Evening out plywood rip cuts

[Stephen McBride]

Still working on running long pieces as well as sheets through the table saw completely straight. I get a little wiggle as it goes through. As you can see in the pic, still practicing and learning as you can tell by the burn marks. 2 HP Shop Fox cabinet saw with stock fence, 10" Forrest WWII blade, first project it's been used on.

Working with 5'x5' Baltic Birch sheets for a project, ran through at 16" to then rip down to 2.5" strips with the smaller sheet. Still got a little movement running it through as seen in the pic below after I cut the rips down to size for some shaker rail and stiles.

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What's the proper way to even these out? Run through the table saw again at a slightly narrower size? Plane them even?

[Cameron Wood]

Check to see if the fence is straight and flat. Check that the fence is parallel to the blade. Flatten and polish the aluminum fence as needed or add wood that is flat to the fence . Polish the saw table with #220 wet/dry sandpaper on a block, & coat everything with paste wax.

To clean up the plywood edges maybe clamp together and belt sand flush.

[Stephen McBride]

Fence is parallel, blade is straight. Haven’t adjusted fence height. Also cleaned the table and waxed it after the first few rips, definitely easier after.

I think it’s mainly in technique which I’ll get the hang of over time.

[Bradley Gray]

Are you using a splitter or a riving knife?

[Warren Lake]

stand at the back left corner when you feed, left hand on left side and right hand on the back, not the right side like you see some do on you tubes. If you stand in the right place and position is bit related to the size of what you are ripping then walk foot over foot you can feel that you are tight on the fence. I have a longer than stock fence and may make it a bit easier. You can feel that you are tight to the fence if you are standing in the right positiion.

[Richard Coers]

You better buy a power feeder, because your present technique and setup will never work for building furniture. I'd suggest you need more support tables around the saw.

[Chris Schoenthal]

I got the JessEm Clear-cut stock guides and not only have the rips come out better, but it just feels safer.
They pull the sheet close to the fence and help prevent any kickback.

[Lee Schierer]

Based on the amount of burn marks on your cuts, your saw is not as well aligned as it could be. It could be your fence is flxing from applying too much pressure.

When I make rip cuts on my TS I generally use my feather boards. They mount on my fence and have a small sandpaper covered roller that presses down on the piece being cut. The roller is angled slightly so it constantly pulls the piece toward the fence.

A suggestion: If you need a bunch of pieces of the same width cut from a large sheet, cut them slightly over size (maybe one saw cut over). Then once they are all cut adjust your fence to trim off just a bit from one side, Run all the pieces, one at a time through the saw. Then adjust the fence again to the final dimension and run them through the saw again this time cutting the other side. Use a feather board in front of the blade and one behind.

[James Jayko]

+1 for the Jess-Em stock guides. Makes life much easier.

[lou Brava]

I agree with Jess-em stock guides, but 1st get your saw/technique down. You should be able rip those parts down to almost perfect with out any guide or feather board. I'm surprised at how "off" those small parts are. Check out Fine woodworking web site & if they have any table saw instruction read it or watch it. That saw & blade are probably not the problem, let the saw do the work & don't rush things.
Good luck & stay safe !

[lou Brava]

Or try this, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cNKqNFnWQPs

[glenn bradley]

Fence is parallel, blade is straight. Haven’t adjusted fence height. Also cleaned the table and waxed it after the first few rips, definitely easier after.

I think it’s mainly in technique which I’ll get the hang of over time.

I have some operations that take an extra step due to what I have on hand to perform the task. Maybe cutting the strips 1/16" wide and then making another run with the thinner, lighter board and using feather boards could help you get closer to start with(?). These are in use on a router table but it was the pic I found first ;-)

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[John Kananis]

Each one of those looks off by the same amount on each opposite side... meaning something is really wrong. Re-align everything and start from scratch. Also, running a 5x5 piece of ply through the saw isn't fun. Rip it down the middle first - 2.5' wide piece is much, much easier to handle.

If it really was technique, you would have more severe burn marks and mistakes don't repeat themselves precisely and in straight lines.

[John TenEyck]

Those really dark saw burn marks are from poor technique, like stopping during the cut. Either that or your saw has a harmonic that makes the blade flutter. The variable widths is another sign of poor technique. Practice keeping the stock tight to the fence. Make sure your splitter or riving knife isn't pushing/pulling the wood in relationship to the fence.

