I want to cut stopped dadoes 3/4W x 1/2D in 5/4 maple. The idea I have is
to clamp stop blocks on the rip fence, rest the piece against the near stop
block held at an angle above the blade and slowly lower the wood onto the
spinning blade, them push the piece to the other stop to complete the cut.
I presently have all my fingers and toes and would like to keep it that way.
Is this an unsafe method? TIA
The danger lies in two aspects.
1. If you get any side to side tipping as you lower it it could be a
bit disasterous.
2. If, when lifting off the cut you were to slip and drop it... well.
Number 2 could be avoided by kicking the saw off with your knee before
lifting it.
An alternative method might be to rasie the blade into the piece,
although that's a bit problematic but could be accomplished with some
feather boards. Just need to devise a method of getting the exact depth
you want.
All that being said, I'd probably do it without too much worry, but
that's just me. However, I've also pretty much decided that any
operation thatgets my heart beat racing is my flag to find a different
way to do the job.
I'd think of some way to design around it witha different joint or
something. How/where is it being used?
sidney wrote:
> I want to cut stopped dadoes 3/4W x 1/2D in 5/4 maple. The idea I
have is
> to clamp stop blocks on the rip fence, rest the piece against the
near stop
> block held at an angle above the blade and slowly lower the wood onto
the
> spinning blade, them push the piece to the other stop to complete the
cut.
> I presently have all my fingers and toes and would like to keep it
that way.
> Is this an unsafe method? TIA
Like everyone else, I say use a router. While the subject reads 'dumb
move' it was very smart to listen to that voice in your head....
sidney wrote:
>
> I want to cut stopped dadoes 3/4W x 1/2D in 5/4 maple. The idea I have is
> to clamp stop blocks on the rip fence, rest the piece against the near stop
> block held at an angle above the blade and slowly lower the wood onto the
> spinning blade, them push the piece to the other stop to complete the cut.
> I presently have all my fingers and toes and would like to keep it that way.
> Is this an unsafe method? TIA
In general, it's more risky than some things, but not absolutely
lethal...I wouldn't recommend it if you have to ask as that implies to
me you're not comfortable w/ the maneuver. A major problem w/ the
technique is that it's difficult to enter the work directly vertically
unless you provide some way to hold and index it. Simply trying to
rotate a board down holding it by the edge and not having to drop it
when your fingers get to the table is difficult.
Personally, it would depend in large part on how large the piece(s) were
and the saw and blade as well as how many I had to do. As others note,
there will be more cleanup from a TS cut owing to the large diameter
than from a router although the repetitive setup fence, etc., may be
more time consuming unless you set up either a jig for hand held or a
table to do the blind trick similar to the TS.
Someone else noted that maple is hard and to go slow/shallow. How true
that is depends on whether you're using one of the hard or soft maples,
of course. He is correct that even w/ soft maple, the likelihood of
some splintering w/ a full cut is pretty high. I'd certainly use a good
quality bit (and either a spiral cut if you have one).
"Hax Planks" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
I would use a router
> like everyone else said, but this too has many pitfalls that are greatly
> magnified by using one of the hardest woods out there. If you use a
> router table and slide the piece toward the blade, you can very easily
> get disastrous results if you try to take too much off too much at once.
> DAMHIKT. You see, the bit will be moving in such a way that the cutting
> edges will try to force the piece away from the bit and in the direction
> of rotation. It will rip it out of your hands like you were a baby and
> show you who has 2.5 hp, and who doesn't even have one. This is worse
> than trying to do a climb cut on a router table, which in itself is
> very, very, very dicey. And too much may be much less than you think.
> I recommend taking 1/16" per pass, less if you can stand it. That will
> be eight passes or more. If you fail to take this advice, just remember
> that you were warned. Probably the best and safest way would be to use
> a plunge router to start the dado and then take it to the router table
> so you avoid the messy business of trying to slide the piece into the
> bit. I think everyone would agree that a careful, time-consuming way of
> doing things is actually more productive than destroying wood, tools,
> or, god forbid, your fingers.
I wouldn't use a table at all. Mortising is what plunge routers were
designed to do. Fence and plunge with a handheld, or use the guide and a
jig for complete control. Hell of a lot more graceful to flip the plunge
lever and let the router rise than to try and lift the piece, especially if
the piece is large.
In article <[email protected]>, "sidney" <don'tcallmei'[email protected]> wrote:
>I want to cut stopped dadoes 3/4W x 1/2D in 5/4 maple. The idea I have is
>to clamp stop blocks on the rip fence, rest the piece against the near stop
>block held at an angle above the blade and slowly lower the wood onto the
>spinning blade, them push the piece to the other stop to complete the cut.
