The Test Cut

Woodworking Glossary

Auxiliary Fence

An auxiliary fence clamped to the saw's rip fence -- a sacrificial wooden face you can cut into, screw stops to, or bury a dado blade against without ever touching the fence itself.
An auxiliary fence clamped to the saw's rip fence -- a sacrificial wooden face you can cut into, screw stops to, or bury a dado blade against without ever touching the fence itself.

An auxiliary fence is a piece of wood (usually plywood or MDF) attached to a table saw, router table, or other tool's stock metal fence, extending or modifying it for a specific need -- adding height for guiding tall stock on edge, extending length for supporting long workpieces, or simply providing a sacrificial surface a bit or blade can safely cut into without damaging the tool's actual fence.

Because it's cheap, easily replaced, and expected to take direct contact from a cutter in some setups (a router bit buried partway into an auxiliary fence for a stopped cut, for instance), it takes the wear and occasional direct cutting contact that would otherwise damage or misalign the tool's real fence.

Images

An auxiliary fence clamped to the saw's rip fence -- a sacrificial wooden face you can cut into, screw stops to, or bury a dado blade against without ever touching the fence itself.

Product: An auxiliary fence clamped to the saw's rip fence -- a sacrificial wooden face you can cut into, screw stops to, or bury a dado blade against without ever touching the fence itself.