Thread: Minimax C26 Genius with Squaring Table

Getting there.

On a side note, does anyone know where to get an extra piece of the fence extrusion? I would like my fence to be a bit shorter for most operations but don't want to cut down the one I have.

cheers

Shane, I can only suggest giving SCM a call or an aluminium extrusion supplier and send the photos could also work. Looking at Pete's photo I would prefer the way the way the stop is because it will lock more securely.

Hi Chris, are you saying that my mod is okay as it stands? If so, yes it works ok, but it can lock off the perpendicular & meeting on the four faces will ensure repeatability. The pivot point has a similar machined chamfer that locks into profile. If you are saying the OEM is your preference, then you have saved $35!! Peter

Originally Posted by Repete

Hi Chris, are you saying that my mod is okay as it stands? If so, yes it works ok, but it can lock off the perpendicular & meeting on the four faces will ensure repeatability. The pivot point has a similar machined chamfer that locks into profile. If you are saying the OEM is your preference, then you have saved $35!! Peter

Pete, I am not familiar with MM saws but just looking at it the clamping area/friction will be greater with the way it looks now. When it is clamped to the small "ridges" the clamping friction will be less but could be sufficient so it is a case of clamp and see! From the photos nothing is really clear on how the whole thing works and I was just commenting on the clamping friction between your proposal and the one in the photograph. MM must have done it that way for a reason would be my thoughts but then all manufacturers never seem to get everything right.

I think I see what Chris is saying here. With the 2 bevels being only what meets then it should always centre the fence on the clamping force/bolt. If where you have the arrows for 'no gap' if it touches there as well it would either be very hard to have the bevels machined perfectly there too as there is likely very small discrepancies with the slot along the fence. Either that or it would likely be slightly loose allowing side to side play.
I hope that makes sense.

Hi Shane, have a look at how the pivot point works to see what I am trying to achieve. It locates very precisely into the profile. Regards, Peter

Originally Posted by shanesmith80

I think I see what Chris is saying here. With the 2 bevels being only what meets then it should always centre the fence on the clamping force/bolt. If where you have the arrows for 'no gap' if it touches there as well it would either be very hard to have the bevels machined perfectly there too as there is likely very small discrepancies with the slot along the fence. Either that or it would likely be slightly loose allowing side to side play.
I hope that makes sense.

I'm afraid I tend to agree, while I can understand the desire to have a more elegant looking piece and introduce self-centreing, I fear it will introduce more problems than it solves. It is effectively asking a machinist to do the impossible to get both the chamfered and the horizontal faces to meet and clamp on each other. If I understand it correctly the fence is an extrusion and will not have consistent tolerance along the length. When sliding it will bind in places and be loose in others, and if any clamping force is born on the chamfers then it will have the tendency to spread the profile open, making the fence no longer straight.

It would be better to relieve the chamfered/tapered section so that there is a deliberate gap there (leaving you an inverted "T" section), leaving the horizontal faces to do the clamping alone.

REV.JPGGentlemen, the modified prototype has arrived & I am now satisfied with the result. I will confirm the final cost, but it will be about $35, up from the $33.50 I originally said. I am having X6 machined for HounPineFan, ShaneSmith80, Jazzy69, Hoey & ALH01 & one for me. IMG_1085.jpg

For any interested parties, the production run has arrived & I am very pleased with the result. I have sent PMs to those members who expressed interest in a unit. The final cost is $36, including a 35mm grub screw & postage, which seems reasonable. As I do not have any Loctite, I have used plumbers tape to lock in the grub screw, which seems to work fineFinal.jpg. Peter

I've been away for a few weeks, so happy to see the small parcel from Peter lob in the mail recently. Installed it without problems in the long fence of our C30, and it certainly looked to be consistent along the length of the fence extrusion, with just the finest of tolerance side to side.

This week, we tried using the squaring frame, and the first thing noticed was that our calibration was out by a few degrees. We used the Minimax method of cutting four sides of a board to amplify the error, and then adjusted it back until the fourth cut was dead square. Tried installing and removing the fence a few times, and each time it came back repeatably dead square.

I never did like the old MM system of a sloppy piece of flat plate inside the extrusion, as it was possible (I know!) to clamp up the fence with that plate a mm or so either way off square when setting the fence, unless you remember to hold the fence hard up against the stop with the clamp loosened to the same amount each time. With Pete's device, the clamp remains in the same place no matter what the clamping pressure is, so it should remain consistent.

I am a happy user now.

I am very happy with the accuracy of the modified fence lock, but still have a gripe with slack in the pivot point. I came up with a quick fix with help from Elan Jacobs (Thanks!!).
So, I set about making a permanent solution from Acetal turned on the lathe. I just nip up the pivot after locking the fence. Rock solid accurate & repeatable!
PS- There is one fence lock left, $35 posted. Peter