And when you get it all figured out, consider buying a better blade for plywood. 40 teeth on that blade will leave a poor surface no matter how well aligned compared to a blade with something in the 80 tooth range specifically made for plywood. I get beautiful clean cuts in Baltic birch with the Freud LU80R010 Ultimate Plywood and Melamine blade. At less than $100 it's a very good deal.

John

[Patty Hann]

....

A suggestion: If you need a bunch of pieces of the same width cut from a large sheet, cut them slightly over size (maybe one saw cut over). Then once they are all cut adjust your fence to trim off just a bit from one side, Run all the pieces, one at a time through the saw. Then adjust the fence again to the final dimension and run them through the saw again this time cutting the other side. Use a feather board in front of the blade and one behind.

I do it this way ^^^^... all the pieces come out identically flat/smooth. Even running my finger over the "seams" (when stacked against each other) it's all smooth

[andrew whicker]

I'm almost always looking at the furthest part of the fence (well behind the blade) when I'm ripping. obviously, you have to pay attention to the blade to keep your fingers, but the board should be pressed firmly against the fence along the entire length. Focusing on doing that AND avoiding the blade works best. Also, don't stop moving the board forward if possible.

Edit: I don't push anything thru under ~ 4" wide with my bare hand. I use a pusher.

[Patty Hann]

I'm almost always looking at the furthest part of the fence (well behind the blade) when I'm ripping. obviously, you have to pay attention to the blade to keep your fingers, but the board should be pressed firmly against the fence along the entire length. Focusing on doing that AND avoiding the blade works best. Also, don't stop moving the board forward if possible.

Edit: I don't push anything thru under ~ 4" wide with my bare hand. I use a pusher.

I use pusher even for 6" wide :D ;)

[andrew whicker]

To be fair, I clamp a fence on that is L shaped since most of my stuff is 1" thick or less. So my fence height is only 3/4 inches tall.

Much safer and it is much longer than the stock fence for more surface area to use as a straight edge

[Bill Dufour]

Wax the face of the fence as well as the tabletop.
Bill D

[Kevin Jenness]

To be sure, handling a full 5x5 or 4x8 sheet is a challenge on a cabinet saw. Extension tables or the like can help with the initial breakdown. Assuming the fence alignment is correct and the fence and table waxed, once the sheet is halved you should be able to get accurate rips in one pass. You do want an outfeed table or at least a roller stand to support the material beyond the saw table. Ripping each part oversize and re-ripping is a waste of time plus super dusty as the blade is not buried.

You need a decent edge to start with, you need to keep it tight to the fence and you need to keep it moving smoothly without hesitation to avoid divots and burning. If the initial edge is bad, straighten it out with a tracksaw or a router and straightedge. Push with both hands against the fence and forward into the blade, keeping your eye on the contact between fence and workpiece. Don't ignore the blade location but don't concentrate on it. With a reasonably wide rip, one you feel comfortable pushing through with your hand, you won't have to change hand positions right through the cut and it will be easy to keep the work feeding smoothly. If you need to switch to a push stick, keep it at hand on the fence and pick it up with your right hand as you keep the work moving with your left. Push the rip right through clear of the blade. Once the rip is separated from the falloff stop pushing toward the fence with your left hand.

It is possible to run the parts on edge through a planer with carbide cutters but may be subject to snipe. A better bet is a shaper or router table with an outboard fence and a power feeder or featherboards, or an accurate edge sander.

[Stephen McBride]

Thanks everyone for the replies!

To everyone saying alignment issues, minus having super expensive calibration tools, everything is parallel and in alignment. I've triple checked. It's my technique.

Had to rip some more through yesterday and they were much better just from another day of practicing.

Warren, 100%. I tried some moving around in my physical position, I was feeding from the left side with hand placement as you said. Just tried different ways of standing/ moving and got better results.

And yes, burn marks are definitely from slight movements in my stance or arms when feeding through and not alignment of blade or fence.

Gonna look into the JessEm stock guides. Thanks for the tip!

I was ripping down from the full sheet to smaller pieces, but I wasn't over cutting then running through a second time to the proper dimensions. This seems to be in my mind the best answer for me. Add in a feather board and I can see much better results.

