Bryan Parlor - Using the Back to Back rail as a fence

This thread was originally posted on SMC by Bryan Parlor. It is here with his permission.

A while back I bought a couple of short back-to-back (BtoB) extrusions to play with but I haven’t done much with them until recently.

The BtoB rail and a couple of short connectors make a useful as a miter/square/rip fence that can be used under the rail or on a power bench.

Drill a hole and 2 slots in the center web. these allow it to be used under a guide rail or on the power bench as a miter/square/rip fence.

The slots can be made with a router and 1/4in straight bit - use a slow speed, take light cuts and add a squirt or two of WD40 to prevent clogging.

The threaded rod on short connectors is a bit short to go through the Bto B rail but a couple of mine were just long enough (no washer). The rod can be replaced with a longer one if needed.

The best way to set the fence up is to clamp a square to the BtoB rail and hold the square to the rail while you tightening the connectors.



Randal Stevenson Replied:

Sounds like a great idea for a miter gauge bar. Adjustable, and you can use clamps/stop blocks with it.