Just in case anyone missed the last post in the router jig thread or has trouble finding it someday, I wanted to start a dedicated thread to sharing this helpful file for all of you out there set on making a DIY-Jig for your fusion boxes. After painstakingly searching on sways and the rest of the web for some kind of printable template to allow me to easily cut out my own jig, I decided to just make my own. Thanks to a little graphic design know-how and some helpful measurments from the afformentioned jig thread, I was able to mock up this file in illustrator by using a reference photo of the jig re-sized to actual size to get the hourglass portion. I'm in the process of making my own jig now and taking photos along the way - I'll post the step-by-step on how to make your jig in the morning. In the meantime, here's the file to get you started. As long as your pinter is set up correctly, it should print at the exaxt size of the jig.
Why waste all your time? Buying the fusion router with metal guide ring is just worth so much more in my opinion.
It will last long, it is see through, has the holes in the exact right location, has anti slip. All the time making that jig, don't you prefer enhancing your shaping skills?
If you really want to make your own jig you'd be better off to just trace a box. Your printer or file would only have to be off a tiny bit to end up making sloppy holes. The original FCS jig is worth it. It really is a nice jig. I paid $80 for it with the router bit. Well worth it.
Well, the whole point of this file is because we're all DIY guys in one way or another. If you're like me, you already have to scrape and save just to be able to afford to buy half your materials to glass one board, so in a pinch when you can't afford you router jig and don't want to use the X2 plugs, this is a better alternative. The file is perfect - I have a lot of experience in graphic design and sizing, and AI files are vector files so really unless you set up your printer settings like a dolt you will hav a perfect template. If your printer file is off enough to ruin this, you most likely have trouble printing regular pages too and the only help I an suggest is to take a basi computer course. But for a guy who needs to answer to his accountant (wife) for every penny, this is a great way to be able to do your boards and not piss off the old lady
To make the jig: First, grab yourself a piece of plywood roughly the dimensions of a jig and start with the factory edge. Lay your template over the wood (you already cut it our on the paper, right?) and rough trace the edges with a china marker or pencil. You can also spray paint it on using the template as a stencil (I did this after the rough-cut to fine tune the edges). Once you have your outline traced, you're ready to start cuttting. And yes, I know this first step would be easier with a hole-saw… but what's the fun in that?
After you have your rough-cut template, switch to the sanding drum and begin to shape out your jig on a high speed
And beware of exploding sandpaper!
Here's the point where I spray-painted the template on to get an accurate line
Continue shaping down on high speed until you get close to your edges
Then, turn the speed down to low and clean up your edges
Bust out your square and find your center line - if you were able to mantain a factory corner this is the easy part, otherwise, you're gonna need to do some math. Easiest way is to square your jig up on a table, and find the center point of the hourglass pinch and mark it on either side of your ruler on the table to get a center line. Then, just connect the dots
once you have your center line, you can cut down the rest of the template to the desired size, after that marking your toe points from the center line is easy. More to come soon
Unfortunately, simply tracing a box is not a viable option as the jig is much wider than a box - you'll still have to rely on some clever math and engineering to get the outline of the actual jig, which is why I made this file. It cuts the need to do the math out of the equation and gives you our outline - how accurate your jig is based on my file is entirely dependent on your carpentry skills
The FCS jig is only bigger than an actual box to accomidate their choice of router bits. If one were to trace the box to create their jig they would simply use a router bit with the same size bearing attached. For example a 3/4" bit with a 3/4" bearing. You'd also be able to test fit the jig as you sand/grind away with an actual box until you get it right. Not rocket science.
To get your toe-marks, you simply need to draw the lines 1/8" on either side of the center line. It's best to measure off two points on each line so the lines follow the center line perfectly.
This will give you a good idea of anywhere you didn't round out the template enough. As you can see on my picture, I have a slight wobble near the apex of the right side, this can either be corrected now with the sanding drum, or later by correcting the hole in the foam if you're nervous about fine-sanding (if you are, maybe shaping isn't for you)
On your next one, you'd get much better results if you just made 2 holes with a hole saw…I believe its a 2 & 1/8" hole saw. Then you'd have two perfect circles and you'd only have to shape the small area between the two circles. Perhaps add cross marks to indicate the centers on your PDF template so you can make accurate pilot holes.
Mako - great idea on the cross marks. I'm gonna update the file later to include those, as well as some nice toe-point markings as well that you can use to drill your view holes and have the center line. The template is pretty basic the way it is now, but it's more than anything I was able to find on my own. Given the ammount of threads about people trying to figure out how to do this from measurments, I figured it'd be a good idea. And as for the hole saw, yeah I know. We realized after we made the cuts that would have been the smart idea, but where's the fun in that?
Does anyone know the bearing size for the router bit? I believe it's 1/2"? Gonna try to make this a full DIY kit and just get a bearing for the 1/4" bit I already have. I hear the FCS ones burn out anyway
scratch that - unfortunately none of the hardware stores on Maui stock just bearings as thats a "special order" product. Looks like I'm gonna be giving FCS some of my money after all…
Go back to my trace the box method. Then you can use any router bit with matching bearing that you can get in any hardware store. The picture below shows my two fin box routers. The one on the left has the bit you need for the FCS Fusion jig. The one on the right is what I'd use for ProBox or the Standard Fin System…this is the one you'd use if your template was exactly the same size as your box. Note that the bearing on the FCS bit is bigger in diameter than the cutter while the other has a bearing that is the same size as the cutter.
I made a couple of these and found that using the bearing to center a pencil and tracing the box with it was the best method to get a good outline without using the printable template. I didn't want to risk chewing up my box with the router if I screwed up tracing it with that, and I wasn't really sure how to glue it to the board sturdy enough to use as a jig, but still be able to pull it off and re-use it in the board without damaging it.
The FCS jig is well worth it. The jig only has to be off the tiniest bit to end up with a messed up fin box install. I'd suggest borrowing one from someone. Heck you could even use the borrowed one to make one that is correct. I'd suggest MDF or clear plastic for your template. For $80 including the bit it is money very well spent even for someone like me who is doing less than a dozen boards a year.
When you glue it to the wood, acrylic or whatever and route the template, then you just take the box with the wood or acrylic mounted to it and run it on a belt sander or a sander polisher.
I Use acrylic for my jigs not wood though, I like to be able to see through them.
Ya the jigs worked well but I had to make my lines a little longer than usual. Im def gonna re-make out of acrylic when I get some time. Plus, i learned recently that the metal "figure 8" portion of the official jig is atually replaceable? Where would one buy one of these and for how much? I'm wondering if it's enough of a money saver to simply route out the home-made template a little wide and then fit it with the insert?
