Dude!! This is perfect. I've got the same saw, and I hate the plate. I've looked at building a new one, but wasn't sure how to do it since I want to keep my riving knife in place and had no clue how to avoid the flex. This is EXACTLY what I needed. I've got the perfect piece of scrap walnut, and a plenty of hose clamps. FREE PROJECT!! Welp, I know what I'm doing today.
This is really good. Thanks. I've got an older General Contractors TSaw that, oddly, has slightly misshapened round ends to the insert. When I made some inserts, several years ago. I made a couple. So I'd suggest making more than one. Straight cut with your regular blade, another with more gap for angle cuts, and one for dado. My plan of making a router pattern ... never happened. I didn't have a zero clearance pattern bit. I've had my tablesaw for about 25 years, been using them since maybe before your parents were born, so basically I'm saying, from experience.... making table saw inserts is something I think most people won't be doing every couple of months. So once you make an insert you like, make a few more right now. Tip. Tweak your blade adjustments before you make your inserts, that 1/100th of 1 degree... well fixing it usually moves the blade over a lot more than you'd expect. Also my General? Great saw but the bolts, nuts, lock washers for adjusting the blade? They weren't very tight. I upgraded the nuts, bolts, washers to...? I don't remember, it's been 14 years, but I think I spent a few bucks. (Split lock washers in general are crap, maybe not today, maybe not next week... I've learned to think of them as temporary.) I don't spend a lot of time in my shop, but 14 years between tablesaw adjustments? I check it every now and then with calipers. (I also try to avoid angle cuts which is lazy, but keeps from racking around all that hardware.) There's no excuse that a company like DeWalt which has probably sold millions of these table saws, would make such a crappy insert. Read Fight Club, clearly they've calculated the cost of missing fingers, blinded eyes and the likelihood somebody sues, against the cost of fixing this inexcusable problem.
Yes I am sure the inserts that made for my saw are 25 to 30 years old as well. And I just make the insert and raise the blade so there was never any flex to start with. I still have the original insert that came with the saw I noticed the other day in the cabinet. Don't think that I have used since I bought the saw in 1980.
Wow. I just bought a Dewalt poratble table saw. This looks like a perfect insert for my saw also. I also made your drill powered sander which came out great! Personally I think everything you make seems to be perfect. Keep them coming! Mark
Great video. One thing you missed with the insert is the rabbet/grove you need to make to allow the saw to be raised all the way up. Otherwise the housing will push the insert up. I have the exact same saw and I'm on my 3rd zero clearance insert now. The first two didn't accommodate a riving knife but the current one does (and is connected at the far end). I still have a bit of flexing problem towards the middle right end (the fence side). I think I'm going to make another one with a metal reinforcement all around to avoid flex.
Hey thanks for sharing what you learned in your build! I'll have to incorporate all the stuff you and others are sharing on the next version! Thanks again!
If you are going to make any more of these in the future, a less fiddly way to make the insert perfectly flush is to make the insert shallower than the depth of the plate. place two flat boards on top of the plate and stick them with thin double sided tape. apply some wax to the tabs and apply a dollop of hot glue to each of the tabs and then place the zero clearance insert in the hole with the top boards aligning the zci to be perfectly flush. the wax will allow the glue not to stick to the tabs but stick to the wood. the result is a perfectly flat top without having to sand perfectly.
Thanks for the idea! Somebody else just mentioned that and my only concern with it is that hot glue always seems "rubbery" to me. I would love it if I could do this method with something that gets as hard as epoxy, but epoxy might not be great because it tends to not be thick enough and just settle or run. How do you find the hot glue to feel. Does the insert seem to wiggle or dip from the rubberiness of the glue?
I think that's sort of the idea people are getting at with the hot glue idea. Except that in that case you'd only be able to adjust it one time. Some screws set into threads in the bottom of the insert might be another way as well. You'd just need to make sure the screws didn't adjust them selves from the vibrations of the saw. Thanks for sharing another idea!
Awesome fix for the flex. I will use your idea on my DWE7480 table saw. You should patent your idea and sell it to DeWalt. You are an amazing craftsman! Thank you for sharing!
Awesome job , well done . You use your knowledge and imagination and apparently came up with a sound solution to this problem . And in my opinion your custom piece fixes the manufactured major problem and looks a great deal better . . It just makes the table saw have more appeal .
Thank you! I think it looks better too, but I'm starting to think of all the other cool types of wood that might look even cooler...maybe some zebra or something else really exotic. I guess they're cheap enough to make when you're buying the wood from the scrap bin, so when I need another one, I'll try something a little fancier! Thanks again for the feedback!
Great idea! I have this saw and made extra zero clearance inserts out of plywood. I'll do one like this in oak. Thanks. I think this is overall a great saw for the size and cost.
Thanks - I'm glad you enjoyed it! I agree, the saw is pretty awesome for the price, and does fit nicely into a small shop setup. Good luck on your insert build!
Once again, you're my hero lol. As you might remember...I too have this saw and am annoyed by that design flaw. DeWalt should buy this idea from you! Thanks again for a perfect fix! 🥰 Cheri
Technically Dewalt could just alter the mold for the insert and maybe the riving knife if the aluminium got too thin at he back of the insert. But there really ought to be an optional close-to-zero-clearance insert for those of us that barely ever tilt the blade! A small rodent could squeeze through that gap!
Thank you very much! In fairness to DeWalt, it's marketed as a contractor's saw, not necessarily made for cutting super small pieces. That said, we all know that us average folks are buying these saws as affordable alternatives to a nice cabinet saw. Either way, I say there's nothing wrong with modifying it to be more effective 😉 Thanks again!
No problem! If you build one, be careful not to sand the top side of the plate, only the bottom. You don't want to ruin the flatness of the top. If you do build it, let me know how goes!
Great video, well done. I watched your video today after making some zero clearance blanks from 12mm plywood for my DeWalt 745 yesterday following different sets of instructions. They didn't address how to stop the flex at the back of the insert and your method looks great and I'll try it today. I plan using steel tie-down strap, which already has holes, leftover from other jobs. To level the insert I'll likely add some heavy duty tape to the bottom (adding thickness to the blank where needed rather than having to make it thinner). When I test the blank I'll see whether I have to add a clip at the back to hold the insert in place or whether the dust collector vacuum will be sufficient to hold down the insert. Many thanks.
The insert seems to work fine. It was fiddly to attach the steel tie-down strap at the back end. I think it would have been even more rigid if the strap was wider like your hose clamp. Using a hose clamp is also better in that you have to drill the pilot hole through the steel which keeps the screw centred. It was more difficult to drill a hole in the centre of the existing holes in the tie-down strap. The leveling took a while - I taped clips of the tie-down steel to the bottom of the insert and added extra layers of tape as needed. I also had to relieve a strip on the bottom where the insert rests on fabric to the left of the saw blade. The insert is a snug fit and I'll see how it goes over time. My saw is a DeWalt DWE7491-XE (not a 745 as I previously mentioned) and may have a slightly different design than yours.
AWESOME! Thanks for sharing dude. Like kb coolman, I have this saw and have experienced long pieces of thinly cut wood jamming itself in the down into the blade well trying to exit the dust port. PAIN! This is a perfect plate that I MUST make. Keep up the great work young man.
