Sometimes angles can be dealt with by simply heading to your mitre saw. Other times a hand saw is the ticket to give you the ultimate in flexibility for cutting angles. There are times when a workpiece is too large for a mitre saw or hand saw, and you need a completely different approach. A table saw and dedicated sled are great for many other angled situations, though it’s often hard to zero in on the correct angle and make repeated cuts to many workpieces. This is where the Zero Play 360 Sled Kit from MicroJig excels.
The kit comes with two precision mitre bars that fit face-to-face and run in your table saw’s mitre gauge slot, as well as four dovetail track screws that allow you to secure a fence or stops to the upper face of the plywood sled at any position or angle.
Making the necessary plywood base for the sled kit to work with involves routing some dovetail grooves in the base and drilling a few holes to fix the base to the sled kit mechanism. It’s not hard work. There are a number of approaches to using the completed sled. One simple approach is to use shop-made wood blocks with holes drilled through them to act as stops. These stops can be quickly and easily positioned and clamped on the sled, providing you with virtually any angle to cut a workpiece at. Another approach is to make a solid wood or plywood fence with long slots in it. The dovetail track screws extend through the fence and into the routed dovetail grooves on the plywood base. With a bit of ingenuity, users can very likely come up with many other approaches to using this kit for help around their shops.
If you’ve ever wondered how to cut angles on some unique parts, or are just looking for a safer, faster and more accurate way of dealing with simple angles, you should consider this sled kit.
Rob is a studio furniture maker and the editor at Canadian Woodworking & Home Improvement.
