Ripping narrow pieces from wide stock

[rmlee]

I just purchased my first table saw this weekend and I'm trying to get a better handle on how to most effectively (and safely) use it. I need to rip some 2" wide pieces of 3/4" plywood and I'm trying to figure out the best way to do it where I don't end up wasting a bunch of wood. Say the plywood is 4' x 4' and I want to cut (4) 2" x 4' strips from it. It would seem the most accurate way to do this would be to set the rip fence (which is to the right of the blade) 2" from the blade and then run the board with the majority of the board to the left of the blade. My concern is that I'm asking for kickback with the waste side being so much larger than the piece I'm trying to create. On the other hand, I've never heard of someone (but I'm new so this doesn't mean much) putting the waste on the fence side. What's the proper way to make these cuts?

[Mike Marlow]

First, a question - you say you bought a table saw... more information, please. How big is the table? Do you have table extensions? Outfeed table? A basic 27" table is insufficient for cutting sheet goods. You will need support for the width of the piece that supports 2/3 of it, at a minimum. You'll also need some sort of support at the outfeed.

Assuming you have adequate support for sheet goods, then set your rip fence at some distance (arbitrary) greater than the desired 2". Secure a block of wood to the fence nearest you, at the edge of the saw table, that is equal to the "arbitrary" distance you cranked into the fence position. ie: if you put the fence 3 inches from the blade, then secure a 1" block to the fence. Now you can butt your stock up against the block to get a precise 2" position relative to the blade, but your stock will not be binding against the fence. That eliminates your kickback risk, and you can freely cut all the way through. Your block should only be a couple of inches long. You're not trying to run it up to the blade.

Fabricate and use a panel cutter (tons of stuff on the net about these) so that you have adequate support for your piece along it's back side. Don't try to simply use your miter as it came with the saw as it will not provide enough support to keep a 4' piece from rotating. If your sheet stock rotates you'll discover an entire world of high velocity excitement.

[Upscale]

One way to help lower the chance kickback is to have sufficient support tables for infeed and outfeed. If that's not possible, then I'd cut the

4'x4' piece down a bit with a circular saw or jigsaw and then cut to exact size on the tablesaw. Typically, if you're right handed, the wood being cut on the tablesaw is passed by the blade on the left side of the fence with your body being further to the left out of the flight path if a kickback occurs. Use a pushstick to run the board past the blade, (which means your hand is not reaching over the blade as you're cutting), the only part of your body that is exposed to the kickback flight path is your arm. Better that than the family jewels or something equally as bad.

[Leon]

The proper way to make these cuts is the way you described. Set the fence to 2" and cut. Use a push stick to push the right side and "Gently" keep the piece against the fence with your left hand by "Gently" pushing towards the fence. Since the waste side is not trapped between the fence and the blade, kick back is not much of a risk or likely. I seriously doubt that the blade would be able to flip a 4' square piece of 3/4" plywood and throw it back at you. With more practice and experience you will learn to recognize what situations are likely to produce kickback. This is not one of them.

[todd]

Unfortunately, if you experience a real kickback, you're directly in the line of fire. Kelly Mehler ("The Table Saw Book" and strong proponent of table saw safety) calls what I think you're talking about "ejection", where a typically narrow piece is forced straight back. In a true kickback (at least by his definition), a typically larger piece gets pinned between the blade and the fence. The rear of the blade picks up the back and you get free demonstration of the physics of moving bodies as the panel is shot out at approximately a 45 degree angle. Maybe we're just dealing with semantics, but I want to stress that standing to the left of the blade when the fence is on the right is not necessarily a safe location. As someone here said once, the only completely safe place to stand when cutting with a table saw is in the other room.

todd

[Tex]

Since you say you are new to table saws, I'll offer these other two suggestions and/or pieces of advice: (1) set the blade height to just clear the top of the wood being cut (1/4" to 3/8" max); and (2) watch your clothing (sleeve, etc.) to make SURE nothing can get caught in the blade.

A pushstick? - DEFINITELY! I use one with a handle about two inches above the wood surface with a pusher block on the back. It's long enough to be able to get downward pressure on the wood all the way thru the cut as well as making sure all parts of my hand are well above the blade. The long surface in contact with the wood and the downward pressure provides for good control.

Oh!, and keep a healthy respect for that saw FOREVER! It's not fear, exactly, but just remember THAT BLADE AIN'T YOUR FRIEND!

Good luck, be safe, and enjoy! Tex

[Upscale]

Sure, I can't argue with that sentiment. Sh*t happens and Murphy's law is always waiting in the wings to make an entrance. All one can do is to take reasonable precautions.

[wood_newbie]

Can you give me some more information about the 45-degree angle, Todd? I was always taught to stand to the left of the blade (right-side fence). Which plane is the kickback going to travel 45 degrees in? Is it upwards from the table or rearwards from the blade?

I have a set of Grrripers I use to rip with, and I find the easiest place to stand is often directly on the left side of the saw (legs braced against the cabinet)...that way I can keep the wood pressed down throughout the length of the cut and my hands are (relatively) protected from the blade even though they pass directly over it.

Thanks in advance Todd.

[dadiOH]

Leon gave you the straight dope. In addition to what he said, there is nothing that prevents you from initially ripping the wide piece into narrower ones - 12", 18", 24"...whatever - then ripping the 2" pieces from those more manageable sizes. In your case, you want 4-2" strips which = 8" plus the kerfs.

