The Incredible L-Fence
Take your tablesaw to another level with this simple shopmade fence.
Synopsis: This is one tablesaw add-on that you won’t want to live without. The L-fence makes quick work of rabbets, tenons, and straight flush-cuts. It helps you to cut accurate miters, make precise cuts on awkward parts, and add versatility to your saw. In its simplest form, the L-fence is two boards fastened along their edges at a right angle. One side is clamped flat to the rip fence; the other side extends horizontally for a workpiece or template to ride against. But because this fence is raised slightly above the table, it doesn’t get damaged like a sacrificial fence would.
Adding jigs and auxiliary fences is a common way to increase your tablesaw’s capabilities. But the most clever tablesaw add-on might be one you’ve never heard of. The “L-fence” makes rabbets, tenons, and straight flush-cuts a breeze, and it will change the way you think about miters.…
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Comments
Fantastic. This solves so many problems. Thanks
I'm not sure I'd trust the carpet tape when gluing the corners
How great! I love it. Thank you for sharing.
Looks helpful. I'll be making one soon.
Thanks to STL 191 or I would have never guessed on this. Keep keeping it real.
Sometimes you read an FW article and it doesn't sink in. Now 5 years later, Bob's design is as Einstein was quoted as saying "don't make it simpler, make it simple." This is a wonderful simple jig that replaces a whole bunch of specific one function jigs that were taking up too much space in my crowed basement workshop! Thank you so much.
Some of my projects require odd-shaped blanks like his trapezoidal piece. I am making this fence to eliminate the use of my bandsaw followed by cleaning up the minor wavy cuts!
Thanks!
I just made this in about 30 minutes this morning after hearing about "The L Fence" all the time. I used it all day. This simple jig is a game changer for sure. I just kept thinking about how genius it is in all of its simplistic glory. Thank you!
some safety advice: be very careful to not restrict the outfeed by doing a proper level setup of your fence height. ensure your cutoffs don't get pinched by a bad fence setup. Also make sure your clamps don't stick out below the fence.
I made these two mistakes on my first day with my new L-fence, and took a nasty kickback in the hand. Luckily the cuts were minor.
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