I have a few scraps of 3/16" lumber core plywood that I scarfed from a friend's woodbin many years ago. I've never used lumber core plywood, so last night was my first cutting experience with it.
I was holding the small panel down with my Gripper and as I fed the panel into the blade, the blade kind of jerked every few inches. The same thing happened on 2 cuts, so I thought maybe the bearings were shot or the belt was slipping. I followed up by cutting some 1/4" MDF as a test and it cut nice and smooth.
When I look at the edges of the plywood, I don't see any voids on the cut edge, shown below.
Is that wood core or particle board core? The only explanation that I can come up with is that the board's kerf is closing behind the cut and rubbing on the blade. There are usually burn marks, though. If so, this is prime-time for kickback.
It looks like it has a grain structure (ends seen in the first picture), so probably not particle board. Does the sheet want to curl one direction? Maybe it's a very thick ply taken off the tree in a similar manner with a couple of standard plys to hide the ugliness. Stress may there because the tree has been clayed flat?
Never used mine. They seemed too complicated to set up unless I were running production.
I don't think that is lumber core. That looks like common thin plywood.
But to answer your question, and maybe that is like lumber core, I rebuilt the kitchen in our previous home 30 years ago with lumber core for the cabinets. 3/4" lumber core that is. It has what looks like dental floss running between the exterior veneer and the lumber inner ply. It would make a distinct popping sound when cutting through those strings.
Looking at the pictures you posted further down, still I think it is common thin plywood.
Plywood has an odd number of plies. When you get down to 1/4 and thinner there are as little as 3 plies, so it looks like lumber core.
I build a boat load of doors, boxes, and drawers with 1/4", actually thinner but that is what I order. About half of my stock looks like your sample and half is 5 ply, 2 very thin outer veneer plies and 3 slightly thicker plies.
Then there is Baltic birch and all the plies are thin and equal thicknesses, including the outer veneers.
Soooo after all of that I have not ordered or purchased lumber core in years. Maybe the size, like yours, is lumber core and is dirt cheap by comparison.
FWIW lumber core is a desirable material if you are going to be screwing into the side or edge like a regular board. And you can easily see the individual boards glued side by side.
The 3/4" lumber core literally looks like a bunch of, slightly thinner stock than 3/4", narrow 1~3 inches wide with a single veneer on top and bottom. AND the grain runs in the same direction on all layers, unlike plywood and your sample.
I only use the single side "L" shaped foot to hold one side up when cutting stock significantly thinner stock.
I leave those feet on both units and only make adjustments for thin and variable thickness stock.
They are great for cutting wide groves when you need to insure that the panel or board is flat on the TS top for an even depth of cut. This is not so important when doing this operation on "perfectly" flat material. But life is too short to look for perfectly flat material, especially plywood type panels.
However MDO and MDF come very close to being perfectly flat but anything long enough will bend under it's own weight.
I have to agree with Leon on the "overthinking" comment.
I rarely have to change the set up on mine, other than the move the gap based on what width I am cutting. Most times I just grab it and cut.
My main use is for small pieces of wood. If I need to fix something around the house I wouldn't hesitate to grab a 6" length of wood (or shorter) and rip it to size. The Gripper holds both sides of the wood through and beyond the blade. Once it's past the blade, I keep the Gripper in place and slide both pieces around the blade and back to me.
Have you ever watched this video? Don't worry about the fluff words, or even the more complicated uses. Just watch the thin rips and simple stuff that you probably wouldn't (shouldn't) try with a feather board and push stick.
If you just watch the first two minutes you'll see that type of cuts that I use it for all the time.
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I have an extra side plate that lets me cut 1/8" strips for edge banding all day long without moving the fence.
This video is much longer, but it shows just about everything you can do if you have all the extra accessories. Over the past few years, the kids have bought me pieces and parts as gifts. Some things I've never used (yet).
Debris stuck on the board or a splinter poking out and it hitting the front edge of the table as you fed the board. I've had this happen on the jointer, also, usually a splinter catching on the jointer fence.
Have a miter saw? Make a pass on the miter saw, see if there is a hesitation with the cut.
4 cuts? I think not. Pieces were fully on the table from start to finish.
Didn't seem to be any hesitation on the MS. Tried another pass on the TS and it didn't seem to be as smooth a cutting experience. Sounded different, more jerky.
I don't either but I'll have to play around some more.
I don't recall using really small stock. The issue I have is that I've taught myself to never reach beyond the back of the blade and I work from behind the fence. The Gripper requires both reaching over the blade and on the blade side of the fence.
I just watched the series. Interesting but using it on other tools was suspect.
But that defeats the purpose of the "never" rule. It's like dropping a knife - FEET APART = HANDS AWAW. There is no time to think "except".
One my cow-orkers was amazed that I didn't go for a dropped soldering iron. It was a learned reaction. I don't give a crap about the iron or the floor.
Sleds are a better idea, IMO.
There are a lot simpler, cheaper, and likely better pushblocks for jointers. No complication needed.
Bandsaw? I think featherboards work, though these might be a good addition. I did like the demonstration of the fenceless veneer resaw. ...but if your "bandsaw doesn't have a fence", wouldn't it be a good idea to buy one?
When I'm able to get back into the shop (and after it's cleaned), I'll pull them out and watch the video again.
