Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Carted

When I built the shed, I knew that I would have to build something to put my miter saw on so that I could easily pull it out of the shed (it's 80lbs... I'm sorry, but I just can't deal with that). I googled "miter saw table," and some seriously awesome options came up (try it for yourself! After you finish reading this, of course!), and I think I threw every. single. option. at Ana White, asking her to help a girl out (have I told you guys how annoying I can be when I'm indecisive? It's probably not something you want to experience first-hand). Then Ana responded with this perfectly simple cart... and I was astonished. Of course, right?! Because she always knows the easiest way to do something, and still have it be perfect!

And the plan she came up with resulted in this


Did the heavens part, and did you get a beaming face? Because this is perfect.

If you have a miter saw, you KNOW how hard it is to cut a short piece off of a long board. This table holds the boards at the height of your miter saw base, so that you can cut whatever length you want without having to squeeze the board down, make sure it stays flush to the fence and at the right measurement. You know exactly what I'm talking about, don't you?!

But I do want to mention that this build wasn't all grins and giggles.


I used 2x2s for cleats, and then used the type of caster wheel that you screw into the board (not the one with the plate that you screw through), and that really affected the integrity of the cleat. Mr. Goats helped me put my saw onto the table, and the board snapped (breaking the brake on the caster wheel!). The cleat on the other side got a pretty hefty crack in it, too. SO! If you want to build this, beef up your support if you want to use the screw-in casters. I'm sure it'd be fine if you use the ones with the plates...


Now... I want to talk about glue... I've been using the red Titebond glue since my second-ever woodworking project. LOVED the stuff. I ran out the other day, and decided to use Gorilla Wood Glue for whatever reason. Now, I've successfully taken glued boards apart before using either a chisel or screw driver + rubber mallet... but it was almost impossible to get the wood apart when I used Gorilla glue! The board split before the glued joint came apart. So I am now a convert!

I'm also loving the hinges used for the drop-leaves on this table! I used the ones called for in the plans, and they make putting the table away really simple, and are super-duper sturdy!


Here, it's tucked nicely in my "shop" with plenty of room to spare.


Here it is pulled out, nicely holding my drill, bits, circular saw and scraps (the caddy next to it is my Ayana Caddy - plans from Ry at The Design Confidential - and it holds my nails, screws, sanding discs, face mask, and tons of tools I use frequently - that thing's gotten around!).


I can use it as an assembly table!

And, in case you were wondering, the hinges'll hold... a LOT.


They even hold a Gina (awkward!).

With this, I'm almost completely moved into my new workspace! There are going to be some more storage options (utilizing door space!) and I'll have to rig up some lighting and a few outlets! Are we excited?! (uh, YEAH!)

Make sure you check out the plans on Ana's site here!

44 comments:

  1. How cute are you? hahaha You did great on the entire workshop.

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    1. Me, cute? Look who's talkin'! :o) Thanks, I'm SO diggin' it!

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    2. how did you hinge the table top to the side of the board

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  2. This is AWESOME! I would love one of these! What sold me was how it holds the long board while you are cutting a short piece, I totally KNOW! Thanks for sharing! I have been enjoying all your other projects off Ana's site as well! Keep up the great work!

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  3. Love the cart. Everybody needs one of those. Or they do if they use that kind of saw. Us hand-saw nuts have our own specialized weird gadgets.

    The glue note was interesting, and didn't make sense to me until I thought about something. My experience has been that urethane glue like the Gorilla glue is weaker than the wood glues like Titebond. But there's a caveat: I've only tried it on wood surfaces that had been smoothed beyond what the surface planer does. When the wood surfaces are a lot smoother, like what a hand plane, jointer or fine hand saw blade gives, only a saw will get two wood glued pieces apart.

    The wood from the store has only been smoothed with a big industrial surface planer. I used to think that was pretty smooth, until I had to start taking down some lumber with a hand plane to get the final surface to take stain uniformly. Now I see that even on a carefully adjusted planer, the surface is really uneven. That means that the wood surfaces don't really meet up well. You can see the visible gap, even on really good premium lumber. On the wood I'd been using, I'd gone to a lot of trouble to make sure there wasn't a visible gap.

