Dewalt DCS570N rail guide

Schizophonic · 11 Apr 2022 at 10:50

Bit of newbie with this but I'm looking to make some custom floating shelves with some wood and I've purchased the Dewalt DCS570N. I've had a go at using this tool and I'm completely new to handtools and I'm learning as I go along

One of the issues I've finding myself is cutting a straight line across my MFD. I dont have a large table but will use the floor and some foam to put my wood down. However to keep cutting a straight line I need to find a compatible guide or rail. Anyone know which guide or something I can purchase which is useful?

I know people use another piece of wood and clamp it down but I struggle to place the clamp as I'll be making my cuts mostly on the floor.

ojrules · 12 Apr 2022 at 19:24

I've seen similar DIY guide rails made to what you suggest, where you have a piece of plywood/mdf, with another straight piece of wood secured to it, and the guide rail is made by holding the saw against the secured piece of wood, and cutting the "parent" piece of wood. I'm sceptical about how these work long term, but it should be better than nothing.

I've got the same circular saw, and I'm not aware of fixings for guide rails. One of the important features of guide rails is the "splinter guard", this is where the rail sits flush with the saw blade, and prevents the "keep" side of the wood from splintering. The DIY guide rail I've discussed should emulate this.

Given the design of the circular saw you've got, I don't believe you'll find rails for it, and if so, might experience limited success.

What you ultimately want, and what guide rails are made for are plunge saws. These are designed specifically for use on guide rails / tracks.

Edit - I've had a look around. It doesn't look like your saw will be compatible with Dewalt (and therefore any) guide rails. - Look at DCS572 for comparison, and you'll see slots that run the length of the saw that are used for slotting into guide rails.

bainbridge · 12 Apr 2022 at 22:46

You'll need a workbench, some grip clamps and a long piece of wood with a straight edge on one side to use as a guide.

Place the piece of wood you need to cut on the bench, place the guide on top and along the cut line you've marked. You then need to measure the distance between the edge of the circular saw and the blade, and clamp both pieces to the bench so that you can move the saw along the guide and the saw blade cuts along the cut line.

There's probably lots of videos on YouTube, but tbh I recommend getting someone handy to show you how to do it if you don't feel confident.

Schizophonic · 13 Apr 2022 at 09:43

I also posted on the reddit subforum and someone suggested they purchased the DCS572 base which works with ours

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/40217321...5mcKKVC5UlKS024gpQ7ZTXTH2isILXjBoCj8cQAvD_BwE

And then purchase the Dewalt rail and get straight lines cut. Might be an expensive choice but I know in the future if i need to make easier cuts for myself I will go down this road.

dlockers · 13 Apr 2022 at 10:10

Length of PSE/wood plus some clamps

Mercenary Keyboard Warrior · 13 Apr 2022 at 10:14

Twin slot shelving rails, too much risk of too much variation with wood

eg https://tradefit.uk/products/twin-slot-wall-mounted-shelving-upright-white-1000mm

You can, depending what you are going to do with what you are cutting, even screw the rails to the board, otherwise clamps

Don't rule out using two and basically sandwiching what your cutting with in between them

For shortish cuts a wheelybin (lid open) makes a reasonably useable cutting table!

dlockers · 13 Apr 2022 at 10:16

Mercenary Keyboard Warrior said:
Twin slot shelving rails, too much risk of too much variation with wood

eg https://tradefit.uk/products/twin-slot-wall-mounted-shelving-upright-white-1000mm

You can, depending what you are going to do with what you are cutting, even screw the rails to the board, otherwise clamps

That's a great shout actually. I've held off buying a proper rail because of the expense.

Mercenary Keyboard Warrior · 13 Apr 2022 at 10:33

dLockers said:
That's a great shout actually. I've held off buying a proper rail because of the expense.

Only issue I have never found greater than 1.8 available, I am sure they do exist somewhere
easy to get, 600mm 1200mm and 1800mm, 2 of each for about £10

dirtychinchilla · 14 Apr 2022 at 20:53

I’ve tried one of those homemade mdf cutting guides and unfortunately, they are only as good as you make them. If you are already struggling to do straight cuts, making one of those guides will be difficult and inaccurate. I’m saying this from personal experience as I’m terrible at straight lines!

I put up wood panelling in our bathroom this week. I clamped a spirit level to the wood and whilst it hasn’t always been perfect, it probably got me 90% of the way there.

I strongly recommend getting a roofer’s square like this so that you can ensure you’re cutting perpendicular to the short length.

Good luck!

PlacidCasual · 14 Apr 2022 at 21:14

Machine Mart sell clamp guides in various lengths. Axminster do them too but they're more expensive from memory.

https://www.machinemart.co.uk/p/clarke-cht684-50-clamp-guide/

https://www.axminstertools.com/ujk-...3385?queryID=2d078e63d9f4a85ab7957f3c22b937d3

They are easy to use and would suit your purpose but unlike a rail guided plunge saw you are going to have to calculate the offset from guide edge to the actual blade location.