 If you're equipped
with a table saw with a sharp blade, you can easily cut 4-6 inch
wide strips out of Plexiglas® purchased at a Home Depot. The
Plexiglas® comes with a plastic coating that should never be
removed until a finished piece has been created. You'll need to
use a masking tape to place on top of the plastic coating on
both sides about 2 inches wide. This strip is run down the
center of the cut line for the rip. This prevents the Plexiglas®
from creating its damaging break out pressure at the edge,
giving you a cleaner cut.Before removing the plastic coating,
lay out your holes at specified distance from the straight edge
that would most likely work for common cabinetry. Drill the
holes an equal distance apart, a preferred 1.25 inches on
center. In the jig I made in the pictures, the horizontal line
distance is 1.5 inches. The Plexiglas® is laid on top of the
side cabinet piece flush with the edge. Here, a work table's
edge is used to clamp the piece of Plexiglas® down, along with
the side to the table on both ends. On one end, the Plexiglas®
is held flush, [bottom] for each side drilled. Each side has two
rows of 40 holes in the picture.
Use a point punch to place a small pit in the center of each
hole before drilling the Plexiglas®. Drill with a high speed drill and don't
push to hard. A 3/8 inch brad point bit [Rockler #39789
included in 5 piece set] is highly recommended.
This is the correct size to match your Self-Centering
Bits. Once
you have drill the holes, you can remove all the plastic coating
and masking tape. You can also polish the edges the sand paper,
but be careful not to touch the surface unless you want it
scratched.
Often when cabinet making, you need holes for a long run. By
creating this jig system, and purchasing your Self-Centering
Bits from Rockler, you can drill holes faster than lightning and
they always come out perfect, as long as you carefully place
your jig with clamps. By using a long run with a jig, you
guarantee accuracy.
This 60 inch Plexiglas®
jig saves tons of time if you do this often. If not, you can get
smaller jigs at Rockler or make your own specialty jigs of all sizes for
your projects.
 |
 |
Click on Image
to See
Larger View
|
