Author Topic: Track Tubes MFT top (Read 33185 times)

DynaGlide · « **on:** March 09, 2021, 03:21 PM »

This just arrived and I'm pretty excited about it. Gone will be the days of hauling my MFT up from the basement to the garage when I get into a cabinetry project. I much prefer bringing my work stations in pieces and leaving the MFT tables setup in my workshop.

The offset dog holes along the back and front are 22" o.c. to allow for use with the Track Tubes and their 18mm tall track dogs for positioning of the top on a set of Dewalt plastic sawhorses. The pocketed slots are for use with their accessories they have planned, one of which will be a set of extrusions that nest inside the track tubes and allow for mounting of additional accessories, such as the Dashboard guide rail brackets.

If you've followed along my Home Office Remodel thread you'll know I'm doing the upper cabinets soon. I'll be putting this setup to use when I get going on those.

For now it seems Instagram is the best spot to find out more about their products. @BristolArtisanCo and @tracktubes have been pretty regular with stories and posts.

I know this might come off as an ad, and it probably is, because I've been following along with Track Tubes since their early days and am excited to see their vision coming full circle. The creator of the tubes Glenn is a member here and a fellow Harley enthusiast who I've been e-mailing regularly. Fred (bristolartisonco on IG) is the one handling a lot of the manufacturing and shipping side of things at the moment. They've both gone way out of their way to answer questions and help me along. Really nice people.

Matt

rvieceli · « **Reply #1 on:** March 09, 2021, 03:39 PM »

Matt thanks. My son just got some track tubes and I’ve been trying to get him to pick one of these up. If you don’t mind how much was it with shipping?

Ron

DynaGlide · « **Reply #2 on:** March 09, 2021, 03:46 PM »

Quote from: rvieceli on March 09, 2021, 03:39 PM

Matt thanks. My son just got some track tubes and I’ve been trying to get him to pick one of these up. If you don’t mind how much was it with shipping?

Ron

Hi Ron you will have to check with Fred on that one. I think he responds to website inquiries now as well. I'm the first person he's shipped a top to and not sure if he plans on doing more or not. From my talks with him he'd love to offer the CNC files for sale in the future for people to make their own locally. He operates out of Bristol TN if your son is within driving distance I know he's making the tops and extension wings for local area craftsmen.

Mike Goetzke · « **Reply #3 on:** March 09, 2021, 05:00 PM »

@DynaGlide Nice looking top.

Do you know what grade of MDF that is?

How does it connect to the tubes? I've been using a 3-slab system for some time now and it connects to one tube with stubby dogs. I actually have two sets of 90" TrackTubes. One I left at 90" for my 4'x8' work table and the other I cut so that I could have a one and two slab table. I love this setup. In less than 5 minutes I can assemble my station or take it down in my space constrained garage shop.

Only thing I would change is top design. I put too many slots in it. Nice for clamping since I made them wide enough to fit my parallel jaw clamps but bad for stuff I like to put on the top - especially my pencil.

I still have the Dewalt sawhorses but recently bought a set of Toughbuilt sawhorses for my 3-slab setup since they have a much wider stance.

DynaGlide · « **Reply #4 on:** March 09, 2021, 06:25 PM »

@Mike Goetzke

I suspect I have the same dogs. The tops are CNC'ed with dog holes outside of the normal grid for mounting the tops to the Dewalt horses. They're properly spaced for the plastic ones you have in your picture, 22" on center.

My little expansion wings should be here tomorrow or the next day. Fred had to ship those separate.

DynaGlide · « **Reply #5 on:** March 12, 2021, 02:39 PM »

I just received the MFT wings and some 1515 extrusion to use with the Dashboard guide rail bracket.

guybo · « **Reply #6 on:** March 12, 2021, 02:59 PM »

Nice!

Mike Goetzke · « **Reply #7 on:** March 12, 2021, 03:00 PM »

@DynaGlide Nice looking tops!

Side question - what flooring is that? Would it take the load of heavy power tools rolling over it and a car parked on it.