Moving to a new house and have a one car garage just for the shop. Glad I found this channel and subscribed, setting up shop will be interesting Great projects to trick it out. Nice work. Thanks
Like others, i have the same saw. Great idea. When I first saw the end result before you built it, i thought old hacksaw blade. But hose clamps are cheap too. This is definitely going on my ToDo list!
The idea was good. But checking at your thumbnail, I thought that you had yet another good concept going on. My brain just linked some other dots with your picture. It’s awesome. Thanks for the video. If you want to know the flash I got, here it is. I thought that you had managed to sorta implant a springy effect on the metal strip, and, hence, that you had came up with a zero clearance auto-fitting insert. I thought it was a cleaver way to account for swollen or depleted wood fibers… all the time! I’d also add a riveting knife (wtf did I just say? It is what I do…). I know, therefore the design would need to account for other forces. But I feel I have more than a little aspiration to owe to you; so for that, thanks again for sharing.
I had a similar issue but I just transferred the size of my plate to my wood insert with all the holes. Mounted down the insert and raised the blade as it was running so I didn't have the issue of a gap at the end of the outfeed.
I hope so. Probably not every saw suffers from such a narrow space behind the riving knife, but I bet there's at least a handful of others that do. Thanks for the feedback!
The clamp steel reinforcement is a great idea. StumpyNubs has maybe the best throat plate height alignment method I've seen. Paste wax the little support ears, glom on some hot melt glue, and push it down onto the ears until it's flush. He secures strips across the top face of the throat plate so that it squishes the hot melt just until the top face is even with the table top. A completely custom fit. It works great.
Thanks! I like the sound of the hot glue idea, but I may want it to be a little more stout than the glue provides. I feel like hot glue always stays a bit "rubbery". I could use that some technique with some thickened epoxy, but I'd be worried that the epoxy would slowly settle and bring the plate down too far. I wonder if there's something with the hardness of epoxy but the fast setup time of hot glue...hmmm 🤔 Anyway, thanks for sharing the idea!
Very nice!!! Have you considered leveling screws? These are fairly easy to add. How about hold-down screws? These are more complicated to add as they involve tapping / threading the thin metal lip under the plate.
My Jet tablesaw has this same problem. I used mdf to make an insert the problem pretty much went away. I’ll keep this idea in mind when I need to make a new one
Try the Leecraft DW-2 Zero clearance insert, specifically for the DeWalt DW745 and its sister models. Beautifully built and costs about $32. You'll need to cut a strip for the riving knife but it's not hard.
Thanks for the product recommendation. I had a look at it, based on your comment, but it looks like if I cut the slot for the riving knife, I'd still need to create the steel-strap-connection around the front, otherwise it *looks* like it would suffer from the same sort of flex as the original did, and like mine did before I added the strap. I could test it out to see, but I'm not sure I want to spend $32 to find out 🤣. Thanks again for sharing!
One Minute Workbench You don't need to cut it all the way through. This guy has a great technique for how to extend the cut so you accommodate the RK without cutting the end: ruclips.net/video/269fi3ws4Oo/видео.html
Thanks for the link. I checked out that video, and see how he did it. The saw he's doing it on provides lots of space (on order of a couple of inches) between the riving knife and the slot wall....the problem is that on the DeWalt DW74xx series, there is less than 1/8" between the riving knife an the slot wall. There is only about .090", so what ever fits between the has to be smaller than that. So let's say a maximum of about .080". The only material I could think of that would be strong enough with less than .090" is steel...or maybe aluminum. Obviously I went with steel. Check out my video again, and look really closely at how close the riving knife is to the slot wall...you can see it really good at about 1:07, and again at about 3:07. I hope this helps!
Recently discovered your channel. I have a similar Bosch saw in a similar workstation I built. Love your channel. It's so relatable. Keep up the good work!
@@OneMinuteWorkbench So nice to see someone making real useful projects in a real shop without a free SawStop! Lol! I was beginning to believe it couldn't be done.
@@OneMinuteWorkbench I don't mind honest sponsorships, but so many of the "makers" I followed for so long became "influencers" and their projects now reflect their sponsors more than themselves. It's just not that interesting to watch woodworkers shoehorn their sponsor's products into irrelevant designs in shops that most of us could never afford. I don't fault anyone for their success and good for them. I just lose interest. BTW, I found you through your disc sander video. It (or something similar) is definitely on my list.
Nice. I’m still trying to figure out how to make a plate for my table saw. I have an old Craftsman where the blade is almost to the back and the plate is super shallow.
That's exactly what I was faced with here. Either remove the riving knife so the plate can stay connected, or find a thin yet strong material to that would fit in the minimal space available. Good luck figuring out an insert for your saw!
Thank you! My guess is that it has something to do with the balance of making a cost effective, yet high quality tool. I think all in all they did a really good job on on this one, but a couple more little finishing touches would have been nice.
Awesome! I assume you'll use aluminum, is that right? Either way, come back and share your finished version when you're done. Good luck with the build!
Nice job on building the insert. My only concern would be when cutting a large piece without the fence covering the insert if the insert does not clip in or screw down and its just sitting in the slot area it has a chance of coming out during a jam up at the blade and could be hazardous. I had a small table saw on a job site and the metal insert flew back at me and landed in a sheet rock wall. Scared the heck out of everybody. Find a way to lock that insert in. Take care!!
I ran into the same issue with a Lexan insert on a Delta 36-6020. The fit is as snug as it gets, the insert is perfectly flush (adjusted the screws), but since I didn’t add the snap tabs at both ends - once I dry started the saw, the blade immediately kicked the insert out. I was expecting something like that & was standing well clear at the side of the table, but had to redesign the plate.
I never got to do any zero-clearance inserts for my table saw because I never really needed any. My skillsaw does not use a single insert piece, but two halves that attach with screws at each side of the blade, so making a single-piece insert will be a little more difficult because there is no way to take a direct shape of the insert on another piece of wood, so I'll have to adapt the wood to the hole directly.
@@OneMinuteWorkbench Sure, will do. I'm thinking that maybe using transparent acrylic would be useful to make a rough trace of the shape of the insert, then sand it off to a perfect fit, and then using that as a mold for making the wooden inserts. What do you think?
Sounds like it would work, although if it's just a template, you probably don't really need to go through the expense of using acrylic. You could use some cheaper material and still achieve the same result. Either way, I like the idea of having a template for making multiple versions - keep me posted!
@@OneMinuteWorkbench It doesn't need to be acrylic, but whichever material it is, it has to be transparent to be able to trace the opening below it with a marker, and still be at least reasonably hard for it to work as a template to trace on wood later on (paper would not work).
@@OneMinuteWorkbench I'm having trouble finding anything else than transparent acrylic. Maybe I could try using a plastic chopping board; I have not seen any transparent ones, but at least they are cheap to try.
Hello Tomy , your videos and sharings are great and I am learning a lot from your videos. Thanks a lot :) Could you please share a video covering Palm Router and router bits . we need to see your palm router and router table and router bits tricks . if you have time for this subject , we are as your subscribers will be much happy woodworking guys :) Cheers :)
I don't actually have one of the new fancy style routers, nor do I have a router table. I only have an old school non-plunge style router with just a few bits. That said, I'm planing on making some accessories for it soon, and will post a video when I do. I hope this helps!
I like this idea. But for the trouble, I'm thinking I may try to make a replaceable insert that I can slide in and re-cut the zero-clearance or even swap out for different blade thicknesses. This way, you're not having to do all this work each time you need to replace, you just slide in a new piece and bring the blade up.
