Drill Press Self Aligning Locking Fence

If you enjoy a bit of basic fabricating then tthis is a really fun project. For anyone that has replaced the standard small round table that comes standard on drill presses with a larger and more accurate square / rectangular version, then this fence is what you're looking for. It is specifically made to suite aluminium box section 50mm x 30mm x 2mm. I made this one specifically for my drill press table that's made of 32mm plywood. I modified my table with a slot on the left and right hand side. This gives the fence a place to grip to make sure it stays in place once locked.

You will need some hardware for this project as follows:

• 1 x 50 x 30 x 2 aluminium box section. Length depends on the width of your table
• 2 x M6 x 30mm bolts of your choice. I used flat head hex drive.
• 2 x 3mm x 12mm Raised countersunk (or similar) self tapping screws
• 2 x M6 Nuts
• 1 x M6 nyloc nut
• 1 x M6 x 20 washer
• 1 x 8mm x 35mm spring.  approx 0.8 - 1mm diameter windings
• Tension rod :- 6mm aluminium rod ( cut about 25mm of M6 threads on 1 end) or M6 threaded rod. You will need to bend a full 12mm circle on 1 end, so aluminium will be easier to achieve this.  The length of the rod will be 150mm longer than the width of your table.
• 1 x 10mm diameter x 21mm aluminium (or steel) tube or solid rod. This is the axle that will secure the tension rod in the handle.  

Assembly is pretty straight forward and the images show enough to guide you. there are a few slots and features that you'll need to cut in the fence itself. The dimensions are all in the images. 

Holes for  the 2 bolts that will secure the main T-Piece:

1. Slide the fence over the T-Piece until it fits snug.
2. Turn the assembly upside down
3. Mark the centre points of the 2 hexagons that will house the M6 nuts.
4. Carefully drill through the print and continue perpendicular through the aluminium fence
5. After cleaning the holes you can now drop in the 2 nuts and bot down the T-Piece.