• Tips to help you complete theproject and become a betterwoodworker.
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Accuracy, tearout prevention , storageand dust collection are key features of this hardworking shop fixture.
For all sorts of cross- and angle-cutting tasks, a mitersaw is a woodworker’s friend. But, to really maximizeits potential, you need a good home base for your
saw — and that’s what this project delivers. It addresseswhat I feel are a miter saw’s biggest needs. The standis a full 8 ft. long, in order to provide generous supporttables on either side of the saw. They’ll help you cut downlong stock with ease. I’ve equipped the support table
the saw as usual. No versatility lost here.While a miter saw’s bag captures some sawdust, a shop vacu-
um works much better, so I’ve sized the stand’s enclosed cabinetto fit a vac with up to a 16-gallon capacity. The saw turns it on,thanks to a tool-activated switch inside. And, although you can’tsee it in this large opening photo, a trough behind the saw helpscollect whatever the shop vac doesn’t. A chamber runs behindthe left support table, with openings on both ends, so you canhook up your dust collector and whisk the trough clean.
fences with Kreg’s aluminum track system and flipstop, for setting up precise cutoff lengths or carrying
out repetitive cutting jobs. You’ll also notice that the sawis mounted on a center platform that slides back andforth and locks in place. It enables you to mount a back-up board directly to the saw’s metal fences for tearout-free cutting, then align the saw flush with the project’sfixed fences. When you need to tilt the machine for bevelcuts, just pull the platform forward of the fences and tip
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June 2010 Woodworker’s Journal
1
36
15
1
10
10
9
9
11
12
13
20
19
3/4"
3/8"
3/8"
1/4"
3/4"
6"
101/2"
63/4"
111/4"
43/4" 4"31/2" Dia.
3"
121/2"
26"
96"
32"
241/2"
40"
4"
4"Mill dadoes in the sides anddivider panels to house thecabinet’s fixed shelves.
Six fixed shelves give you plenty ofroom for cutoff storage; I’ve even addedtwo pull-out bins to mine that store thoseshorter scraps I can’t bear to throw away.Plus, heavy-duty casters make the carteasy to roll around when necessary.
Ready to build one of these souped-upstations for your shop? Let’s get started!
Assembling the CarcassFollow the Material List dimensions onthe next page to make six panels for thesides and dividers (pieces 1). I cut thetwo outer side panels to final size rightaway, but notice that the dividers aredoubled up to form the walls of the innercabinet. So, I cut two dividers to dimen-sion, glued them to slightly oversizedmates, and then used a flush-trim bit inmy handheld router to bring them to aperfect matched fit. Take these fourcomponents to your table saw to milldadoes for the four fixed shelves,plus the center panel that supportsthe saw platform.
Note: The back panelis flush to the loweredge of the bottomcleat. The skirts are
applied after assembly.
Dust channel on leftdividers and side.
Hinge cuplocations(right door).
The dust chamberwall (piece 8) is
located 51⁄2" from theback edge of the
side panel. The 31⁄2"holes for the dustchannel are bored
at both ends ofthe channel.
Bore a hole toaccomodatepower access to the I-SocketSwitch (piece 35).
