Tablesaw outfeed support

[Prashun Patel]

I don't have the room or need for a permanent outfeed solution for my tablesaw. I need to frequently access the rear floorspace of my saw for storage and space reasons.

I do, however, need outfeed support on occasion. I found a good solution that may be appropriate for people in my situation:

Outfeed runners. I put a rabbeted rail on the back rail of the table saw. I then just made a bunch of runners from scrap and added cleats to fit into the rabbet on the saw.

The runners can be positioned around the miter slot and can be moved as narrow or wide as necessary. You really only need 4: 2 for each side of the blade. Best of all, they can be lifted out, nested, and stored when not needed.

I used 2x4's for POC, but I will make them out of plywood for permanent use; any twist causes the cleat corner to lift out of the rabbet, and impede the travel of the cut piece.

The runners are easily repurposed as straight edge cut guides, bench hooks, etc.

Of course, this only works if you have a bench or some kind of support positioned appropriately.

[Chris Hachet]

Neat solution. I have a secondary bench with a melamine top. I use the secondary bench for all sorts of stuff....ymmv.

Yours is nice and portable.

Regards,

Chris

[Ray Newman]

Very good, economical, and useful idea. Thanks!

[glenn bradley]

Very cool solution Prashun.

[Wade Lippman]

Good solution if you happen to have a table in the right place.
I find a roller stand to work well enough.

[Matt Day]

I like it. I might do similar but rest them on a roller stand. I hate how my roller stands pull stock one way or another if it's not setup perfect, which it never is.

Thx for sharing.

[Dave Cullen]

Mine has folding legs.

[Prashun Patel]

Dave,
I set out to make one like yours. I am certain it's superior....UNLESS one finds his self having to get behind the saw often. My cramped workshop requires me to go behind there often to access my bench or my dust collector.

Also, I find myself doing a good deal of longer rips. I find when ripping 1/4" panels, they can sag past the back of a shorter outfeed support. For me, it would sag beneath the surface of workbench, requiring a dangerous walkaround, lift, and pull through for the final foot or two. So, for *me* full support over the length has at times been more critical than support along the full width. All that's needed is support near the outer edges of the target and cut off pieces, which 4 pieces can easily handle.

I have half a mind to drill some dog holes in the bench and use pegs to keep the runners secure at the end.

This is only a simple solution to a specific problem that I had.

[Dave Bunge]

Nice idea. Thanks for sharing it.

[Steve Kinnaird]

This is very cool!
I have been sketching out ideas for a dual purpose outfeed/assembly table.
But this would be a quicker solution to the outfeed and a dual purpose table can come later when I am sure of what I need.

[Vince Shriver]

I believe woodworkers, more than anyone else, validate the old adage "necessity is the mother of invention". Your runners will be right at home in my garage/shop. Thanks.

[Randy Rizzo]

a few years ago I was fooling around with inset drawers. Made up a small cabinet, sort of proof of concept. Repurposed into outfeed support for tablesaw sled and storage for all router bits, and associated stuff. It's on castors, when not needed I just roll into a corner. Works well as a general outfeed for most work, if I need a bigger outfeed I've got a 40"X60" assembly table, also on castors that I can roll into position.

[Jim Becker]

That's a good solution to catch a bigger piece of material without a permanent surface. The folding version I used when I had a cabinet saw years ago (prior to the slider) folded down for the same reason...space conservation.

[Prashun Patel]

I've been using these for a couple weeks now, and I gotta say I LOVE them. No regrets and no space lost.

[Don Sundberg]

My current solution is pretty similar to yours. It's just a piece of 1/2" ply with a cleat to hook on the back rail of my Incra fence. The other end set's on a portable roller stand. It's gotten me by so far and is very easy to take down. Currently the spot in my shop where the table saw is used has a sloped floor to a trench drain I put in in case I wanted to wash down a vehicle in the shop. It is also line up with the overhead door so I can run long boards through the saw.