Adjustable Circle-Cutting Jig - Canadian Woodworking Magazine

8192019 Adjustable Circle-Cutting Jig - Canadian Woodworking Magazine

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This jig will cut any circle you need for those special curvy projects

BY MARTY SCHLOSSER

Adjustable Circle-Cutting Jig

Photos by Marty Schlosser Illustration by James Provost



Those of you who have made large table tops and similar projects requiring circles or arches

know the value of an adjustable circle-cutting and routing jig Although it is possible to cut a

large circle using a bandsaw it is much easier doing this task with a jig-mounted power tool

This article will show how you can make yourself a very precise adjustable circle-cutting jig

that will accept jig saws and routers alike It will also cover using this jig to cut out circles

where you donrsquot want to drill an unsightly pivot hole in the top of the piece yoursquore cutting

Making the Tool Saddle

Start by first determining the size of the tool saddle (A) you will need to properly mount your

jig saw or router The leading edge of the jigsaw blade lines up with the centre line of the tool

saddle and the edge of its base is perpen dicular to that line This location allows the blade to

track most efficiently

Making a mounting template that is custom-made for your jigsaw is as easy as placing your

jigsaw onto a stiff piece of paper and pushing the blade through until the base plate bottoms

out Trace the outline of the base plate onto the template ensuring you indicate clearly the

location of the blade Transfer the location of any mounting holes yoursquoll be using to securely

mount the tool then go ahead and re move the jigsaw from the template

You can also do the same thing with your router However this time make sure to align the

centre of the bit with the centre line before tracing the outline of the base the location of the

bit and the mounting holes Itrsquos a good idea to use different colours for these two separate

tracings to account for the unique size base plate mounting holes of each tool

Transfer your mounting template information to the tool saddle plywood using carbon paper

then using a certain amount of artistic license go ahead and draw in the full outline of the

tool saddle Err on the side of having the tool saddle at least frac12 larger all around than

required to securely mount the tool as you may eventual ly end up replacing your original

tools with larger ones

Proceed to cut out the tool saddle then drill out the mounting holes being careful to use the

correct size diame ter bits In all likelihood yoursquoll have to buy longer mounting bolts in order

to get completely through the frac12 thickness of the tool saddle and firmly engage the threads

in the base plate These hard ware items are available through most specialty hardware or

fastener suppliers



Two 516 holes must be made in the tool saddle however countersink them with a Forstner

bit before drilling these holes These holes are for the two bolts (E) used to join the tool

saddle to the bridge (B)

The Bridge and Arm Parts

The two remaining plywood compo nents are relatively easy to make The bridge has a 7 x

516 wide slot machined down the one end that clamps to the tool saddle Used in concert

with the bolt holes this 7 slot allows up to 1 frac12 of travel for fine-tuning the radius of the

circle or arc which is usually much more than necessary Drawing a line right down the

middle of the arm (C) will provide you a point of reference for drilling pivot pin holes

The arm is by far the simplest ply-wood component to produce Aside from cutting it out and

slightly chamfering its edges it is simply fastened to the bridge using glue and screws (F)

Now that yoursquove complete the two main components all that is needed to assemble your jig

is to insert the two bolts (E) into the tool saddle with their heads set flush into the Forstner

drill holes

Align the bolts with the slot in the bridge (B) and screw on the cam bolt clamp Depending on

the length of the bolts you may need to cut them shorter so they donrsquot interfere with action of

the cam clamp arm

Test Driving Your New Jig

Letrsquos start off by cutting a simple circle After mounting your jigsaw so that everything lines up

properly set the cam clamps so there is approximately frac34 of space between the ends of the

arm and that of the tool saddle Select a test piece of frac12 or frac34 plywood then carefully

measure along the arm and mark the location of where the pivot pin should to be located

Careful is a relative term for as mentioned above yoursquoll have quite a bit of travel to play

around with Err on making the circle somewhat larger than required that way you can besure that you donrsquot cut the radius smaller than the plans call for

