I am making square and miter cuts in very thin moldings. The pieces are about 1/2 inch wide and 3/16 inch thick at their thickest. The material is maple. I am using a 10-inch sliding compound miter saw. My problem is that the saw tends to shatter the wood as I start a cut. I can reduce the risk by putting some scrap against the fence and holding the molding against the scrap, but I still get shattering once in a while.
Should I use the saw strictly in the “chop” mode? Should I make an accessory jig that will have zero-clearance blade lines, as in a table saw crosscut jig? Can I reduce vibration by taping the piece to the table, or do I need clamps?
Thanks
Replies
Dear lamlearning,
Have you considered using a hand-powered miter saw to trim these moldings? Using a big chop saw to cut such thin pieces seems like overkill to me (but then, I've been cutting moldings by hand for years). Unless you have hundreds of cuts to make, I think you should consider using a miter saw. You could also make a shooting board to use with a handplane, to clean up the cuts and pare the ends of the mitered molding for a nice, tight fit.
good luck,
David Heim
Managing Editor
FineWoodworking.Com
Thanks for the speedy reply. I am using the huge power saw because I have a hard time getting a true accurate miter cut with a hand saw. I have dozens of cuts to make. I can count on a clean, accurate cut when I use the power saw. The shooting board idea is great, but I am not confident of my abilities with hand planes working cross-grain.I am tempted to make my own miter box and try the hand saw. I am not sure about how to set up a shooting board for such small stuff though.Obviously, I am rushing a project for which I should have taken the time to develop better skills. My wife grows lots of honeydews that I must harvest.
I understand completely about wanting to improve your skills.
If you subscribe to FineWoodworking.Com, you can access this article about shooting boards:
http://www.taunton.com/finewoodworking/Workshop/WorkshopPDF.aspx?id=2673
And numerous retailers have very nice, accurate miter boxes. Nobex is one brand. I've used one that's similar to the Nobex for more than 20 years; I used it to miter all the crown molding in the apartment we owned at the time. It was plenty accurate then, and has remained so over time.
Best of luck,
David
I am a new woodworker and a new subscriber to FWW. So far, I have learned a lot. Thanks for a great mag and service.
Always glad we can help. You also have a great resource in Knots, with legions of more-experienced woodworkers eager to help others. So don't hesitate to post any question that comes to mind.
dh
You need a very fine blade, like an 80 tooth carbide or, even better, an all steel plywood blade with 200 or so teeth, Sears probably still sells them. A very gentle feed and a zero clearance fence and table will also help.
John White
This forum post is now archived. Commenting has been disabled