jonny round boy
Member
- Joined
- Jul 21, 2007
- Messages
- 3,227
I had to cut some ply sheets up yesterday, and took the opportunity to photograph this very simple tip.
[attachthumb=1]
Whenever I cut up sheets, I like to remove the factory edges first, as these are often rough & damaged. I tend to cut off a few mm, to ensure I remove any dings/dents and get a nice, clean edge.
I've discovered over time that the vast majority of man-made boards are cut completely square, and since I don't have a quick, reliable method of ensuring square cuts across a 4' board, I tend to use the factory edges as a guide. This means that any trimming I do needs to be completely parallel to the factory edge to avoid moving out of square.
I've found that the perfect tool for assisting with this is the FS-RSP 'Kickback Stop', part number 491582. It's perfect as it's always to hand whenever I use the saw (I keep one attached to each of my rails so I can't lose them).
To do the trimming, I simply place the rail roughly 1-2mm back from the edge:
[attachthumb=2]
Then, using the protruding part of the kickback stop, place it against the rubber edge of the guiderail & push it over as far as the stop will allow:
[attachthumb=3]
Repeat at the far end:
[attachthumb=4]
At this point I always re-check the first end to ensure it didn't move. You now have the rail set perfectly parallel to the factory edge, and can cut as normal:
[attachthumb=5]
This trims the edge, leaving a thin sliver of an offcut:
[attachthumb=6]
Leaving a couple of mm of material on the waste side of the cut ensures that all but the very worst edge damage is removed. As the whole of the blade is cutting (as opposed to just one side) it also means the blade doesn't try to deflect at all, so the edge remains square & true.
Anyway, I thought I'd share this very basic tip with the forum. Apologies if it's teaching grannies to suck eggs... [blink]
[attachthumb=1]
Whenever I cut up sheets, I like to remove the factory edges first, as these are often rough & damaged. I tend to cut off a few mm, to ensure I remove any dings/dents and get a nice, clean edge.
I've discovered over time that the vast majority of man-made boards are cut completely square, and since I don't have a quick, reliable method of ensuring square cuts across a 4' board, I tend to use the factory edges as a guide. This means that any trimming I do needs to be completely parallel to the factory edge to avoid moving out of square.
I've found that the perfect tool for assisting with this is the FS-RSP 'Kickback Stop', part number 491582. It's perfect as it's always to hand whenever I use the saw (I keep one attached to each of my rails so I can't lose them).
To do the trimming, I simply place the rail roughly 1-2mm back from the edge:
[attachthumb=2]
Then, using the protruding part of the kickback stop, place it against the rubber edge of the guiderail & push it over as far as the stop will allow:
[attachthumb=3]
Repeat at the far end:
[attachthumb=4]
At this point I always re-check the first end to ensure it didn't move. You now have the rail set perfectly parallel to the factory edge, and can cut as normal:
[attachthumb=5]
This trims the edge, leaving a thin sliver of an offcut:
[attachthumb=6]
Leaving a couple of mm of material on the waste side of the cut ensures that all but the very worst edge damage is removed. As the whole of the blade is cutting (as opposed to just one side) it also means the blade doesn't try to deflect at all, so the edge remains square & true.
Anyway, I thought I'd share this very basic tip with the forum. Apologies if it's teaching grannies to suck eggs... [blink]