Woodworker’s Journal June 2010 43
T x W x L1 Sides/Divider Panels (6) 3/4" x 233⁄4" x 323⁄4"2 Top Panels — Long (2) 3/4" x 233⁄4" x 331⁄2"3 Back (1) 3/4" x 341⁄4" x 941⁄2"4 Edging (1) 3/4" x 3/4" x 2601⁄2"5 Fixed Shelves (4) 3/4" x 233⁄4" x 331⁄2"6 Bottom (1) 3/4" x 233⁄4" x 96"7 Top Panel — Short (1) 3/4" x 233⁄4" x 263⁄4"8 Dust Chamber Wall (1) 3/4" x 63⁄4" x 323⁄4"9 Face Frame Long Rails (2) 3/4" x 11⁄2" x 93"10 Face Frame Short Rails (4) 3/4" x 11⁄2" x 32"11 Face Frame End Stiles (2) 3/4" x 11⁄2" x 35"12 Face Frame Center Stiles — Short (2) 3/4" x 11⁄2" x 71⁄2"13 Face Frame Center Stiles — Long (2) 3/4" x 11⁄2" x 241⁄2"14 Long Bottom Cleats (2) 3/4" x 6" x 84"15 Short Bottom Cleats (2) 3/4" x 6" x 233⁄4"16 Casters (2 locking, 4 swivel) 4" Dia.17 Side Skirt Boards (2) 3/4" x 11⁄2" x 26"18 Back Skirt Board (1) 3/4" x 11⁄2" x 96"
19 Door Stiles (4) 3/4" x 2" x 251⁄2"20 Door Rails (4) 3/4" x 2" x 101⁄4"21 Door Panels (2) 1/4" x 103⁄16" x 223⁄16"22 Hinges (4) 1/2” Overlay Euro-style23 Door Pulls (2) 4” Wire24 Platform Base (1) 3/4" x 171⁄4" x 26"25 Platform Top (1) 3/4" x 131⁄4" x 26"26 Platform Back (1) 3/4" x 21⁄2" x 241⁄2"27 Platform Sides (2) 3/4" x 21⁄2" x 131⁄4"28 Platform Edging (1) 1/4" x 3/4" x 57"29 Hanger Bolt Backer (1) 3/4" x 6" x 26"30 Hanger Bolts, Washers (2) 5/16" Dia. x 3"31 Knobs (2) T-style 32 Fences (2) 3/4" x 21⁄4" x 35"33 Fence Brackets (2) 3/4" Aluminum Angle34 Tracks (2) and Flip Stop (1) Kreg Fence System35 i-Socket Switch (1) Electrical Outlet36 Dust Port (1) 4" Plastic
MATERIAL LISTT x W x L
243/8"
11/2"4"5"
Platform Base(Top View)
7
21/4"25/8"
53/8"2"
21/2" Dia.
Top Panel — Short(Top View)
1
1
1
1
10
10
10
2
23
4
4
4
5
5
5
5
6
7
4
4
8
9
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1112
12
13
13
14
14
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18
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20
21
22
23
24
2625 2728
29
30
31
32
32
33
34
36
Exploded View
Attach thick edging strips to the long top and back panelswith #20 biscuits (top photo). The author constructed thecarcass as two subassemblies of shelf banks, building oneside at a time (above).
June 2010 Woodworker’s Journal
Refer to the Drawings to cut twolarge holes in the left divider andside panel for the dust chamberopenings. A 31⁄2"-diameter hole sawin your drill press will do it nicely.Ease the edges of these holes.
Set these panels aside, and cutthe long top panels and back panelto shape (pieces 2 and 3). Althoughmy buddy Bruce Kieffer favorsthinner edging for his plywoodprojects (see his article on page24), I like the durability and lookof thicker edging. So, I wrappedthe ends of the top panels, as wellas the top and ends of the backpanel, with beefier strips (pieces4). Attach them with glue and #20biscuits.
While the glue dries, you canproceed to cut the cabinet bottom,fixed shelves, short top panel anddust chamber wall (pieces 5through 8) to shape. Bore a hole foryour shop vac hose in the short toppanel near the back right corner.As tempting as it may be to diveinto the big assembly, the smarterapproach is to sand all the insidesurfaces of the cabinet panels nowand finish them while the faces arestill fully accessible.
The carcass actually goes togeth-er quickly; you can form the jointswith #8 countersunk wood screwsor 2" brad nails. No glue is really
necessary. Here’s theprocess I followed, build-ing one end of the cabinet,then the other: Screw theside panel to the bottompanel, then fasten theback panel to these twowith more screws. (Note:The back panel extendsbelow the bottom panel by3/4" to allow room for thebottom cleats, later.) Slipthe shelves into their
dadoes in the side panel, and setthe divider into place. Drive screwsthrough the divider’s top dado topin it to the top shelf, and lock theshelves to the side panel with morebrads. If you’re starting with theleft bank of shelves, fit the dustchamber wall into position on thetop shelf; attach it to the dividerand top shelf with screws and tothe side panel with brads. Now,repeat this whole assembly processon the other end of the cabinet forthe side, shelves and divider.When all of these components arefastened, slide the short top panelinto place between the dividers.Attach the dividers, short top paneland shelves to the bottom and/orback panels with screws. Finally,seal the joints of the dust chamberwith a bead of caulk before cap-ping off the shelf banks with thetwo top panels. Use countersunkscrews driven down into thedividers, sides and dust chamberwall, as well as through the back,to secure these joints. Cover all ofthe screw holes with wood plugs,and sand them flush when the gluedries. Your project is rolling alongnicely now.
