Who are you talking to? The reference headers make it look like you posted this as a response to Woodcrafter, but he clearly is saying the same thing. Quoting some context would make your post make more sense.
And it drives others of us crazy that someone would post without using a real newsreader, especially if they don't have the intelligence to use one.
If you choose not to quote relevant material in your replies, keep quite quiet.
If I didn't have shop made versions, I could do it with my $7 jointer push blocks.
Barry
SEVEN DOLLARS for "jointer push blocks"??!! ... you must be rich. ;>)
Actually, that's what I thought until I actually scored a pair of subject devices. I do think they're pricy and that, unfortunately, puts the device into the realm of the "boy toy" for those who have more money than experience and must have one or two of everything and damn the cost.
However, if they cost only $12, my bet is that you would throw away those "$7 jointer push blocks" in a heartbeat,
The bottom line for any tool/device/jig/whatever is whether you would replace it if it were lost or stolen ... I would be guilty in this case.
The bright orange set of three ?
I've got a set of those - I should have saved the money. They're a nice idea and the bright orange colour stops me loosing them, but the black rubber base is poor quality and falls apart. When I realised this was leaving black marks on the workpiece, I had to replace it.
Next time I'd just make my own.
First of all, that's a bandsaw job, just to avoid the kerf wastage and the risk of shattering brittle ebony. Secondly you rip it long and crosscut later.
I do rip 1/4" thick strips fairly often and I do it with a long stick that's a shade under 1/4" wide. This also has a long foot on it. Now this stick gives as good control of the workpiece as Grr-Ripper, keeps my hands further from the blade, but it does require rather more user dexterity.
If I was ripping lots of this material, I'd quite possibly make a Grr-Ripper-like device. If I only need it to work at one setting and not be adjustable, then this is easy. Even if I _liked_ the idea, this is still an expensive gadget and I can make my own.
The thing I just don't like about Grr-Ripper is the need to lower the sawblade. Now that in itself is a contributor to hazard - no safety device that requires you to change something to make it even more hazardous can be an entirely good thing.
Grr-Ripper is a clever device. It looks well made and well-thought out as a piece of engineering. If I were sawing grooves into shoji runners, I might well want such a device - a flat plate with a heel hook behind and a side straddle to stop it wobbling. But this is a pretty contrived example - I _have_ such pushblocks already (job-specific) and my point is that I'd never think of using them for ripping, because of the blade height.
Andy, I have a lot of respect for you and your breadth of knowledge. I view you as renaissance man and you contribute a lot to this conference. I'm disappointed in reading this thread. I think you've ripped your britches giving such firm opinions about a device it appears you've never even used for a minute. It hurts your otherwise outstanding credibility.
Bob
sorry for the multi-post....some reason my computer was real slow and I thought it was not posting......second thing....you can lead a horse to water but you can not make them drink.....stupid is stupid....and some people can not see the forrest because of the woods.....not going to change some hard-headed persons mind...so I won't try...I give up! Don't care if you want to take a chance on cutting all your damn fingers off, just don't do it in my shop...I won't let you Mike
appears you've never even used
That's a fair comment, in general don't listen to the guy who hasn't actually used it. And I might just be plain wrong - wouldn't be the first time. I'm still waiting to hear any rebuttal of my key point though.
I don't like this thing because it requires me to lower the blade when ripping, something I think is more dangerous than any advantage gained by using it. Now if you personally disagree over the positioning issue, then that's fair comment - but you don't need to _handle_ the Grr-Ripper to know that it's going to involve it.
There are a few cases when it could be useful. But for these I can make a push block as I need it - I don't need adjustability.
As an adjustable push block, it's a great piece of work. But I don't need an adjustable push block, and this is an expensive substitute for a simple non-adjustable one.
I don't doubt they are nice, but somewhere you have to draw the line when it comes to tool indulgence.
Why?
Mine are white.
Mine don't fall apart, but they weren't that "grippy" until they were introduced to 60 grit. These don't mark the wood, either.
Barry
standard blade
Just because it's called a "stick" doesn't mean it has to look like a twig. You can put a base on them that's just as big and controllable as the Grr-Ripper.
The difference is that the Grr-Ripper is low. So low that I can't fit it past the blade, without dropping the blade to a position I'd regard as less than ideal for ripping.
to install it
Sorry, I worded that badly - I was thinking about separate wedge splitters (which is what I'd have to use if I'd dropped my riving knife off for a cut).
I assume you either have not used a Grr-ripper or the blade on your saw is
12" or larger. As far as I know, the Grr-ripper is designed to completely clear the portion of a 10" blade that extends above the table when fully raised. It's a little late at night to do it now, but tomorrow I will go out into the shop (a/k/a the garage) and confirm this. I will also mount a 12" blade in my old saw and see how close that clearance is. Perhaps I'll even post a photo or two at a-b-p-w.Lee
Just for the sake of discussion, how much higher than the wood do you raise the blade? My experience with ripping is that the cleanest cuts are ones where the blade is about halfway between the bottom and top of the deepest gullets, with the emphasis on making sure that the carbide tips are above the wood at the top of the rise.
Not sure what the problem is that he's having, but the pictures on the microjig.com website shows that it can easily clear 5" which is well above the maximum height of a 10" blade.
Huh? Looking at the Microjig site, they claim that the narrow leg is 1/4" wide. Scaling from that the throat depth is about an inch. Now, scaling from an online photo is not the most accurate process in the world, but still there's no way I'm off by a factor of 5 on that.
I don't understand the mechanics of the danger of lowering the blade when ripping. Could you elaborate? My understanding is that kickback originates at the rear of the blade with the teeth catching the wood enough to kick it back. How does lowering the blade increase the likelihood of this process happening?
Thanks, Bob
Think about it for a minute with the idea that, with the blade at its highest setting, the front teeth are now biting into the wood at an increased angle (almost straight down toward the table if the board is thin enough), thereby creating downward pressure (toward the table) on the board where the teeth are doing the cutting
If you try it, you will be able to actually feel that this increased downward pressure offsets a tendency for the board to rise up off the table while being cut when the blade is set lower.
Many feel this reduces the risk of kickback ... and a good argument can be made that every little factor in your favor helps.
You're forgetting one thing though. With the blade raised to it's maximum height, there's more blade in the meat of the wood increasing the chances of the wood pinching the blade and being hurled in a kickback. Of course, a splitter is supposed to protect against that, but a splitter is not infallible against this type of action. While you're probably right about the front teeth coming down on the wood pressing it into the table, the reverse is true on the back teeth coming up to the wood increasing the chances that it's going to raise the rear section of the wood setting up a kickback scenario.
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