Tablesaw Power feed

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bainin
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Tablesaw Power feed

Post by bainin »

I'd been thinking about something like this for safety reasons...low and behold they already exist !

Here is a low cost kit to provide motor feed to a tablesaw/router or shaper.

Anyone have experience with something like this? I'd guess they get in the way for non standard cuts, or in this case maybe even cross cut.

https://www.alladd.com/power-feeder/index.html
RFGuy
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Re: Tablesaw Power feed

Post by RFGuy »

Do you need the power feed aspect or just more control? Have you considered Jessem's CLEAR-CUT TS™ STOCK GUIDES for tablesaw or CLEAR-CUT™ STOCK GUIDES for router tables?

viewtopic.php?f=9&t=22171
📶RF Guy

Mark V 520 (Bought New '98) | 4" jointer | 6" beltsander | 12" planer | bandsaw | router table | speed reducer | univ. tool rest
Porter Cable 12" Compound Miter Saw | Rikon 8" Low Speed Bench Grinder w/CBN wheels | Jessem Clear-Cut TS™ Stock Guides
Festool (Emerald): DF 500 Q | RO 150 FEQ | OF 1400 EQ | TS 55 REQ | CT 26 E
DC3300 | Shopvac w/ClearVue CV06 Mini Cyclone | JDS AirTech 2000 | Sundstrom PAPR | Dylos DC1100 Pro particulate monitor
edma194
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Re: Tablesaw Power feed

Post by edma194 »

RFGuy wrote: Wed Mar 10, 2021 2:29 pm Do you need the power feed aspect or just more control? Have you considered Jessem's CLEAR-CUT TS™ STOCK GUIDES for tablesaw or CLEAR-CUT™ STOCK GUIDES for router tables?
This reminds of a Rip-Strate. Do they still make those?
Ed from Rhode Island

510 PowerPro Double Tilt:Greenie PowerPro Drill Press:500 Sanding Shorty w/Belt&Strip Sanders
Super Sawsmith 2000:Scroll Saw w/Stand:Joint-Matic:Power Station:Power Stand:Bandsaw:Joiner:Jigsaw
1961 Goldie:1960 Sawsmith RAS:10ER
bainin
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Posts: 542
Joined: Mon Apr 22, 2019 11:09 pm
Location: NC

Re: Tablesaw Power feed

Post by bainin »

I like the idea of hands free feed and controlled speed feed . Seems the best way to avoid an injury is not have your hands on the saw at all !

That said- those jessem guides look really nice-and it seems many of you like the added safety you have gotten with them.

I posted mostly as I hadn't seen a power feed before and thought I was on a new idea :)

The days before the internet were much better, you could go for years thinking you invented something without knowing any better.

b
rogersk
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Re: Tablesaw Power feed

Post by rogersk »

edma194 wrote: Wed Mar 10, 2021 3:32 pm This reminds of a Rip-Strate. Do they still make those?
The company that made the original Ripstrate has been out of business for some time. There were some Asian knockoffs, but I'm not sure they are still available now either. For what it's worth, I used a Ripstrate on my 1986 Model 500 fence for about 20 years, and it worked fine for me. I only stopped using it when I switched to a standalone table saw for most of my ripping in 2006.
rogersk
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Re: Tablesaw Power feed

Post by rogersk »

bainin wrote: Wed Mar 10, 2021 2:19 pm I'd been thinking about something like this for safety reasons...low and behold they already exist !

Here is a low cost kit to provide motor feed to a tablesaw/router or shaper.

Anyone have experience with something like this? I'd guess they get in the way for non standard cuts, or in this case maybe even cross cut.

https://www.alladd.com/power-feeder/index.html
I think power feeds for table saws are mostly used for production work where speed is the main objective. A worker can just stand there and feed the machine one board after another without having to worry about kickback or hand placement. Very fast when allot of a certain size is needed.

The only place I have personally seen a power feeder being used was in a commercial shop at the shaper. Makes the operation much safer by keeping fingers far away from that spinning cutter.

Delta used to make a small one I think they called the "baby" power feed. I always wanted one, but there was always some other tool I wanted more, so I never bought one.
edma194
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Joined: Fri Jun 19, 2020 4:08 pm

Re: Tablesaw Power feed

Post by edma194 »

rogersk wrote: Fri Mar 12, 2021 11:04 pm
edma194 wrote: Wed Mar 10, 2021 3:32 pm This reminds of a Rip-Strate. Do they still make those?
The company that made the original Ripstrate has been out of business for some time. There were some Asian knockoffs, but I'm not sure they are still available now either. For what it's worth, I used a Ripstrate on my 1986 Model 500 fence for about 20 years, and it worked fine for me. I only stopped using it when I switched to a standalone table saw for most of my ripping in 2006.
I see they have some on eBay. I think I could use something like this for longer boards. I don't know often long boards will be an issue though. I have a Sawsmith 2000 now, just beginning to use it, it has a quite long fence, close to 3 ft. and I think this will help too. But if I end with a lot of long rips I'd like something like the Ripstrate or the Clear Cut stock guides.
Ed from Rhode Island

