Cross cutting Oak Stairs

[rosejoee]

Hello,

I am a novice for sure and I could sue some basic table saw help please. I need to cross cut oak stairs so they are the proper length for my stairwell and I'm having some issues and I assume I'm not doing something right.

When I got to the front of the wood the saw blade stopped and then I had trouble starting it again straight. I think I am binding the blade. What is the right way to do this? I was using the rip fence to keep this straight b/c the square really isn't big enough for these pieces of wood.

That caused me to get a bad cut on an expensive piece of oak and I don't want to waste anymore wood.

Any pointers would be appreciated.

Thanks

[Bruce]

Hi, welcome. You've come to the right place. Your problem seems to be due to using the rip fence for crosscutting. That is most likely the source of the binding. If the board gets pinched between the blade and the rip fence, your board could well become a "rocket ship", rocketing back in your face. The best way to support a long board when crosscutting is to used either a crosscut sled or a miter gauge extension. I personally would start by making a miter gauge extension with a piece of straight plywood or mdf and attach it to your miter gauge with a couple of bolts or screws. If you use bolts, you'll need to countersink the end of the bolts on the face of the board so you'll have a smooth face to ride against the board. You can put some self-stick sandpaper on it to keep the board from slipping when you cut it. If you don't want to make your own, Shopsmith sells two (part #'s 505630 and 555429). They also sell a crosscut sled. You don't say which model you have, so you'll need to look up the part number. Good luck.

Bruce

[Ed in Tampa]

Rosejoee
Yes as Bruce stated crosscutting oak stair treads using your fence is a invitation to disaster. If you just ruined a piece of wood consider yourself lucky, you could have got clobbered with that wood.

I also totally agree with Bruce either used a crosscut sled (which you can make or buy) or a miter gauge fence extension (again you can make or buy)

The easiest and fastest would be to get a piece of wood about 3 inches wide and a little longer than the stair treads. Mount it to you miter and use it to guide and support your wood. If you made it longer you can attach a stop block insuring every thread cut will be the same length.

Welcome to the forum and be sure to take some pictures of the stairs
Ed

[charlese]

Hi rosejoee! Welcome to the Forum! You have been given very good advice by Bruce and Ed. I agree a sled would be the very best way to crosscut your stairs, but as one is not available, I agree the miter extension is the way to go. Sandpaper and a stop are excellent recommendations.

There are two things I believe you should do before sawing. First, make sure your miter slots are parallel to your blade. Next make sure your miter gauge is perpendicular to your saw blade.

You can do a simple test to see if your miter gauge slots are parallel to your blade by slipping your long Allen wrench through the horizontal holes in your miter gauge, so it just touches the blade. Lock the Allen wrench down with a set screw in one of the top holes in your gauge. If you wish, you can place a dollar bill, or paper between the end of the wrench and the blade. This way you won't have to listen to a screech, or jam something. The paper should slide between the wrench and blade with an equal pull between the front and rear of the blade. If you have a carbide toothed blade, you can set the wrench so it just touches a selected tooth at the blade front - then rotate the blade backward until that same tooth is at the back side - see if the fixed wrench just touches that tooth the same as it did in the front.

If the table slots are not parallel, the table can be rotated by loosening the four screws (Nuts) beneath it. First loosen the two that you can reach with the table tilted then flatten the table and loosen only one of the two remaining nuts. Now see if you can rotate the table a small amount. You may have to slightly loosen the the 4th screw (nut). Once you are able to rotate the table, - align the slot to the saw blade. Tighten both nuts that you can reach. Tilt the table and tighten the other two bolts.

Now your miter gauge can be squared to the blade using an accurate square.

Once this is done and you have the miter extension and length stop set up, you are ready to go. If you cant find sticky sand paper, glue some to your extension.

Be safe! and best wishes.

[rkh2]

Rosejoee

Welcome to the forum. Only advice I will add is make sure you unplug your saw before doing any checks and adjustments. Following the advice that was shared with you should result in good cuts. I often use scraps to check for good results before using the more expensive wood. Make sawdust!!

[rosejoee]

Thanks everyone for your advice. I don't use my table saw much because one I don't do to many projects and two my miter saw handles most everything I do very quickly. In this case the stairs are a little to big for the Miter saw so I'm charting new territory for me:)

I think I will go with the Miter fence just b/c that seems like it will meet my needs and be pretty easy.

Since I'm a little slow would any of you have a pic of a miter fence that one of you made:)

Thanks

[Bruce]

Thanks everyone for your advice. I don't use my table saw much because one I don't do to many projects and two my miter saw handles most everything I do very quickly. In this case the stairs are a little to big for the Miter saw so I'm charting new territory for me:)

I think I will go with the Miter fence just b/c that seems like it will meet my needs and be pretty easy.

Since I'm a little slow would any of you have a pic of a miter fence that one of you made:)

Thanks

This one will give you the basic idea. Notice the carriage bolt heads are recessed so that they don't interfere with the board. I used wing nuts on the back to make it quick to attach and remove.

Bruce

[charlese]

Excellent Photo, Bruce!!:)

rosejoee - you can also use Bruce's miter extension in the other slot. That way, if you dint want to cut off much material, you will still have a good grasp on your workpiece. Of course, you can make your extension to extend to the right (in Bruce's photo) rather than to the left. You can also have it extend both sides of the gauge. You are only limited by your set up of your extension table and Aux. tables.

[rosejoee]

Thanks guys. I will let you know how it goes after the weekend.