Thank you! I don't see why not. In its current state, the strap is very secure because it butts up against the edge of the notch for its entire length. So I don't know if it's necessary, but if you do add epoxy, I'd say add the screws without epoxy and test it out first. That way, if the screw positions have pulled the separate sides of the insert out of perfect alignment, you can repair it by moving one of the screws. Only after you're sure it's still perfectly aligned, then add the epoxy. Thanks for the question! I hope this helps!
Like the insert idea. On my old Delta, the tabs are drilled & tapped. You could do the same thing to your saw, put a slightly flexible spacer material between the tabs and the insert, and use machine screws to lock it in place. Solves two problems at once. And I'd really like to see you use push blocks on the jointer. I spent an evening in the ER for my failure to use them.
Thank you & thanks for sharing your great ideas! Someone else mentioned needing push grips for the jointer - have a look here: ruclips.net/video/hm7_lXuxMCQ/видео.html Let me know what you think!
I think I would just take a block plane to the top of the insert with it in place, after the support strap is installed. Plane inwards from each end and take it very close to flush. Then belt sand or disc sand the entire surface until perfectly flush. The metal strap reinforcement is clever.
Great idea, but what happens if you tilt the blade, does it not hit the screw closest to the slot? You could possibly move that screw further away from the slot and that should fix that I think.
I didn't design this blade to accept a tilt. That'll have to wait for version 2 😉 Thanks for the question...now I've gotta start working on another one!
that's the 1st time i've seen that someone use a thin metal stripe to close the small gap there and make it so more stable 👍🏻.is your table saw the dewalt dwe 7492?
Just a couple of days ago, I thought about doing something similar to mine. Narrow cuts are a royal pain with that huge gap that could swallow a small warship. Most other "zero clearance insert" videos doesn't take the riving knife into account, or they modify it to fit. I would hate to modify mine, as the blade guard would no longer fit on. The european version of the DW745 is slightly different in several ways, the blade guard being one of them. Another is the missing anti kick-back, normal push buttons for on and off (not the big fat off button on yours) and a Philips head screw for securing the insert at the front. It also has just this tiny key slot for removing the insert instead of your finger hole. One question though: is it really safe to just have it sitting loose in the slot?
I have the same table saw and there are a lot of things that bother me about it. I know it's a contractor's saw, so I haven't gone to DeWalt to demand fixes. 1) The table is not perfectly flat... in fact, it dips around the throatplate area and it drives me mad... 2) The rip fence has a small bow in it. I've got it perfect at one end and the other with an indicator dial, but when I check along the miter, the fence bows in the middle by about 0.005"... like I said, it's a contractor's saw. Do you think I could use a gummy epoxy to try and level the table and how about a fitted (over the top) fence accessory kit? Thanks!
I sort of feel the same way...it's a contractor's saw, so I can't demand perfection. I'm also pleasantly surprised at how good it is for being a contractor's saw. I like the sound of leveling the table, but I think you might be opening up a can of worms. You'd almost want very viscous, self-leveling epoxy, but you'd have to tape off the perimeter and the miter slots. You'd almost certainly also have to do some after the fact work on the edges because epoxy tends to "climb" the walls it's curing in. And the last part of that equation is that it might not make the best surface for sliding boards across day in and day out. Even the best epoxy is essentially just plastic. The better (and harder) the epoxy, the more closely you'll approximate the likeness of high quality plastic. But even the best plastic is probably a bad choice for a table saw's table...it just gets too much abuse. I guess I feel like you'd be running into similar issues with the fence. The sort of precision you're looking for may just be tough to achieve on these contractor's saws. Reading back over everything I just wrote, I don't know if I've helped much 😂 If you come up with something that gets around all this stuff, please be sure to come back and share what you learned! Good luck!
Do you have any issue with the plate raising at all from the vibrations? The original plate (as awful as it is) locks in front and back to prevent it lifting. Love the flexing fix btw!
Good job man as always, but just asking, couldn't just put a metal strap , at the original part? Considering the appearance, i prefer yours. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you! I don't think I could add the strap to the original. The material is so thin on the aluminum plate (because it's a thin-walled molded part) that I wouldn't be able to add the notch needed to fit the strap in there. And I also couldn't just add the strap to the outside because then the insert would no longer fit into the slot. Also, even if I could make the notch in the aluminum plate (if it had the necessary thickness) it's a lot easier to notch the oak than it is the aluminum 😉. And finally, I needed a zero clearance plate anyway to keep small pieces from falling into the saw. I hope this make sense! Thanks again!
You guys give me too much credit...you think I can weld?! 🤣 Also, seriously though, if you were able to weld a small piece in there, you still wouldn't have a zero clearance insert. So making one out of hardwood seems like a not-too-labor-intesive project that results in all the desired features. You bring up a good point though...for cuts that don't require zero clearance, you could potential repair the original (if you can weld) so as to not have this problem anymore. Thanks for sharing the idea!
Thank you! Yes, for now I'm just changing out the old insert when I make angled cuts. I'd like to incorporate angled cuts into this insert (or one like it), but I haven't finalized the design yet. When I do, I'll be sure to post a video!
Well, it's not a design flaw if you remember this Dewalt is a contractor's jobsite saw intended for large rough lumber and framing work where furniture type precision isn't needed.
It's actually just a loaner from a friend that had 2 bandsaws. I think it actually belongs to his father-in-law and I'm not sure where he got the accessories. I'd bet you can probably find it on eBay though...and maybe even Sears. I'm always surprised at how much stock of parts those guys keep of old tools the used to make. I hope this helps! Good luck!
@@OneMinuteWorkbench Tried sears parts but they only have small parts (e.g. bearings, nuts etc) and didn't think to check ebay but thats a great idea thanks much and thanks for the reply. Been new to woodworking but enjoying your vids.
Probably, but since this is my first venture into cordless tools (at least first time since back when everything was NiCad), I wanted to test both brands. And they were all on sale and the exact same price for 1 drill with 2 batteries and a charger. So far, I think I like the DeWalt better. They're lighter, smaller, and more powerful, however I've had issues with the chuck on one of the DeWalts. It was making a clicking sound and not tightening or loosening the bit. It did that for a few minutes and then it went back to normal. I guess I'll just have to wait and see how it holds up in the long term.
I think so too, but really has me leaning towards DeWalt is the feel of it. I like that it's smaller, yet manages to be more powerful. There are things I like and dislike about both, but I'm still learning. Maybe I'll do a comparison video after I've had some time with them.
I can't say that I've noticed a difference, but I've heard others say that it does. My guess is that it does for certain types of cuts (or certain types of materials). I hoe this helps!
I did use quarter sawn material, but I'm not sure that will combat expansion and contraction 100%. I'll probably have to service the insert over time, and maybe even replace it. Thanks for the excellent question!
Somebody mentioned that before. It's an option, but you'd need to be able to weld, and/or you might have to remove some material from the original (aluminum) insert. That of course is best done with a CNC machine. You can't just weld it to the outside because then the insert would no longer fit in the slot. After all that, it still wouldn't be zero-clearance, so it just seems like an easier fix to do with hardwood. Thanks for the question - I hope this helps!
Thank you! I really like it. It has plenty of power, and in my opinion has been very well calibrated from the manufacturer. I've never adjusted the blade alignment or fence and get very good straight and square cuts. The biggest drawback, other than the throat plate having issues, is the lack of support for a dado stack. If it had a dado stack, it'd move up a solid notch or two. I hope this helps!