Adding the Face Frame &WheelsThe face frame is a straightforwardassembly. I built it entirely withpocket screws. But, before you ripand crosscut all of the face framecomponents (pieces 9 through 13),let me make a suggestion: whilethe Material List specifies that allof the face frame parts are 11⁄2"wide — which on a perfect carcasswill work just fine — make theshort top and long bottom railsabout 1/16" wider and the endstiles about this much wider and1/8" longer than listed. That way,
Screw- and brad-reinforced butt joints speedthe assembly process along.
Fit the face frame parts directly on the cabinetand mark their joints before assembling theframe with pocket screws (third photo from top).Clamp the face frame to the cabinet and attach itwith 2" brads (bottom photo).
44
All of the door joinery can be tackled at the table saw witha dado blade. Here, the author cuts stub tenons on the endsof the rails after plowing the panel grooves.
Woodworker’s Journal June 2010 45
you’ll build in some “fudge factor”to adjust the finished frame on thecarcass when it’s assembled.Cabinetmakers do this all the time.Trim and fit your face frame partsright on the carcass, holding themin place with clamps as needed, soyou’ll be assured of their exactplacement. Once all of the partsare created, label every joint care-fully to keep their orientation clearbefore removing the loose rails andstiles and boring your pocketscrew holes. Assemble the faceframe with screws on a large work-surface. Then set and clamp it intoposition on the cabinet, and nail ithome. Remove any overhang onthe top and sides of the face framewith a trim router, block plane orbelt sander.
At this point, you’re nearly readyto tip the project upright — andyou can leave it that way for theremainder of the constructionprocess if you install the long andshort bottom cleats (pieces 14 and15) and the six casters (pieces 16)now. I glued and nailed the cleatsin place and mounted the casterswith 1" lag screws and washers.Grab a buddy to help you right thestand onto its wheels. Add the sideand back skirt boards (pieces 17and 18) to hide the ends and edgesof the bottom panel and cleats; Irounded the ends of the side skirtboards first at my disc sanderbefore gluing and nailing the skirt-ing in place.
Building and Hanging theDoorsAfter all this big-panel construc-tion, the doors will probably comeas a pleasant reprieve. Cut thestiles, rails and door panels (pieces19 through 21) to size, and head toyour table saw to mill the panelgrooves and stub tenons that holdthe doors together. If your doorpanel plywood is slightly thinnerthan 1/4" — and these days, itusually is — cut the rail and stile
grooves to fit the panels snugly.Make the stub tenon thickness onthe ends of the rails match thegroove width, and mill the tenons3/8" long. Sand the door parts thor-oughly before gluing and clampingthem together. Follow the instruc-tions that come with the 1/2" over-lay Euro hinges (pieces 22) thatwill mount these doors to the faceframe. You’ll need to bore pairs of35mm hinge cup holes into thedoor stiles, attach the hinge hard-ware and then mount the hingesand doors to the cabinet. It’s easierto do than you might think. Oncethe doors are in position on theproject, adjust the hinges to alignthe doors with one another. Goahead and install the door pulls,too (pieces 23).
Making the Saw PlatformIt’s time to outfit your saw for itsnew home, and that means buildingthe moveable platform. Cut theplatform base (piece 24) to size,and mill two slots for hanger boltswith a 3/8"-diameter straight orspiral bit in your router table. Now,glue strips of edging (pieces 28) tothe base as well as to blanks ofplywood for the platform top andsides (pieces 25 and 27). Trim theedging flush. Before you cut thesides and back (piece 26) to finalwidth, verify this measurementconsidering the exact height ofyour saw’s base; you want to makesure the saw will meet the supporttables flush when mounted on theplatform. Sand and finish the plat-form parts now before screwing ornailing it together.
