imrich Posted November 13, 2010 Report Share Posted November 13, 2010 I'm ripping many narrow strips (2") from a large sheet of MDF. If I set the fence to 2" to the right of the blade and make repeated cuts, I'm finding it difficult keeping the material square to the fence. It's only off by a 64th or less, but it's annoying. Would I get better results if I moved the fence further down to the right, so each cutoff was the 2" I need and just move the fence toward the blade after each cut, keeping the bulk of the material between the blade and the fence. My only concern with this approach is repeatability. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vic Posted November 13, 2010 Report Share Posted November 13, 2010 Just don't get yourself in a position that you have more length on the board being cut side to side than front to back. You may find yourself ducking if you bind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sac Posted November 13, 2010 Report Share Posted November 13, 2010 Not sure what kind of table saw you have, but if you have more room to support the board to the right of the blade, you could always set the fence on the left side of the blade, and use the room on the right side of the blade to help support the large sheet. Just a thought. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beechwood Chip Posted November 13, 2010 Report Share Posted November 13, 2010 Two suggestions: always support the largest dimension of the piece (sled/miter fence vs rip fence)watch this video Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keggers Posted November 13, 2010 Report Share Posted November 13, 2010 Might be a good time to use a feather board if possible. If you are cutting a full 4x8 sheet lengthwise, a feather board might not work on the initial cuts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vic Posted November 13, 2010 Report Share Posted November 13, 2010 Yea, that would be one of the times I'd break out the "Board Buddies" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Bienlein Posted November 14, 2010 Report Share Posted November 14, 2010 I'm ripping many narrow strips (2") from a large sheet of MDF. If I set the fence to 2" to the right of the blade and make repeated cuts, I'm finding it difficult keeping the material square to the fence. It's only off by a 64th or less, but it's annoying. Would I get better results if I moved the fence further down to the right, so each cutoff was the 2" I need and just move the fence toward the blade after each cut, keeping the bulk of the material between the blade and the fence. My only concern with this approach is repeatability. When ever I need to rip down narrow strips from a large panel I'll first determine how many I need. Lets say you need ten 2" wide strips I would rip a piece 20" wide plus an additional 1/8" for each piece I need plus about another 1/4". This way you only handle the large sheet one time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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