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I am still new to woodworking so pardon me if this is a "too-basic" question..(i googled and could not find an answer)
It seems that when people cutting bevel on long board, they always set the board vertically to make the cut, please see the attached screenshot.
Attachment 455598
I was wondering, why not just lay the piece flat on the tablesaw, tilt the blade to whatever angle needed and make the cut? It seems to be much easier and get the job done? Or am I missing something?
The saw only tilts to 45°. Anything over that has to be achieved by tilting the material.
That's a good question. I cut my bevels (45*) laying the board flat (like you are asking about). So I'll be interested in the answers you get. The picture you are showing looks solid and safe - that's a plus in my mind.
For frame and panel construction, the angle is too acute to cut flat. It always scares me too cut something vertically, but then again my large unisaw scares me whenever I operate it. Well, “scare” is a bit of an overstatement. Let’s call it it a healthy dose of respect.
I surely would not you the fence if lying my wood flat on tablesaw
Johnny's got it. I use this.
Attachment 455602 Attachment 455603
It rides against the fence for tablesaw work. It also acts as a tall fence with dust collection for the router table when the tension bar and abrasive faced panel are removed.
In theory that lets you clamp a slightly curved board straight. Trying to hold it flat on the table is a problem, your bevel will have a curve along it's length.
I think the bigger advantage is that it lets you reference off the edge you're beveling. That edge disappears as you cut, so there's nothing left to run on the fence. Clamped to the fixture it doesn't matter. Using the fence, you have to go off the other side of the board, and then when you flip it you've got a feather edge that's going to get mangled by the fence.
The picture you show is probably for a raised panel door.... The angle if flat would be about 60 degrees, as johnny said, blade only tilts to 45 degrees, so you set blade at 30 degrees and put board vertical ...
anything less than 45 degrees, it is easier to do it flat (at least for me)...
Before getting a shaper I used a radial arm saw for raised panel doors . It worked great for it
You are good to wonder about this. While it can be done, there are limitations. If the piece is too tall or too long, it's very difficult to hold it properly through the cut - even with a jig. That's why it works with frame and panel cabinet doors pretty well. But beware of doing it on a cumbersome and long table top. If you need acute angles on something like that, I find it better to 'take the tool to the wood'. For wide, acute bevels, I prefer a hand plane.
Anyone tried tilting the board up on a sled to get to 60 degrees?
How would you do a rip, Tom?
If it fits on a sled it just requires a block on the sled parallel to the blade.
If done without a sled the block would be fastened to the table. Tape or clamps.