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DanCampbell

Getting The Bait Level

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All,

I am working with a 1/2" thick wood lure and attempting to cut a lip slot with my 9" band saw.

The issue is I can't get the band saw table level, even with a bulls eye level it is off on one side of the blade.The adjustment are not very precise, I keep going back and forth.

When I make the cut and then look at the lip slot from the belly of the lure I can see it is slighter lower on one corner, otherwise it looks pretty good

How critical is it for this cut to be dead level?

I am thinking about building a "Sled" with a leveler in each corner in an attempt to make this cut. It would be a wooden section with screws on each corner and a clamp of some sort to hold the bait. I would run it along the fence in an attempt to keep things square.

Any thoughts?

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My bandsaw table has a clamp bolt at the back which I slacken and the table rotates. I use a square against the blade, to judge the perpendicular and clamp up. I then cut half way through a block of scrap, then then turn the block (not flip) around and cut from the other side.If the two cuts are parallel, you are good to go, if not, back to the table angle adjustment.

On my table, the 90 degree angle that I want is right at the limit of the adjustment. If there is something wrong and you just cannot reach perpendicular, you may have to grind a bit off the stop to allow the table to rotate a smidgen more.

The sled idea is good. Make it three legged, or you will still have problems.

Dave

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However you do it, yes, it's important that the lip be squared to the bait. Cutting a true perpendicular slot is best by far. But even if you have to make the slot oversize so you can adjust the lip during installation, that's better than a crooked lip.

Doesn't the table on your saw have an adjustment to make the blade perpendicular to the saw blade? I use a carpenter's square on my scroll saw to check the alignment, and I cut the lip slot slowly so the blade stays true during the cut.

Edited by BobP
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I totally agree with what has been said about squaring the blade to the table and will add one thing. Just because you eventually get the blade square to the table don't think that it will stay there permanently. It's a good idea to check it every so often to make sure it remains square. It's a lot easier to check the blade and table for squareness than it is to try and square up a lip slot that was cut wrong.

Ben

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