I have a Jet 14" bandsaw which serves me pretty well except the table (15 X
15) is a bit too small for many of my turning blanks. Now that I am turning larger pieces I begin with much larger blanks which can be a bit heavy too. I am trying to figure out how to make an auxillary table for the saw that would support the larger pieces of wood. I do have the riser block in the saw so wood thickness has not been a big problem. Yes, I know 'buy a bigger saw' but $$ and space are limited. Would appreciate suggestions. Thanks
I've seen auxillary tables for the bandsaw that are pretty simple. Basically the table has a wooden bar that fits into the miter slot, which serves to register it on the table. Add some blocks under the table in the correct location at either side, and the table will be fairly well fixed in place. There are variations with mechanisms to actually clamp the table to the cast iron surface, but I don't really remember those details. The aux table usually extends to the side (away from the riser arm) because this is usually used to support a circle cutting jig of some sort. That might be just what you need for prepping bowl blanks anyway. To support the end of the table away from the saw, just add some pivoting legs (or perhaps only one thicker leg) that swings down when in use, and can be folded up for storage when not in use.
I'm trying to remember where I saw one of these - maybe on the NYW? Yeah, that's it. On the jigs episode he shows how to build one of these, similar to what I've described.
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you want the plan it's $15 since it's a two-parter that includes severalother shop jigs.
Use a chainsaw for your blanks and only use the 14" bandsaw for the small stuff. You can get a blenk turned and trued in a few minute and have fun doing it - lots of shavings flying beats grappling with a blank on a small surface any day!
Paul, I made a top of 3/8" plywood and used a couple of slotted angles for support on my Delta bandsaw. It works just fine. I removed the fence guides (don't normally use one anyway) and replaced them with the slotted angle. Fasten the plywood to that. You obviously need to put a slot in the plywood to change blades. Let me know if you need a couple of pictures.
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