Hey everyone. Been-A-Min, but I’m BACK ! ha haaa.
Hey, so, I just got me a bitsetter in and I decided I’m going to put me a new Wasteboard down too.
Watched a few vids on that bitsetter and the place where everyone says to put it, what if your wasteboard reaches into that area? if I just but my wasteboard all the way up to the front of the machine, where the black metal lip is and the bitsetter is there, that’s going to throw it off down there on the front left. Should I leave a gap? should I notch out the wasteboard? How do I keep the wasteboard square to the router, yet still install the bitsetter?
When I need some aspect of the spoilboard square to the machine, I just machine the necessary feature(s) — usually a series of dog-boned pockets I’ll put a length of alu. bar I use for parallels.
I think I se what you’re getting at.
Well, I just noticed it today when taking my first spoilboard out, that for the last year, either it or the holes that were drilled for the threaded t-nuts were not in line with the router. So I’m trying to do all I can to make sure I atleast get things lined up. Like, I don’t think it mattered so much, but it does matter when you want to start adding fences and 90 degree corners on your spoilboard, so I’m doing all I can to get it so, when I go from left to right with the router, it stays in line with the drilled holes and same for north to south. So, I can see how your idea works for those of you using the t-tracks, but if I cant figure out how to get my mdf square, then my holes may once again be out of line with the routers paths.
my solution as of right now at this minute is…
I’ve sat my 32x32 mdf on top of the original shapeoko mdf bed
I’m using the longest L-Square I have up against the black frame of the shapeoko to get my spoilboard as square as possible. Though I have my l-square against that black frame, I’m leaving myself about an 1/8 gap so that I can easily install my new bit setter. I’m keeping that gap consistent by using two paint stir sticks on the left and two on the right, so that gap is the same. I’ll then screw in my spoilboard hoping nothing moves and everything stays in place. May pop the corners with some brads to kinda help with that last part.
That’s what I did. I cut a notch about 1 1/2 by 1 1/2 out of the front right corner of my spoil board. Then when I surface the board I mark the rail for location and remove the bit setter. When I’m done I can put it back in the same spot.