Hey there, I am sujata and this is DIY home of mine.
and today, I am back with this awesome mobile tablesaw cart with folding outfeed
and folding infeed tables.
There are tons of instructional videos out there for table saw carts, or table saw stations,
but I found none for a mobile table saw cart with folding outfeed table, which I needed, So I decided to
build one for my small shop not only with folding outfeed table, but also folding
infeed table.
It is not exactly an infeed table , because that would be in front of the
saw while feeding the stock, but let's call it so for lack of the right word.
Nonetheless, this table or wing is very useful, especially when working with wide stock.
And also I added a couple of other useful features to my cart, other than these folding
tables.
Will talk more about them later in the video.
So now let's get building.
I started by taking the measurements of the saw to build the carcass or frame out of 2
by 4's, which I cut to size on my miter saw.
Frame was put together with pocket hole joinery for which I used my Kreg jig to drill pocket
holes in the frame pieces cut to size earlier.
I did not use any glue in the frame construction.
Usually I don't use glue in my shop projects, and all of them have held up pretty well with
just the pocket hole joinery.
So I built two identical sides for the frame with just one stretcher first and before joining both the sides together
I put one side of the frame on the saw upside down and marked the locations for the second strecher
second strechers would also work as the resting place for the saw.
Then I attached 2X4's on those marks offsetting by about 2 inches, so that the saw sits proud
of the top of the frame and the guide rails move freely without any obstruction.
And then using these stretchers as edge guides, I made one 1/4 inch wide
and another 1/2 inch wide dadoes in multiple passes with my trim router
These dadoes would be used as drawer guides for two drawers, one of which would be a dust drawer
Watch till the end of the video to see the dust drawer in action.
And let me know what you think about it.
Then I finished the frame by joining front and the back with two sets of side strechers.
I put the saw inside the frame to check if the height of the cart was right for me.
And To take into account the casters height, I used 2X4's under the saw.
To fit the saw in the frame, I had to remove blade guard holder plates from the side of
the saw.
After the basic carcass was done, next was to build the drawers
I built three drawers in total.
Top two drawers glide in the aformentioned dadoes in the frame and I used Euro drawer
slides for the bottom drawer.
Why I did that, I don't know.
I just, it is what it is.
These drawers are constructed with basic lock rabbet joints.
For the top two drawers, I cut the side pieces to size, made rabbets in the front and the
back edges then attached a trim on the sides to fit them in the dadoes in the frame, and
then measured for the front and back pieces before cutting them to the exact width.
After all three drawers were built and fit in the frame,
I attached the drawer faces by gluing and then screwing from inside of the drawers.
Next I used 1/4 inch thick plywood to cover the
sides and the back of the frame, and To make my life a bit easier, I painted it before
attaching to the frame with 1 1/4 inch long self drilling screws.
I used swivel lock casters on the frame, and when locked, they keep the cart from moving
at all.
It's pretty stable and sturdy, when the casters are locked.
Next I worked on the infeed and outfeed wings.
which are just basic drawers but upside down.
I also built them with lock rabbet joints.
Outfeed wing being a little wider and longer than the infeed wing.
These band clamps were a big help in the assembly of both the wings.
I also attached the corner supports for added strength to the frame and finished both the
wings by gluing and nailing 1/2 inch thick plywood to both the frames.
To attach the infeed and outfeed wings to the frame, I used the top of the table saw
as reference for the straightness of the wings when in use.
I will try to explain, but still look carefully at these pictues for better understanding,
just in case I don't make sense.
I promise I will try my best, but just in case I can't, these pictures will help you
better understand what I mean to say by the flatness of the wings with top of the table
saw.
I used 8 foot long straight boards clamped to the saw and the wings to keep them in upright
position and then installed the hinges on the underside of the cart and the wings.
There is a little gap between the frame and both the infeed and the outfeed wings to keep
them from binding with the frame when opening and closing.
To achieve that I attached 3/4 inch thick pieces of wood on the frame and then installed
hinges on those pieces.
I added an extra 1/2 inch thick piece of wood on the back hinges
for added gap for the table saw guilde rails to move freely.
Infeed wing is at the same level as the top of the tablesaw but the outfeed wing is lower
by about 1/8th of an inch than the top of the table saw.
To achieve that I used a 1/8 th inch thick shim under the boards to bring the outfeed
wing at level with the top of the saw.
Later in the video, I will explain in detail the reason to keep the outfeed wing a little
lower than the top of the tablesaw.
To keep both the wings in open position when in use, I use these removable supports, which
are nothing but 2X2 cut at 45 degree angle on both ends.
One end of this bracket goes against a cleat attached on the underside of the wings and
the other end goes on a cleat attached to the cart frame.
This is the trim attached on the underside of the wings, against which the supports lean.
When not in use, supports can be stored in this housing made at the back of the frame.
This housing also doubles as the cleat for the brackets for outfeed wing.
Here I am building the housing with the cart in upside down position, and the wings laid
flat on ground.
This also helps determine the length of the support brackets in a more comfortable way.
Here I am checking the movement of the saw when the blade would be in bevel position.
I had to made a small cut here on the frame for the angles higher than 30 degree.
I also made a 3 inch hole in the outfeed wing for the dust collector hose to pass through.
For that I first made a mark in the back wing in it's closed position from the dust collection
port of the table saw.
Then, made a pilot hole from under side of the wing and then used a hole saw to cut the
hole from the top side of the wing.
And in the end I fixed the saw to the cart with 4 inch long botls and nuts.
And with that my tablesaw cart was all done with folding infeed table, folding outfeed
table, a couple of drawers to store table saw accessories, a shallow drawer for dust
collection and a few hooks on the side to hang most frequently used items like earmuffs,
push stick or a dust mask.
Now let's take a look at these features, one by one.
Infeed wing
Distance from edge of the blade to edge of the table is about 36 inches, and this is
at level with the top of the tablesaw.
So that makes is a lot easier and safer for me to handle the wider stock.
Only one bracket is required to keep it in open position.
One end of the support goes against the cleat on the wing and the other goes against this
cleat attached to the cart.
These cleats hold the bracket perfectly.
It takes only few seconds to fold up or fold down both the wings.
So when we need to put the support up, just put one end here and just lower the wing,
and it's all set.
It's not going anywhere.
When this needs to be folded down, just lift it up a little, take the it out and slide
the bracket right here, by the table saw.
Outfeed table
Distance from edge of the table saw to edge of the table is about 32 inches. and also
this table is about 1/8th of an inch lower than the top of my table saw, which makes
the transition of the stock from table saw to outfeed table much smoother and safer.
Let me show you upclose what I mean in a minute
my stock is coming from table saw to outfeed and it glides through.
Now let's say this one is at level with the table saw and now this is level
this is 1/8 inch thick piece here So this one will make the outfeed table at
level with the top of my tablesaw.
Now bring the stock here.
This is a serious kick back hazard.
so that is why it is always a good idea to keep the outfeed table a little bit lower
than the top of the table saw so that the transition is smoother and safer.
This outfeed table is holding up with the help of 2 supports unlike one in the infeed
table, because this one is a little bigger and heavier than the infeed one.
Thank you so much for tuning in.
I hope this video was well worth your time and you like this project as much as I loved
creating it.
Let me know in the comments which of the features on my cart you think are worth having and
which ones I could simply do without
That's all for today, and until we meet next
with another DIY project,
take care.