ts router extension help

[Ralph Butts]

Hello all I am looking for some table saw help. I am shop spaced challenged. I have a Grizzly 478 ts with a Bench Dog cast iron router table mounted on the right side of the saw blade (left tilt saw). I want to change my fence system to a shop fox classic 7ft system with supporting legs. I also want to build an extension wing about 35" to increase my ripping ability then re-mount my router ext table. My question ...is this the best way? I am assuming the legs will counteract the added cantilevered weight caused by the cast iron table hanging off the end of the 7 ft rails. Will the cast iron cause the laminated extension wing to sag? A friend suggested to install addition cast iron wings from Grizzly then the bench dog table. I am afraid this would add too much unbalanced weight to the right side of the saw. Maybe beefing up the rail legs will make this an acceptable solution? I have never seen such an arrangement but trying to think outside of the box. Any thoughts?

[Dan Karachio]

Ralph, I won't have all your answers, but I have this extension on the right and I am 99.99% sure it says in the manual that even when connected this way (right side) directly to the saw with just one iron wing, it *absolutely must* have support. Given this, with so much non-iron between your router top and the saw in the new set up, I am 100% convinced it would need not just two legs, but full support.

I am also space challenged and what I did (too sloppy right now to share pics) is built a cabinet to go under the router wing. It is essentially a router table with a compartment for the router, dust collection and drawers for bits and other accessories, but it also supports the top. I used adjustable kitchen cabinet legs to adjust the cabinet to support the wing and keep it level. So, it is essentially a "router table" connected to my saw, but it is, for me, a great arrangement and space saver.

Look what this guy did, it is beautiful! (see below) Imagine something like this, but further out from the saw for your plans?
- http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=146997

[Peter Aeschliman]

I had the 7' shop fox rails on my Jet contractors saw before I sold it. I also mounted my router table (1 1/2" thick MDF) at the end of the extension table like you're saying.

The legs were plenty sturdy to hold the weight just fine. In your situation, you maybe have another 100lbs than I did... but the legs are relatively heavy gauge steel, so I don't think you'd need anymore support than that.

You say you have a small shop, but it can't be that small if you're adding 7' rails! But if you are limited enough on space that you'll need to move your saw around, 7' rails with a cast iron router table will make it very difficult...

[Ralph Butts]

Thanks for the suggestions Peter. While my shop is a commendered two car garage I do have a lot of gear thereby limiting my available space. (19" bandsaw, 6" jointer, 13" planer, drum sander, mitre station, compressor, 17" drill press, oscillating sander and work bench). Because of this I have been hesitant to build a full length cabinet to support the extension wing. My table saw is mounted within a Grizz mobile base and I was going to purchase the base extension which allow for attaching the support legs to the mobile base as well. I will also build a folding outfeed extension table found on the web. The result is I have a tight working space.
If I drill countersunk holes in the rails coupled with the support legs the weight should be distributed along the steel rails and the support legs rather than the laminated mdf ts extension. Also maybe I shorten the overall table length to the righ by about 8-12 inches so that the cast irion table's weight is not placed all the way at the end of the rails.

[Chip Lindley]

Ralph, I don't know if the SF Classic fence system includes a rear steel rail, but if not you will need one. Most are 2 x 2.5 x 3/16" angle. The Bench Dog extension and any filler between it and the TS should be attached to front and back rails for maximum ridgidity.

The outer legs will support the ends, but the angle iron rails must support the sides. Without a sturdy mobile base under the saw, you are pretty well obliged to leave your TS in one spot after you get it all together. I made a seriously heavy duty mobile base for my PM66, as below. The ext. table is bolted to the rails and to the edge of the CI table wing. Front and back rails carry the weight of the extension. The legs only support the extreme end, and can be adjusted up/down to level the extension with the main table.

PM66 end full sml.jpg

IMO, that single support running beneath the Grizzly extension is a PITA. The HTC stand that came with my PM66 was much the same. It's outboard support was flimsy, and I could not live with that. Not sure how any storage cabinet could reside there. My stuff is wayy too heavy to hang from the table above; it must rest on the rails below.

g8684z[3].jpg

[David Thompson 27577]

When I added a cast iron router table/tablesaw wing, I put legs under it. Can't say about the Bench Dog version, but the iron edges on mine didn't look beefy enough to prevent sagging over the long haul. And of course, sagging in cast iron will cause a crack, making the thing useless.

And height-adjustable legs are actually quite easy to make. So long as there's a pre-drilled hole, or maybe a stud, they're also easy to mount.