5 Ways to Improve Your Table Saw

Your table saw is the center of your workshop and is often one of the biggest investments you’ll be making when it comes to tools. So, you should want to get the absolute most out of it to make it the best it can be. In this post 5 Ways to Improve Your Table Saw I’ll cover five jigs and accessories you can build/buy to take your table saw to the next level. These are ways you can improve your saws versatility, accuracy and safety. I’ll have links to the products you can buy below as well as build plans for the jigs you can make yourself. Let’s get started!

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1: The Ultimate Table Saw Fence

First up we have a table saw auxiliary fence. It turns your table saw into a swiss army knife. OK, maybe not THAT versatile, but you gain so much from having your own auxiliary fence.

You can make an auxiliary fence to fit any make or model table saw so long as it has a sturdy rip fence to reference off of and it doesn’t take much plywood to get started making your fence.

I have a full blog post with videos and plans for this fence. You can check that out HERE.

You can easily and safely make vertical cuts on panels, you can attach feather boards for safely holding your work down and you can make a TON of custom attachments to go in the miter slots in the fence.

You can see here how I flush cut this edge banding using the notch in the bottom of the fence.

The tall fence can be bolted on to either side so you can use this fence on either side of the blade.

Already I’ve made a spline cutting jig.

This is useful for things like picture frames.

Also an L-Fence, to help make tapered or sweeping cuts.

I also made a tenoning jig, for making… tenons HA!

2. Jessem Clear Cut Stock Guides

Number 2 of the ways to improve your table saw, jessem stock guides.

This is a great accessory to add to your table saw especially when working with sheet goods.

The rollers maintain downward pressure on your work piece keeping it safe from kickbacks and they have one-way rollers so the work piece cannot move backwards.

The rollers are also angled in a way that steers your work piece toward the rip fence.

I’ve been using these guides for a couple years now and the quality build and durability is top notch. These guides are a great addition to your saw to up the safety of operating your table saw.

3. Mag Switches

OK, number three of the ways to improve your table saw is one of my favorite table saw accessories, the mag switch. More specifically the mag switch feather boards.

If you’ve never seen a mag switch before they are these magical little blocks with a switch on top. Turn the switch on and it becomes a super strong magnet. Turn it off and it becomes a paper weight LOL.

What makes them so useful it you can stick them to any of your cast iron surfaces, not just the table saw which allows you to position things like feather boards right where you want them without relying on using the miter slot which I find can be limiting due to reach depending on what size work piece you have.

You can use them as positive stops too, which I find nice when making cross cuts at the table saw. These little guys really create lots of versatile options when using your table saw and that’s why they make the list.

4. Digital Angle Gauge

So far we’ve covered ways to increase versatility as well as safety at your table saw, not let’s talk about accuracy. The fourth of the ways to improve your table saw is a digital angle gauge.

If you are looking to get just the right bevel angle, a digital angle gauge can help.

These little guys come with a button for zeroing out the gauge on a reference surface such as your table saw top.

They also have a magnetic based so they stick to your table saw blade and allow you to accurately read the angle of the blade as you tilt it and dial it in to the tenth of a degree.

I’ve been using this angle gauge from Wixey for about seven years and I can speak to it’s level of consistency and accuracy in my own work.

In my opinion if you require really accurate angles you should be skipping the miter saw and using the table saw and this little gauge helps you get the accuracy you need

5. Cross Cut Sled

OK, I saved the best for last. Number 5 of the ways to improve your table saw is probably the most well known of the table saw jigs and chances are you may have already made your first cross cut sled.

A well made cross cut sled is the ultimate table saw accessory because it improves all three elements of work at the table saw. It allows you to make cuts at the table saw in the safest possible way because your work piece rides across the saw blade backed up by a sturdy fence that helps prevent any kind of kick back opportunity.

At the same time the fence helps you make accurate and repeatable cuts with the help of a stop block. Accuracy, repeatability and safety. The cross cut sled boosts all those things for you.

If you haven’t tried your hand at making a cross cut sled yet I have a full build video as well as plans available for building the sled you see here.

OK well there you have it, five ways to up your game at the table saw. With these jigs and accessories you’re adding so much versatility, safety and accuracy to your table saw, getting the absolute most out of one of the most important tools in your shop.