    So unless you're willing to go to crazy length to smooth surfaces, you're gonna have the gaps. Urethane glues are really awesome at filling in gaps and making a strong joint. Wood glues like titebond really stink at that.

    Moral of the story? Follow Gina's advice and at least try out the urethane glues. Because the alternative leads to madness. And hand planes.

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    1. Hand planes = madness, Clay!!! Haha. I just need more practice, but I can't get a good result with a hand planer... It'll happen in time, I know.. :o) I actually went out and got Titebond III (since I was just working with the original, cheapest kind), and have been happy with the results. Just gonna keep tryin' new glues, now!

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  4. "They hold a Gina..."

    Oh yeah and Gina looks really heavy! Now if they held MY fat ass, that would be saying something but you can't weigh much more than ...your miter saw!

    JK, of course I'm very impressed! And you are beautiful! I bet you get lots of stares when you walk into Blue or Orange and grab a flat bed on your way over to the lumber department! :-) Thank you for sharing your project: I am very inspired to organize my tools now! I have a huge garage but it's jam packed with lumber, tools, car parts, cars, my sons bikes and toys and all my started-but-never-finished projects, and I can never find anything I need until a couple days AFTER I buy it's replacement! Seriously, I must have 6 caulking guns and between my dad and I, we have 4 palm sanders!

    I would really like to build this with drawers to keep tools and supplies handy. So often plans call for cutting miter joints to fit as you go, so I love the idea of the sides being use-able as a workspace too! I wonder if I could integrate peg board somehow, perhaps using it to add a back to the base? Then I could hang my goggles, a pencil, measuring tape, dust mask, etc. right within reach. But I hate to mess with the simplicity of this design. It is very appealing to my easily overwhelmed by clutter self!

    I am definitely building this SOON! And maybe another one for the table saw! Now how about you and Ana come up with a Stand/Jig/Workstation for using the Kreg jig? It's difficult for me to drill pocket hols on long, tall/wide boards: they cause the whole jig to tip over!

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    1. I am heavier than my saw, but even if they only held my saw, I'd be impressed! I'm trying to figure out some more organization for it, and will definitely share when I do! The scraps need to be moved to their own, separate cart, which'll leave a lot more space for organization. Since this is so simple, I'm sure it'd be fine to add a few mods!

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  5. WILL be making this cart as soon as I get the wheels ordered!!! Thanks for the idea! I've been looking for something like this FOREVER, but didn't want to settle...this is the ONE!

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    1. Yay! I'm tellin' ya, Ana knows what she's doin'!!!

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  6. I might have to try this. After I work on those &*#$ bar stools. I have to get Jimbo to hold the wood when it's too long for my inherited workbench. Do you think a chandelier would look cute over my cutting area? Really. I'm serious. Random I know. I just though of a craft room when I saw your shop. Why not decorate your space I'm thinkin'. Oh and I'm thinking you need a biscuit or two. I'm with you GratefulMama. :)

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    1. Chandy away! Umm... are you talking about your wood cutting area, or your crafty/fabric cutting area? You know what? It'd work for both! :-p I'm gonna get that thing Gina'd up... Promise. :-p And I don't like biscuits! I'll take some french toast, though... ya cookin'?

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  7. I love love love this Gina!!! I currently drag my miter saw out of a storage closet every time I need to use it. This would be so useful! And I second that Gorilla wood glue is the bomb!

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    1. e.e.k..! I couldn't imagine having to move my saw every time I wanted to move it! I mean, if it weren't on wheels... :-p This'd totally help ya!

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  8. At a loss for words over all, but I like it!

    Used properly, the Gorilla Glue will be stronger than the wood it is bonded to.

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    1. So I've seen! Why're you at a loss for words? Gorilla glue your lips together? :-p

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    2. Each new project blows me away! I'm running out of words…

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  9. Awesome build and Gina, you are adorable, seriously. I thought you were pretty to begin with but you are even prettier than I thought. Your profile picture, while lovely, looks totally different. I thought it was somebody else on that cart!

