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Thread: Ripping on the sliding table saw - use original fence or 3rd party parallel?

  1. #16
    I have no problems ripping with the fence, don’t do it a lot but never an issue.
    pretty much follow the same procedures as Joe C with same setup ( minus the Martin saw, darnit!

    if you check out my ig feed you will find a lot of slider videos demonstrating lots of different setups
    https://www.instagram.com/kessler_woodworks/?hl=en

  2. #17
    For those who use the rip fence for ripping solid wood but have sliding saws where the fixed portion of the table projects way out front on the saw, thereby making it impossible to stand in the conventional left-of-the-blade like on a cabinet saw while pushing the stock through: where do you stand to make these rips? By way of experiment, I tried using the rip fence while standing on the left side of my (turned off) saw and it felt like it'd be awkward, especially passing over the blade, even with a push stick. Not having any experience other than a small format saw where this isn't an issue, I'm just curious.

  3. #18
    You just stand to the to the left, right up against the slider. I personally don’t think it’s that awkward, i know others do but its not done that often anyways, the goal is to always use the slider for the cuts and sometimes that involves using a fritz and franz or a parallel guide, most of the time I use the rip fence is because its a quick cut and I am to lazy to pull out the ff, and thats real lazy because its not that much effort...

    Quote Originally Posted by David Stone (CT) View Post
    For those who use the rip fence for ripping solid wood but have sliding saws where the fixed portion of the table projects way out front on the saw, thereby making it impossible to stand in the conventional left-of-the-blade like on a cabinet saw while pushing the stock through: where do you stand to make these rips? By way of experiment, I tried using the rip fence while standing on the left side of my (turned off) saw and it felt like it'd be awkward, especially passing over the blade, even with a push stick. Not having any experience other than a small format saw where this isn't an issue, I'm just curious.

  4. #19
    I stand to the left of the carriage and lean over. It is a bit awkward, and an incentive to rip on the wagon when possible.I'm used to it and not bothered, but my saw's carriage is relatively narrow. For some cuts like ripping thin strips off a wide board you can pull the fence back using it as a bump stock while holding the board down on the carriage, as in Joe's post. For those with the room and the budget a separate ripsaw is nice, whether a cabinet saw, straightline rip saw or bandsaw.

  5. #20
    The answer is to the left of the blade, or to the right it depends.

    For solid wood as that the question it again depends. If it a smallish piece like 6-12” wide and a few feet long the left of the carriage. And yes you reach over the blade and yes I do it all the time without a push stick even with skinny rips and yes you get as used to it after a while as you are used to a cabinet saw now.

    If a larger piece or sheet stock after using the carriage to put a straight line on it I tend to stand on the right of the carriage. And yes even that feels a bit weird at first. Not sure why as it’s exactly the same as a cabinet saw “but it does” but you also get very used to it.

    I was just ripping up 12/4 16”x12’ sticks the other day and I did that to the right of the carriage for rip cuts.

    I also just purchased a 18 rip specific and crosscut specific blade for my saw as that is how often I use it for the task hence how comfortable I have come to feel doing so. I did not always feel that way.

    =
    Quote Originally Posted by David Stone (CT) View Post
    For those who use the rip fence for ripping solid wood but have sliding saws where the fixed portion of the table projects way out front on the saw, thereby making it impossible to stand in the conventional left-of-the-blade like on a cabinet saw while pushing the stock through: where do you stand to make these rips? By way of experiment, I tried using the rip fence while standing on the left side of my (turned off) saw and it felt like it'd be awkward, especially passing over the blade, even with a push stick. Not having any experience other than a small format saw where this isn't an issue, I'm just curious.

  6. #21
    Join Date
    Oct 2007
    Location
    Cache Valley, Utah
    Posts
    1,722
    Since I have a full size slider it would be very awkward to rip with the fence from the left. I suppose I could lean all the way over the wagon, but I've never tried. What I do is stand to the right of the blade and rip mostly with my left hand. That keeps me out of the kickback zone, and after teaching shop for a few years I got to where I could do most shop tasks reasonably well with either hand.

  7. #22
    Join Date
    Feb 2004
    Location
    Perth, Australia
    Posts
    9,450
    I have a short stroke slider, the Hammer K3 with a 1250mm wagon. For my purposes, which is working with solid wood and building one-off pieces of furniture, this particular saw is perfect.



    As I have measured, it will rip a 53" long board on the wagon. Of course, any length is possible when using the rip fence.




    I also have the JessEm Clearcut Guides on the rip fence. These force the workpiece against the fence, and this creates a very clean rip cut ..



