TS75 101 question on measuring/marking

[ear3]

Now that I have the TS 75, as opposed to the old Bora clamp and circular saw, I'm wondering about best practices for marking/measuring/aligning.  On the old set-up, I knew exactly the distance from the edge of the saw to left of the blade, and would draw my pencil line accordingly, then align the clamp so as to split the pencil line.  With the TS75 and guide rail -- which I've only tested, but will be using in the coming week to cut large laminated plywood panels for a ceiling -- is it best when measuring/aligning to draw the line right on the desired measuring tape hash mark (say, 42"), and then set the rail so that it splits the pencil line, or is it best to draw the mark so that it's just to the right of the 42", and then have the guide rail set so that the pencil line is fully in view along the outer edge of the rail?  I feel like I have to revamp my setup techniques, which were developed to take account for the imprecision of my machines.  Thanks.

 

[Roseland]

Assuming you've trimmed the clear plastic strip on the rail, then that's exactly where the cut will be; no offsets needed.

If you haven't trimmed it yet, set the saw to a very shallow cut (say 6mm) and run the saw along on the track clamped to a piece of scrap.

If the TS75 is like the TS55 (and I guess it is) then there are marks on the blade cover plate which show the ends of the cut when fully plunged.

Andrew

 

[tjbnwi]

The edge of the splitter guard once trimmed by the saw will be set on the exact mark you need. Use a sharp pencil or awl to make the mark if you need high precision. You can also insert single edge razor blades in the plywood at desired dimension and gently butt the rail splinter guard against the razor blades. Make sure you remove the razor blades prior to cutting (this was a tip posted here [FOG], I don't recall the original author).

The rail and saw will yield the exact dimension from the measured edge to the rail splinter guard with the rail body towards the measured edge. You will loose 2.2 mm if you set rail with rail body away from the measured edge and do not adjust for the blade kerf.

I highly recommend a few test cuts to see how it all lays out. In time the splinter guard will loose some accuracy and it will need to be reset and retrimmed, eventually needing to be replaced.

Make sure you trim up the edge of the sheet, I use the anti kick back device that comes with the saws to set the rail to trim the edge.

Tom

 

[peter halle]

A lot will depend on what pencil type you use.  If you use a mechanical pencil like a .5 mm it will be different than if you use a carpenter pencil.  I use crows feet -^- And have the rail intersect the point.  I never use a carpenter pencil.

Peter

 

[rljatl]

And remember, the piece cut to your dimension should be the one under the guide rail.  The off-cut is the piece to the right, not under the guide rail.

 

[ear3]

Thanks for all the suggestions -- razor blades!  will have to try that one out.

One follow up -- how often do you use the clamps?  I would certainly use them for bevel cuts, but during the 90 degree test cuts it seemed like the rail was really snug to the board with no danger of slipping, especially with the weight of the TS75 on top of it.  Or is it better simply to be safe and certain every time with the clamps.

 

[tjbnwi]

Thanks for all the suggestions -- razor blades!  will have to try that one out.

One follow up -- how often do you use the clamps?  I would certainly use them for bevel cuts, but during the 90 degree test cuts it seemed like the rail was really snug to the board with no danger of slipping, especially with the weight of the TS75 on top of it.  Or is it better simply to be safe and certain every time with the clamps.

On slick smooth surface the clamps should be used. One of my favorites is the Rapid clamp.

Other than that, I do not use clamps that often to secure the rail for cutting.

Tom

 

[ear3]

Thanks Tom.

 

[semenza]

  I almost never use  the clamps for the rail. If I am cutting especially pricey stuff, slippery surface, special cut, etc., Then I use the clamps.

  As for marking... just keep in mind that the saw will remove everything that is to the right of the anti-splinter strip. So with that in mind you can just decide how you want to measure and mark to suit your own preference.

Seth

 

[semenza]

  Here are some pictures of the razor blade method. Sorry about the fuzzy pictures they are from a long time ago taken with a bad camera.

Rail pushed up against the blades.

        [attachimg=1]

A stack of pieces ready to cut. If you look closely you can see the line that the blade is on / in.

      [attachimg=2]

Seth

 

[ear3]

Hard to see from the picture, but it looks like you're splitting the line (which is pretty thick) with the razor blade?  Good thing about the guide rail is it's straightness, so I should only have to mark front and end of cut.  The problem with the Bora clamps was that there was flex in them, especially on the longer ones, so had to scribe a line all the way down to make sure there was no deviation.

How refreshing to be able to cut with precision.

 

[semenza]

    Yeah, I don't actually remember if I was splitting the line or not. I generally don't because the T-squares that I mark with work out so that butting to the line is perfect. Left, right, splitting will just depend on the marking tools and method you prefer. But knowing that the blade will take everything to the offcut (right) of the anti-splinter strip makes it easy to set the rail. And I have gotten quicker at it and don't use the razor blades much anymore either.

Seth

 

[grbmds]

Maybe just using the razor blades rather than marking at all would be the most accurate. I haven't found it to be a problem. I've used .05mm lead (which breaks a lot) and I've even tried the graphite from Woodpeckers which mounts in a utility knife (which also break a lot and is expensive), but overall I have found that I have not noticed any real differences no matter which way I mark as I'm more accurate that I was before because of the saw and rail. I do tend to measure less and duplicate lengths and widths with story stick type measuring also now.

 

[semenza]

    A .9mm lead fits really well in the Woodpecker's T-square 1mm holes. It breaks less, and because it nearly fills the hole it actually helps accuracy compared to the .5mm that can wonder slightly. Even though the line is thicker the mark is more consistent. I find that the thickness of the line (for this type of marking) doesn't matter since I place the anti-splinter strip at the edge of the line and get accurate final cuts. The location of the T-square holes relative to the measurement work out that way. I also find that the thicker line makes it visually easier to set the rail in the correct place. I like 2B lead.

Seth