How to Make a Burr Puzzle Jig From Scrap Wood.

Hello everybody online. This is going to be my most important Instructable for making Burr puzzles. Burrs are puzzles that have blocks with notches cut into them so that they can fit together. These notches can be different but most are like the ones I am going to show you. This jig is very important because it makes puzzle piece making safe, easy and accurate.

1. Saw (Table saw is necessary for this)
2. Table saw guide.
3. Knife
4. Two clamps of some sort
5. 1 X 2 X 7 inch wood

To start off get a piece of wood about 1 X 2 X 7 (can be larger but I used a scrap piece). You then cut it in half so you have two 1 X 1 X 7 pieces. One of the pieces will be used as the back and will stay whole, the second piece will be cut in half and will be used to hold the puzzle pieces. The final two pictures show how high the blade will be raised. I chose about .25 inches because my puzzle pieces are .5 X .5 by #. The height may be different depending on the design of your puzzle.

The set up is relatively simple. I cut a .5 X .5 X 1.5 piece and sandwiched it into the jig and tightened it into place as you can see in the second picture. You can then put it against the saw blade to see where you want the cut.

Once you have the piece lined up with the saw and you are ready to cut, slide it all the way through using the guide to make a straight cut. Depending on the size of your saw and the kerf of the cut you will probably need to make a couple passes, slide the guide over a bit for each cut to make the proper slot size. You can use a knife or sand paper to clean up the slot and it will then be ready to use.

Here is what a finished puzzle piece can look like. The thing about burrs is there are tons of different puzzle designs and therefore several more puzzle piece designs. I really hope this simple puzzle piece making jig will help many others make puzzles of there own designs so they can enjoy. Please share and vote for this in the contest page.