    There are a number of fixtures for the slider, the principal one being the Fritz and Franz. I use this as well, especially when cleaning up one side of a rough cut board.

    Another fixture is one I made quickly to taper table legs. This made easy work and a perfect result ...



    Regards from Perth

    Derek

  8. #23
    Join Date
    Jul 2013
    Posts
    547
    Blog Entries
    1
    Lamb tool works parallel guides are the bomb! Highly recommended...

  9. #24
    Quote Originally Posted by Jim Becker View Post
    I rarely take issue with anything you say, Erik, but here my personal experience is that ripping with parallel guides/Fritz & Franz is very effective and provides a nearly "perfect" edge compared to use the rip fence. Yes, for long narrow rips like sub-two inches, the fence is a bit easier...I'll agree with you on that...and using the guides isn't as fast as using the rip fence. But I try to rip for quality rather than speed since I'm creating components with the saw...I don't tend to go back to the jointer as a result of that quality cut on the wagon..
    Jim, you are 100% right. I completely didn't think of the F&F jig!

    Erik
    Ex-SCM and Felder rep

  10. #25
    Get your slider! Then use it and learn how you can get the best results in you r shop. In my opinion there is no need for a third party accessory to allow you to rip with ease. Use your machine before you decide tht you need extras.

  11. #26
    Join Date
    Apr 2006
    Location
    Phoenix AZ Area
    Posts
    2,505
    It took me a few years to learn how to get the most from my Sliding saw. I now have Lamb Tool Works parallel cutting jigs and Mac's Air clamps. It's hard to describe the quality of cut when stock is clamped to the slider and cut that way. Perfectly straight, and I mean perfect. Smooth enough to be compared to the surface off a jointer. When using a sliding table saw like a conventional table saw IMHO it's a lesser machine. Sure I rip some stuff, but mostly stuff where I don't care about perfect, like when I plan to run that edge over some other machine. I do have a 9 ft slider so I can do full 8 ft sheets with clamps. With the parallel jigs and air clamps and careful setup I was able to cut 30 pcs of MDF that were 47" long and 3" wide so perfectly that I doubt there was more than .001-.003" of variance. Needed this for a vacuum clamping fixture. In the past with a cabinet saw even though I was super careful I'd need to spend a lot of time with a belt sander or large disc sander to flatten.

  12. #27
    Quote Originally Posted by Ned Otter View Post
    Jim,

    This is exactly what I'm trying to sort out, partially because the slider I'm considering requires 14' side-to-side in its largest format. I'm trying to see if I can reduce that footprint by getting a smaller outfeed table, or not using one at all. I've got 11.5' to work with, so it will be pretty tight.
    Hi Ned,

    Curious what you eventually did. Did you use the outfeed at all, cut it down, or keep it intact (not sure how that would fit)?

  13. #28
    Join Date
    Feb 2009
    Location
    New York
    Posts
    140
    Hi Derek,

    I partially solved this problem by not using the rip fence at all, so I didn't install the long metal tube that the rip fence rides on.

    But even with that, using the outrigger plus the supplied fence makes me have to crawl under things to get in/out of that area. The outrigger alone allows me enough room to walk around things, so I probably just need a shorter fence.

    I did purchase a parallel fence from Lamb toolworks, and a set of AirClamps from Mac (didn't receive the clamps yet).

    Still figuring things out here, my equipment has only been wired up for a few weeks.

    Ned
    Last edited by Ned Otter; 04-02-2022 at 10:24 AM.

  14. #29
    Join Date
    Mar 2003
    Location
    SE PA - Central Bucks County
    Posts
    65,638
    Ned, I originally had that "crawl under" problem in my old shop because of how things were arranged relative to a pesky stairwell that took up space and where the saw was located relative to the J/P. My solution was to shorten the right-side table by 16" and that generally solved the issue. I don't know that I could tolerate not having the rip fence because there are times when it's still the right tool for the job, but I certainly don't need one that sticks out a mile to the right! Even with the much more open space I'll have with the new shop building, I may still reduce the right side because it will never get used anyway for cutting.
    --

    The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...

  15. #30
    Join Date
    Feb 2009
    Location
    New York
    Posts
    140
    Jim - I didn't even attach that table, and I still have to crawl under the wagon, so the only potential solution in my case is to shorten the fence that rests on the wagon, perhaps 3rd party.

    Mind you I'm not getting rid of the rip fence, the solid bar it travels on, or the table that gets me out to 5 feet rip capacity. Might have a need for them down the road, and they don't take up much space in the shop.

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