You can take the riving knife out, but I'm a bit fan of the riving knife. I suppose you could grind it down an 1/8" or maybe 1/4" to provide a little more space in there. That would allow you to keep it connected. I guess either way, you're not getting through this project without having to do a little metal work 😉 Thanks for sharing the idea!
In first place learn to set up correctly the original zero clearance, second place, you can upgrade the original do the same fix in the end like you do on the new one. Note for the new zero clearance: wood is not stable for precision (expands and contracts). Best Regards
Thanks for the feedback! The saw didn't actually come with a zero-clearance insert...so there was nothing to learn there. If you're referring to setting the set screws on the original insert, the problem with that is when you get one side of the insert set correctly, you can't get the other side flush without throwing out the first side. That said, even if you were able to set the set screws correctly, it still isn't zero-clearance, and still suffers from the same flex (and therefore small pieces catching or falling through). Also the "fix" of connecting the two pieces around the end would be very difficult to do on the original. It is a cast aluminum piece that has a very thin rib around the outside that would need to be milled down to allow the connecting piece of metal to be welded in place (there is very little room, so it can't just be welded to the out side). I don't have access to a milling machine, or a welder, so that idea is out. And finally, regarding the movement of the wood; I used quarter-sawn material to reduce the effect of wood movement, but yes, it will move over time and will need to be maintained and eventually replaced. That said, until such time, at least I have something that works. What was there before was ineffective and downright dangerous! Anyway, I hope this provides some more clarity on why I did things the way I did. Thanks again for taking the time to share your thoughts!
I know it's an old video but I was wondering if you also had terrible dust extraction after the zero clearance insert? I've got the same table and this really annoyed me with my zero clearance insert.
You could use a piece of high quality plywood and then create set screws (like the ones in the original plate) to get the height just right. And you could cut the shape by hand with a coping saw. I hope this helps!
No problem! I imagine a lot of saws probably suffer from not providing much room behind the riving knife, so you should be able to apply this technique of using a thin metal strap to lots of different saws. Thanks again for taking the time to give some feedback!
@@OneMinuteWorkbench Yeah you're right, most (if not every) jobsite saw has this split insert design. The reason they do this is likely a precautionary measure their lawyers wrote up. They split the insert so you don't have to remove the blade guard and kickback pawls in order to change the blade. This is a nice easy fix for the sloppy Dewalt inserts. I made one similar to this, nowhere near as nice, a while back but it got lost and haven't made another. You should consider routing in a rectangular 1/4" lipped groove in your new insert, then remove the material in the path of the blade from 0-45 degrees so the saw has free range of motion and make a bunch of replaceable 1/4" strips that you can screw into your Oak insert. I have something similar set up for my DW745/Rousseau table, I just milled 15 or so "blanks" that I can easily put in the insert, raise the blade up through, then have a zero clearance insert for any angle I may need.
Thanks for sharing those ideas. The inserts sound like a really great and simple solution. I'll toy around with the ideas a bit when I get some time. Thanks again!
@@OneMinuteWorkbench Same to you, I like this idea of the thin metal band connecting the insert. One more thing I just remembered, not from this DW745 but a larger contractor saw I made an insert for. I made it from 3/4" maple, and when I raised the blade to its maximum height, the arbor washer and part of the trunion actually ran into the bottom of the insert, pushing it out of the table 1/4" or so. Not sure if the Dewalt gets high enough for this to be an issue but something to keep an eye on. Ended up removing a bunch of material from the bottom of the insert with a router until it cleared everything.
Dude!! This is perfect. I've got the same saw, and I hate the plate. I've looked at building a new one, but wasn't sure how to do it since I want to keep my riving knife in place and had no clue how to avoid the flex. This is EXACTLY what I needed. I've got the perfect piece of scrap walnut, and a plenty of hose clamps. FREE PROJECT!! Welp, I know what I'm doing today.
Awesome! Good luck with the project!
This is really good. Thanks. I've got an older General Contractors TSaw that, oddly, has slightly misshapened round ends to the insert. When I made some inserts, several years ago. I made a couple. So I'd suggest making more than one. Straight cut with your regular blade, another with more gap for angle cuts, and one for dado. My plan of making a router pattern ... never happened. I didn't have a zero clearance pattern bit. I've had my tablesaw for about 25 years, been using them since maybe before your parents were born, so basically I'm saying, from experience.... making table saw inserts is something I think most people won't be doing every couple of months. So once you make an insert you like, make a few more right now.
Tip. Tweak your blade adjustments before you make your inserts, that 1/100th of 1 degree... well fixing it usually moves the blade over a lot more than you'd expect. Also my General? Great saw but the bolts, nuts, lock washers for adjusting the blade? They weren't very tight. I upgraded the nuts, bolts, washers to...? I don't remember, it's been 14 years, but I think I spent a few bucks. (Split lock washers in general are crap, maybe not today, maybe not next week... I've learned to think of them as temporary.) I don't spend a lot of time in my shop, but 14 years between tablesaw adjustments? I check it every now and then with calipers. (I also try to avoid angle cuts which is lazy, but keeps from racking around all that hardware.) There's no excuse that a company like DeWalt which has probably sold millions of these table saws, would make such a crappy insert. Read Fight Club, clearly they've calculated the cost of missing fingers, blinded eyes and the likelihood somebody sues, against the cost of fixing this inexcusable problem.
Thanks for the compliment! Thanks also for taking the time to share your advise and experience!
Yes I am sure the inserts that made for my saw are 25 to 30 years old as well. And I just make the insert and raise the blade so there was never any flex to start with. I still have the original insert that came with the saw I noticed the other day in the cabinet. Don't think that I have used since I bought the saw in 1980.
Time to put it up for auction, maybe antiques road show 🤣
Wow. I just bought a Dewalt poratble table saw. This looks like a perfect insert for my saw also. I also made your drill powered sander which came out great!
Personally I think everything you make seems to be perfect. Keep them coming! Mark
Thank you, Mark! I'm glad you're enjoying the channel - I'll do my best to keep them coming!
Great video. One thing you missed with the insert is the rabbet/grove you need to make to allow the saw to be raised all the way up. Otherwise the housing will push the insert up. I have the exact same saw and I'm on my 3rd zero clearance insert now. The first two didn't accommodate a riving knife but the current one does (and is connected at the far end). I still have a bit of flexing problem towards the middle right end (the fence side). I think I'm going to make another one with a metal reinforcement all around to avoid flex.
Hey thanks for sharing what you learned in your build! I'll have to incorporate all the stuff you and others are sharing on the next version! Thanks again!
If you are going to make any more of these in the future, a less fiddly way to make the insert perfectly flush is to make the insert shallower than the depth of the plate. place two flat boards on top of the plate and stick them with thin double sided tape. apply some wax to the tabs and apply a dollop of hot glue to each of the tabs and then place the zero clearance insert in the hole with the top boards aligning the zci to be perfectly flush. the wax will allow the glue not to stick to the tabs but stick to the wood. the result is a perfectly flat top without having to sand perfectly.
Thanks for the idea! Somebody else just mentioned that and my only concern with it is that hot glue always seems "rubbery" to me. I would love it if I could do this method with something that gets as hard as epoxy, but epoxy might not be great because it tends to not be thick enough and just settle or run. How do you find the hot glue to feel. Does the insert seem to wiggle or dip from the rubberiness of the glue?