510 PowerPro Double Tilt:Greenie PowerPro Drill Press:500 Sanding Shorty w/Belt&Strip Sanders
Super Sawsmith 2000:Scroll Saw w/Stand:Joint-Matic:Power Station:Power Stand:Bandsaw:Joiner:Jigsaw
1961 Goldie:1960 Sawsmith RAS:10ER
RFGuy
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Joined: Mon Dec 31, 2018 8:05 am
Location: a suburb of PHX, AZ

Re: Tablesaw Power feed

Post by RFGuy »

What is the advantage of buying an old, rusted out Rip-Strate from eBay over buying a new Jessem CLEAR-CUT TS™ STOCK GUIDES ? I mean I know there is a cost difference, but the Jessem is still in production and fully supported.

Getting back to the OP questions here...I just watched the YouTube video for the Little Proteus DIY power feeder. My initial impression is that it looks rather large and might tend to block your view of the sawblade and the lumber that is being cut, which is a negative in my book. I think if you compare it to something like the Grizzly G4173 you will find that it is very bulky. Another factor to consider is that commercial power feeders tend to be very beefy both in their swing arm and in their mounting because kickback forces can be rather large. In a worst case scenario you don't want the Little Proteus flying into your face on top of the board under cut due to inadequate mounting support. Just my opinion, but I would be cautious building a DIY power feeder, i.e. I am not sure the benefits outweigh the risks.

https://www.amazon.com/Grizzly-G4173-Ba ... 343&sr=8-2
📶RF Guy

Mark V 520 (Bought New '98) | 4" jointer | 6" beltsander | 12" planer | bandsaw | router table | speed reducer | univ. tool rest
Porter Cable 12" Compound Miter Saw | Rikon 8" Low Speed Bench Grinder w/CBN wheels | Jessem Clear-Cut TS™ Stock Guides
Festool (Emerald): DF 500 Q | RO 150 FEQ | OF 1400 EQ | TS 55 REQ | CT 26 E
DC3300 | Shopvac w/ClearVue CV06 Mini Cyclone | JDS AirTech 2000 | Sundstrom PAPR | Dylos DC1100 Pro particulate monitor
rogersk
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Re: Tablesaw Power feed

Post by rogersk »

edma194 wrote: Sat Mar 13, 2021 1:18 am
I see they have some on eBay. I think I could use something like this for longer boards. I don't know often long boards will be an issue though. I have a Sawsmith 2000 now, just beginning to use it, it has a quite long fence, close to 3 ft. and I think this will help too. But if I end with a lot of long rips I'd like something like the Ripstrate or the Clear Cut stock guides.
I learned how to use a tablesaw in a commercial shop. It had a big Powermatic saw with no safety guards of any type. What it did have, though, were large tables on the outfeed end and left side of the saw. I was expected to cut 4X8 sheets of 3/4" high density particle board by myself. These are heavy muthers, and without the support tables it would have been impossible for my 17 year old, 5'9", 160 pounds to handle. But the support tables made it (relatively) easy. Relatively. :D

So years later I purchase my Model 500 because our first house was limited for space. I liked most aspects of it, but I could never get used to that small table, especially when I had to rip long boards, or large sheet stock. I had no room for an outfeed table, so I went looking for a solution and stumbled across the Ripstrate. It solved my long board ripping problem by letting me push the board 3/4 of the way through the cut, and then holding it there while I walked around the saw and pulled the board through the rest of the cut. Now, I know to some this may sound a little dangerous, but that is how the device was designed to be used, and for me, it worked well for 20 years.

However, it didn't work very well for cutting large sheet stock. A large sheet of plywood proved too heavy to reliably hold down and against the fence, and is awkward to pull through from the back of the saw. I ended up buying a 12" Dewalt radial arm saw for ripping sheet goods, and it worked well for me until I bought a standalone tablesaw. (New house, more space.) :D

Now, I've added a cabinet on wheels the same height as my tablesaw that I use as an outfeed table/assembly table. If you have the room, this is what I would recommend.
rogersk
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Posts: 116
Joined: Tue Jun 09, 2015 2:17 pm

Re: Tablesaw Power feed

Post by rogersk »

RFGuy wrote: Sat Mar 13, 2021 5:53 am What is the advantage of buying an old, rusted out Rip-Strate from eBay over buying a new Jessem CLEAR-CUT TS™ STOCK GUIDES ? I mean I know there is a cost difference, but the Jessem is still in production and fully supported.
I watched a video on the Jessem CLEAR-CUT TS™ STOCK GUIDES and they look like a very much refined version of the Ripstrate idea. If money is not an issue, I would buy the Jessem over the Ripstrate.

As far as "buying an old, rusted out Rip-Strate from eBay", a little Evapo-rust could make the one in the link you're referring to look new in a short period of time.
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