Adjustable accessory fence for a miter saw

Abstract

An adjustable accessory fence for a miter saw includes a generally rectangular, elongated arm having a front surface, an opposing rear surface, a stop extending from the rear surface, a tapered end, an opening extending between the front and rear surfaces, and a plurality of threads disposed within the opening. A threaded set screw engages the threads of the arm and adjustably projects from the rear surface of the arm. The arm is detachably coupled to a cutting fence of the miter saw. The arm pivots about the stop when the set screw is adjusted to project from the rear surface of the arm and contact the cutting fence, the front surface of the arm providing a cutting guide having an adjustable angular relationship with respect to the cutting fence, said angular relationship being established by the projecting position of the set screw.

1 . An adjustable accessory fence for a miter saw, comprising:
 a generally rectangular, elongated arm having:
 a front surface, 
 an opposing rear surface, 
 a stop extending from the rear surface, the stop further including an edge, 
 a tapered end, 
 an opening extending between the front and rear surfaces, and 
 a plurality of threads disposed within the opening; and 
   a threaded set screw engaging the threads of the arm and adjustably projecting from the rear surface of the arm,   wherein the arm is detachably coupled to a cutting fence of the miter saw such that the edge of the stop engages the cutting fence, and   wherein the arm pivots about the stop when the set screw is adjusted to project from the rear surface of the arm and contact the cutting fence, the front surface of the arm providing a cutting guide having an adjustable angular relationship with respect to the cutting fence, said angular relationship being established by the projecting position of the set screw.   
   
   
       2 . The adjustable accessory fence of  claim 1 , further comprising a fastener to detachably couple the arm to the cutting fence. 
   
   
       3 . The adjustable accessory fence of  claim 2  wherein the fastener is a biased clamp. 
   
   
       4 . The adjustable accessory fence of  claim 1 , further comprising an adjustment tool sized and shaped to engage the set screw, the adjustment tool being movable to adjust the projecting position of the set screw. 
   
   
       5 . The adjustable accessory fence of  claim 4  wherein:
 the adjustment tool includes a drive end; and   the set screw further includes a drive portion sized and shaped to receive the drive end of the adjustment tool.   
   
   
       6 . The adjustable accessory fence of  claim 4 , further comprising:
 a plurality of indices surrounding the opening in the front surface of the arm; and   a pointer coupled to the adjustment tool, the pointer cooperating with the indices to provide an indication of the angular relationship between the cutting fence and the front surface of the arm.   
   
   
       7 . The adjustable accessory fence of  claim 6  wherein the indices are integrally formed with the arm. 
   
   
       8 . The adjustable accessory fence of  claim 6  wherein the indices are applied to the arm. 
   
   
       9 . The adjustable accessory fence of  claim 8  wherein the indices are in the form of a printed label. 
   
   
       10 . The adjustable accessory fence of  claim 8  wherein the indices are applied with at least one of a pencil, ink pen, permanent marker and stencil. 
   
   
       11 . The adjustable accessory fence of  claim 1  wherein the stop is integrally formed with the arm. 
   
   
       12 . The adjustable accessory fence of  claim 1  wherein the stop is made separately and attached to the arm. 
   
   
       13 . The adjustable accessory fence of  claim 12  wherein the stop is fixedly attached to the arm at a predetermined position. 
   
   
       14 . The adjustable accessory fence of  claim 12  wherein the stop is movable to select positions along the length of the arm and is selectably securable thereto. 
   
   
       15 . The adjustable accessory fence of  claim 1  wherein:
 the threads of the opening of the arm are internal threads; and   the threaded set screw includes external threads sized and shaped to engage the internal threads of the opening.   
   
   
       16 . The adjustable accessory fence of  claim 1  wherein the threads within the opening are integrally formed with the arm. 
   
   
       17 . The adjustable accessory fence of  claim 1  wherein the threads of the opening further comprise a threaded insert. 
   
   
       18 . An adjustable accessory fence for a miter saw, comprising:
 a generally rectangular, elongated arm having:
 a front surface, 
 an opposing rear surface, 
 a stop extending from the rear surface, the step further including an edge, 
 a tapered end, 
 an opening extending between the front and rear surfaces, and 
 a plurality of threads disposed within the opening; 
   a threaded set screw engaging the threads of the arm and adjustably projecting from the rear surface of the arm;   an adjustment tool sized and shaped to engage the set screw through the opening, the adjustment tool being movable to adjust the projecting position of the set screw; and   a biased fastener to detachably couple the arm to a cutting fence of the miter saw,   wherein the arm is detachably coupled to the cutting fence such that the edge of the stop engages the cutting fence, and   wherein the arm pivots about the stop when the set screw is adjusted to project from the rear surface of the arm and contact the cutting fence, the front surface of the arm providing a cutting guide having an adjustable angular relationship with respect to the cutting fence, said angular relationship being established by the projecting position of the set screw.   
   
   
       19 . The adjustable accessory fence of  claim 18 , further comprising:
 a plurality of indices surrounding the opening in the front surface of the arm; and   a pointer coupled to the adjustment tool, the pointer cooperating with the indices to provide an indication of the angular relationship between the cutting fence and the front surface of the arm.   
   
   
       20 . A method for providing a cutting guide having an adjustable relationship with respect to a cutting fence of a miter saw, the method comprising the steps of:
 providing a generally rectangular, elongated arm having a front surface and an opposing rear surface;   extending a stop from the rear surface of the arm, the stop further including an edge;   tapering an end of the stop;   forming an opening in the arm, the opening extending between the front and rear surfaces;   forming a plurality of threads within the opening;   engaging the threads of the arm with a threaded set screw, the set screw adjustably projecting from the rear surface of the arm;   detachably coupling the arm to the cutting fence such that the edge of the stop engages the cutting fence; and   adjusting the set screw to project from the rear surface of the arm and contact the cutting fence, the arm pivoting about the stop,   wherein the front surface of the arm provides a cutting guide having an adjustable angular relationship with respect to the cutting fence, said angular relationship being established by the projecting position of the set screw.