Pen Blank Bandsaw Cutting Jig

[Katsin]

Here is a bandsaw crosscut jig that has been set up to take spacer inserts and hold-down clamps for pen blank cutting based on brass tube length. Extra two spacers can be swapped in to adjust for slightly extra pen blank length when desired.

My thanks to sah6139 and DonHo for the original designs they shared on the forums.

 

[Arbetlam]

That sir is very clever idea

 

[campzeke]

Great job on the jig. I made a similar jig to cut my blanks as well. If you trim one end of your bridge, gauge or whatever you call it about the thickness of a saw kerf, you can cut a blank longer simply by flipping the bridge over without changing your stop block. I cut acrylic blanks a little longer than needed and trim to length after drilling and stopping just short of going all the way through. I then flip the gauge over and re-cut the undrilled end off the blank. Works for me ...

 

[BKind2Anmls]

OK. I'm slow on this kind of stuff.

How long do you make the bridge thing? Does it matter? Does it matter how long your blank is before you cut? I can't figure out how putting the tube against the stop and under the bridge automatically creates a correct size cut. Looks like magic to me.

 

[Katsin]

OK. I'm slow on this kind of stuff.

How long do you make the bridge thing? Does it matter? Does it matter how long your blank is before you cut? I can't figure out how putting the tube against the stop and under the bridge automatically creates a correct size cut. Looks like magic to me.

The length of the bridge is not terribly important though it does need to be long enough for the tubes you want to use. The placement of the spacer is. If you were going for an exact match on the tube you would screw in the spacer so that if the bridge was pushed as much as possible towards the cut then it would butt up right against the cut the band saw blade makes. Then however much space the tube pulls the bridge away from the band saw blade's cut path will equal how much is cut from the blank.

 

[BKind2Anmls]

Thank you.