Convert a hand-held circular saw into a table saw

Step 5 Mount the saw to the panel

Cut a slot in the panel and figure out how to mount your circular saw on the bottom of it. I have a DeWalt saw (too bad it's not Craftsman!) and it's got a fiberglass deck (the black bit) that I had no trouble drilling through. I used 1/4" hardware because that was what I had on hand. I used a counter bored holes and carriage bolts, so I didn't have to worry about the bolt turning as I mounting the saw.

There were two problems from this set up, though. First, I couldn't cut through 2x4 lumber because the boards I made the table out of were too thick. Also, I found out why zero-clearance plates are so popular.

I removed the first panel, which was made out of 3/4" lumber, and replaced it with 3/8" plywood. There's a bunch of shims to keep it level with the surface of the table. The saw is mounted on a panel and there is the possibility of changing the bit that surrounds the blade. The combination of the panel and plat works, but the table isn't very flat. There are a lot of little corners and edges and sometimes things get caught.

I also found out that the slot was too wide because bits of wood kept falling into the saw. They either were launched toward the ceiling of my garage or caused the saw to slow down and jam up. So I made a new slot that was just wide enough for the saw blade. It doesn't have a blade guard, anti-kickback device, or a splitter, so it's really quite dangerous. I'll have to make a splitter and guard ASAP.

Comments

[wade7632]

ths seems really cool how do u keep the saw running or triger on .