Is this safe?

[Kerry Adams]

Good evening,

I have a bench dog pro attached on the left side of my sawstop contractor saw.
I want to use the sawstop fence to do the following. Take a sheet of 1/2 inch 2x4 MDF
and run dadoes down the four foot side every two inches. They will be a 1/4 inch wide and 3/16th deep. I can move the fence two inches at a time using the scale of the fence.
I can then crosscut the piece in half for a box and the sides will match

I will be on the backside of the router bit so to speak, but am thinking since its a shallow dado it won't matter?"

Thanks,
Kerry

[Jason Beam]

if you're doing them in a single pass and going from the front of the saw to the back, i see no problem with what you're proposing. The rotation of the bit will actually draw it toward the fence a little (because it spins counter clockwise and most of the forces are at the front or leading side of the bit, not the sides).

If you have to do the width in multiple passes (bit narrower than the dado you want), you'll want your 2nd pass to be cutting material on the OUTSIDE of the bit - the side away from the fence. That is, make your first pass to define the fence-side of the dado, then move your fence back to widen the gap and define your far-side and make the 2nd pass. This could get tedius, so hopefully you have a bit to match the dado width you're after :)

[Myk Rian]

Yes, and no.
If you can hold the sheet steady, it can be done. The fence will stabilize it.
If you lose grip on it, well, you can imagine what would happen.

[Jason Beam]

Yes, and no.
If you can hold the sheet steady, it can be done. The fence will stabilize it.
If you lose grip on it, well, you can imagine what would happen.

:eek:

What?

Why? :confused::confused:

It's not a climb cut if he goes the right direction. I have no earthly idea how this is any less safe than routing dados with a router table like I've done a hundred times before.

If he went from rear to front, I could understand - then it's a climb cut. Or if he had a 2nd cut to make the right width and pinched it between the fence and the bit, maybe. Otherwise, this is a perfectly safe operation...

[Jason Beam]

As I further tried to picture this in my mind and how it could go wrong, I had a thought. The fence should be on the RIGHT side of the bit for the way I've described to be safe. If you have it on the left side, then you ARE on the wrong side of the bit.

[Kerry Adams]

Yes, the fence is on the right and the dado width will be done in one pass from the front of the saw to the back.That would be way too tedious to make two passes!LOL

Thanks for your thoughts!


Kerry

[Paul Atkins]

Why not use the dado blade? Seems safer and less likely for error.

[Kerry Adams]

Good Question! I have the dado cartridge for the sawstop, but not the blade insert. One has been ordered, but I really want to get this done this weekend.

Thanks ,
Kerry

[Rich Engelhardt]

Hello,

Take a sheet of 1/2 inch 2x4 MDF
and run dadoes down the four foot side every two inches. They will be a 1/4 inch wide and 3/16th deep. I can move the fence two inches at a time using the scale of the fence.

Make a sled/base for the router w/a 1/4" guide spaced two inches from the center of the router bit.
Route your first dado then put the 1/4" guide in that for the next, and so on and so on.
Your slots will end up exactly evenly spaced that way.
(I picked up this tip from, IIRC, Shop Notes.)

[Greg Hines, MD]

As long as you move the workpiece from right to left, it should not matter. The more support you have for the workpiece the better it is going to be. I would put the fence to the outside of the bit, so that your saw table would support your workpiece, and then adjust it as needed if you can do what you need to in terms of your saw rails.

Doc

[Paul Girouard]

Good Question! I have the dado cartridge for the sawstop, but not the blade insert. One has been ordered, but I really want to get this done this weekend.

Thanks ,
Kerry



Make your own zero clearance insert. Way better then a standard off the shelf insert anyway!


http://i21.photobucket.com/albums/b299/PEG688/tablesawinserts.jpg

[Chip Lindley]

Concerning the OP's original concern with routing 1/4" grooves, using the saw fence as a guide, JUST DO IT! Guide the 2x4 MDF firmly at an even rate. As you push the panel forward, also push toward the saw fence. ( same as in ripping MDF) Keep your fingers away from the path of the router bit! Perhaps you might want to practice first on a scrap piece to get the *feel* for it??