Radial Arm Saw Stand Suggestions Wanted

slickshift

Well my dad's '70s Craftsman radial arm saw made the move to the new place, But the homemade wood stand/workbench deal was just to beat and worn out
I went to take it apart and...well, decided it wasn't worth it to bring it
So all the mods he, then I made to it went out into the wood pile
I never did figure out what some of those odd bits he had on there were for anyway...lol

I'm looking forward to a fresh start

I usually don't use it professionally, I like it set up at the house and I can keep my table and miter in the van

I'd love to have a set-up in the van, but I'd never use it enough to warrant the space

It's just the metal, no wood at all right now
Any good ideas, plans, or whatnot?
Pics, links, suggestions?

Thanks for any input

DecksEtc

slick, my Dad's old radial arm saw is still in his basement. I still haven't gotten around to moving it to my place since he passed - no room, etc., etc.

The stand for his is home made too. The next time at my Mom's knocking items off my "Mommy-Do" list, I'll get a couple of pics for you. As I remember it, he basically attached the saw to a home made workbench that had a 3/4" piece of MDF on the top. He then glued/nailed his own wooden fences where he wanted them. I wasn't there when he put it together but maybe the pics will help you.

Teetorbilt

My old Delta/Rockwell RAS has earned it's keep from day one and continues to do so.

__________________
You can't solve you're problems with the same level of thinking that created the problems.

Albert Einstein

slickshift

On that day I found a Tek 9 he had been hiding from the wife
She gave away all his other guns after he passed (not a big fan...to put it nicely), and that one was not...on record
So it came with the workbench
Sounds like how my dad had this one
It had quite a few layers, MDF and particleboard, fences, springs, clamps, built-in pushsticks, outlets....
I was great, but lots were not really square anymore
Some of the bolts/screws I pulled through/out trying to dis-assemble it
It's time to make it mine
(His ashes are spread in the bay just south of my new home so I checked with him...he thinks it's about time)

slickshift

Any pics of set-ups would be great
I'd love to see what others have done

Robie

I'm using an ancient Rockwell/Delta also and love it. There is always a debate going at the woodworking forums if the radial arm saw still has a place in the shop. I couldn't get by without one. I'll try to get some pics of my set-up today and post them. I don't use mine for anything but crosscutting and just fitted it with a Kreg fence and stop. I also just put a Forrest WWI blade on it and the cuts are about as perfect as they get.
Are you planning on using yours in place of the TS for ripping? If that's the case, I'd probably opt for a laminate top with a sacrificial insert for zero-clerance cuts. If you are just going to be cutting 2x material to length, all the bells and whistles really aren't necessary.

__________________

If you have integrity, nothing else matters. If you don't have integrity, nothing else matters. ~Alan Simpson

slickshift

I do use it for ripping

slickshift

Sounds nice
I don't believe I've seen one of those
Then again I don't see many radial arm saw set-ups lol
I'll have to look into that
Any pics, links, book or mag recommendations on where to find something like that?

Robie

Slickshift,
Here are a couple of pics of my saw. Excuse the mess, but it is a workshop
Attachment 1107

Attachment 1108
I have never used an RAS for ripping, just crosscutting. This one is tuned and is dead-on accurate. I mostly use it for stiles, rails and anything else too long for the TS.
If I had to build another from scratch, I would do the same layout as far as legs and drawers and such. The area behind the table collects junk and cut-offs, but is handy just for that reason.
What I would do differently is:
Make my entire table from 2 thicknesses of 3/4" ply, glued together and laminated on top and bottom with white Formica or another brand. I would make this from a 10' long sheet of ply.
The middle portion, just in front of the saw, say 1' wide, would be the same material, only cut out and then re-attached with counterbored machine screws. This would be my sacrifial area that I could replace every so often to maintain the integrity of the cut (zero-clearance idea)
The fence would also be double strength 3/4" ply, laminated front and rear. I would go with an attachable track for flip stops and such, as I have recently added. The fence would be a straight run from one end to the other. You don't want any gaps on the right side of the blade where a short cutoff can get hung up.
The reason for all the laminate is to supply a slick surface for ripping. You want stock to be able to glide past your fence and your table as smoothly as possible. I wax all my tables daily when I'm doing a lot of work. It just creates less work.
The wings to the sides of the saw are just for dust control. They are hinged and more or less direct the dust to a chute behind the saw.
With a solid, flat table (mine ain't quite as flat as it used to be...sags a little, like me) a well-tuned saw and a good blade, the RAS is a great tool capable of many things.
Good luck with the project!

__________________

If you have integrity, nothing else matters. If you don't have integrity, nothing else matters. ~Alan Simpson

slickshift

Wow
Nice!
Thanks for the tips and pics!