>I presently have all my fingers and toes and would like to keep it that way.
>Is this an unsafe method? TIA
Yes, it is.
Use a router instead.
--
Regards,
Doug Miller (alphageek at milmac dot com)
Nobody ever left footprints in the sands of time by sitting on his butt.
And who wants to leave buttprints in the sands of time?
sidney says...
> I want to cut stopped dadoes 3/4W x 1/2D in 5/4 maple. The idea I have is
> to clamp stop blocks on the rip fence, rest the piece against the near stop
> block held at an angle above the blade and slowly lower the wood onto the
> spinning blade, them push the piece to the other stop to complete the cut.
> I presently have all my fingers and toes and would like to keep it that way.
> Is this an unsafe method? TIA
Haven't tried it, but it sounds risky. Even if you are successful, the
dado will end with the long curve of the blade and if you need any of
that space, it will be difficult to get it flat. I would use a router
like everyone else said, but this too has many pitfalls that are greatly
magnified by using one of the hardest woods out there. If you use a
router table and slide the piece toward the blade, you can very easily
get disastrous results if you try to take too much off too much at once.
DAMHIKT. You see, the bit will be moving in such a way that the cutting
edges will try to force the piece away from the bit and in the direction
of rotation. It will rip it out of your hands like you were a baby and
show you who has 2.5 hp, and who doesn't even have one. This is worse
than trying to do a climb cut on a router table, which in itself is
very, very, very dicey. And too much may be much less than you think.
I recommend taking 1/16" per pass, less if you can stand it. That will
be eight passes or more. If you fail to take this advice, just remember
that you were warned. Probably the best and safest way would be to use
a plunge router to start the dado and then take it to the router table
so you avoid the messy business of trying to slide the piece into the
bit. I think everyone would agree that a careful, time-consuming way of
doing things is actually more productive than destroying wood, tools,
or, god forbid, your fingers.
George says...
> I wouldn't use a table at all. Mortising is what plunge routers were
> designed to do. Fence and plunge with a handheld, or use the guide and a
> jig for complete control. Hell of a lot more graceful to flip the plunge
> lever and let the router rise than to try and lift the piece, especially if
> the piece is large.
True, a fence would be nice in his situation if he has one and he has a
parallel edge to reference.
B a r r y <[email protected]> wrote in news:MBk4e.19074$DW.4244
@newssvr17.news.prodigy.com:
> Swingman wrote:
>> "sidney" wrote in message
>>
>>
>>>Is this an unsafe method? TIA
>
> Put me in the router camp.
>
> I don't like doing stopped TS cuts.
>
> Barry
>
And the ts cut is going to take some cleanup anyway, at the stopped ends.
This is a good excuse to buy a new router, with 1/2" collet, just in case
you were looking for one. ;-)
Patriarch
"sidney" <don'tcallmei'[email protected]> wrote in
news:[email protected]:
> To those of you wondering, I am working on the faces to a router table
> fence similar to the that in Wood mag #159 with
> modifications--hopefully improvements. The pieces at issue are
> 3Wx21Lx1T hard maple that I will use for the lower fence faces. The
> stopped dadoes I had in mind are to accept short (4") pieces of
> t-track for horizontal adjustment.
>
> The stopped dadoes are only to conceal the t-track for aesthetics, so
> considering all the input provided here I may just bite the bullet and
> cut through dadoes. Either that or SWMBO obeys ME for a change and
> gets me that damn plunger for my upcoming b-day!
What router were you planning on using in the table you're building?
Patriarch
"sidney" <don'tcallmei'[email protected]> wrote in
news:[email protected]:
> Hello Patriarch,
>
> After the doing the obligatory amount of research I think the Hitachi
> M12V is my best choice--it seems to provide a lot of value for the
> price. However, I've also noticed the price dropping on the PC 7518,
> although I'd be giving up plunge capability. Your thoughts or
> opinions on this matter would be appreciated.
>
> Just to be clear, I'm only building the fence--not the table. What I
> have is a General Int'l CS with their iron router table ext. wing
> installed.
>
> Sidney
>
You want the opinions of folks who use routers for a living, as opposed
to a fellow who will take the rest of his life to wear one out. ;-)
Check Google on those two models, and the other referanced models, and
see what the experts say.
I have a Freud FT2000e, which suits my table work just fine. I bought
it in complete, Tim Taylor style ignorance, and got lucky with it.
There are three or four more smaller PC routers & trimmers I use for
hand held work, and I'm pleased with those as well.
My question had been more from the perspective of your seeming focus on
cutting dados with the tables saw, and then telling us that this was for
a router table fence, when the consensus was to cut them with a router.
When I started doing this, not too many years ago, I found myself
fixating on one, known method for solving a problem. That approach cost
me a lot of time, and not a few boxes from Amazon, Woodcraft, Lee Valley
& other places. Some of those boxes were one-project wonders.
And most of that was prior to my becoming familiar with the wReck
community. Lots of smart folks here, even with the filter-fodder
problems.
Have fun with your projects. Take pictures.
Patriarch
Hello Patriarch,
After the doing the obligatory amount of research I think the Hitachi M12V
is my best choice--it seems to provide a lot of value for the price.
However, I've also noticed the price dropping on the PC 7518, although I'd
be giving up plunge capability. Your thoughts or opinions on this matter
would be appreciated.
Just to be clear, I'm only building the fence--not the table. What I have
is a General Int'l CS with their iron router table ext. wing installed.
Sidney
"Patriarch" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> "sidney" <don'tcallmei'[email protected]> wrote in
> news:[email protected]:
>
> > To those of you wondering, I am working on the faces to a router table
> > fence similar to the that in Wood mag #159 with
> > modifications--hopefully improvements. The pieces at issue are
> > 3Wx21Lx1T hard maple that I will use for the lower fence faces. The
> > stopped dadoes I had in mind are to accept short (4") pieces of
> > t-track for horizontal adjustment.
> >
> > The stopped dadoes are only to conceal the t-track for aesthetics, so
> > considering all the input provided here I may just bite the bullet and
> > cut through dadoes. Either that or SWMBO obeys ME for a change and
> > gets me that damn plunger for my upcoming b-day!
>
> What router were you planning on using in the table you're building?
>
> Patriarch
Thanks to all for the insights you have provided. My apologies if this
reply does not strictly follow protocol (top/bottom post?) as I am still
somewhat new to this newsgroup stuff.
To those of you wondering, I am working on the faces to a router table fence
similar to the that in Wood mag #159 with modifications--hopefully
improvements. The pieces at issue are 3Wx21Lx1T hard maple that I will use
for the lower fence faces. The stopped dadoes I had in mind are to accept
short (4") pieces of t-track for horizontal adjustment.
The stopped dadoes are only to conceal the t-track for aesthetics, so
considering all the input provided here I may just bite the bullet and cut
through dadoes. Either that or SWMBO obeys ME for a change and gets me that
damn plunger for my upcoming b-day!
Again, thanks to you all.
"Duane Bozarth" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> sidney wrote:
> >
> > I want to cut stopped dadoes 3/4W x 1/2D in 5/4 maple. The idea I have
is
> > to clamp stop blocks on the rip fence, rest the piece against the near
stop
> > block held at an angle above the blade and slowly lower the wood onto
the
> > spinning blade, them push the piece to the other stop to complete the
cut.
> > I presently have all my fingers and toes and would like to keep it that
way.
> > Is this an unsafe method? TIA
>
> In general, it's more risky than some things, but not absolutely
> lethal...I wouldn't recommend it if you have to ask as that implies to
> me you're not comfortable w/ the maneuver. A major problem w/ the
> technique is that it's difficult to enter the work directly vertically
> unless you provide some way to hold and index it. Simply trying to
> rotate a board down holding it by the edge and not having to drop it
> when your fingers get to the table is difficult.
>
> Personally, it would depend in large part on how large the piece(s) were
> and the saw and blade as well as how many I had to do. As others note,
> there will be more cleanup from a TS cut owing to the large diameter
> than from a router although the repetitive setup fence, etc., may be
> more time consuming unless you set up either a jig for hand held or a
> table to do the blind trick similar to the TS.
>
> Someone else noted that maple is hard and to go slow/shallow. How true
> that is depends on whether you're using one of the hard or soft maples,
> of course. He is correct that even w/ soft maple, the likelihood of
> some splintering w/ a full cut is pretty high. I'd certainly use a good
> quality bit (and either a spiral cut if you have one).
Do you have a router? I've done this before on a router mounted in a table
with no problems.
I personally haven't tried it on a table saw although cutting zero inserts
is similar when the blade
doesn't retract enough. Anyway, I'm sticking with the router.
Cheers,
cc
"sidney" <don'tcallmei'[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>I want to cut stopped dadoes 3/4W x 1/2D in 5/4 maple. The idea I have is
> to clamp stop blocks on the rip fence, rest the piece against the near
> stop
> block held at an angle above the blade and slowly lower the wood onto the
> spinning blade, them push the piece to the other stop to complete the cut.
> I presently have all my fingers and toes and would like to keep it that
> way.
> Is this an unsafe method? TIA
>
>