Would it be unreasonable to adjust the surface of each tab so that each tab would be at the same depth below the table? One and done.
I think that's sort of the idea people are getting at with the hot glue idea. Except that in that case you'd only be able to adjust it one time. Some screws set into threads in the bottom of the insert might be another way as well. You'd just need to make sure the screws didn't adjust them selves from the vibrations of the saw. Thanks for sharing another idea!
Thanks for sharing that idea!
Why not just use screws like the original plate?
Awesome fix for the flex. I will use your idea on my DWE7480 table saw. You should patent your idea and sell it to DeWalt. You are an amazing craftsman! Thank you for sharing!
Thank you, and good luck with the project!
Awesome job , well done . You use your knowledge and imagination and apparently came up with a sound solution to this problem . And in my opinion your custom piece fixes the manufactured major problem and looks a great deal better . . It just makes the table saw have more appeal .
Thank you! I think it looks better too, but I'm starting to think of all the other cool types of wood that might look even cooler...maybe some zebra or something else really exotic. I guess they're cheap enough to make when you're buying the wood from the scrap bin, so when I need another one, I'll try something a little fancier! Thanks again for the feedback!
Great idea! I have this saw and made extra zero clearance inserts out of plywood. I'll do one like this in oak. Thanks. I think this is overall a great saw for the size and cost.
Thanks - I'm glad you enjoyed it! I agree, the saw is pretty awesome for the price, and does fit nicely into a small shop setup. Good luck on your insert build!
Once again, you're my hero lol. As you might remember...I too have this saw and am annoyed by that design flaw. DeWalt should buy this idea from you! Thanks again for a perfect fix! 🥰 Cheri
Thanks, Cheri! I'm glad you got something out of it - good luck with making yours!
Technically Dewalt could just alter the mold for the insert and maybe the riving knife if the aluminium got too thin at he back of the insert.
But there really ought to be an optional close-to-zero-clearance insert for those of us that barely ever tilt the blade! A small rodent could squeeze through that gap!
A great improvement to a flawed design made by Dewalt engineers.
Nice job on your video and editing.
Thank you very much! In fairness to DeWalt, it's marketed as a contractor's saw, not necessarily made for cutting super small pieces. That said, we all know that us average folks are buying these saws as affordable alternatives to a nice cabinet saw. Either way, I say there's nothing wrong with modifying it to be more effective 😉 Thanks again!
I also have the same saw, and can say will be making the same insert thank you for sharing much appreciated. All the best Chris c.
No problem! I'm glad you found it useful!
I have the exact same saw and the exact same problem! Thank you very much for the idea! Hopefully I can make this work.
No problem! If you build one, be careful not to sand the top side of the plate, only the bottom. You don't want to ruin the flatness of the top. If you do build it, let me know how goes!
@@OneMinuteWorkbench Thanks for the tip! I will let you know how it goes!
Great video, well done. I watched your video today after making some zero clearance blanks from 12mm plywood for my DeWalt 745 yesterday following different sets of instructions. They didn't address how to stop the flex at the back of the insert and your method looks great and I'll try it today. I plan using steel tie-down strap, which already has holes, leftover from other jobs. To level the insert I'll likely add some heavy duty tape to the bottom (adding thickness to the blank where needed rather than having to make it thinner). When I test the blank I'll see whether I have to add a clip at the back to hold the insert in place or whether the dust collector vacuum will be sufficient to hold down the insert. Many thanks.
Thank you! Good luck with your project - let me know how it goes!
The insert seems to work fine. It was fiddly to attach the steel tie-down strap at the back end. I think it would have been even more rigid if the strap was wider like your hose clamp. Using a hose clamp is also better in that you have to drill the pilot hole through the steel which keeps the screw centred. It was more difficult to drill a hole in the centre of the existing holes in the tie-down strap. The leveling took a while - I taped clips of the tie-down steel to the bottom of the insert and added extra layers of tape as needed. I also had to relieve a strip on the bottom where the insert rests on fabric to the left of the saw blade. The insert is a snug fit and I'll see how it goes over time. My saw is a DeWalt DWE7491-XE (not a 745 as I previously mentioned) and may have a slightly different design than yours.
Sorry for the late reply on this - just wanted to say thanks for coming back and sharing about your experience!
I thought i was doing something wrong! I’m new to woodworking and i have the same saw with the same problem, thank you!
No problem! I'm glad you found it useful!
AWESOME! Thanks for sharing dude. Like kb coolman, I have this saw and have experienced long pieces of thinly cut wood jamming itself in the down into the blade well trying to exit the dust port. PAIN! This is a perfect plate that I MUST make. Keep up the great work young man.
Moving to a new house and have a one car garage just for the shop. Glad I found this channel and subscribed, setting up shop will be interesting
Great projects to trick it out. Nice work. Thanks
Thank you for subscribing, and welcome to the channel!
Slick! I want to make one and think this is the best I have seen.
Great insert. I don't have a DeWalt table saw but do have the same problems. This is one I will be making. Thanks, Huw
Thank you! Good luck with your build!
Like others, i have the same saw. Great idea. When I first saw the end result before you built it, i thought old hacksaw blade. But hose clamps are cheap too. This is definitely going on my ToDo list!
I'm glad you like it! Good luck with the build!
The idea was good. But checking at your thumbnail, I thought that you had yet another good concept going on. My brain just linked some other dots with your picture. It’s awesome. Thanks for the video.
If you want to know the flash I got, here it is. I thought that you had managed to sorta implant a springy effect on the metal strip, and, hence, that you had came up with a zero clearance auto-fitting insert. I thought it was a cleaver way to account for swollen or depleted wood fibers… all the time! I’d also add a riveting knife (wtf did I just say? It is what I do…).
I know, therefore the design would need to account for other forces. But I feel I have more than a little aspiration to owe to you; so for that, thanks again for sharing.
Great solutions to a problem that has plagued me for a long time
Awesome! I'm glad you found it helpful!
I had a similar issue but I just transferred the size of my plate to my wood insert with all the holes. Mounted down the insert and raised the blade as it was running so I didn't have the issue of a gap at the end of the outfeed.
Thanks for sharing your experience! I would have done that, but I wanted to accommodate the riving knife as well as the blade. I hope this make sense!
Nice design simple and easy to fine tune can't wait to make it!!
Thank you, and good luck with the project!
Nice job on the front stabalizer a solution to an almost universal problem.
Thanks! I'm glad you like it!
Excellent solution! Very creative. Thank you!
Your advice should be helpful to owners of other brands of saws, too. Thanks for sharing. 😎👍
I hope so. Probably not every saw suffers from such a narrow space behind the riving knife, but I bet there's at least a handful of others that do. Thanks for the feedback!
I had the same problem with the kobalt table saw. Great video great idea
Thank you! I hope it works out for you!
Perfect solution. Thanks for sharing. I'm going to make one myself just like it.
Thanks, and good luck with making your own!
Big idea! I will provide the same for my zero clearence. Thank you!
The clamp steel reinforcement is a great idea.
StumpyNubs has maybe the best throat plate height alignment method I've seen. Paste wax the little support ears, glom on some hot melt glue, and push it down onto the ears until it's flush. He secures strips across the top face of the throat plate so that it squishes the hot melt just until the top face is even with the table top. A completely custom fit. It works great.