[Lew Hodgett]

[e-mail] wrote: > I just purchased my first table saw this weekend and I'm trying to get > a better handle on how to most effectively (and safely) use it. I need > to rip some 2" wide pieces of 3/4" plywood and I'm trying to figure out > the best way to do it where I don't end up wasting a bunch of wood. > Say the plywood is 4' x 4' and I want to cut (4) 2" x 4' strips from > it. It would seem the most accurate way to do this would be to set the > rip fence (which is to the right of the blade) 2" from the blade and > then run the board with the majority of the board to the left of the > blade.

As UPSCALE has suggested, cut this project down to size first.

Rip a piece about 10" wide first, then rip the 2" pieces from the 10" piece.

If you don't have infeed and outfeed tables to support the piece, get some help. I would NOT try to handle a 4x4 sheet with only a table saw top to support the piece.

If you have a circular saw and a straight edge, time to use it first as UPSCALE suggests.

Lew

[Swingman]

Absolutely agree. Started to post similar sentiments earlier this morning, but got sidetracked, then OE barfed and deleted my carefully worded masterpiece, so said to hell with it.

Simplest solution is to just cut the 4 x 4 sheet of plywood roughly in half based on the number of parts he needs, then proceed with his accurate cuts against the fence.

Or,

... a roller stand to the left of the table to support the width of the cutoff until it gets small enough not to want to tip off the saw table.

Tipping is liable to cause a good deal of harm to the edge of his cutoff, but unlikely to kick back, IME.

... more likely it will just provide an opportunity for an unscheduled change of under drawers.

[Ron Magen]

I don't disagree with any of the several 'answers' I've read.

HOWEVER, while they 'hint' at something critically important - they don't address it DIRECTLY. It is something you should have done BEFORE you bought the saw. {The 'operation' you want to perform is a very basic one}. Do a bit of research in view of WHAT YOU want to do and expect the saw to do. It doesn't even have to cost anything. Obviously, you can still do it now, but you will have to live with what you got . . . at least for a little while !! {like I did - many years ago}

Go to your local LIBRARY. Look for the woodworking section and books specific to tablesaws. A number of them will probably be old - but the very basics don't change. Skim through these books. More importantly, look for recently published books - some may even illustrate your saw !! Check these out and study them.

For specific 'Tips & Tricks' most libraries have copy machines {cheaper then the local 7-11}. It's worth a couple of dollars to put these in a 'shop notebook'.

Regards & Good Luck, Ron Magen Backyard Boatshop

[lwasserm]

First off, if you are new to using the tablesaw, I strongly recommend either reading a good book on using it (I really like Kelly Mehler's book myself) or taking a class/finding someone experienced to get you started.

That said, for the example you cited, cutting 2" wide strips off a 4' long piece of plywood, I wouldn't hesitate to set the fence at 2" and rip away, using a push stick as the end of the stock approacheds the blade. Now, if you were cutting such that you were getting 2" X 2' long strips, i.e. the stock with the 2 ft edge parallel to the blade, then you would likely experience the trouble you mention in your post. It would be difficult to keep the stock propery aligned using only a miter gauge. A sled or panel-cutting jig, both described in Mehler's and most other tablesaw books, would be appropriate. An extension fence on the miter gauge would also help, but not as much as a sled. OTOH, if you were cutting 1/4" plywood, as opposed to 3/4", it would probably be light enough that you could maintain enoug control using only a miter gauge with fence extension.

Again, I really recommend one of the many good books on using the tablesaw. They will help you work efficiently and safely and explain how to do many jobs on the TS that do not have obvious methods.

[damian penney]

As a newbie I went down this path and I heartily recommend not cutting sheetgoods on the table saw. Clamp a straightedge to the goods and use a good circular saw instead. I realise that you can cut sheetgoods with a tablesaw and many here do it regularly with no issues but it's not one of the simpler operations for a newbie to do safely.

Do an Amazon search for TruGrip, I have the 4ft, and 8ft guides and the sawbase and by using these I can do very accurate, safe cuts on sheetgoods. Good luck :)

[Leuf]

I would just add if the saw doesn't have a large table you may find it easier to rip off a piece that is large enough to cut all 4 pieces from first. In other words take 4 x 2" plus 3 saw kerfs 3 x 1/8" plus a little bit to be safe, so say 8.5". This makes the first cut a bit more balanced and at a width that you don't need a push stick for. Then when you are using the push stick you don't have so much weight to deal with.

-Leuf

[malathan_A_T_comcast.net]

One thing to do is make sure your saw is accurately setup. Following the manual on my Ridgid 3650, I lined everything up accurately using a T-square. Blade was 90 degrees and lined up accurately with the t-slot for miter gauge. But when I was using saw, sometime felt a tendancy for wood to pinch right at end. Solution: I went to Harbor Freight and got their caliber device (thingy abob...what every you call it...

), made a wooden holder and bolted it to it to run along miter slot. Found out my saw was slightly off. Worked and got it lined up correctly now. No more tendancy to pinch and kickback. Another thing to do is put the guage onto other miter trac against fence and make sure fence is perfectly parallel to the track as well.

- Clayton

[Upscale]

Here's an example of an edge guide that's the same as the Trugrip that Damian mentioned.

[Leon]

Started to post similar sentiments earlier this morning,

Humm... Actually, ALL of my posts are masterpieceseses'es that my son's English professor would swoon over, but I too use OE and from this point on blame any thing that does not look quite right, any where near right, or just simply totally off base on OE.

That's my excuse and I'm'a sticking with it.

Thanks Swingman for the inspiration. ;~)

[Upscale]

Of course. Why put effort into making up an original excuse when you can latch onto someone else's?

[Leon]

Exactly~~~ LOL My original involved me being part of the problem. :~)