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Video: Shim-Cutting Jig for the Tablesaw

john ross, Web Producer

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Extra trips to the lumber yard or home store can quickly eat up profit, or valuable time that I could spend watching football. It used to be when I ran out of shims in a pinch, I would fashion some on the fly but it's not fun to fine tune cabinet positions with shims I've hackered out of 2x stock with my circular saw.  One Sunday I was in double jeopardy. I was trying to finish up a cabinet install job to make a little extra money and I was trying to get it done in time to watch some afternoon football.

Of course, I got all set up before I realized I had only a few shims left in my shim bucket and I was going to need a bunch for this kitchen to secure them flat and straight.  The nearest store was twenty minutes away and was hardly worth the drive for shims.  I'd seen a shim jig at a cabinet shop so I modeled one after their design, customizing it for 2x stock instead of 1x stock that the shop liked to use for their shims.

Since I made it, this little shim jig has turned out thousands of shims and saved me numerous trips to the store. Download the plan.

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Comments (9)

Fonzie writes: I have the same problem seeing exactly how he has this jig set up, but I think when he holds it up to the camera it doesn't show where the blade goes through the rear fence - it must be a new jig or he replaced the fence board. It's a good idea but he is pretty comfortable with that blade for me. I would try to come up with a different way to clear the table.
Posted: 11:24 am on January 1st

Lefturner writes: Maybe I'm just Too stupid but I can't tell what he is doing. I can guess and make a jig like that. But wait, I did. When making tapered legs for tables. The waste looked like two foot long oak shims. You can be sure I used them up. Video quality is awful. Shoot it again.
Posted: 8:39 am on December 30th

checked writes: Nice and practical jig for shims that have the grain running lengthwise. This makes a strong shim if that is what is required. However, I found in most cases they were nuisance and time consuming to trim back after in place. Care has to be taken not to damage a jamb or a shim that is in awkward position can be difficult to cut especially on the thick end with a utility knife.

My preferred way is to cut shims from 2 by 6 stock with my chop saw set at two degrees. Just roll the stock after each shim is cut to maintain the wedge shape. No need of a jig at all, just eyeball the thin edge thickness on the inside, close to the fence and you are done.

The beauty of these wedges is that they work the same as regular long grain ones but are a joy to snap off and efficient. No setup time or jig to find or make. But the best part is how fast and pleasurable trimming the shims become as a result of end grain direction.
Posted: 8:25 am on December 28th

Drewfuss writes: I've been using something similar to that for years. it does work nicely. But of course, Not cost effective for general use. It is great for the time you run a few short though.
Posted: 1:29 pm on November 26th

djmcnutt writes: Looks like a good idea, I'm going to have to build and try this.
Posted: 11:45 am on November 26th

sk2tobin writes: Professorss,
it looks like he offset the dark piece of wood in the jig to about 1 or two degrees off of 90. The mdf portion of the jig rides against the regular tablesaw fence and the two by four rides against the dark wood on the jig. You move the TS Fence until you get the right clearance between the blade and the dark wood on the jig (maybe 3/16 or a 1/4 on the back side and a nice point on the front of the shim) then adjust the blade so that it cuts all the way through the two by four but not all the way through the mdf. the shim is cut off of the two by four inbetween the blade and the jig. That is how I saw it. It really was not a very well done video. I had to watch it a couple of times to figure out how he did it. It is a really neat idea though. Hope this helps
Posted: 11:39 am on November 26th

professorss writes: Not sure how this works. Could someone please explain. Video soundtrack was os of poor quality.
Posted: 12:57 am on November 26th

CubanORiley writes: Great Idea!
Posted: 5:37 pm on November 25th

John316 writes: Nice idea! I am going to go build one for myself.

Thanks - J
Posted: 6:08 pm on November 16th

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