I use sleds on my TS as needed, but I don't see either device as a replacement for the other.
How would I easily cut 1/8" edge banding strips on a sled - in a grab and go manner like with the Gripper?
How would I rip a 6" x 2" scrap down to 1" on a sled - - in a grab and go manner like with the Gripper?
Sure, there are other ways of doing all sorts of cuts, but the Gripper usually needs, at most, a couple of knobs loosened and then tightened after a leg is slid into position. The stabilizer accessory finds its own spot with just a loosening/tightening of 2 knobs. There really is no "set-up delay", at least not in the way that I use it. It's ready in a manner of seconds, usually quicker than I could even grab a sled off the shelf.
Again, I don't have a jointer, but if I did, I might look at the situation a bit differently. From a cost perspective, I wouldn't apply the total cost to the jointer use. Since the tool is usable on other tools, the cost gets spread across all of them. In fact, for me, the cost would be worth it just for the TS. Any other use would just be a bonus.
As far as "simpler", your opinion might be slanted at this point since you appear to think that it is a complicated device. That might change once you get used to it. Just a thought.
"Likely better push blocks" for a jointer: Again, I can't speak to that. Maybe somebody else can.
Not if the Gripper fits the need. ;-)
I originally kept mine stashed and pulled it out when needed. Now I use it so often that I built a small shelf - using the Gripper ;-) - so that it hangs on the wall right where I hang my miter gauge and TS fence.
re: "When I'm able to get back into the shop..."
I hope you are feeling better. I got back into the shop sooner that I expected after my rotator cuff surgery. Be diligent with your PT but don't over do it. I made that mistake years ago when I had a bicep tendon repaired. I set myself behind by trying to do too much. My PT couldn't understand why I wasn't progressing until we had an in-depth discussion about what I was doing at home. This time I followed the rules and, according to my therapist, I'm actually ahead of schedule.
Then again, as my surgeon told me after my most recent assessment, (and I'm sure he told the same thing after he fixed my bicep tendon) "I'm really good at this, but even I can't give you back what God gave you."
This guy is a professor of Orthopaedic Surgery and chief of the Shoulder and Elbow division at a local medical center. Takes care of most the sports teams, minor league and college. You gotta respect a guy that knows he's one of the best but isn't so arrogant that he thinks he's God.
Reaching in front, in back, directly over the blade is not an issue if you have control and a barrier between you and the blade. More and more the trend is to get away from a push stick, where the stock can easily lift and fly back at you, and move towards a modified form of the push stick. It tends to be several inches long and mostly rests on top of the work. The trailing end has a hook to push the stock through. You have much better control over possible kick back and stock raising on the back side of the blade. This style is what I use mostly plus Gripper push blocks, if I really need good control on a particular cutting procedure like groves.
My experience has been, when standing on the opposite side of the fence and pushing with a stick is that you are more likely to have a mishap. You have very little control to keep the work in place. And you are not pushing directly in line with the fence. Yes standing further away keeps you more out of the line of fire should things happen but I have been hit by debris more often when I don't have absolute control of the stock. That is hard to do when you are leaning over the fence.
I recall reading an instruction manual on driving an automobile.
Never attempt to drive up a hill with out downshifting. Only a show off would attempt doing that.
That never rule is obsolete. Push blocks were pretty much non existent when that rule was made up.
Having control of your stock is more important than pushing from a distance and hoping for the best outcome.
Well you can pick it up if you have welders gloves on. ;~)
When I was about 12 years old I was melting relatively large of solder. My dad was an electrician for Western Electric. He had one of those big soldering irons and I could keep a lot of solder in a liquid state.
I was wondering how big of a blob I could keep melted. Turns out pretty darn big. And then it rolled off of the picnic table on to my bare leg and splattered. I had to peel the solidified solder off of my leg.
Live and learn.
Start simple. Oh and I found that spraying a bit of dry lube on the middle section makes the center section more easily to slide from one side to the other.
So, if not cutting thin strips, 1/8", from a narrow piece to begin with I find it safer to let the thin pieces come off on the waste side of the blade. You can use a fixed stop, similar to a feather board, 1/8" to the left of the blade. Push the fence and stock up to that stop and you do not have thin stock between the fence and the fence. Next piece reposition the fence and stock up to the stop again.
Understood but over-complication isn't useful. Good pushblocks are $10 or less. No need to bugger up more elaborate tools.
Why, pushblocks only need to push and keep the dijits out of the spinnin' parts.
Riiiggghht.
It's sure started out ugly. Surgery last Thursday. Much pain, like a footfull of blisters starting Saturday. On-call nurse told to basically suck it up. Went in yesterday and they found a nice purple hematoma covering a third of my forearm. Yeah, sorta felt like blisters.
My ortho gave me three choices. Do nothing - long recovery and most likely major loss of wrist motion. Reset under anesthesia, long recovery with loss likely less than #1. #3 surgery with screws and plates, with a shorter recovery (really?) and while not no loss of motion, less than #1 or #2. Not much of a choice.
If you want the best knee guy, go to a medical center close to ski resorts.
I had a thoracic surgeon who thought he was a god. I had no problems with his bedside manner. I only saw him once and I wasn't there for chit chat. As long as he was as good as he thought he was, I was fine with it (rubbed SWMBO the wrong way though). His PAs were the opposite. I wondered how they got along.
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