Shopsmith Forums

A shopsmith can be used to cut sheet stock, but why? Why horse a sheet of stock around when you don't have too.?

I would say a stock 520 Shopsmith is probably equal to or better than stock tablesaw for cutting sheet stock. However the tablesaw can have permanent infeed, outfeed and side tables which make the tablesaw superior.

Most commerical shops now use slidding table, panel saws or guided saw systems to cut sheet stock.

At one time it was "mine is bigger than yours" bragging rights to have a fence that went out 26 inches thus enabling the user to rip a 4x8 lenght wise in half. Then they went to 52 inch fences so the sheet could be cut in half width wise.

But after 52" became common most people wised up and said why am I killing myself trying to throw a full sheet around so they started to cut it to size with circular saws and do a finish cut on the table saw.
Then someone said why not invent a way to make a finish cut on the guided saw system and soon that method was born.

Today you can get smoother cuts on a guided saw system than on the table saw. If you want real precision you go to a panel saw and start talking .0001" tolerances. Or you go to a CNC machine and have perfect tolerance.

Ed, you ask, Why horse a sheet of stock around when you don't have too.?

It seems to me that if one is going to cut a sheet of plywood, one is going to horse a sheet of plywood no matter where it gets cut.

The original question - "What is there about a table saw that makes it OKAY for cutting plywood while a Shopsmith is declared inadequate or unsafe?" has not been answered directly.

Reading between the lines, I conclude that most user's who choose to operate on sheet goods do so with some sort of track saw arrangement. I assume not the table saw (Shopsmith) because the table is either too small or too high. The table being small results in the rip fence being short.

These were the reasons why I did not enjoy cutting down sheet goods on the Mark V.

With an outfeed table and an extension on the rip fence, I no longer dread cutting sheet goods on the Mark V. In My Opinion, If you are capable of horsing those sheet goods at all, you can slice them up on the Shopsmith.

In reality, I no longer do that but it is not because of limitations of the Shopsmith. It is because of my decreased capacity to horse those sheet goods around.

I now slide the sheet goods out of the pickup and onto a saw horse setup where they then get cut down to size using a circular saw and straight edge.

Even then, I find it necessary to utilize outfeed support of some kind. I just do not want to be concerned about where the cutoffs are going while I concentrate on what I am doing on the infeed side. I hate the rounded corners that develop when cutoffs fall to the floor.

Given my druthers, the table top would be waist high rather than chest high as it is (at least for me). I have given some thought to removing the legs and lowering the Mark V onto some sort of cabinet to solve that problem. If I did that, I would have a totally adequate table saw but then the lathe and probably the drill press would be unsuitable.

Bottom line (again from My Point of View): When I choose the Shopsmith multi tool as the basis for all my woodworking area, I choose to deal with these issues as best I can. Going on thirty years now, I am still very satisfied with the Mark V and with its sustained performance.

What ever you do and where ever you do it - do it safely. The consequences of doing otherwise can be devastating. Remember - there is no flesh detection system being used to stop that sharp whirling disk.

I built my first camper out of 1/2" plywood back in the early 1960's doing the cutting on a little 8" Sears/AMT bench tablesaw sitting on the ground in my driveway. I didn't have a power handsaw yet except for what I still call a saber-saw (some folks now call them jig-saws, I do not).
BTW, I also do not like calling all power hand held saws "Skill" saws. They are not... Not anymore than all multi-machines are Shopsmiths.

One mistake I made in my early life was that I let my father talk me out of buying my own tools as a teen ager. We had a decent shop for farm work and he kept telling me that I didn't need to buy them, just use our farm shop. Then one day I was married, moved out 5 miles away and didn't even own a hammer. Money was "really" tight that first few years due to an entry level job and some medical problems with our first daughter. I started buying decent used hand tools as cheaply as possible. On our first Xmas my wife bought me a 1/4"drill and it has largely been about accumulating tools ever since (48 years last June).
When my own son became a teen most of his Xmas and birthday gifts were tools. They still are. While he is still too busy for a lot of hobby woodworking he has the capability to do it and he is just finishing up remodeling and building on (32' X 26' addition) to his house doing everything himself including all interior trim work.

About 20 years ago I refurbished a good old 10" Craftsman bench saw and built a 4'x6' table for it with a notch for the saw to sit in one corner. It is still a good choice for cutting down sheet goods.
Most of the time these days I cut sheet goods on my Ridgid TS-3650. I do love the long fence on it.
I do still use a SS for sheet goods from time to time and still claim that the best in-feed / out-feed system for SS's is more SS's. Having several extension tables available is a big help.
I think that the biggest limitation on using an SS for sheet goods is mind set...
I do have a home-made guide strip 8' long and I do find myself grabbing it more often these days but for most of my life I have cut sheet goods to a line rather than guided. I have yet to have a line drawn on the product slip...

Yup, you are right on.

"I have yet to have a line drawn on the product slip... " -- at least not once it is drawn.

I don't do good at that so I use a chalk line. Placing both ends of a chalk line and being sure the far end did not move is sometimes a choir that demands the use of a small spring clamp.

Remembering to have the spring clamp on hand when needed is sometimes a problem.

I have given some thought to removing the legs and lowering the Mark V

I think I've put this link up before but imo the base part would look good underneath a Shopsmith instead of the regular legs.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5GIelbvLV4

jm51 wrote:I have given some thought to removing the legs and lowering the Mark V

I think I've put this link up before but imo the base part would look good underneath a Shopsmith instead of the regular legs.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5GIelbvLV4

I am impressed by that work bench and by it adjustability. It just goes to show what can be done.

You are right]www.jack-bench.com[/url] but not enough information to build one. Just enough information to entice one to buy a set of plans for $30.

While it is advisable to have a helper when cutting 4x8 plywood I have done it with 1/2 inch by myself. The long fence in the picture allowed me to support the plywood and keep it lined up during the cut. The pic shows ripping a long board, but with the addition of two more sturdy (very sturdy, like the Rockler ones I use) roller stands for infeed and out feed support I cut 4x8 plywood. The limitation is how much you can safely lift onto the setup by yourself.
Forrest
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forrestb wrote:While it is advisable to have a helper when cutting 4x8 plywood I have done it with 1/2 inch by myself. The long fence in the picture allowed me to support the plywood and keep it lined up during the cut. The pic shows ripping a long board, but with the addition of two more sturdy (very sturdy, like the Rockler ones I use) roller stands for infeed and out feed support I cut 4x8 plywood. The limitation is how much you can safely lift onto the setup by yourself.
Forrest
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It does not look to be unsafe at all. The roller stands are great to have though I don't.

Hmmmm What can I use for a "clamp on feather board" way out here on this infeed table.

Thank you all very much for the time in posting your responses to this forum in regards to my question.

I especially like the post made a few back, with photos of roller stands and an "plywood fence". Kinda makes ya wonder, "Why didn't I think of that?"!

I have found these posts VERY helpful (and I'm sure I speak for many others as well that are or will be experiencing the same problem!).

My rule of thumb when using tools on wood is that the smaller item is what you move, simply a matter of control. In this case, the full sheet is the biggest item, so the saw is what gets handled, i.e. rough cut to approximate dimensions (smaller pieces) and then move to stationary tools and move the wood. Does that make sense? For those who use their SS to cut full sheets, they have infeeds, outfeeds, additional support (i.e. a helper) that makes the "tool" bigger than the wood.