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  10. I love this. I have a similar problem as I don't have my own space. I'm working on the outside next to the garage with some things stored behind it. Very small garage that would be perfect... but it's my husbands music "space"/"studio". I'm just beginning my adventure into woodworking and acquired my first tools. A friend of mine sold me his extra miter saw (he had three lol) and a sander. Found this shed that seems perfect looking for a miter saw table... which is also perfect. Cant wait to get started. :) Just waiting for the table saw that he has for me.

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  11. Oh yeah... forgot to ask my question...
    So I see there is no actual floor. Have you found that works well for you? I'm thinking of doing the pavers as well.

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    1. The pavers are the floor :-) They're great. They don't get as hot as the concrete I was working on before, and they're easy to roll the cart across. If you're doing a smaller area than this, concrete might be the way to go (cheaper/easier), but this is an 80sf area. Either way, as long as you have a hard, flat surface, you'll be set!

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  12. Hi Gina,
    Quick question...If I'm calculating correctly, the finished height of the cart (wings not included) is 40". Do you see any problem with cutting the sides @ 34" in order to make the cart even with an existing workbench? Plus, I'm short (5'2") so I think the lower height would work better for me. I would think moving the cleats up to mount the casters higher might interfere with their operation.

    Thanks in advance!

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  13. I would suggest you make some shelves in it to allow yourselve some extra neat storage space other then that brilliant idea

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    1. Hi there! I, personally, love that there aren't any shelves on there (so that I can throw my larger tools in there for 1) easy transport or 2) storage! But I could see how those would come in handy! The great thing about building this yourself is that those options are entirely up to you! <3

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  14. I built this stand last month and attached the wings using the brackets you recommended. My wings keep coming off though, the screws pop right out of them. Do you have any suggestions or a different method of attaching the wings I could try. Thanks

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    1. Oh no! I'm sorry to hear that!! One of mine actually did the same thing, so I moved it over, predrilled smaller holes (I think that was the problem) and reattached, and it's been great ever since. You could try to put anchors in your screw holes to see if that helps, if you don't feel like remeasuring/predrilling/attaching, or you could put a bolt through and screw a nut at the top, but that interferes with the working surface (unless you countersink the nut). Hope one of these options helps!

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  15. Really awesome work Gina. Thanks for sharing this wonderful post. An overview of the steps to take to build a backyard storage shed.

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  16. What size casters did you use?

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  17. The higher end table saws reviews offer a bigger table, a fence with measurements, a more sturdy and accurate fence, a larger blade for deeper cuts and the ability to tilt the blade. Some table saws even offer an automatic brake that stops immediately if it senses contact with a body part, a very nice feature if you are worried about the safety of the tool.

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    Robert C. Daniels

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  19. Thanks for nice tips. I love wood working and I often use wood router and miter saw. They are the most essential tools for wood worker. That will be a good idea for my next project.

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  20. I think you've got a wonderful barn. That is also the idea that I could create my own warehouse. a large knife blade may be cut further. I think I will use my biggest saw lol.

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  21. THank for useful tips. i usually use plate joiner to make evething i want like u

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  22. Nice to read this article will be very helpful in the future, share more info with us. Good job!

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  23. Thank's for review and sharing useful tips. This is just awesome, Very well written ! Thanks for taking us there with your words !

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  24. You rock! Girl. Thank for sharing your experience

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  25. What a cute girl beside Dewalt miter saw. This is Dw 715, isn't it?

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  26. So much to do on it, and no time for the next few days. Just got to squeeze in some design fine details where I can and then get after it! best Dewalt miter saw.

    Montanez

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  27. I think the miter saw stand looked amazing! I also built something but a bit smaller and worked out perfectly. There's really no reason to buy a miter stand - just build your own!

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  28. Good work on this post! I really like the way you delivered your qualitative facts and how you made this fascinating and effortless to realize. Thank you!! More about the author

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  29. Haha, Gorilla Glue is dewfinatley not for woodworking beginners since you simply can't undo your mistakes! Impressive project Gina, keep up the good work :)

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