Thin strips

I don’t know I would cut that short, but I cut 1/8” and 1/10” strips on the table saw all the time for making the rocking chairs. These start around 42” long.

The biggest concern is when your main stock that you are cutting the strips from gets too thin, unless you are using a zero-clearance insert, the thinner stock has a tendency to get pulled “down” into the table and things can get nasty pretty quick if you aren’t expecting it.

Using a band-saw would result in less waste wood since each pass of the table saw chips away 1/8” of material.

-- Rich, WNY, www.nyrockingchairs.com

zero clearance insert, feather boards, and a replaceable pushstick.

personally, I just did some narrow strips of 1/4” ... I chose to go about it with the bandsaw, and lighly sand off the faces… didn’t feel safe enough on the tablesaw

when in doubt – there is no doubt – go the safer route.

-- When in doubt - There is no doubt - Go the safer route.

It’s risky to do on a tablesaw, even when taking all of the precautions. A bandsaw is much safer. If you only need one side really smooth, joint the edge of the board between cuts and you will have one smooth face side on each strip. For strips 1/4” and larger a Gr-r-r-iper can be used to make them safely on the table saw with a zero clearance insert.

CharleyL

PurpLev and NY Rocking Chair have the right idea. I just completed my first small box building project. One of the operations involved running 1/4 baltic birch plywood about 6 inches long for the box bottom, vertically through the sawblade to form a rabbeted edge to fit in the grooved sides of the box. Never would have done this with the factory supplied throat plate on my unisaw. But I used some osage orange pieces in the shop to create zero clearance inserts for the saw. Used a bandsaw to cut out the backside of the insert so my snap-in splitter could be used. Works very well, and I’m comfortable with the level of safety they yield. Featherboards, and the right type of push sticks should also be used (I’m a big fan of the VW beetle shaped push sticks with a long front shoe and high rounded handle. This design keeps pressure across the entire length of a short piece of wood, and holds the pushing hand high above the blade.)

-- Gerry

If the strips are going off the outside and the stock they are coming from is a reasonalbe size for sawing on the TS, it should be fine.

-- Debt is nothing more than the 21st Century's form of slavery.

I guess I’m going to go against the flow. When making toys I regularly rip 1/16” strips and have no issues.
I use clear stock, no wild grain or knots, a thin strip ripping jig, a zero clearance insert, and the tablesaw. Sanding 1/16” strips is a very hard to do. Yes there is more waste, but with proper caution it is no more dangerous than any other ripping operation, IMHO. The strip is on the side of the blade away from the fence.

-- If we learn from our mistakes, I'm getting a fantastic education.

The FWW article shows the strip on the inside of the blade

-- Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known. -Carl Sagan

Hmmmmmm, I’d do it the other way around.

-- Debt is nothing more than the 21st Century's form of slavery.

I use the same procedure as MrWoody and I have never had a problem. I wouldn’t think of cutting thin strips on the fence side of the blade, just asking for trouble.

-- Doug, Cass City, Michigan

I cut all my strips on the fence side and have not yet had any problem there.

-- Rich, WNY, www.nyrockingchairs.com

LOL, I use longer boards, set the fence for 1/16th, run the board 1/2 way flip the board over cut the other half, no problem. I push the back of the board down to raise the wood out of the blade.

The new issue of ShopNotes has an updated version of their Thin Strip Ripping Jig now with a Micro-Adjuster….gonna build me one here soon.

-- //FC - Round Rock, TX - "Experience is what you get just after you need it"

So many good replys! I cut very thin strips with the table saw so I don’t have to sand. A spliter is a must and when the stock gets small it’s TOO SMALL and I also get another larger stock and start again. A well tuned table saw will cut remarkably thin strips, (depending on the wood), if you are careful but don’t take chances.

-- Never board, always knotty, lots of growth rings

sIKE I am looking all around my area for that issue of shopnotes…neither HD or L carries it, and the nearest bookstore that may is about an hour away…sigh

Why on earth a Homeimprovement store needs to carry copies of cooking magazines and “O” simply boggles my mind. I can get them at Walmart…I want relevant magazines when I go there…BLAH

-- If you can't build it, code it. If you can't code it, build it. But always ALWAYS take a picture.

The safest way I have found to cut thin strips on the table saw is with a thin strip ripping jig. The one I use is made by Rockler, and I did a review on it a while back. You set it up so your cutting on the outside of the blade away from the fence. Use a zero clearance insert and it works like a dream. Real good thickness consistency an with my WWII blade i didn’t even need to sand anything.

-- David, South Windsor, CT "I love the smell of sawdust in the morning"

Thanks for the link Brad. I was going to make something up, but for $20, why bother? I’ll have that in material for anything I come up with ;-))

-- Debt is nothing more than the 21st Century's form of slavery.

I also use the Rockler jig, it works very well for me.

-- Martin, Kansas

I’ve never used any additional set up when ripping small strips. Like bentlyj said, just cut halfway, and flip it over.

-- http://www.industrialshapeandform.com