Thanks! I like the sound of the hot glue idea, but I may want it to be a little more stout than the glue provides. I feel like hot glue always stays a bit "rubbery". I could use that some technique with some thickened epoxy, but I'd be worried that the epoxy would slowly settle and bring the plate down too far. I wonder if there's something with the hardness of epoxy but the fast setup time of hot glue...hmmm 🤔 Anyway, thanks for sharing the idea!
@@OneMinuteWorkbench In my experience (limited to one Delta Model 10 contractor saw), it works great.
Thanks! I might have to give it a try!
Very nice!!! Have you considered leveling screws? These are fairly easy to add. How about hold-down screws? These are more complicated to add as they involve tapping / threading the thin metal lip under the plate.
I thought about adding leveling screws, but not hold downs - that's a great idea! I think I'll do that tomorrow! Thanks!
My Jet tablesaw has this same problem. I used mdf to make an insert the problem pretty much went away. I’ll keep this idea in mind when I need to make a new one
Thanks for the tip about using MDF - I bet that does stay really stable. Good stuff!
What a great idea. I need to do the same to both my table saws
Thanks! Good luck with your builds! Let me know how it goes!
Very nice, will help me a LOT!!! Thanks for posting this video!!!
No problem! I'm glad you found it helpful!
Excellent video and process
Thank you for sharing
Try the Leecraft DW-2 Zero clearance insert, specifically for the DeWalt DW745 and its sister models. Beautifully built and costs about $32. You'll need to cut a strip for the riving knife but it's not hard.
Thanks for the product recommendation. I had a look at it, based on your comment, but it looks like if I cut the slot for the riving knife, I'd still need to create the steel-strap-connection around the front, otherwise it *looks* like it would suffer from the same sort of flex as the original did, and like mine did before I added the strap. I could test it out to see, but I'm not sure I want to spend $32 to find out 🤣. Thanks again for sharing!
One Minute Workbench
You don't need to cut it all the way through. This guy has a great technique for how to extend the cut so you accommodate the RK without cutting the end: ruclips.net/video/269fi3ws4Oo/видео.html
Thanks for the link. I checked out that video, and see how he did it. The saw he's doing it on provides lots of space (on order of a couple of inches) between the riving knife and the slot wall....the problem is that on the DeWalt DW74xx series, there is less than 1/8" between the riving knife an the slot wall. There is only about .090", so what ever fits between the has to be smaller than that. So let's say a maximum of about .080". The only material I could think of that would be strong enough with less than .090" is steel...or maybe aluminum. Obviously I went with steel. Check out my video again, and look really closely at how close the riving knife is to the slot wall...you can see it really good at about 1:07, and again at about 3:07. I hope this helps!
Recently discovered your channel. I have a similar Bosch saw in a similar workstation I built. Love your channel. It's so relatable. Keep up the good work!
Awesome! Thank you, and welcome to the channel!
@@OneMinuteWorkbench So nice to see someone making real useful projects in a real shop without a free SawStop! Lol! I was beginning to believe it couldn't be done.
Every single last thing you see on my channel has been paid for with my own hard-earned cash!
I take that back...I do have some hand-me-downs from friends - the main point is that I haven't accepted any sponsorship offers 😉
@@OneMinuteWorkbench I don't mind honest sponsorships, but so many of the "makers" I followed for so long became "influencers" and their projects now reflect their sponsors more than themselves. It's just not that interesting to watch woodworkers shoehorn their sponsor's products into irrelevant designs in shops that most of us could never afford. I don't fault anyone for their success and good for them. I just lose interest. BTW, I found you through your disc sander video. It (or something similar) is definitely on my list.
Nice. I’m still trying to figure out how to make a plate for my table saw. I have an old Craftsman where the blade is almost to the back and the plate is super shallow.
That's exactly what I was faced with here. Either remove the riving knife so the plate can stay connected, or find a thin yet strong material to that would fit in the minimal space available. Good luck figuring out an insert for your saw!
I' going to try ,because my saw is the very same. Have to find some white oak. Thank you so much.
Great! You don't have to use white oak, just something that is nice and hard and will put up with some abuse for a while. Good luck with your build!
very nice now I need to figure out how to make one for my Ridgid Table saw.
Thank you! I'm sure it's probably pretty similar. Good luck with your build - let me know how it goes!
Isn't that just great?!?! Thank you!! I will definitely try that!
Thanks! Good luck with the project!
Nicely engineered change to the saw. Make me wonder why the maker of the saw couldn't just design the insert to fix all those problems that you found.
Thank you! My guess is that it has something to do with the balance of making a cost effective, yet high quality tool. I think all in all they did a really good job on on this one, but a couple more little finishing touches would have been nice.
It’s a great design. I will make one but use sold state material. The extra cost will over
Lat the longevity
Awesome! I assume you'll use aluminum, is that right? Either way, come back and share your finished version when you're done. Good luck with the build!
Nice job on building the insert. My only concern would be when cutting a large piece without the fence covering the insert if the insert does not clip in or screw down and its just sitting in the slot area it has a chance of coming out during a jam up at the blade and could be hazardous. I had a small table saw on a job site and the metal insert flew back at me and landed in a sheet rock wall. Scared the heck out of everybody. Find a way to lock that insert in. Take care!!
Thank you, and thanks for the safety tip! I'll have a look at locking it in place!
I ran into the same issue with a Lexan insert on a Delta 36-6020. The fit is as snug as it gets, the insert is perfectly flush (adjusted the screws), but since I didn’t add the snap tabs at both ends - once I dry started the saw, the blade immediately kicked the insert out. I was expecting something like that & was standing well clear at the side of the table, but had to redesign the plate.
I never got to do any zero-clearance inserts for my table saw because I never really needed any. My skillsaw does not use a single insert piece, but two halves that attach with screws at each side of the blade, so making a single-piece insert will be a little more difficult because there is no way to take a direct shape of the insert on another piece of wood, so I'll have to adapt the wood to the hole directly.
If you do wind up creating a zero-clearance for you setup, let me know how it goes!
@@OneMinuteWorkbench Sure, will do. I'm thinking that maybe using transparent acrylic would be useful to make a rough trace of the shape of the insert, then sand it off to a perfect fit, and then using that as a mold for making the wooden inserts. What do you think?
Sounds like it would work, although if it's just a template, you probably don't really need to go through the expense of using acrylic. You could use some cheaper material and still achieve the same result. Either way, I like the idea of having a template for making multiple versions - keep me posted!
@@OneMinuteWorkbench It doesn't need to be acrylic, but whichever material it is, it has to be transparent to be able to trace the opening below it with a marker, and still be at least reasonably hard for it to work as a template to trace on wood later on (paper would not work).
@@OneMinuteWorkbench I'm having trouble finding anything else than transparent acrylic. Maybe I could try using a plastic chopping board; I have not seen any transparent ones, but at least they are cheap to try.
Hello Tomy , your videos and sharings are great and I am learning a lot from your videos. Thanks a lot :) Could you please share a video covering Palm Router and router bits . we need to see your palm router and router table and router bits tricks . if you have time for this subject , we are as your subscribers will be much happy woodworking guys :) Cheers :)
I don't actually have one of the new fancy style routers, nor do I have a router table. I only have an old school non-plunge style router with just a few bits. That said, I'm planing on making some accessories for it soon, and will post a video when I do. I hope this helps!