[Jimmy Harris]

Yeah, big stock can be hard to handle on a table saw. Especially if you're by yourself. It's usually best to break it down into more manageable sizes, then attempt your final dimensions. Especially if you're having problems.

Less so with plywood and engineered wood products, but I'll often leave about 1/4-1/8" on long cuts to allow me to come back later and just shave off the edges to get me to the final dimensions. Often times long boards will warp when ripped, and that can cause issues. So having a little extra to let it warp, then straighten it back out, is a good habit. That, and sometimes the blade will want to follow the grain and pull the stock off the fence a hair, and you'll get those round marks on the edges where you had to readjust. But when you come back and shave a small amount, like less than the blade's width, you don't get those problems, since there's no wood on the other side of the blade. Engineered wood doesn't seem to do this, but it often comes in larger sheets, which means you can get a lot of sudden friction on the wrong spots that want to pull you around. And it can be difficult to control as the balance point shifts around during the cut. So working pieces with less weight and less surface area for friction helps with control.

It's a technique I picked up from hand tools, where you often leave it a little fat on purpose to creep up on your final dimension with a plane or chisel.

[andrew whicker]

I've gotten a lot better w/ sheet goods over time, but it comes from doing it over and over. After a while you'll do it pretty easily.

I do suggest building a simple L shaped fence you can clamp to whatever OEM fence you have. Make it longer than the OEM fence by two feet or so (one foot extra for infeed, one foot extra for outfeed). This lets you guide sheet goods so much easier. At the very least move your fence so that it overhangs the front of the saw a little bit to give you extra starting length. You should also build, if you haven't, a zero clearance insert.

Having an outfeed support is necessary (from a danger perspective. You only want to be pushing away from you, not trying to keep the sheet lifting up) and having huge left side support is helpful. If you don't have good left side support you can support the sheet on the right side and have the off cuts be the strips you want. More annoying from a set up perspective (moving the fence every cut), but not bad. You'll have to oversize on purpose w/ this method. I personally hate trimming off less than a blade width as the wood chips that get flung into my face and hands is quite annoying.

I have two basic ways of dealing with sheets as far as cutting:

1) Lean sheet against front edge of the saw w/ blade off and butted up against the fence. Turn saw on. Rock sheet onto table (in front of the blade obviously). Make sure sheet is back right corner is against the fence. Make sure rest of edge is against fence. Cut sheet. Turn blade off and move fence. Pick up sheet and start over.

2) Do all the same things, but lower and raise the blade instead of turning it off between cuts.

I will say that if I have all the support I want, I don't over size pieces after I get the initial good edge. I don't use any table saw add ons. You can make perfect pieces with no extra gear (besides a shop made pusher for narrow cuts). Practice makes perfect.

[Stephen McBride]

All great tips. Thanks!

I do have a zero clearance insert in. Outfeed table has a little more drop than I'd like (a little more than 1/4") but had to make something quick for a project with a deadline at home. Already have plans for a weekend project of a proper outfeed table with a laminate top around 1/16" below the table.

[andy bessette]

...Gonna look into the JessEm stock guides...

I was ripping down from the full sheet to smaller pieces...

a) Don't buy accessories to make up for poor technique.

b) Don't expect great results handling full sheets.

[Bill Dufour]

Spelling?
BILL D
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/parametric-plywood-arch-the-entrance-to-the-nightclub--26247610315574662/
https://www.ttjonline.com/news/uk-plywood-industry-enjoys-successful-annual-dinner-at-the-brewery-10567811

[Michael Burnside]

a) Don't buy accessories to make up for poor technique.

b) Don't expect great results handling full sheets.

a) while I agree in principle, I have no problems accomplishing the tasks of the OP and I would still buy the stock guides.

b) true for 3/4 most of the time, but see (a) for 1/2 or 1/4. Makes it a breeze.

[Rich Engelhardt]

Were you using that Gripper that's in the background?

When I got mine, I had some issues with it dragging the stock away from the fence as I picked it up to move it when I was feeding the stock through.

[Curt Harms]

I agree with those that say don't try to feed full sheets. Commercial shops may feed large sheets but they likely have extra support to the side and back of the saw and probably a second person. A guided saw/track saw for the initial cut sure makes it easier for a one man band like myself or most here.