assembly table/outfeed table

[Rob]

I'm kicking around the idea of building a small assembly table that would double as an outfeed table for my Delta contractor saw. I have thought about building a folding outfeed table, but connecting it to the rails might prove a problem, since my Bessy clone fence uses it to ride around the far edge.

Questions I have is what to use for the surface, I'm figuring something to laminate to MDF. Does the borg have anything like that? Next is would it actually have to be connected to the saw for outfeeding?

 

[Canuck]

Rob,

I built mine as a freestanding table with leg levelers for fine adjustment to TS height. It has been great. Mine measures about 4 foot square and built completely out of 3/4" plywood. (I used the ideas from the blog at the Wood Whisperer website.http://thewoodwhisperer.com/)

Here is a link to a thread discussing my table - http://www.ncwoodworker.net/forums/f55/finish-outfeed-table-12033/)

One thing I will change (Wish I had listened to the folks here!:BangHead would be the table top. I just applied shellac the whole table top and applied some wax. I will be covering it with melamine as soon as I find some at a deal.

At Home Depot, I have seen 3/4" particle board with applied Formica. It was pretty reasonable too. About $26.00 for a 4x8 sheet.

Good luck with it!

Wayne

 

[Rob]

exactly what I had in mind. Thanks.

 

[DaveO]

I used the rear angle iron rail for the fence as the attachment point for my outfeed table. I just removed support post from the fence and replaced it with a couple layers of UHMW Slick-tape and that slides on the outfeed table.

I chose Melamine for the surface to skip the step of
applying a laminate myself. I has held up extremely well over the last 4-5 years.
You should be able to find 4x8 sheets of Melamine or HP Laminate at Home Depot (look for damaged pieces if you don't need the whole sheet).

Dave

 

[JimD]

I built my assembly table/extension table 1/4 inch shorter than my table saw. It helps stuff not get hung up but still provides support. The top is in two layers. The top surface is 1/4 plywood but will be 1/4 tempered hardboard soon (the plywood is pretty dinged up). Under that is 3/4 plywood. 1 inch oak edging helps hold the 1/4 layer in position.

Jim

 

[Travis Porter]

HD and Lowes both sell Formica and many times you can get a damaged sheet for very cheap say $20 or less.

 

[adowden]

Rob,

Sanford has a pretty good Habitat Store. You may want to check there and possibly even the Pittsboro store for the melamine. I bought 10 sheets of grey coated MDF for $5 each about a year ago. I have used it for my outfeed table, my torsion box assembly table, and countertops and it works great. I made my outfeed table same as Norm's. His is very simple to build. He attaches it to the saw on one end and uses leg levelers on the far end. Good luck.

Amy

 

[chris99z71]

I'm a fan of a solid core commercial interior door as a strong, heavy, flat top for a cheap yet functional bench/outfeed table.
They're advertised as available at the Chatham Habitat store for $5 each here:
http://www.chathamhabitat.org/homestoreInv.php?s=2
Here's one that I made. I attached a piece of 3/4" MDF to the top to extend my miter slots. Mine's not free standing, but you get the point.