Woodworking Tip: Shop-Made Band Saw Circle Jig

All you need to cut a circle on the band saw is a piece of plywood with a nail driven in to act as a pivot. but this jig is a little more versatile. It's adjustable and easy to detach from your band saw.

[HC]

This is definitely a nice jig; maybe the best I've seen so far.
However, I think it can be slightly improved by adding a board of - say - 8mm thickness with a circular hole of - say 50mm diameter.
That would allow you to stick a 5mm thick 50mm diameter disc onto the board you're cutting using double-sided tape, so you will not get the pivot-pin mark in your final disc.
Most jigs I've seen use a pivot pin and thus make a mark, but sometimes you do not want that small hole. ;)

[valborchardt]

Thank you dear, stay safe, from South Africa

[woodsniffer]

I like the design gonna give it a try. Thanks for the link and drawing thats important.

[glencrandall]

This looks like a pretty simple design. It should do most jobs well. 👍 Thank you for sharing. Have a great day and stay safe.🙂🙂

[kenvaillancourt]

what is better for 1 1/2" thick circle 1/2" or 1/4" blade? Like your video

[henrysara]

Thy, as soon my band saw is installed, it will be my first jig to do.

[LarryPost-js]

"Eloge de la simplicité". Simple mais efficace, et c'est généralement tout ce qu'on demande.
Evidemment il y a le trou au milieu de la pièce à découper. Dans la plupart des cas ce n'est pas un obstacle. Et si oui, il suffit de coller avec du ruban double face la pièce sur une plaque martyr et le tour est joué.

[woodsniffer]

thanks for posting I built the Jig but I am getting some blade drift and cannot figure it out. any suggestions ? 3/16 blade, blade is at a right angle to jig.

[fredm-oj]

I made this jig, then tried to cut an 11" circle with a 5 1/2" center using a 1/2 blade. My wood piece is 1/4 inch plywood.

The jig is very nice but the blade is too wide for an 11" circle. The blade would not bend enough without breaking it.

Going forward, I will freehand the circle cut rather than using a jig.

[cardboardorigami]

What if you want a smaller circle? Do you trim the board down to that, or cut in a path wide enough for the blade?

[larrywong]

I wonder if using a removable suction cup on the jig would avoid drilling a hole into the work piece, just an idea.

[aball]

What you would say is the smallest diameter with a 1/4" band saw blade?

[gxgolden]

It's good, in theory, but designing the jig for my exact machine took lots of measuring, trial and error, and experimenting. I still need to go out and buy a couple long bolts, so I'm not finished yet.
. As another reader says, this operation on this jig may leave flat spots on the sides of your circle.

[willpagan]

What is the angle is the cut in the middle