Shopsmith 555970 manual Why Make A Grooved Fixture?

MARK V – MOUNTED OVERARM PIN ROUTER 555970

WHY MAKE A GROOVED FIXTURE?

The question is often asked...

”Why should I cut grooves in a fixture instead of just screwing a template to one side of the fixture, the workpiece to the other, and guiding my template against the Table Pin, as I would when making the fixture?”

The answer is simple. When guiding your fixture against a Table Pin, you must con- stantly maintain a steady pressure against the Pin at all times. A momentary lapse in concentration can easily result in a cut going outside your desired shape. As a result, against-the-pin routing is always a slower, more risky process than dropping the fixture over the Table Pin.

When routing over a Table Pin, the Pin is captive in its groove and cannot go outside your desired shape unless the fixture is raised off the table surface, releasing the Pin from its groove. Over-the-Pin routing allows you to move more rapidly through the cut, with little fear of slip-ups that could ruin your workpieces.

Figure 13. Using an existing item (in this case a plaque) as a template for making your fixture

Figure 14. Guide the edge of your existing

item against the pin to cut a matching

groove in the laminate side of your fixture.

2.Cut out your fixture blank – As men- tioned, fixtures should be made of a laminate-covered material, such as 3/4" thick sink cut-outs. Be sure to make your fixture blank about 4" longer and 4" wider than your finished project, so you have room to grip your fixture and still keep your hands well out of harm’s way.

3.Mount your template to the fixture blank – Mount it to the non-laminate- covered side of your fixture blank. Cen- ter the template in the fixture and use screws or nails to hold the template firmly in position. Be sure to put screws or nails through each segment of the template and don’t forget to counter- sink all screw or nail heads to keep them from marring your Router Table surface.

If there are to be multiple grooves in your fixture (such as those in Figure 10), be sure to leave adequate space between the template segments for your Guide Pin to ride in while you make your fixture.

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