Purposely Cutting a Bow into a Board on the Table Saw

[Richard Daugird]

Ya know how when you rip a long board with a bow in it, the bow follows the fence and you still have a bow? Any way to PUT a bow in a straight board, kinda the opposite?

[George Yetka]

An extremely large circle template on a router is the first thing that comes to mind. Everything I can think of on the TS seems too dangerous

[Patrick C Daugherty]

I would mark the curve on the board using a batten and cut it with a band saw or jig saw. Drawknife and spokeshaves or circle plane are also options

[Maurice Mcmurry]

Ya know how when you rip a long board with a bow in it, the bow follows the fence and you still have a bow? Any way to PUT a bow in a straight board, kinda the opposite?

Using a bandsaw or jigsaw would be safer. Cutting to a line freehand on the table saw is generally considered a no no. It can be done if the curve is very slight. A hand held circular saw works and can create a tighter curve although a bandsaw or jigsaw is better. Inducing a bow into a board by bending it while you apply clamps and hold downs as you put on a slider or sled is an interesting idea. It would have to be a narrow, bendable board.

[Cameron Wood]

Yeah, a circular saw works OK. I'll free-hand rips on the tablesaw & might do a very slight curve, but generally you push the first half then walk around to pull the rest, so it can't be binding then or the board will take off.

[Lee Schierer]

Depending upon how long the board you want curved, how much curve and how much space you have in your shop you can use make as long a radius as you have room for use a circle cutting jig. They are quite easy to make.
circle cutter.jpgScreenshot 2024-03-22 191147.jpg

I definitely don't recommend the curve cutting free hand on a table saw.

[Jamie Buxton]

For a while, there was a circular saw blade intended to cut curves. It was shaped kinda like a triangle. Here's video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQ-P4ngnj8w

[Richard Daugird]

That triangle saw blade is crazy. Funny thing, I am wanting to cut a cove in a cedar slab that I am using to make a bench seat, and was thinking I could use a hand circular saw sideways like in the video.

[Zachary Hoyt]

You can do the sideways cut with a circular saw with a regular blade too, though you can't take that deep of a cut in a single pass. When I was 16 or 17 I saw a carpenter do that to shave a bit off a high spot when installing a sliding glass door, and have done it since then when it seemed advisable. I was only there to help pick up the old doors that were being replaced, so I was lucky to get to see that method.

[Carl Beckett]

When I have wanted to make shallow curves in a piece, I have used a thin strip of plywood (say 1/4" plywood) that I compress using a string or clamps. This 'bows' that strip which I then use to mark the piece.

Once the piece is marked it becomes a combination of handheld jigsaw, bandsaw, hand plane/spokeshave, and spindle sander to smooth it out. Sometimes I will glue a piece of sandpaper to a section of the plywood which allows it to flex - that creates a uniform profile.

I did once setup a center pivot on a stand a few feet out from my bandsaw. Clamped the piece to a sacrificial board. Then it becomes an arc as part of a circle jig and can do multiples.

Can not think of any rational way on a TS.

[Lee Schierer]

That triangle saw blade is crazy. Funny thing, I am wanting to cut a cove in a cedar slab that I am using to make a bench seat, and was thinking I could use a hand circular saw sideways like in the video.

You can cut pretty nice coves safely on a table saw with a jig, though they do take quite a bit of time to make the cut. Clean up can be a bit of work if you don't have some raker teeth on your blade.

[Richard Daugird]

I have cut coves with the table saw, I was just thinking, since my bench is about 5' long, I'd try a hand circ saw. Would not cut as big a radius though.