Replies

1. 
   sschefer | Mar 28, 2002 12:57am | #1

   Jigs come in many shapes and sizes. I save a lot of money using cutoffs, etc to make jigs that I might just use once. I can't see buying something that has a limited use potential if theres a chance that I can make a suitable substitute.

   Every wood working magazine I've ever read always has at least one home made jig that someone has invented or re-invented. There are also dozens of books dedicated to the subject. I think I have four or five that I keep on the shop bench. Whenever I can't seem to do something with out assistance, I open up the books and search for a jig to help me out.

   When I first started looking at my books, I got a little scared. It seems that every jig in the books required the use of good hardwood. I totaled up one jig and found that I could buy it cheaper. I've since learned that hardwood is not necessary in many cases and even good old OSB or MDF will work a lot of the time.

   One of my best sources for jig materials has been construction sites. I just ask if I can go through the cuttoff pile. If I take the time to put things back neatly and not leave a mess they let me come back as many times as I want. The guys on the job sites used to laugh at me until I showed up at their local watering hole and bought them all beers with the money I'd saved from not buying wood. The cutoff pile is also a lot more robust then it used to be and they even throw some of the better stuff of to the side for me now.

   A good source for hardware for jigs is also contstruction sites. I've made friends with the cleanup crews that work for the major contractors. The cleanup folks have to sort out the metal from the other debris in order to get a huge discount from the waste management company. Seems it doesn't matter if there isn't anything in the metal bin just as long as there is no metal in the other bins.

   I ask them to not dump the metal but instead just let me know when and I'll come buy and pick it up. I have so many fastners, springs, hinges, wing dings and other unknown things that look cool, that I've had to stop picking stuff up until I build more storage cabinets! I can't remember when the last time was that I needed a nut, bolt, screw or washer from the hardware store.

   To identify a most valuable jig is almost impossible for me. Mine usually don't cost anything so there's no value there. The value lies in the fact that they work when I need them, even if its just once. I guess if I was going to have to pick one it would be the set of measured stop blocks that I made to fit on my rip fence. I have them in 1,2,3,4, and 5" sizes and use them appropriately for the width of the boards that I need to cut to identical lengths. The wider the board the farther I want it away from the fence.

   So I guess my advice would be to make them when you can, buy books when you don't know how and only buy if it is something that you cannot possibly make or if it just makes more sense at the time.

   Steve - in Northern California

   If the doctor says you have Attention Deficit Disorder, do you pay attention to him?

2. 
   robkutner | Mar 28, 2002 03:34am | #2

   I've built a crosscut sled for the table saw, and once I got the rails to slide smoothly in my miter guage tracks, it's the most useful jig I use on a day to day basis. 

   I've made auxiliary fences for the table and bandsaws, a router table fence, and others, but that crosscut sled gets the most use by far.

   Rob Kutner

3. 
   jeffn7 | Mar 28, 2002 07:52am | #3

   I use my panel sled all the time. I also have a very useful jig for cutting perfect 45 degree miters on my table saw. My shelf-pin jig for use with my router is exceptionally handy, as is the circle cutting jig.  Box joints... couldn't do them without the jig I made for them. One of my most clever jigs was the adjustable one I made for centering handles on drawer faces. One jig that really stands out is the one I slapped together to use with my planer for cleaning up a 5 degree bevel on some 1x4 trim pieces, that worked like a charm but I tossed it when I was done with the project.

   I don't always keep my jigs, I mean to but they get cannibalized for other ones. Guess I don't have a favorite.

4. 
   AntzyClancy | Mar 29, 2002 02:42am | #4

   My most valued jig is the router table I built.  Indispensable.

   Todd

5. 
   LRutherfor1 | Mar 30, 2002 01:38am | #5

   I use tons of jigs in my shop.  Every time I find something that I want to make several of (toys, rocking horses, etc.), I make a jig out of plywood and, lay the jig on the solid wood, cut the material from the pattern, and run them thru the router table with a straight bit (copying the pattern).  I also use jigs for making solid radius corners for furniture, but my most prized is a fence for my router table that I can adjust for the size bit, and has a pickup for the dust collector.  In other words, most of the wall space in the shop is covered with jigs.  Good luck, Len

   Len's Custom Woodworking, Henderson, Nevada

1. 
   slem2 | Mar 31, 2002 04:46am | #6

   The jig I use the most is a stop block I clamp to my miter saw table to cut boards all exactly the same length.  Just clamp it down at the required length- slide the board up against it and saw it off. I make more than one of the many items I make and have made as many as fifty of the same item at times. This procedure saves a lot of time for me. I can turn out fifty boards the same length in just a few minutes!

        BT

2. 
   sorethum1 | Apr 01, 2002 10:02pm | #8

   I wouldn't mind getting a look at that router jig.  Sounds nice.  Todd

1. 
   LRutherfor1 | Apr 02, 2002 12:54am | #9

   I'll take a digital pic today and email it to you.  Len

6. 
   GSA | Apr 01, 2002 06:18am | #7

   I use a jig to cut a mortise that is 1.5 inches long and 1/4 wide.   I found the jig in the magazine "Woodwork". I use it with my plunge router with a template guide.   Basicly it is two pieces of scrap 1/2 inch plywood nailed and glued at a right angle. It has an opening on the top side that fits the guide snugly. It cuts a mortise in about two minutes.   I use a loose mortice and tenon for my projects.   This jig speeds up the project quite a bit.  I  also just built a cross cut sled that will fit my Powermatic 66, it is a very usefull addition.  These are my only jigs that always use on projects.

   I beleive in jigs a lot since I rarely build the same thing twice. I currently working on projects that has jigs to rout the sides and bottoms of drawer fronts and mount drawer hardware. 

   For the most part, books on jigs are not of much use to me since most of my jigs are project specific.