Excellent, thank you for showing
I like this idea. But for the trouble, I'm thinking I may try to make a replaceable insert that I can slide in and re-cut the zero-clearance or even swap out for different blade thicknesses. This way, you're not having to do all this work each time you need to replace, you just slide in a new piece and bring the blade up.
That's really cool idea! Thanks for sharing!
Nice idea. In addition to the two screws, could’ve you apply some epoxy to make it more secure and solid?
Thank you! I don't see why not. In its current state, the strap is very secure because it butts up against the edge of the notch for its entire length. So I don't know if it's necessary, but if you do add epoxy, I'd say add the screws without epoxy and test it out first. That way, if the screw positions have pulled the separate sides of the insert out of perfect alignment, you can repair it by moving one of the screws. Only after you're sure it's still perfectly aligned, then add the epoxy. Thanks for the question! I hope this helps!
Very ingenious approach!!
Thank you!
Nice idea, well done!!!!
Thank you very much!
Now I have to check my new saw and see if this occurs and then add another task to the project logs.
Let me know what you find!
Like the insert idea. On my old Delta, the tabs are drilled & tapped. You could do the same thing to your saw, put a slightly flexible spacer material between the tabs and the insert, and use machine screws to lock it in place. Solves two problems at once. And I'd really like to see you use push blocks on the jointer. I spent an evening in the ER for my failure to use them.
Thank you & thanks for sharing your great ideas! Someone else mentioned needing push grips for the jointer - have a look here: ruclips.net/video/hm7_lXuxMCQ/видео.html Let me know what you think!
Great job on the insert Friend! Thank you for sharing the video.👍😎JP
Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it!
Your very welcome Friend! 😎
thank you this will help me with my table saw...Ken
Is it too late to somehow apply the One Minute logo onto the insert without compromising how well it already works for you? Excellent work!
Hey thanks! I think I could squeeze a tiny one in there somewhere, but it might be overkill. After all, my favorite push stick already has one ;-)
I think I would just take a block plane to the top of the insert with it in place, after the support strap is installed. Plane inwards from each end and take it very close to flush. Then belt sand or disc sand the entire surface until perfectly flush.
The metal strap reinforcement is clever.
Hey thanks, I'm glad you dig the strap! Thanks also for taking the time to share your ideas!
Great idea, I need to do the same.
Looks like a winner!!
Thank you!
Great as usual fella. You still need more subs!! 😁👍
Thanks man!
brilliant stuff will make one myself thanks bud
Thank you! Good luck with your build!
Thanks for showing how and sharing that
You could have also put a slot under the table surface and put a tab onto the zero clearance insert.
Thanks for sharing that idea!
Great idea, but what happens if you tilt the blade, does it not hit the screw closest to the slot? You could possibly move that screw further away from the slot and that should fix that I think.
I didn't design this blade to accept a tilt. That'll have to wait for version 2 😉 Thanks for the question...now I've gotta start working on another one!
Very nice work. I can do that also.
Thx
Bob
Glad you like it! Good luck with the build!
Hardboard with a 2" x 1/8" flat-strap aluminum backer... Makes a good insert
You are one smart dude.
Some might challenge that assertion, but I'll take the compliment! 🤣
great modification with the clamp spring steel that doesn't rust
Thank you!
that's the 1st time i've seen that someone use a thin metal stripe to close the small gap there and make it so more stable 👍🏻.is your table saw the dewalt dwe 7492?
Great fix! Really good tip. Thanks
Thanks! I'm glad you liked it!
Just a couple of days ago, I thought about doing something similar to mine. Narrow cuts are a royal pain with that huge gap that could swallow a small warship.
Most other "zero clearance insert" videos doesn't take the riving knife into account, or they modify it to fit. I would hate to modify mine, as the blade guard would no longer fit on. The european version of the DW745 is slightly different in several ways, the blade guard being one of them. Another is the missing anti kick-back, normal push buttons for on and off (not the big fat off button on yours) and a Philips head screw for securing the insert at the front. It also has just this tiny key slot for removing the insert instead of your finger hole.
One question though: is it really safe to just have it sitting loose in the slot?
I have the same table saw and there are a lot of things that bother me about it. I know it's a contractor's saw, so I haven't gone to DeWalt to demand fixes. 1) The table is not perfectly flat... in fact, it dips around the throatplate area and it drives me mad... 2) The rip fence has a small bow in it. I've got it perfect at one end and the other with an indicator dial, but when I check along the miter, the fence bows in the middle by about 0.005"... like I said, it's a contractor's saw.
Do you think I could use a gummy epoxy to try and level the table and how about a fitted (over the top) fence accessory kit? Thanks!
I sort of feel the same way...it's a contractor's saw, so I can't demand perfection. I'm also pleasantly surprised at how good it is for being a contractor's saw. I like the sound of leveling the table, but I think you might be opening up a can of worms. You'd almost want very viscous, self-leveling epoxy, but you'd have to tape off the perimeter and the miter slots. You'd almost certainly also have to do some after the fact work on the edges because epoxy tends to "climb" the walls it's curing in. And the last part of that equation is that it might not make the best surface for sliding boards across day in and day out. Even the best epoxy is essentially just plastic. The better (and harder) the epoxy, the more closely you'll approximate the likeness of high quality plastic. But even the best plastic is probably a bad choice for a table saw's table...it just gets too much abuse. I guess I feel like you'd be running into similar issues with the fence. The sort of precision you're looking for may just be tough to achieve on these contractor's saws. Reading back over everything I just wrote, I don't know if I've helped much 😂 If you come up with something that gets around all this stuff, please be sure to come back and share what you learned! Good luck!
Do you have any issue with the plate raising at all from the vibrations? The original plate (as awful as it is) locks in front and back to prevent it lifting. Love the flexing fix btw!
Great idea!!!! Congralutations!
Thank you! I'm glad you liked it!
That was a genius idea
Thank you!
Excellent idea
Thank you!
Good job man as always, but just asking, couldn't just put a metal strap , at the original part? Considering the appearance, i prefer yours. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you! I don't think I could add the strap to the original. The material is so thin on the aluminum plate (because it's a thin-walled molded part) that I wouldn't be able to add the notch needed to fit the strap in there. And I also couldn't just add the strap to the outside because then the insert would no longer fit into the slot. Also, even if I could make the notch in the aluminum plate (if it had the necessary thickness) it's a lot easier to notch the oak than it is the aluminum 😉. And finally, I needed a zero clearance plate anyway to keep small pieces from falling into the saw. I hope this make sense! Thanks again!
@@OneMinuteWorkbench It does, make sense, and I am totally agree about the fit issue. Thanks for replying.
No problem!
why not tig a little place on the original
You guys give me too much credit...you think I can weld?! 🤣 Also, seriously though, if you were able to weld a small piece in there, you still wouldn't have a zero clearance insert. So making one out of hardwood seems like a not-too-labor-intesive project that results in all the desired features. You bring up a good point though...for cuts that don't require zero clearance, you could potential repair the original (if you can weld) so as to not have this problem anymore. Thanks for sharing the idea!
Very good ! And the 45 ?
Hi, great Job.... change you the Insert when you cut Angles with the saw? Greets from Germany
Thank you! Yes, for now I'm just changing out the old insert when I make angled cuts. I'd like to incorporate angled cuts into this insert (or one like it), but I haven't finalized the design yet. When I do, I'll be sure to post a video!
nice job man!
Well, it's not a design flaw if you remember this Dewalt is a contractor's jobsite saw intended for large rough lumber and framing work where furniture type precision isn't needed.
