Wide jigsaw blade

[Kodi Crescent]

I have this crazy idea.  I want to take a regular fence and make it a privacy screen by adding some rectangular holes through it.  Making a circular or elongated hole is easy.  But how do you take the rounded corners and make them square in a time-efficient manner? 

One idea I've thought about taking a stack of jigsaw blades (enough to get the desired width), cutting off all the shafts except for one, and then brazing the set together.  I would then have a wide jigsaw blade that could make a large square cut fairly quickly (at least I think).  Has anyone tried anything like this?  Is there a better way to make a rectangular hole with square corners?

 

[danrush]

I suppose in a perfect work place your idea could work, but what if the one saw shaft you don't cut ( the one in the machine) snaps?  Then you've blown " X " number of blades and time. 

It seems to me you would be better off drilling out the meat of the hole, and trimming up with a jig saw.

If not that perhaps create a jig and use a trim router to cut the rectangle?  You would still need to clean up the corners...

Just a couple of thoughts, Dan

 

[Kodi Crescent]

I had considered making the hole with the Domino and then using my contraption to clean up the corners.  I'd have to be really careful to not snap the shaft.  But yes, you are right, if the one was busted then that would be a waste of a bunch of blades at once.

 

[danrush]

I didn't realize the holes were as small as dominoes.  Maybe use the domino, then clean up the corners with a coarse file or rasp.  I assume the fencing is a soft wood.

Sometimes we look too hard for a machine to complete the work we can complete quicker and better by hand.  I often look past my chisels, planes, and other time-tested tools, only to come home to them late into the job.

Dan

 

[mastercabman]

...... crazy idea.? 

YEP !  [laughing] [laughing] [laughing]

 

[Kodi Crescent]

The fencing would probably be cedar.  I'm assuming it is soft.  I guess a file could do the job.

After I thought about this more I realized that the blade guides for a jigsaw would probably prevent the execution of the blade stack idea.

 

[Julian Tracy]

Why not get a high-quality 1/8 or 3/16 carbide spiral it and use it in a laminate trimmer with a simple template.  With such a small radius. maybe no need to follow up on the corners.

JT

 

[Wonderwino]

You could easily cut the basic mortice with the Domino or a router with the appropriate sized bit.  A good mortice chisel the same width as the hole would make cleaning the corners easier and cleaner than a jigsaw.

 

[The Trainer]

OK, here is the thing....the idea that you have is great, but to waste a lot of blades for this job seems to me like a nono! Perhaps you could consider another option that will however involve you buying a special tool to do the job. The Fein Multimaster....this is a perfect companion to all the Festool gear that anyone can have and it will do the job nicely. This tool is a gem when you need to cut a precise square in a piece of furniture or just take a section of skirting board off the wall. Have a look at the Fein website for details. [smile]

 

[jmbfestool]

OK, here is the thing....the idea that you have is great, but to waste a lot of blades for this job seems to me like a nono! Perhaps you could consider another option that will however involve you buying a special tool to do the job. The Fein Multimaster....this is a perfect companion to all the Festool gear that anyone can have and it will do the job nicely. This tool is a gem when you need to cut a precise square in a piece of furniture or just take a section of skirting board off the wall. Have a look at the Fein website for details. [smile]

Brilliant tool I love mine the day I bought it!  I use it ALL the time! Specially with kitchens! When stupid plumbers dont bother gettin pipes in place then come later and say well I need my pipes to come round! Fein comes to rescue! The thing is I am doing his job really! Which is annoying! More annoying is I had asked him at the start of the job all the pipes are fine where they are! He says YIP!

Any way!  I think if the rectangles you are cutting out are as small as a Dominos! I might use the Domino and then use a nice SHARP chisel to do the corners I think it will be quicker than using the fein as easier to control but also less noisy!!   I dont know what pattern you are doing and how many panels but I would personally use a router and make a jig with a row or a few rows or even a panel size depending on how many you are doing will determine how big the jig will be.  I would have a router and a trimmer set up router to quickly take out the large amount then using the trimmer with a very very small router bit so you get a very very small round corner which you could leave as it would be hardly noticeable or using a  file to get the sharp corner you desire

JMB

 

[dsweetser]

Why not pattern& pattern bit in a Festool router.  The smaller the bit the less clean up of the corners. Perhaps ms system?

Good luck with your project.