Thanks
Mike

DynaGlide · « **Reply #8 on:** March 12, 2021, 03:05 PM »

Quote from: Mike Goetzke on March 12, 2021, 03:00 PM

@DynaGlide Nice looking tops!

Side question - what flooring is that? Would it take the load of heavy power tools rolling over it and a car parked on it.

Thanks
Mike

Thanks Mike!

It's the foam exercise mat material. I have concrete in my shop and put that stuff in before setting things up. Comfy on my feet and can't tell you how many times I've dropped something that I'd be upset if it hit concrete.

Don't think it'd be suitable for a car or heavy machinery. They make more durable garage mats in a similar style if you want to hunt those down.

DynaGlide · « **Reply #9 on:** March 12, 2021, 03:30 PM »

Here's some more setup pictures.

They provided these dog holes along the front and back that are spaced so you can butt your guide rail up to a pair of dogs and not cut through a row of holes. You can also use them for putting your fence with fence dogs and not giving up crosscut capacity. The main top is identical in size to an MFT/3 top.

It was very easy to get a foolproof square setup.

Mortiser · « **Reply #10 on:** March 12, 2021, 08:09 PM »

@DynaGlide Matt, that's a really nice set-up. I have TrackTubes but none of the other accessories. Can you tell us the total investment to put together that set-up?
One other thing, do you have the older Stanley/DeWalt sawhorses that have the wider stance footprint? The new ones I now see them selling don't spread as far as my old ones and I hear stories about them being easily pulled over. What is your experience?
----
Rich

adamcian · « **Reply #11 on:** March 12, 2021, 08:43 PM »

Quote from: DynaGlide on March 12, 2021, 02:39 PM

I just received the MFT wings and some 1515 extrusion to use with the Dashboard guide rail bracket.

Where’d you get the MFT wings like this? Sold my MFT/3 because I’ve been wanting to roll my own DIY outfeed/assembly table that’s more stable/beefy and can match the height of my table saw. Was considering just using the benchdogs.co.uk solutions for mounting a rail and track without these, but I like this idea too.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

neilc · « **Reply #12 on:** March 12, 2021, 09:23 PM »

Those are really nice, Matt! What are the notches around the outside of the top for?

krudawg · « **Reply #13 on:** March 12, 2021, 10:16 PM »

Quote from: DynaGlide on March 12, 2021, 03:30 PM

Here's some more setup pictures.

They provided these dog holes along the front and back that are spaced so you can butt your guide rail up to a pair of dogs and not cut through a row of holes. You can also use them for putting your fence with fence dogs and not giving up crosscut capacity. The main top is identical in size to an MFT/3 top.

It was very easy to get a foolproof square setup.

What kind of bench dogs are those that attach to the side fence?

?

Mortiser · « **Reply #14 on:** March 12, 2021, 10:21 PM »

https://benchdogs.co.uk/products/fence-dogs

DynaGlide · « **Reply #15 on:** March 13, 2021, 08:07 AM »

Quote from: Mortiser on March 12, 2021, 08:09 PM

@DynaGlide Matt, that's a really nice set-up. I have TrackTubes but none of the other accessories. Can you tell us the total investment to put together that set-up?
One other thing, do you have the older Stanley/DeWalt sawhorses that have the wider stance footprint? The new ones I now see them selling don't spread as far as my old ones and I hear stories about them being easily pulled over. What is your experience?
----
Rich

Rich,

$$$ for the tops is TBD. We're still working that out. The rest going off their websites:

TrackTubes 72" $139
Dashboard Bracket $239
The aluminum extrusion probably figure $20 for two 12" lengths and nuts and bolts to attach it
Sawhorses are $40/ea on Home Depot

Assuming you already have a guide rail, then that adds up to ~$480 and you'd still need the tops. If you have a CNC then they're cheap. If you don't then you are probably looking at somewhere in the $100-200 range to have a shop make them for you locally depending on where you are. Fred is planning on offering the CNC files for this purpose.

The sawhorses haven't presented an issue for me. They're usually weighted down pretty good when I use them. Distance between the 2x4 slots is 22" o.c.

