Working wood

My Custom PBB

Some people on the EurekaZone Forum have shown an interest in my PBB, so I’m doing an article on it. Back in February/March 2007, I discovered EurekaZone. At the time I was looking into buying a cabinet table saw to replace my nearly 30 year old Craftsman 10” contractor’s saw. I had beefed up, tuned up, and decked out the saw so that it was as good as I could make it, but I still wasn’t satisfied. Among others I was thinking about the SawStop, having read about its invention several years earlier, and being impressed with the safety aspect. I even traveled a couple of hundred miles to watch a demo of the SS. I was impressed and considering purchasing one when I found EurekaZone.

I spent about three months researching and considering the EZ Smart system, until I decided that EZ was probably the way to go. I was impressed with safety aspects of the “Dead Wood” concept, the versatility of the system, the ease with which I would be able to break down sheet goods, the enthusiasm of the EZ users on the forum, and very much by Dino. So in June 2007, I purchased the Smart Guide System 100” kit (SGS-100) and Smart Table Kit (STK). I quickly discovered that what everyone was saying about EZ was true, and I was satisfied for a few weeks, until I got the Power Bench and Bridge (PBB) bug.

I had read so much about all the custom PBBs that had been built that I started thinking about and designing one for me. Among my goals were;
• Replacement of most if not all of the functionality of the table saw
• Replacement of some of the functionality of my radial arm saw and compound miter saws
• Replacement of the router table
• Replacement of the vertical panel saw I was planning to build for break down of sheet goods

My design began with the standard simple PBB on a heavy roll around cart. I have lots of shop space, so size and portability were not much a factor. I like my tools to be heavy and sturdy (I sometimes stand on them when working on something at ceiling height).



Burt Waddell’s “EZ Uni” design inspired me to use a table saw fence on my PBB. Initially I planned to remove the fence from my TS, and replace it with the original that came with the saw. I came up with this design.



I also wanted to be able to rip or cross cut full sheets of plywood, without having to change the configuration of the bench. This is the next design.

I posted the following on the EurekaZone Forum to get some feedback from other users:

It is large because I have the room and I foresee it being used for most of my straight line cutting and routing needs. There are two base units that will normally be attached to create an “L” shaped PBB. They can also be connected to create a square PBB if the need should arise, and could be used individually with the addition of a second side rail for the bridge.



(I later decided that one of the modules should be 36” X 72”)

The side rails will be attached to one long side and to the counterclockwise short side. One base could have a 24” rail attached to the long side adjoining the short side with the rail to allow that end to have a short bridge attached so it could be used like a miter saw. I plan on using my Incra miter gauge with a connector attached in one of the SMEs that will be mounted on the top.



The SMEs will allow for the use of stops, additional fences, the miter gauge, to secure the free end of the fence that will also be attached, and to provide sliding surfaces to assist in supporting large sheet goods.



The fence I will be attaching is a VEGA Pro 50” that will come from my TS, as I will no longer be using the TS to cut sheet goods. I will attach a ½” X 7” X 48” piece of UHMW horizontally to the bottom of the fence to act as a fence extension under the bridge. This will be for cutting strips narrower than the bridge and still being able to use the fence’s scale. This is possible because, with the fence set to zero and the UHMW will be trimmed to the EAC. I plan on using the far SME with a piece of connector, bolt and knob attached to the bottom of the fence, to secure the free end of the fence if necessary, although I have never found it necessary on the TS. (This idea was also abandoned.)



With the mounting of the bridge, I hope to have the beginnings of the most useful tool in my shop. Storage and other details will evolve after I begin to use the PBB.



(I later posted the following in response to another post.)

This is a preliminary redesign of my workshop. I have inherited some additional equipment and have find a useful place for it. I also have become aware (after 12 years and retirement) that my original layout was not very functional, and need to move things around a bit. Also the discovery of the EZ system has changed my thinking on much of what I do in the shop. Sooooooo, it is time for a little furniture moving...

As you can see, I have a relatively large if not uncluttered area. There are columns everywhere that I have to deal with. I also intend to use the PBB as a out-feed for the TS (if I continue to use it). I have a central dust collection system, so moving things too much is more difficult than it should be.

The wasted space will probably wind up with something in it that is lower that the PBB. Possibly a downdraft sanding table Im designing. I want the space open at PBB height for situating full 4X8 sheets along either major axis. I can then either rip or crosscut first with the same setup. I have a sheet goods cart that allows me to move full sheets about nearly vertical and then tilts down so they can be slid on to the PBB, thus reducing the lifting of sheets that get heavier every year.



(Someone mentioned that some sheet goods (i.e. particle board and MDF) were longer that 96”. This is my reply.)

Thank you, I had completely forgotten about those over-sized particle board and MDF sheets. I have been considering putting a hardwood band around the torsion box for esthetic purposes. If I keep the torsion box at 24”, this added ¾” all around will give me enough length for these monsters.

I also had not considered cutting narrow strips from full sheets. I assumed that with sliding modules to extend the table top to the cut-off side of the bridge, I should be able to rip narrow strips without much problem. I have thought about this, and my solution is additional support in the form of a sheet goods cart I built.

The cart allows me to transport those bulky, heavy full sheets about the shop nearly vertically, and then can be tilted and locked in a horizontal position at my standard work surface height. I can slide the sheet from the pickup bed to the cart in horizontal mode, tilt the sheet vertical, and transport to and slide into my vertical storage rack. When I need a sheet, I slide it onto the cart vertically, move it to the work area, tilt and lock it horizontal, and slide the sheet into position. I never have to lift whole sheets (something that gets more difficult every year).

Cutting those narrow strips can be accomplished from the “back side” of the table. Since the table is only @24” wide, I can easily cut while standing behind the bridge. With a 36” table, this would be too much of a stretch for me. I may have to start the cut like normal and then shift to behind the table. A picture is worth…



As you can see, I have already incorporated suggestions made earlier. If I move/replace the scale on the fence guide, I can re-orient it so as to save some steps in normal usage.

Incorporating Burt’s EZ Uni, I came up with this design.



Then I remembered that the old TS fence was a piece of junk, so I started looking for a new fence for the PBB. Someone on the forum mentioned a sale on the Biesemeyer fence that sounded great, so I bought one and added it to the design.

After much re-thinking about ergonomics, work flow, and the features of the new fence, I settled on the following design. It still incorporates the “L” design I like for the normal setup, but allows me to reconfigure for special needs.

This is the “L” configuration. The fence rail is inboard of the edge of the bench to allow the fastening of the bridge and other fixtures anywhere around the edge of the bench.



Here, the “L” configuration is set up to make a cross squaring cut on a full sheet of plywood. My plywood cart can still be used to load the plywood onto the bench, but is no longer needed to support the sheet once it is loaded.



Once that squaring cut is made, the sheet can easily be rotated to make the long side squaring cut. This gives me two square, straight, and clean edges to work from.



I can then make either rip or cross cuts using the fence to get exact sizes without having to measure. If making cross cuts, an additional support can be used to support the plywood that extends off the table. This can be either the plywood cart or roller stands.



With an extension on the fence, I can cut strips narrower than the rail width. The extension is 1/2” MDF that is attached to the fence (see my post on this here). Without the fence, this setup can also be used to straight line hardwoods up to a little more than 9’ in length.



If I have to straight line longer pieces (up to 12’), I can use this configuration.



To save space, I can go to a “square” configuration, but it is not very functional.




And there is this configuration that also is not very functional, but does save on space. With any configuration of the moduals, the bridge can placed anywhere to meet special needs.



Next time, I will talk about details of the PBB and post some pictures as well drawings. The Episode is here.