Review of the EZ Smart Guide System by Eurekazone 1st Page = Components     2nd Page = Set Up     This Page = Making the Cut
I used four notched 2x4s set on saw horses. Eureka sells a really cool table made for this. More at www.Eurekazone.org the Smart Table
	Slap my plywood on it and I'm ready to go. OK, you can't really "slap" a full sheet of 3/4 hardwood ply, but you get the idea. I need this flexibility in a small shop like mine.
Lay out your lines right on the wood. You will cut what you see, so the good side of your cut should be covered by the guide. This puts the kerf on the waste side.
	Both sides of the cut are clean and sharp. The white edge of the guide prevents chipout on one side, and the green lip of the insert protects the other.
You can make straight cuts or tapers. Cut off a lot or a little. You can even make compound cuts by laying the guide at an angle (rather than square) and beveling the blade of your saw. The base has two different slots to ride in the guide - one for straight cuts and one offset a bit for bevel cuts.
	OOPS! Instead of drawing a line, this time I just made two marks. When I made the cut I realized I'd laid the guide right on one of the marks, but missed the other by a little bit.
No problem. I just laid the guide down again keeping one end flush to the cut I'd made correctly and the other on the mark where I should have cut. You can barely see the little bit of wood under the guide. The smart clamps hold the guide securely. You can't see them in this picture. They slide in the grooves under the guide to stay out of the way of your saw. This picture makes the guide look a lot more massive than it really is.
	I even tried a little modification. Attaching a piece of hardboard to the base behind my saw, I cut a groove in it and mounted a dust collection nozzle.
It worked, but only grabbed the dust that came out the rear of the blade. About half sprayed out the front and wasn't picked up. So it wasn't worth the hassle of moving the hose around. Guess it's time to get that Porter Cable 324 with the dust port on the front. With the new saw, I'll have to re-mount the base on it, plus replace the inserts and the white guide edge. But these are readily available, cheap, and easy to install.
	All in all I'd give the EZ Smart Guide an A+. - Safer, easier and takes up much less space than trying to cut full sheets on a table saw. - It's more solid than a shooter board and your saw can't waver like mine always did. - Plus it's safer with the clamps - especially for narrow cuts. - Both edges are so smooth you won't need to recut them or even joint them. - And they have other accessories I haven't yet played with: A router guide, the table I mentioned and coming soon a flange that will square up your stock to the guide and a clamp with "legs" for better balance. Check them out at Eurekazone.org
Review of the EZ Smart Guide System by Eurekazone 1st Page = Components     2nd Page = Set Up     This Page = Making the Cut © 2004 John Seiffer. I'm a wood working hobbier who's happy to support the people and products that I enjoy. email: wood@sbcoach.com with any comments.