@adamcian Fred provided the wings to me.

Quote from: neilc on March 12, 2021, 09:23 PM

Those are really nice, Matt! What are the notches around the outside of the top for?

Hi Neil nice to hear from you. The notches/slots around the edges are for planned accessories. Here you can see me using them to attach standard aluminum extrusions which the Dashboard brackets mount to.

@krudawg Rich already answered, they're benchdogs.co.uk Fence Dogs. I've been using a setup like this for a while now. I actually bored 20mm holes on my original MFT in a similar spot to mount my fence.

Hope this helps,
Matt

FJC13 · « **Reply #16 on:** March 13, 2021, 09:00 AM »

Hello - this is my first post on FOG. I am new to the hobby and learning as I go. FOG is an incredible community - the depth of knowledge is incredible.

I am in the process of building a work table with sawhorses, tracktubes and an MFT top.

Please let me know what hardware you use to connect the MFT top to the tracktubes. Additionally, looking for sources for MFT tops.

Thanks for your time.

Bugsysiegals · « **Reply #17 on:** March 13, 2021, 09:53 AM »

Love the setup @DynaGlide! Have you given any thought to how to implement some replacement sacrificial strip or do you just plan to cut up that beautiful top?

dashboardpws · « **Reply #18 on:** March 13, 2021, 11:09 AM »

It's an honor to play a small role in this very cool setup. Thanks for choosing our guide rail brackets!

DynaGlide · « **Reply #19 on:** March 13, 2021, 12:38 PM »

Quote from: FJC13 on March 13, 2021, 09:00 AM

Hello - this is my first post on FOG. I am new to the hobby and learning as I go. FOG is an incredible community - the depth of knowledge is incredible.

I am in the process of building a work table with sawhorses, tracktubes and an MFT top.

Please let me know what hardware you use to connect the MFT top to the tracktubes. Additionally, looking for sources for MFT tops.

Thanks for your time.

Hi,

You can kind of see them in one of the pictures. They're short dogs about 18mm tall that are threaded to accept 1/4-20 bolts. You slide the short dog into the tracktubes slot, drop the top on, and tighten the dogs with a coin.

Quote from: Bugsysiegals on March 13, 2021, 09:53 AM

Love the setup @DynaGlide! Have you given any thought to how to implement some replacement sacrificial strip or do you just plan to cut up that beautiful top?

In the past I cut anywhere I felt like on my MFT tops but with this one I'll probably do the sacrificial strip after it needs it. I'm in the process of waxing the tops now as I want to take better care of these.

Quote from: dashboardpws on March 13, 2021, 11:09 AM

It's an honor to play a small role in this very cool setup. Thanks for choosing our guide rail brackets!

Thanks Rob. Great system you created.

FJC13 · « **Reply #20 on:** March 13, 2021, 01:44 PM »

Thanks for the response @Dynaglide. Can you share any sources for them? I have been looking online for hours and can’t seem to locate them. Thanks again - great setup.

hdv · « **Reply #21 on:** March 13, 2021, 01:57 PM »

Like @Mortiser wrote, you can find them at https://benchdogs.co.uk/products/fence-dogs

krudawg · « **Reply #22 on:** March 13, 2021, 04:26 PM »

Quote from: Mortiser on March 12, 2021, 10:21 PM

https://benchdogs.co.uk/products/fence-dogs

Thanks. Just orded a pair

Bugsysiegals · « **Reply #23 on:** March 13, 2021, 04:33 PM »

Would you cut a dado into the top and fill it in with a strip or align the guide rail so it’s just past the Right of the main top and add a sacrificial strip attached to dogs?

DynaGlide · « **Reply #24 on:** March 14, 2021, 09:24 AM »

Quote from: Bugsysiegals on March 13, 2021, 04:33 PM

Would you cut a dado into the top and fill it in with a strip or align the guide rail so it’s just past the Right of the main top and add a sacrificial strip attached to dogs?

