Mike in Arkansas wrote:
I've Googled the group (not exhaustively however) and can't find
any reference to the use of these 'casters' to replace miter slot
bars and was wondering if anyone has ever done this before. Also
would
like suggestions for other WW applications (besides work
infeed/outfeed
support) for these casters and/or comments or criticisms of my idea
for
utilizing them.

Well there's one I haven't seen before. :-)

Sounds like it works great, but since those are metal casters on what
is now effectively a cast iron "runway", I'd check every now and then
to make certain they aren't peening the corners of the miter slots out
of shape. I think it might deform the corner slightly, which would
create a slight bump at the top of the table and inside the slot.

I don't know if this would be a problem or not. The more weight on the
casters, and the more use, the more it would be a factor. Since you're
pioneering you might want to keep an eye on it.

Dan

Hi Dan, thanks for the suggestion. I'll watch for it. Before using
the sled, I took a file and went down the corner top of each side of
both slots. Just three or four passes at 45 degrees or so to slightly
bevel and smooth out any dings. Bevels are barely visible but I think
give a better and broader surface for the casters to ride on. Mike

On 4 May 2005 14:34:42 -0700, "Mike in Arkansas"
wrote:

Before using
the sled, I took a file and went down the corner top of each side of
both slots. Just three or four passes at 45 degrees or so to slightly
bevel and smooth out any dings. Bevels are barely visible but I think
give a better and broader surface for the casters to ride on. Mike


that riding on the corner is a no-go for me. the miter slots have 2
machined index surfaces each- the sides of the slot, perpendicular to
the top, parallel to the blade. they have enough area to provide
accuracy for a reasonable lifetime of the machine. now you've gone and
created another index surface, none to accurately, with a lot less
area, and you're riding it with a curved follower to boot.

consider this:
what happens when that surface gets a ding in it?

Not exactly sure I follow your logic about creating an index surface.
I only touched the slot corners with the file lightly. More just to
make sure there were not any dings or blemishes to effect the caster
movement than to create a bevel. I can't imagine a moderately used
sled ever causing any noticable wear particularily since there is no
friction. The caster rolls over the top of the slots, it doesn't
slide. Seems counter-intuative to me they would cause more wear than a
tightly fitting metal bar. Perhaps I just dont understand what your
referring to. Mike