Miter joint gap on outside. Is the blade slightly <45degrees or >45 degrees

[Alan Lightstone]

I have to make a large box with fairly thick walls. Its size is too large for my shooting board with Donkey's ear, so I'm using my miter sled on my table saw.

Even though my Wixey gauge says that my blade is at 45.00 degrees, there is a small gap on the outside of the joints.

I always forget the answer to this. Does this mean that the angle of my table saw blade is slightly greater than 45 degrees, or slightly less than 45 degrees?

[larry senen]

What difference does it make? You have to take something off the heel, half as much as the gap.

[Warren Lake]

less than 45 if the gap is on the outside if its greater than 45 you will work to a gap on the inside of the mitre,. maybe even a slight one almost if you want some pre load on the joint. If you are trying to recut that joint again now you might find blade deflection depending on what your saw and blade are and shape of the blade

[Alan Lightstone]

I made a test box to test the accuracy of the blade angle, so that's why it matters.

It has to start as a box with 1.5" thick walls, so even a small angle difference matters.

[Larry Frank]

Just one more consideration is the lengths. If opposite sides are not exactly the same length, you can also get a gap. Getting both correct is critical to making gap free corners.