I'd go for the first option. For this top I plan on always having the guide rail referenced off the two dogs so the cut line should be consistent.

Mortiser · « **Reply #25 on:** March 14, 2021, 07:34 PM »

@DynaGlide Matt, I may have missed this in a previous post, but did you consider adjusting the right wing in closer and having your cut line for your guide rail in the gap between the right side of your main table and your right wing? I realize that you may not have the support area you desire to the right of the cut but it does eliminate the issue of a saw kerf in the table.
Seems to me I saw a prior picture some time ago where Glenn was doing just that. But I could be wrong.

----
Rich

DynaGlide · « **Reply #26 on:** March 15, 2021, 07:32 AM »

Quote from: Mortiser on March 14, 2021, 07:34 PM

@DynaGlide Matt, I may have missed this in a previous post, but did you consider adjusting the right wing in closer and having your cut line for your guide rail in the gap between the right side of your main table and your right wing? I realize that you may not have the support area you desire to the right of the cut but it does eliminate the issue of a saw kerf in the table.
Seems to me I saw a prior picture some time ago where Glenn was doing just that. But I could be wrong.

----
Rich

Hi Rich I don't see cutting into the top as an issue. It helps with dust collection and provides a better cut. If I had a CNC I wouldn't even worry about where I cut like I use my MFT tops.

@JeremyH. Can you clarify?

Mike Goetzke · « **Reply #27 on:** March 15, 2021, 09:10 AM »

@DynaGlide Again thanks for the post!

Matt few of questions:

1) Doesn't look like the dog holes are chamfered - are they? (would be necessary if you use Parf dogs)

2) When would you use this setup over using your TSO square and parallel guides?

3) When I purchased my TrackTubes two years ago working with Glenn I purchased two stubby dogs per panel and they have performed well. I see you have two dogs at the front and two at the rear. Do you think there is an advantage to have four?

4) I was told about the accessory c'bored slots - nice to actually see them. The concept is attractive but doesn't give me a good warm/fuzzy feel of robustness. Thoughts? (I used some UJK Parf anchor dogs to attach a similar device to my MFT slab)

DynaGlide · « **Reply #28 on:** March 15, 2021, 09:52 AM »

Quote from: Mike Goetzke on March 15, 2021, 09:10 AM

@DynaGlide Again thanks for the post!

Matt few of questions:

Hey Mike, glad to help. I'll try my best to answer:

1) Doesn't look like the dog holes are chamfered - are they? (would be necessary if you use Parf dogs)

No they are not chamfered. It would be easy enough to do though.

2) When would you use this setup over using your TSO square and parallel guides?

It really comes down to what you're working on. I used my TSO square and parallel guides exclusively to crosscut drawer parts and while it worked and they all came out square and to the correct measurements, I would've rather used an MFT style setup with a fence. With narrower width parts you have to put a second piece under the guide rail equal thickness to support the guide rail. If you're cutting up panel size pieces then either system would work equally well. I just like having a hinge and fence when I'm working if I can.

3) When I purchased my TrackTubes two years ago working with Glenn I purchased two stubby dogs per panel and they have performed well. I see you have two dogs at the front and two at the rear. Do you think there is an advantage to have four?

I've only just started messing with those stubby dogs. I actually have 14 of them because Glenn inadvertently sent me a bunch that were intended for someone else. I think I'll switch to two per top on the diagonals as it should make attaching and removing much simpler.

4) I was told about the accessory c'bored slots - nice to actually see them. The concept is attractive but doesn't give me a good warm/fuzzy feel of robustness. Thoughts? (I used some UJK Parf anchor dogs to attach a similar device to my MFT slab)

I had my doubts too. So far so good. They're pocketed to closely match the head of the button head allen bolts. If sticking with the slots I could see a specially designed washer being useful to further spread the force along the slot. Those anchor dogs are slick I wonder if you could adapt them for the same purpose to the holes along the far edges of the tops.

Mike Goetzke · « **Reply #29 on:** March 15, 2021, 10:44 AM »

@DynaGlide As always - thanks for your quick/honest reply.