Many use a 10-penny 1 common nail for a pivot pin however you could use an awl just as

easily Rather than measuring carefully for the proper size drill bit to make the pivot pin hole

in the arm simply chuck the nail into your drill and use the nail to drill the pilot hole Remove

the nail then push the pivot pin through the hole until it bottoms out enough so that you can

clearly see it Position the pin over the center of where you want the radius to be and tap it in

approximately frac14 with a hammer before proceeding to cut out the circle If your test piece is

wider than the given radius reposition the pivot pin so the blade has a starting point that just

barely scrapes one edge of your test piece of plywood Now go ahead and cut out the circleBe careful that you donrsquot cut into your workbench top as few things in woodworking make

you feel as silly as that

Cutting or Routing Circles Without Making a Pivot Pin Hole

Some projects require you to rout from above the top which usually means you canrsquot nail

your pivot pin into the top surface of the tabletop or whatever piece yoursquore machin ing In such

cases yoursquoll need an auxiliary pivot pin plate (G) This plate is held firmly in place on top of

the piece by two-sided tape and then a pair of support blocks (H) are screwed to the

underside of the tool saddle to bring every thing to an even keel Be careful not to exceed the

maximum depth of cut for your blade or bit and if this is the case make the auxiliary pivotpin plate and support blocks of frac14 material

As you can see this jig provides you with many options to cut or rout circles of in finite sizes

Cutting circles in your shop doesnt need to be a source of aggravation Using this jig will

BACK TO TOP



make it easy as

Protect the surface ndash Using the auxiliary pivot pin plate will allow you to rout a circle without putting a hole into the good surface



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Trim it up ndash You can rough out the curved cut on the bandsaw and then clean it up with a

straight bit

MARTY SCHLOSSER



CANADIAN WOODWORKING MAGAZINE CUSTOMER CARE

COMMUNITY RESOURCES

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Copyright 2016 Sawdust Media Inc



Those of you who have made large table tops and similar projects requiring circles or arches

know the value of an adjustable circle-cutting and routing jig Although it is possible to cut a

large circle using a bandsaw it is much easier doing this task with a jig-mounted power tool

This article will show how you can make yourself a very precise adjustable circle-cutting jig

that will accept jig saws and routers alike It will also cover using this jig to cut out circles

where you donrsquot want to drill an unsightly pivot hole in the top of the piece yoursquore cutting

Making the Tool Saddle

Start by first determining the size of the tool saddle (A) you will need to properly mount your

jig saw or router The leading edge of the jigsaw blade lines up with the centre line of the tool

saddle and the edge of its base is perpen dicular to that line This location allows the blade to

track most efficiently

Making a mounting template that is custom-made for your jigsaw is as easy as placing your

jigsaw onto a stiff piece of paper and pushing the blade through until the base plate bottoms

out Trace the outline of the base plate onto the template ensuring you indicate clearly the

location of the blade Transfer the location of any mounting holes yoursquoll be using to securely

mount the tool then go ahead and re move the jigsaw from the template

You can also do the same thing with your router However this time make sure to align the

centre of the bit with the centre line before tracing the outline of the base the location of the

bit and the mounting holes Itrsquos a good idea to use different colours for these two separate

tracings to account for the unique size base plate mounting holes of each tool

Transfer your mounting template information to the tool saddle plywood using carbon paper

then using a certain amount of artistic license go ahead and draw in the full outline of the

tool saddle Err on the side of having the tool saddle at least frac12 larger all around than

required to securely mount the tool as you may eventual ly end up replacing your original

tools with larger ones

Proceed to cut out the tool saddle then drill out the mounting holes being careful to use the

correct size diame ter bits In all likelihood yoursquoll have to buy longer mounting bolts in order

to get completely through the frac12 thickness of the tool saddle and firmly engage the threads

in the base plate These hard ware items are available through most specialty hardware or

fastener suppliers
















drill holes



the cam clamp arm


























BACK TO TOP



make it easy as








straight bit

MARTY SCHLOSSER




COMMUNITY RESOURCES


















drill holes



the cam clamp arm


























BACK TO TOP



make it easy as








straight bit

MARTY SCHLOSSER




COMMUNITY RESOURCES





make it easy as








straight bit

MARTY SCHLOSSER




COMMUNITY RESOURCES









straight bit

MARTY SCHLOSSER




COMMUNITY RESOURCES






COMMUNITY RESOURCES



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Adjustable Circle-Cutting Jig - Canadian Woodworking Magazine