Drill holes in the platform to suityour saw’s mounting configuration,and bolt the saw to the platform. Iused carriage bolts, washers and
A drill press is the best tool for boring 35mm stopped holes inthe door stiles for hinge cup hardware. Use a clamped fence tosecure this operation as well as to index the hole positions.
Install a pair of locking swivelcasters on the front corners of thecabinet with short lag screws andwashers. The other four casters do
not need to be locking style.
June 2010 Woodworker’s Journal46
Wrapping Things Up Whether you build scrap bins for your project like I did is up toyou; you might want to devote the entire shelf space to longercutoffs. If you do build bins, I sized mine to 153⁄4" x 18" andused through dovetails for joinery. There are measured drawingsprovided at the end of this plan.
As far as electricals go, I think Rockler’s i-Socket (piece 35)is a great add-on to this stand, because it activates the vacuumevery time you squeeze the saw’s trigger. But, you’ll need toinstall a receptacle and long cord inside the cabinet to plug inthe i-Socket, or use a power strip. I chose the former option andwired my outlet with a length of 12-gauge extension cord andmale plug. It can handle the start-up amperage of both tools.
With all of the inside details now completed, give the outsideof your project a thorough sanding, and apply finish to whateversurfaces are still bare. Install the dust port (piece 36) over thedust chamber hole on the left side of the cabinet with a bead ofcaulk to create an air seal, and attach it with four screws.
Whew, this was a big project, but one you won’t regret build-ing. Now you’ve got a full-duty miter saw station and ahandsome shop addition to boot. I hope you enjoy using it!
Chris Marshall is Woodworker’s Journal’s Field Editor.
nylon lock nuts. Now, set the platform into place on the cabinet,and use the slots to reference where to drill pilot holes for thehanger bolts (pieces 30). Locate the bolts 41⁄2" from the front ofthe cabinet. Before drilling those holes, fasten a backer board(piece 29) up inside the cabinet to give the hanger bolts athicker mounting substrate. Install the hanger bolts.
Adding the FencesThe fences consist of three parts: a wooden body (piece 32), astrip of aluminum angle (piece 33) that secures it to the cabinetand, of course, the Kreg aluminum flip-stop track on top (piece34). Cut and assemble these fence parts with #10-3/4" panheadsheet metal screws to create two long fence units. When minewere ready, I mounted them 91⁄2" back from the front edge of thesupport tables with more panhead screws. That fence placementenables my 12"-diameter miter saw to crosscut stock to its fullcapacity. It also allows enough room in the hanger bolt slots tomove the platform backward for attaching backup boards to thesaw fence or forward for opening the saw’s fences to make bevelcuts. You may need to adjust the location of these two fixedfences to suit your saw’s styling and cutting range.
Assemble the three components of each fenceunit with panhead screws (middle photo), theninstall them on the support tables with morescrews. Align them carefully with one anotherfirst using a long straightedge (left photo).
Install the dust port over the dust chamberopening with a bead of caulk and four screws(right photo).
The author mounted his saw to theplatform with carriage bolts andlocking nuts (left). Use theplatform’s slots to help determinewhere to locate and install thehanger bolts (inset). Wrench theminto place with a pair of nutstightened against one another.
44 33//88
11 11
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11 11//88"" OOnn CCeenntteerr
11//44"" xx 11//44"" BBoottttoomm
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11//22
11
2233
Woodworker’s Journal June 2010
T x W x L1 Front, Back (4) 5/8" x 53⁄4" x 153⁄4"2 Sides (4) 5/8" x 53⁄4" x 18"3 Bottom (2) 1/4" x 15" x 171⁄4"
MATERIAL LIST
Elevations
Exploded View
Ultimate Miter Saw StationScrap Bins
Construction Notes: Bottom panel grooves in front and back panels (pieces 1) muststop short of the ends of the pins. Start and stop these cuts onthe router table with a 1/4" straight or spiral bit. Rabbet, box orhalf-blind joinery could be used as substitutes for throughdovetail joints shown here.
