Short vs Long Rip Fence

[Paul D]

OK curiosity got me, I just have to ask ..... how did you manage that?

[Leon]

I had just completed making narrow dado/grooves in some tool box sides and had turned the saw off, walked a couple of steps to put the board in the previously cut stack and came back to remove the rip fence. As I was reaching over to grab the back of the fence I drug my thumb across the very top of the slowly turning blade. Since my cuts were not "through", a guard would not have been usable. I was simply in a little bit too much of a hurry. I still recall the feeling of each tooth hitting my thumb and violently shaking my hand. Had the blade been running at full speed I suspect the cut would have been quite quick and with less exaggerated shaking of my hand.

For several months I thought I had actually had a kick back but all my wood was neatly stacked and there was no blood on the wood.

It was a freak accident that 20/20 hind sight can easily foresee but no one is perfect.

[bridgerfafc]

even though I have a pretty nice jointer, I often find it convenient to straighten boards on the table saw. set the fence for the nominal width of the board, run it through, flip it, run it through, increment the fence 1/64th or so, repeat. pretty soon you have a board that is straight and has parallel edges. the straightness you can achieve with this method is affected by the length of your fence- the longer the better.

[Paul D]

One advantage of old age catching up on you over the years, you probably dont move as quick now so the chances of it happening again are very slim. With the blade at full speed you would not have felt each tooth. As a simple 'semi' guard when cutting non through cuts is a piece of perspex / lexon screwed flat on the top of the fence ( assuming you dont have a very high fence) works well. it won't totally stop access from the side of the blade but at least it is a bit of a barrier. I have a radial arm saw I am always very wary of doing a similar thing with. Although they are very handy machine the design of them has a lot to be desired, safety wise. Unfortunately for them to be practical the blade is always exposed near your hand. Although I have it guarded well from the side there is still the area directly in front of the blade where you have easy access. It's a 14"

3hp direct drive and takes nearly 3 minutes to run down totally.

Thanks for sharing your experience.

[Paul D]

Why do 12 runs through saw bench readjusting each time when you have the correct tool whic would do the job in 1 or 2 rund with no setup time? You mast have a lot more spare time on your hands than me.

[charlie b]

bridgerfafc:

I think, with your "use the table saw as a joiner", you've provided support for the Short Fence. What you described

-straightening a crooked board on a table saw with a long fence - isn't such a good idea, or a safe practice, especially when you do have a joiner and perhaps a joiner hand plane (#6 for short stuff, #7 for longer stuff or a #8 for the Arnold S. folks who just like to lift heavy things).

Now if I understand your method correctly, you have both the front and rear edge of the crooked board against the rip fence as you start and end the rip cut. Let's say the board in question is 36" long. That would require 36" of fence from the front of the blade as well as 36" of fence behind the front of the blade. Unless you have an auxillary fence added on to the back of your fence as well as to the front of your rip fence, you'd be asking for trouble, even if you have a riving knife in place.

A short fence won't let you even consider making the cut you describe. Just because it's possible to do something doesn't mean it's safe to do. And my point with the short fence - though implied but not stated - was safety.

Re: It's possible so I'll try it. I've got a 12" sliding compound miter saw that'll CROSS CUT a tad over 12" WIDE boards. Since it works sort of like a radial arm saw I figured I could rip a wide board with it - ie cutting "with the grain" rather than the intended "acrossed the grain". I took the precaution of using one of the saw's hold downs - and clamped that sucker down nice and tight.

When the first saw tooth made contact with the end grain, or within nano seconds afterward, all hell broke loose, as did the fence and the support to which the hold down was attached! The chunk of wood blown off my board was never found and it took me a while to find, and get my heart back in my chest. Figured I should do that before I went in and changed my shorts - priorities you know.

USE THE RIGHT TOOL FOR THE JOB!

DON'T TRY AND MAKE A TOOL OR MACHINE DO WHAT IT WASN'T DESIGNED TO DO!

Neither is good for you - or the tool. One of the objectives is to have you AND the tool last a lifetime - in good working order.

rant mode OFF

charlie b

[JustMe]

JustMe wrote: