cutting and joining two boards

I would check your ripfence and make sure it is straight in relation to the blade. Your idea should work though. mike

-- Mike. Profisher50@yahoo.com

Thanks Mike

I am not all that sure of my fence’s accuracy (keeping parallel to the miter slot and saw blade). I will be tuning the TS before I make any cuts.

Dalec

That ought to do it. But you could cut the faces with one up and one down. That’ll accomplish the same as stacking them to make the mirror edges.

-- Made lots of sawdust and pounded some nails. Haven't finished anything, though.

I agree that the rip fence is probably the main culprit. I have a Craftsman saw and I have to repeatedly adjust the fence to get it set to the correct width and be parallel to the miter slot. But another thing you should look at is the blade itself. It is parallel to the miter slot and is it a quality blade.

Another thought is that you can use your planer to edge the board. This should produce an edge that is comparable to that of a jointer.

Hope this helps.

-- With God's help all things are possible- even woodworking. Woodworking is not just a hobby, it is an (expletive deleted) expensive hobby.

Scott,

Thanks for the response. Aside from tuning the saw, I will double check the fence once set to the correct width for the cut to ensure it is parallel to the blade.

Guess this discussion leads to having a better fence that stays aligned over time. Am I heading toward a cabinet TS or will a better fence system still with the limitations of a contractor table saw? :)

Dalec

I have a Ridgid contractor saw and the fence is dead on. I am not sure you will be able to upgrade and get the same result, but I am OK with mine.

-- Maplewood, MN

I don’t think that problem can be solved with just a fence. It could also be a cheap blade. Make sure the fence is paralle to the saw blade, adjust the table top to so that the miter slots are parallel to the blade and make sure the blade is sharp. Doesn’t matter if you have a $50.00 saw or a $1000.00 saw, if any part of it is out of adjustment, it will cut like a peice of junk. I have an old Craftsman 100 10” table top saw with a home made rip fence that cuts true becasue I keep it tuned and in alignment – I guess my point is that throwing money at the problem might not always fix the problem. Good luck!

-- Brian, Lebanon PA, If you aren’t having fun doing it, find something else to do.

Brian

I agree that keeping my table saw tuned is the trick to getting good cuts. I have a forrest blade that is fairly new. I have found my fence won’t hold alignment even after just a few cuts. It works ok for many things, but does not have the precision for tight fitting glue joints. Nevertheless, I know part of the problem is my technique and that is something I need to practice.

Thanks for your thoughts.

Dalec