhenry922
| Posted in Power Tools and Machinery on
Has anyone had experience using a tenon cutting jig for a tablesaw?
I was simply clamping the piece of wood onto the fence of my mitre gauge and running it over the blade to make the cheek cuts. I erred on the side of caution, leaving a great deal of material to clean up in order to get a better fit as the cut were not exactly square to the sides.
Going through the Wade Garrett catalogue, I found a jig on page 10. It is one that uses the mitre slot and has a number of adjustment wheels and hold downs and seems to be a robust design.
Has anyone ever used one and if so, could they tell me what sort of limittations it has? Thank You and Merry Christmas. John
Replies
John,
I bought a General Tenon Jig a coupla weeks ago and have used it a few times. I'm not familiar with the Garret model but looking at a picture of it on pg. 76 of the July 2002 catalog they appear pretty similar. I bought it at a woodworker show and got to see several before I made my decision...also, the General was on sale..$85.
The General allows you to flip the handles and work form either miter slot...that is about the only difference...the salesman said that was unique to General...
I like it. It tilts left or right depending on the miter slot, and with the saw blade tilt, maybe I'll cut dovetails.. It is robust and feels safer. Yes, you could build a jig of wood to accomplish the features...
I have the Delta, and they are pretty much the same, wheteher it be from Garrett Wade, Rockler, Delta, or Jet. I've seen prices range from $70-$110. Their cast iron construction makes them heavy and they need to be.
The micro-adjust knob is essential, but the scale (calibrated to only 1/16" and with the pointer riding so high above it as to cast doubt on any reading) is practically useless. I usually get close, then use the micro-adjust to sneak up to the final dimension (remembering, of course, to flip the stock so the tenon is centered). The advantage is in the repeatability once you get down the fine tuning. Another useful function is if you are cutting angled tenons (once again, I ignore the angle scale in favor of laying out my lines on the stock and sneaking up to it).
My main criticism is that the capacity is limited--about 3". So, for example, if you are cutting a tenon on a table apron, you can make the cheek cuts for the structural shoulders, but if your apron height exceeds the jig capacity, you have to find an alternative way to make the cheek cuts for the cosmetic shoulders. Furthermore, the jig only facilitates cheek cuts; you're on your own for the shoulder cuts.
I think this jig is worthwhile if you have to do a major amount of tenons or find need to do angled tenons. Otherwise, a shop-made jig designed to ride along your table saw fence will accomplish the same thing at a fraction of the cost and can accomodate stock that is beyond the capacity of a commercial jig.
I did a bit of research at amazon.com for the reviews of tenon jigs. Most people seem to like the Delta but had complaints about the anti-rust coating, the fit of the guide in the mitre slot and the lack of accurate scale for measurements. I do like the look of the Wade Garrett one, but I prefer one I can actually get my hands on.
I did find a Delta 34-183 for sale at Summit Tools in Burnaby B.C. for $119. After a quick e-mail (they replied in 2 hours, they seem to care.) they informed me they had the newer 34-184 on sale for $99 Canadian, about $30 cheaper than Amazon.
I'll check it out and let you folks know.
Merry Christmas
This tagline made from 100% recycled electrons.
This forum post is now archived. Commenting has been disabled