Adjustable Dado Setup Tool V2 – Kerf Compensation

Accurately set dado widths using your actual material and blade kerf. The Adjustable Dado Setup Tool captures your blade’s kerf and the thickness of the material you want to fit into a dado. Use its two reference lengths against a fixed stop to position the outside cuts, then clear the material between them. This redesigned version addresses several limitations of my original model, with more accessible hardware, improved slide geometry, and better stability when extended.   Boost MeIf this tool earns a spot in your workshop, please consider giving it a Boost! Your support helps me keep designing, testing, and improving practical woodworking tools to share with the community. Thanks for supporting The Idea Garage!  What’s improved in V2 Standard M4 hardware: Revised screw-head clearances accommodate standard M4 screws instead of the smaller, unusual tapered Phillips-head screws used in the original. Recessed thumb wheels: Both wheels sit inside the body, allowing the tool to lie flat on your work surface. Improved dovetail slides: More accurately modeled dovetails guide the sliding parts. Additional anti-racking keyway: A keyway between the middle and top sliders helps keep them aligned when extended farther out. The Idea Garage branding: The tool includes my logo, and the listing photos are branded and watermarked. Printing The pictured tool is printed in yellow and black PETG. The supplied 3MF contains two plates: Plate 1: Base, top slider, and middle slider. Plate 2: Two thumb wheels, with a saved pause at 5.0 mm for inserting one M4 nut into each wheel. Seat the nuts fully in their pockets before resuming the print. Required hardware: 2 × M4 nuts, embedded in the thumb wheels during printing. 1 × M4 × 20 mm countersink screw. 1 × M4 × 16 mm countersink screw. Fit the dovetail slides together and engage the keyway between the middle and top sliders. The M4 × 16 mm screw passes through the middle slider into the top slider and pairs with the upper thumb wheel. The M4 × 20 mm screw passes through the top slider into the longer base and pairs with the lower thumb wheel.  Optional screw-head retention: If the M4 × 20 mm screw spins when tightening or loosening the lower wheel, a very small drop of super glue where its head seats can help secure it. Keep glue away from the sliding surfaces and use only a minimal amount—excess glue could bond the moving parts together. Let it cure before operating the tool.   Setup and use Perform blade-contact adjustments with the saw switched off and disconnected from power. Remove the setup tool before making each cut. 1. Set the blade kerf Adjust the tool to capture your blade’s cutting width, as shown in the photo.   2. Lock the kerf setting Tighten the upper thumb wheel to retain the blade kerf adjustment.   3. Set the material thickness Place the material that will fit into the dado between the tool’s measuring faces. Adjust for a snug fit without forcing it, then tighten the lower thumb wheel. Leave the kerf setting locked.   4. Position the two outside cuts Place the tool between your fixed stop and the workpiece, with the short side against the stop. Position the workpiece, remove the tool, and make the first outside cut. Next, place the tool between the same stop and the workpiece, with the long side against the stop. Reposition the workpiece, remove the tool, and make the second outside cut. Keep the stop and both tool settings unchanged.   5. Clear the dado and check the fit Remove the remaining material between the two outside cuts. Check the fit using the same material used to set the tool. Make a test dado in scrap before cutting your project parts.   Design and photo attribution Designed by The Idea Garage. My previous version was offered for sale on Amazon using my original photographs without my permission. This updated model includes branding, and these photos are watermarked to identify their source. Please do not reuse my photographs.