I need some help cutting bitty pieces

[rudy de haas]

Yesterday morning I set out to make nine maple frames for light switches and power sockets on two walls that are now baltic birch - formerly gyproc with wallpaper. Since I have yet to succeed at cutting straight lines with my jigsaw I thought I'd just make four pieces for each one, glue them, and then use a router to round the edges.

I cut the strips on the table saw and tried to use my chop/mitre saw to make the 45 degree cuts - however, I'm having a lot of trouble with it because the cuts have to be fairly precise - see photo - and I am not yet comfortable with this saw. (The one in the photo looks new because it is; my old Makita got knocked off a bench last week and now throws broken pieces of wood around the workshop.)

Anyone know how to make a jig that will hold these things in place for cutting? (I gather Home Depot sells a dewalt product to hold things on this saw, but the local store doesn't have one. ) Or.. can someone tell me a better way to do this?

[pat warner]

Maybe, if the stock comes in lengths, you can angle the saw and chop one off both ends, until it gets to wild to handle. Scrap the remainder.
Or make a sled that has a fence to the required angle.
Load it with toggles, crowders and hold-ins.

[rudy de haas]

Yes - I just watched some utube videos using toggle clamps. Umm..

[Ken Fitzgerald]

I have a friend who makes rosaries for a charity he supports. He came to me to cut the pieces for the cross.

Ripping the pieces to width caused me to build a ripping jig that requires no measuring. You calibrate the jig on the first one and once calibrate, you put the material against the fence rip that one, put the material against the fence, move the fence until the material touches the bearing on the jig, lock down the fence and rip the next one. Repeat the process.

Cutting them to length was a challenge as they are 3/16th inch thick by 1/4" wide. The wind off the spinning blade will move them when you are cutting them to the approximate 1 3/4" length. I devised a small parts sled using toggle clamps and yes, set up jigs for the 2 lengths needed. I also use the same sled to cut the interlocking dados. Using scrap lumber, build a sled and use toggle clamps to hold them.

[Doug Hepler]

Rudy,

I cut segments for making turning blanks on my chop saw, which is very similar to what you want to do. Pat's suggestion is probably best with one exception. With a chop saw you have to keep the blade from contacting the cutoff after the cut, i.e., when the blade is moving back up out of the cut. Otherwise you may spoil some pieces with a second, uncontrolled cut.

For cutting segments, I made a secondary table that screws to the main table, and used those angled hold-downs like Rockler sells to hold the workpiece (to the left of the blade) and the cutoff (to the right of the blade).341906

You don't need to be that fancy. Just take a piece of plywood or MDF and fix it to the table of the chop saw any way you like. It must be wide enough that you will not need to cut it all the way through when you are cutting your pieces. It will be sacrificed, so just use a piece of flat smooth scrap. Now you need two hold-downs. The cheapest would be to make two strips of 1/4" plywood about 6" long (whatever is a comfortable distance from the blade for you to put your fingers). glue a short strip of plywood, say 1/8" thick along the edge of each. The short narrow strip is to keep the work up against the fence, so it can't turn or rotate during the cut. The 1/4" plywood is springy enough to hold the work down against the table. Stick on a piece of high friction tape if you have any. Or make any other kind of hold-down that you like. Just provide for keeping the work and the cutoff from rotating during or after the cut.

Good luck

Doug

[Robert Engel]

I can tell you a better way: put away that big saw and use a handsaw and miter box.

Numerous ways to fine tune the miters, if necessary:

sand paper stuck to something flat with a 45º block as a guide, clamping a plane upside down in your vise or use a 45 shooting board, etc etc.

[Charles Lent]

I use one of these to hold small pieces on my miter saw. It really works well to keep your fingers away. I think the name has to do with the surgery avoidance.

https://www.fastcap.com/estore/pc/viewPrd.asp?idproduct=54001

You can use either end, depending on the size piece that you want to hold. To me, it's the equivalent of a Grripper, but for a miter or radial arm saw, but I sometimes also use it on my stationary disk/belt sander. Both ends don't need to touch to make it work, but it's better if they do.

