Make PERFECT CUTS With This DIY Dremel Cutting Station

A lot of makers can't live without a rotary tool because it can do all kinds of tasks. It is a very common and universal tool to have. But like almost all power hand tools, the precision is determined by the operator. And we are humans, not robots so precision most of the time suffers. However, if you make some sort of jig, fixture, or station for a tool you can greatly improve the accuracy.

So in this instructable, I will show you how I made my designed metal cutting station for a rotary tool like Dremel (or any knockoff brand with an identical thread) to get accurate and complex cuts. But the greatest thing about it is that you can make any custom insert for it which is designed for your specific task. To make it you will need to 3D print a few parts and make cuts from plywood.

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Main Tools:

• 3D printer https://amzn.to/3syckJk
• 12V drill https://amzn.to/2U5QQmL
• 20V drill https://amzn.to/2MY3GRt
• Drill press https://amzn.to/35f93nO
• Jigsaw https://amzn.to/2rg4uXx
• Router https://amzn.to/2DVXXZC
• Rotary tool https://amzn.to/2MWaP4H
• Fretsaw https://amzn.to/33LcvVr
• Clamps https://amzn.to/2YKWmRS

Main Components & Materials:

• Plywood https://amzn.to/2R1IsVL
• Wood glue https://amzn.to/2UvRrjX
• 6mm steel rod https://amzn.to/2WFbShL
• Aluminum tape https://amzn.to/38sW1FW
• Metal mesh (to prevent hot cut-off piece to be sucked in a shop-vac) https://amzn.to/3DvzkPJ

Other Things:

• Wood screws

The main problem arises when you need to cut bolts, rods, and similar objects with the rotary tool. You probably realized that it can be a hassle to do it perfectly. And if you want to do it in a dust-free way clamping and adjusting things can be just a little bit frustrating.

If your experience is similar, then this jig for a rotary tool will make your life much easier. You clamp it to your workbench and do fully controlled cuts in a dust-free way. But what really sets it apart is those inserts for unlimited customizability. You can do some crazy cuts (two last images) that you never could do while handheld.

The idea to make it came from this fully 3D printed mini-cutting station. It looked really nice, but I instantly spotted some limits with it. You see Dremel’s metal cutting discs are pretty small in the first place and they will get smaller with use as they are, well abrasive.

This means that on this 3D printed station you can cut only smaller and shorter pieces as the workpiece will interfere with the handle. And keep in mind that this is not a design flaw of the station it is just a general limitation of a tool itself.

And I don’t know if you ever cut a stainless-steel rod because it gets so hot that you’ll end up with a melted plastic base. Not only this but rough time and money estimates show that 3D printing all the parts of my design is just not worth it here.

And if I am going to make a station thing like this I want way more possibilities, not only cutting rods.

So, I did what I always do. I designed it myself (except the handle) and it will be made mostly from 12mm thick (1/2 inch) Baltic birch plywood.

So when making projects from plywood:

1. I usually make a cut list first (You can download an updated one here)
2. Then make all primary cuts.
3. And finish with the secondary cuts until I have all the pieces.

The heart of this project is the integrated clamping system for all kinds of inserts.

Before doing more cuts make sure that the sliding part and surrounding ones have smooth surfaces by sanding them a little bit with ~400grit sandpaper.

Next, we need to cut a shape of a flush M6 bolt into the sliding part. Then make a 6mm hole that goes all the way through the piece and widen one side of it to 11mm for an M6 locking nut. Roughen the nut sides and glue it in with epoxy.

Later I additionally glued a washer to the sliding part. Epoxy will slightly soak into the plywood and together with a washer will give a tougher surface as all the clamping force goes to this spot.

The sliding part needs to go forward and backward just a little bit to clamp the same width inserts. This means that you won’t need to rotate it a lot. And as we are using a locking nut, vibrations won’t loosen the clamp, as they can do on a regular vice.

So making the clamping system was the hardest part. Next, more drilling, shaping, and gluing. One thing to note here - don't forget that the right side of the handle holding part will not be glued to the base. Same with the top vice covering part.

I like to reinforce parts that will be affected by clamping forces with screws. This includes the lip of the inside sliding part, the front fence, and the back part (the part which has glued nut).

To mount the rotary tool we need to print the handle. It is a "remixed" version of the original handle, the only thing that I changed is the 6mm hole instead of a 10mm one. You want this part to be as rigid as it can be, so I suggest printing it with a 100% infill ratio.

The hole size on my model is 6.1mm in diameter. When printing you always get smaller ones and it depends on the printer and settings you use. So, in this case, you will get a slightly undersized hole when printed, and to get it to the ideal size you need to use a 6mm drill bit.

Now we can grip the 6mm stainless steel rod with a drill and push it while slowly rotating. It is the easiest method to push it in as it is a snug fit. The rod will stay in place and rotation friction will be only on the side plywood holders.

With the rod in place, we need to mark and cut the rod to the final length. And after that few screws to secure the right rod holder.

The second 3D printed part will be the dust collector. It is a 2-part print, that later we will need to glue with epoxy.

I suggest gluing a couple of small sheets of aluminum tape just to protect the plastic where all the hot sparks will fly.

I have a very specific and annoying shop-vac end hose and it is very rare that you will have the same one, so I will provide a universal solution for a 35mm end hose (last picture).

I also suggest cutting some metal mesh and gluing it on top of the dust collector. It will prevent very hot cutoff pieces to be sucked in and possibly damaging the hose, vacuum itself, or even ignite like wood sawdust. I never ever had any problems with shop-vac sucking all the sparks as those cool off inside the hose until they reach the inside container. But it can depend on the tools and the setup, so just be aware that hot sparks and wood sawdust combination are a bad idea in general.

For the collector to fit perfectly we need to trim 5mm of the plywood with a router. Ideally, you print the part, measure its precise thickness and trim that amount from the plywood part.

To make inserts we need to cut some blocks of 40mm width and length depends on the type.

For the rod cutting insert, we just can make a groove into the piece with a router equipped with a V grooving bit.

For the clamping top piece, we just need to cut off a small part of a previous insert and trim width to something like 30mm instead of 40mm.

For bolt cutting - 40x100mm base and 20x20x2mm aluminum L profiles with drilled 3,4,5 and 6,8mm holes. Aluminum is great here as it also will absorb the heat from the bolt.

So before continuing, I should show you the simple, but very important update to this project.

The main change is only to the bottom section. Basically, what I did here, I added small wings to both sides for much easier clamping. As I can't unglue the parts I just added custom pieces. And for you, I made the Upgraded bottom section that is made from 2 parts and not 6.

And if you don't want to download the PDF version for some reason, here are (the last 4 pictures) the dimensions of all parts.

So with the upgrade, it is way better. Now we easily clamp the right side and for the left, we either clamp the base or the cutting piece, depending on the insert type.

And they are the key here. Some are more universal like I showed before (rod and bolt cutting). You can even clamp the bolt cutting insert at an angle and do some deburring work. And others can be customized just for a specific result like doing a complex cut on a vertically placed bolt.

So the main idea with this tool is to have a handy station that everyone can adapt for their specific uses with the custom inserts. In my example, I really hated cutting bolts and tried to avoid that. But now I can make bolts to a precise length that looks excellent.

It is up to you for what and how you decide to use it! Those custom inserts make this a very versatile cutting station for all the smaller cuts. So if you have a Dremel-like tool and you want consistency, precision, and the ability to do complex cuts - this station is an absolute must-make project! :)

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Feel free to leave any questions about this build. Thank you, for reading! Till next time! :)

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