Great vid. I just got the exact same band saw you have and was wondering where did you get the extra table attachment and fence?
It's actually just a loaner from a friend that had 2 bandsaws. I think it actually belongs to his father-in-law and I'm not sure where he got the accessories. I'd bet you can probably find it on eBay though...and maybe even Sears. I'm always surprised at how much stock of parts those guys keep of old tools the used to make. I hope this helps! Good luck!
@@OneMinuteWorkbench Tried sears parts but they only have small parts (e.g. bearings, nuts etc) and didn't think to check ebay but thats a great idea thanks much and thanks for the reply. Been new to woodworking but enjoying your vids.
Thank you, I'm glad you're enjoying the videos. Welcome to woodworking and welcome to the channel! Good luck hunting on eBay!
Excellent !!!!!!!!!!
Thank you, Marco!
JB weld a quarter where it is needed
Hoho! Nice new drills! The elephants will be proud
It was time. Getting tangled up in wires makes editing video difficult!
Indeed, why did you choose a dewalt and ryobi? Wouldnt it have made more sense to get the same brand so batteries are interchangeable?
Probably, but since this is my first venture into cordless tools (at least first time since back when everything was NiCad), I wanted to test both brands. And they were all on sale and the exact same price for 1 drill with 2 batteries and a charger. So far, I think I like the DeWalt better. They're lighter, smaller, and more powerful, however I've had issues with the chuck on one of the DeWalts. It was making a clicking sound and not tightening or loosening the bit. It did that for a few minutes and then it went back to normal. I guess I'll just have to wait and see how it holds up in the long term.
@@OneMinuteWorkbench DeWALT Certainly has a better colour scheme than ryobi :D
I think so too, but really has me leaning towards DeWalt is the feel of it. I like that it's smaller, yet manages to be more powerful. There are things I like and dislike about both, but I'm still learning. Maybe I'll do a comparison video after I've had some time with them.
Do the zero insert help with keeping dust down
I can't say that I've noticed a difference, but I've heard others say that it does. My guess is that it does for certain types of cuts (or certain types of materials). I hoe this helps!
How will you overcome expansion and contraction in your insert. Did you use quarter sawn lumber.
I did use quarter sawn material, but I'm not sure that will combat expansion and contraction 100%. I'll probably have to service the insert over time, and maybe even replace it. Thanks for the excellent question!
Why not just add the supporting strap to the orignal insert to remove the flex?
Somebody mentioned that before. It's an option, but you'd need to be able to weld, and/or you might have to remove some material from the original (aluminum) insert. That of course is best done with a CNC machine. You can't just weld it to the outside because then the insert would no longer fit in the slot. After all that, it still wouldn't be zero-clearance, so it just seems like an easier fix to do with hardwood. Thanks for the question - I hope this helps!
Nice job. How do you like the DW745? I’m looking at it for my small shop.
Thank you! I really like it. It has plenty of power, and in my opinion has been very well calibrated from the manufacturer. I've never adjusted the blade alignment or fence and get very good straight and square cuts. The biggest drawback, other than the throat plate having issues, is the lack of support for a dado stack. If it had a dado stack, it'd move up a solid notch or two. I hope this helps!
One Minute Workbench it does! Thank you for the reply!
Would it be possible to modify the riving knife so it clears the front of the insert? Then the insert could remain whole at the front.
You can take the riving knife out, but I'm a bit fan of the riving knife. I suppose you could grind it down an 1/8" or maybe 1/4" to provide a little more space in there. That would allow you to keep it connected. I guess either way, you're not getting through this project without having to do a little metal work 😉 Thanks for sharing the idea!
In first place learn to set up correctly the original zero clearance, second place, you can upgrade the original do the same fix in the end like you do on the new one. Note for the new zero clearance: wood is not stable for precision (expands and contracts). Best Regards
Thanks for the feedback! The saw didn't actually come with a zero-clearance insert...so there was nothing to learn there. If you're referring to setting the set screws on the original insert, the problem with that is when you get one side of the insert set correctly, you can't get the other side flush without throwing out the first side. That said, even if you were able to set the set screws correctly, it still isn't zero-clearance, and still suffers from the same flex (and therefore small pieces catching or falling through). Also the "fix" of connecting the two pieces around the end would be very difficult to do on the original. It is a cast aluminum piece that has a very thin rib around the outside that would need to be milled down to allow the connecting piece of metal to be welded in place (there is very little room, so it can't just be welded to the out side). I don't have access to a milling machine, or a welder, so that idea is out. And finally, regarding the movement of the wood; I used quarter-sawn material to reduce the effect of wood movement, but yes, it will move over time and will need to be maintained and eventually replaced. That said, until such time, at least I have something that works. What was there before was ineffective and downright dangerous! Anyway, I hope this provides some more clarity on why I did things the way I did. Thanks again for taking the time to share your thoughts!
I know it's an old video but I was wondering if you also had terrible dust extraction after the zero clearance insert? I've got the same table and this really annoyed me with my zero clearance insert.
Sadly, I have no jointer, planer or bandsaw so this project may be beyond me at the moment
You could use a piece of high quality plywood and then create set screws (like the ones in the original plate) to get the height just right. And you could cut the shape by hand with a coping saw. I hope this helps!
well done
Brilliant.
Thank you!
What is wrong with DeWalt, had mine for year, still works great.
Thanks for the feedback! I'm glad your saw is working great!
Thanks for info on the saw, I don`t think I want a dewalt. the zero clearance looks like a real good idea
No problem! I imagine a lot of saws probably suffer from not providing much room behind the riving knife, so you should be able to apply this technique of using a thin metal strap to lots of different saws. Thanks again for taking the time to give some feedback!
@@OneMinuteWorkbench Yeah you're right, most (if not every) jobsite saw has this split insert design. The reason they do this is likely a precautionary measure their lawyers wrote up. They split the insert so you don't have to remove the blade guard and kickback pawls in order to change the blade. This is a nice easy fix for the sloppy Dewalt inserts. I made one similar to this, nowhere near as nice, a while back but it got lost and haven't made another.
You should consider routing in a rectangular 1/4" lipped groove in your new insert, then remove the material in the path of the blade from 0-45 degrees so the saw has free range of motion and make a bunch of replaceable 1/4" strips that you can screw into your Oak insert. I have something similar set up for my DW745/Rousseau table, I just milled 15 or so "blanks" that I can easily put in the insert, raise the blade up through, then have a zero clearance insert for any angle I may need.
Thanks for sharing those ideas. The inserts sound like a really great and simple solution. I'll toy around with the ideas a bit when I get some time. Thanks again!
@@OneMinuteWorkbench Same to you, I like this idea of the thin metal band connecting the insert. One more thing I just remembered, not from this DW745 but a larger contractor saw I made an insert for. I made it from 3/4" maple, and when I raised the blade to its maximum height, the arbor washer and part of the trunion actually ran into the bottom of the insert, pushing it out of the table 1/4" or so. Not sure if the Dewalt gets high enough for this to be an issue but something to keep an eye on. Ended up removing a bunch of material from the bottom of the insert with a router until it cleared everything.
Come to think of it, I haven't fully extended it yet, but I'll be working with it today so I'll check that out. Thanks for the tip!
Legal boa ideia. Abraço de Caxias do sul RS 🇧🇷
Obrigado!
Excelente idea amigo!!
Thank you!
Awesome bro
Thank you!