Charley

[rudy de haas]

Rudy,

I cut segments for making turning blanks on my chop saw, which is very similar to what you want to do. Pat's suggestion is probably best with one exception. With a chop saw you have to keep the blade from contacting the cutoff after the cut, i.e., when the blade is moving back up out of the cut. Otherwise you may spoil some pieces with a second, uncontrolled cut.

For cutting segments, I made a secondary table that screws to the main table, and used those angled hold-downs like Rockler sells to hold the workpiece (to the left of the blade) and the cutoff (to the right of the blade).

You don't need to be that fancy. Just take a piece of plywood or MDF and fix it to the table of the chop saw any way you like. It must be wide enough that you will not need to cut it all the way through when you are cutting your pieces. It will be sacrificed, so just use a piece of flat smooth scrap. Now you need two hold-downs. The cheapest would be to make two strips of 1/4" plywood about 6" long (whatever is a comfortable distance from the blade for you to put your fingers). glue a short strip of plywood, say 1/8" thick along the edge of each. The short narrow strip is to keep the work up against the fence, so it can't turn or rotate during the cut. The 1/4" plywood is springy enough to hold the work down against the table. Stick on a piece of high friction tape if you have any. Or make any other kind of hold-down that you like. Just provide for keeping the work and the cutoff from rotating during or after the cut.

Good luck

Doug


Great! this I can do - and afford. Thanks!

[Tom Ewell]

Ted Baldwin has a couple of videos showing more methods of cutting small parts.
The videos are quite long btw.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knotpj60bsk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZmGiO5lPS1I

[richard poitras]

I use one of these to hold small pieces on my miter saw. It really works well to keep your fingers away. I think the name has to do with the surgery avoidance.

https://www.fastcap.com/estore/pc/viewPrd.asp?idproduct=54001

Charley

Plus one on the 10 Million Dollar Stick. I have one they do really work great.

[Yonak Hawkins]

rudy, Ted Baldwin does a seminar on cutting small pieces with the radial arm and mitre saws.

Ted Baldwin demonstration (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knotpj60bsk)

[rudy de haas]

Yes, I watched 50 minutes of it yesterday - however I just have a few of these to do and don't want to spend a lot of money or effort on tools for the job. (Perhaps i should, but right now I'm into satisfycing). This morning I took Doug Hepler's advice (above) - and that works reasonably well. Still have all my fingers; am about halfway through the cutting (didn't use glue or plywood, just cut the angle into a jatoba strip.)

[Lee Schierer]

I recently made 38 small toy tractors from wood. 341938 These tractors are only 5" long and about 4" high. As you can see there are several small parts. My sled is simply a scrap piece of 3/8" plywood with a wood runner that fits the miter slot.

Here is how I cut the fenders.
I used a sled and then using double sided tape, made a cut out that would hold the blank part.
I positioned this cut out on my sled using double sided tape. 341940
Then I placed a piece of double sided tape in the cut out to hold the piece being cut in place.341941
I placed the blank part in the holder on the sled and pressed it down onto the tape.341942
Once the piece was secure, I started the saw and pushed the part through the cut.341943
Here is what the finished part looked like.341944

I had to cut 76 of these and 38 front axle pieces that required two cuts each using a similar jig. Not one piece moved or was spoiled.

[Robby Tacheny]

I recently had to cut some very small miters in 1/16" aluminum. I made a jig to hold it securely and was able to cut miters as needed. I was surprised how well it worked since it took all of two minutes to put it together. Its just a piece cut on 45, a relief hole, and a slot cut for the work piece. Then you need a screw and a wing nut. Make sure and bury the head of the screw as shown.

1. Make an auxiliary fence for your miter saw to support the cut all the way to the blade.
2. Clamp majority or piece in jig and make sure you are cutting off waste side of line.
3. Make sure back of work piece and jig are aligned before clamping.

Hope this helps.

-Robby

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