Shopsmith Forums

Has anyone made a jig for the tablesaw to mill lumber from small logs, say 4-6" diameter? I talking about a jig for the first 2 cuts to get 2 square sides.

I've used the bandsaw, but the wood I have in mind, mesquite and pecan, dull the blades too quickly so it's hardly worth it.

Thanks.

Jerome

I don't think the table saw is the best way to handle logs for several reasons, mostly because of the weight, size, and irregularity of the stock. Better to take it to someone who has one of those bandsaws-on-truck-tires lumber mills.

Many years ago, I quickly constructed a 2X4 30" deep cage-like (U shaped) assembly where each side (leg) had a 30" wooden miter bar on the bottom so the cage could be pushed back and forth on the table using the two miter slots. It allowed up to 6" clearance betweeen the table and bottom of cage top. We use short pieces of 2X4 to hold the wood being trimed. We used deck screws to hold the wood. By having a cage, if the wood became loose while being sawed, we was fairly safe and we were protected from the open saw blade. We stood on each side of the cage as we pushed the cage across the table. It did take two of use to safetly move the cage. The customer wanted the bark showing on one or more of the sides of the wood for his projects. We even did a few wood pieces that had been split from larger tree limbs and trunks. It was a very rough looking jig but we were able to trim 1 or 2 sides without too many problems. It was a very fun project for me. The customer was selling items at craft shows and wanted to see what I could do with the Shopsmith. I did sell him a Shopsmith Mark V 500 for his future use.

BTW, I'm not talking about huge logs...maybe 20" long--tops.

Thanks

Jerome

The biggest problem I ran into when trying to do this on the tablesaw is the height of the blade is so short when you make some sort of a sled to hold the piece of wood the blade won't reach through the piece.

I do remember many years ago there were plans to build a milling table and sled mechanism to attach to the band saw in a Hands On magazine. I started to build it and never did finish it.

neal560sl wrote:The biggest problem I ran into when trying to do this on the tablesaw is the height of the blade is so short when you make some sort of a sled to hold the piece of wood the blade won't reach through the piece.

I do remember many years ago there were plans to build a milling table and sled mechanism to attach to the band saw in a Hands On magazine. I started to build it and never did finish it.

By being able to have the log rest on the table with the cage arrangement, we found you could do up to 6" in height logs including the split ones. It was like a sliding table working from above the item for the sawing. We cut short 1X4 and 2X4 pieces to attach to the log and to the cage assembly with deck screws. We mostly had to redo the atttachment setup for each different piece of wood. I believe we rotated a couple pieces that the saw blade did not fully cut (amost 4") and repositioned at the same angle again. We ended up with some beautiful slabs with bark on one or more sides. Again it was a fun job with safety always being considered each time.

I specified 4"-6" because I know that the blade will only handle 3" on a pass. I contemplated having to flip the log, and envision a jig that is flippable without disengaging the wood. That way, the 2nd rip will match up perfectly with the 1st rip for a totally clean cut thru. I'm trying to figure out a way to use my parallel, bar or pipe clamps as the clamping mechanism since they are adjustable for any length of log. The bar, pipe, etc. would have to be fastened somehow to a flat board that would ride along the table saw's fence.
Just thinking out loud.

Jerome

gr8mesquite wrote:I specified 4"-6" because I know that the blade will only handle 3" on a pass. I contemplated having to flip the log, and envision a jig that is flippable without disengaging the wood. That way, the 2nd rip will match up perfectly with the 1st rip for a totally clean cut thru. I'm trying to figure out a way to use my parallel, bar or pipe clamps as the clamping mechanism since they are adjustable for any length of log. The bar, pipe, etc. would have to be fastened somehow to a flat board that would ride along the table saw's fence.
Just thinking out loud.

Jerome

I must stress safety. We found a few times, the log at the point of sawing seems to explode or the blade would hang resulting in wood pieces flying in many directions. You need some way to keep the log very secure that allows your hands and body to be away from the area and path of the log. I doubt if clamps alone can handle this task. We quickly found only deck screws worked well for securing the log. This is not as easy a task as it seems when sawing hardwood. Of course, you need a very sharp saw blade too. I believe for the above safety reasons that I have not seen any available table, jig or frame to cut limbs or logs on a table saw. You must be very careful and fully think before each cut.

We had a 4" joiner setup to help salvage some of the rougher cut sides of the logs. He was going for the more rustic looking wood when possible.

Thanks Bill for the heads up. Question though: the danger and care you refer to --are you talking about all cuts or only the 1st two? I occurred to me that the 1st cut is the most difficult while the log is round. That's the one that concerns me most. That is mitigated somewhat on the second since you now have a flat surface to ride the log. The actual milling of boards thereafter should be routine since you have a flat surfaces to ride the fence and table.

Again, I would point out that these are not big logs: 6" diameter max. and 20" length max.

Thanks for you input.

Jerome

Yes, the first cut is by far the hardest. You have to look out for knots and hard stuff under the bark all the time. These can send the saw blade in the log in directions you do not want to follow. We always made sure every pass was secured tightly and done slowly. Just always be aware of the open saw blade and the direction the log could travel if kicked too hard. This is not a procedure I would recommend to anyone. I did a lot of foolish things with Shopsmith equipment over the years and survived them, many times with loss of a little blood.