How to Cut Tapers on a Table Saw

Build This Simple Jig to Quickly and Accurately Cut Perfect Tapers Every Time

Tapered legs give a look of elegance and lightness to furniture legs, providing all the strength you need while also adding flair to the overall design. Tapers also work on other elements in furniture design. Tapers tend to be subtle, typically a 5° angle or less; generally, the longer the leg, the more subtle the taper. You can cut tapers in several ways, but the easiest, fastest, and cleanest method is to use a table saw. But to cut an angle not parallel with the workpiece’s square faces you need a sled to hold the workpiece at the desired angle and carry it through the cut. Although you can spend hundreds of dollars on commercial tapering sleds, it’s easy to make one for a lot less. Let’s get started.

First, make the tapering sled

NOTE: Dimensions used here are for a sled made to fit a SawStop Professional Cabinet Saw. Adjust dimensions as needed to fit your saw.

This sled consists of two elements: the base and the guide. Make both of these pieces from plywood that’s flat and stable, such as Baltic birch plywood. Because this sled is made to register in the right miter slot, once you rip the oversize base to width, you’ll always have zero-clearance support along that edge to guard against tear-out.

1. Begin by measuring the distance from the right miter slot to the blade, in this case 5”. Make the base about 9” wide and 32” long. A sled this size should accommodate most workpieces; build other sleds for specific jobs as needed.

2. Cut the guide from 3/4” plywood to 3” wide and 31-1/2” long.

3. Place four dimes in the right miter slot, spaced evenly apart. This will elevate the miter bar slightly above the table surface. With the blade guard removed and the blade fully lowered, lock the rip fence in place so the base extends about 1/8” to the left side of the blade. Place the miter bar (store-bought or shop-made) in the right miter slot with double-faced tape adhered to the top surface. Lower the base onto the table saw top, making sure to keep its edge against the rip fence. Press solidly so the base adheres to the miter bar tape.

4. Lift the base—with miter bar now attached—from the saw top. Secure the bar to the base with screws. Raise the blade, move the rip fence aside, place the base’s miter bar in the slot, and rip the base to final width. Remove the miter bar for the next steps.

5. Create two slots on the bottom of the base perpendicular to the long edges for T-bolts that will secure the guide. To do this, install a 5/8” straight bit in a handheld plunge router. Attach an edge guide to the router and adjust it so the bit will cut a slot 3” on center from the ends of the base. Set the bit to make a 1/8”-deep cut (or deep enough to fully recess the head of the T-bolt). Rout a slot across the base, stopping 1/2” from each edge. (If you don’t have a 5/8” bit, you can use a smaller bit to make overlapping cuts that add up to 5/8”.) Repeat for the other end of the base. Leave the edge guide set as is for the next step.

6. Now install a 1/4” straight or spiral bit (5/16” for T-bolts of that size) in the router and set for a cut slightly deeper than 3/4″. Clamp the base to your workbench so that 3-1/2” extends over the edge to allow clearance for the edge guide. Rout a slot down the center of the wider groove on each end, making multiple passes in progressive depths until fully through the base.

7. Using the same process as in Step 5, rout a centered 5/8” groove 1/8” deep along the length of the guide, stopping about 1” from each end. Switch to the 1/4″ bit without changing the edge guide. Set the bit depth slightly more than 3/4” and rout a centered slot within the length of the wider groove.

8. From 3/4″ plywood, cut a 1/2″x 3-1/2” cleat and attach it to one end of the guide with screws (no glue, so it can be replaced, if needed). This will serve as a stop for workpieces clamped to the sled.

9. Drill a counterbored hole for the handle bolt along the right edge near the end.

10. Reattach the miter bar to the base. Install the hold-downs loosely in the guide’s slot with T-bolts and star knobs. Then attach the guide to the base in the same manner. Install the handle.

11. Now your tapering sled is ready to use.

Now cut some tapers

Lay out the taper on your workpiece. (You only need to do this on one, if working with multiple identical parts.) Place the workpiece on the sled so that both marks align with the sled edge. Slide the guide against the workpiece and lock it in place. With the workpiece resting against the cleat and the taper marks aligned with the edge, secure the workpiece with the hold-downs. Raise the blade to just above the top of the workpiece and cut the first taper.

If your workpiece has a second taper, place the angled cutoff from the first taper on the sled, then place the workpiece—with the tapered face down—on top of the cutoff, and secure it in place. Resting the workpiece on the cutoff holds it level to make sure the entry cut is perpendicular to the faces.

If your workpieces have tapers on three or four faces, use the cutoff to prop up the workpiece or to hold it parallel to the guide.