Farmhouse Table

[jms]

Wow Ed -- you have given me lots to think about here. I'm sure I will have some questions and thoughts on your recommendations after spending some time thinking about them in great detail.

Thanks also Gary and JPG for your advice. JPG, when you say rip blade - did you mean for the band saw?

I think the first thing that I'm realizing is that I need to take my time during each phase of this project, it is more complicated than it appears (to me) and failing to plan any one detail is the same as planning to fail at that detail.

[ERLover]

"9) General SS setup and alignment -- I have ordered the dial gauge from SS to align the table, miter, etc. I did not order the alignment DVD but will watch the saw dust sessions. I have a dewalt 60T table saw blade, and an older SS blade that has lots and lots of teeth, if the table saw is the best way to taper the legs, are either of these a good blade for the task (sorry I'm not yet sure when to use which blade)?"

I'm not a fan of the dial gauge for doing the alignment but I do use it to check the results. I could live without it. But you are on track wanting to align your shopsmith before getting into the project and then checking it from time to time.

Blade wise, there are blades for cross cuts, which is likely what the 60 tooth blade is that you have. Then there are rip blades, fewer teeth and deeper gullets. Then there are comb blades with can do both functions.


For this project I think you might want to look at some new blades. A thin kerf glue edge rip blade for the ripping of the hickory for sure. If the option is there I would get a crosscut blade or comb blade for the other cuts. I personally like Infinity blades sold at infinitytools.com. Other people have their own favorites.

Ed

Best bade I have found rips clean and crosscuts are very clean, look at the rating on the blade, click to inlarge, they make a full kerf too.
http://www.cshardware.com/ft-lu87r010.html

[JPG]

Perhaps reading all this will explain 'rip' blade as intended.

http://www.shopsmith.com/ownersite/cata ... blades.htm

[jms]

Thanks everyone. JPG I wasn't sure if your statement was about a good rip blade for the TS or the BS for the taper - obviously either could be used. I'm looking at building a taper jig for the bandsaw since it could saw tapers in the 4" legs in one pass. Of course I may need to upgrade the BS table to the aluminum one so I can buy the fence, I'm not really sure. Your thoughts?

While we're on the topic of TS blades - what brand do you guys recommend for the SS? I see infinity was mentioned. Obviously for the SS 510's motor power, a good TK blade would help. I have big box stores very close and I think the best blade I can get there would be a Freud Diablo. In the Raleigh area I also have a Woodcraft and Klingspors stores but they're 40 min instead of 15 minutes away - however I'm sure they have the full Freud line as well as Forrest WWII blades.

As mentioned I have a 60T DeWalt finishing blade and a really high tooth count SS blade - I'm sure over 100T on that blade but I can't read the description. I'm considering the Diablo 40T or 50T blade to supplement, as well as one for my craftsman CMS.

[beeg]

I'd go with one or all of these.

http://www.shopsmith.com/ownersite/specials/7DU965.htm

[BuckeyeDennis]

It's easy to set up a fence on your cast-iron bandsaw table. And if on a Mark V, you can use it's tables for outfeed support. But with any bandsaw, of course, you'll need to plane the tapers smooth afterward.

The cast-iron table has slots that are designed to be used with the SS miter gauge, making it very versatile. For a fence that can be set to any drift angle, you put the miter bar in the cross slot and lock it in with the taper screw (that fine-tunes the bar width). Then use the protractor head to set the drift angle. Adding an auxiliary fence to the protractor provides plenty of support for resawing or guiding a jig.

On newer miter gauges, you have to remove the washer that captures the bar in the Mark V table slot, and you may have to remove the hold-down grip as well. To avoid those hassles, I have an old one that is dedicated to my bandsaw.

There are some pics of my setup over in this thread, as well as some other miter-gauge extension designs. I haven't used it with a taper jig, but I can set the extension for a 5-1/2" max sawing width, or 6" if guiding directly off of the protracter head. So a would think that a simple fixed-angle taper jig would fit and work fine with a 4" leg blank.

[JPG]

Table saw or band saw will both 'work' providing the proper blade. Deep gullets needed for ripping.

Fer sure the bandsaw is 'safer' when used with caution.

Do think through the entire sequence of cuts. Once two sides are tapered, the angle needs to be reset.

Mock up with a construction grade 4x4 first.

[reible]

For the legs the band saw table you have will work fine and no jig needed. You can simply draw a line and then cut just to the waste side saving the cut off. The cut off can be taped back on, just where it came from, to keep the leg square for subsequent cuts if needed. There is no reason to make a jig or to use a fence.

You will have to clean up the cuts with a hand plane and or sanding.

A fence is an option but there are so many ways to do things that I've hadn a band saw since the early 1970's and only purchased a fence this past year. I opted for a magnetic mount one which really loves the cast iron top.

You will want a resaw blade for the bandsaw, my favorite is the one that Highland sells call the Woodslicer that would do a great job. You can see that here:

http://www.highlandwoodworking.com/wood ... to137.aspx

Other will have their favorite blades but in general they will be either 1/2" or 5/8" wide with a 3-4 tooth per inch count.

I too have the cast iron version of the band saw and you might want to check out this tread for a few tips on making it work better:

http://shopsmith.com/ss_forum/maintenan ... t8361.html

And JPG had a thread on the alignment that will come in handy.

Ed

[jms]

Great info - thanks Ed!

Here is the jig I was going to make, and as JPG said this would only work for 2 adjacent sides before you ended up not fitting in the jig -- my thoughts are make 2 jigs, one for the first 2 cuts and 1 for the second 2 cuts. And yes of course I'm going to make a few trial runs on cheaper lumber !

The URL says planer but he uses a jig saw in the one method he shows at this link ...
http://www.popularwoodworking.com/techn ... n_a_planer

[reible]

Keep in mind the jig pictured was because they taper was going to be finished on the planner. If that is your intent then go for it. Says it all in the title “Four Ways to Make Tapered Legs – Using a Planer”

Other wise I'll stick to my thoughts of drawing the taper line on the blank and cutting just to the waste side then saving the cut off to make the leg blank square again by taping the cut off back on. This is a really common method that has been used for years.

I personally have never attempted the planner method so I have no idea how well that works. I'm not sure what the height turns out to be with larger 4 x 4 legs and the jig but make sure it fits your planner.

Ed