Replies

1. 
   BenM | Nov 15, 2004 09:29pm | #1

   I don't understand your question.  If the angles don't line up it's because the saw is not cutting exactly 45 degrees.  It has nothing to do with the thickness of the saw blade.

2. 
   forestgirl | Nov 15, 2004 10:12pm | #2

   Steve, Ben's right, you've got a tune-up problem here, and possibly some user-based glitches.

   45* cuts for boxes and frames require a perfectly tuned saw, and require you to cut in exactly the right spot on the stock.  These are 45* bevels on the ands of the stock, right???  Take some scrap stock to test the saw with.  Get the blade as close as you can to 45*  and then make the following test.  Use a piece of stock that's at least 3/4" thick and 12" or longer.  Bevel-cut it in half, roll one side over the put the two pieces together to form a right angle.  Test the angle with an accurate square.  Any deviation from 90 degrees means your saw needs to be tweaked.  The deviation will be twice the amount your saw is "off."

   Other things that can cause errors:

   • The stock is moving ever so slightly when you run it through the blade
   • Your using a line rather than a stop block to establish your cut on successive pieces of stock (this would cause a length problem, not an angle proble)
   • If you're using a miter gauge, it's not perfectly tuned
   • Your blade isn't perfectly parallel with the miter slot

   I've made a couple of frames that were 32" tall and 20-some-odd wide.  The tiniest error will show up big-time in a frame that big.  All the time you put into tuning the saw is well worth it, and if you do your final test by making a, say, 15"x15" square frame and it's perfect all the way around, you know you're home free.

   forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
   Another proud member of the  "I Rocked With ToolDoc Club" .... :>) 

3. 
   patternmaker | Nov 15, 2004 10:27pm | #3

   Steve.

   After making small jewelry boxes with mitered corners for years with no trouble,The angles started to be off ever so slightly.I discovered that the table insert was slightly below the table surface.

   As I always put down pressure close to the cut,the slight depression was causing the error in the cut. An adjustment to bring the insert exactly level with the table corrected the problem.Thank you,Mr.Croney,where ever you may be.

   Work safely ¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬PAT¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬

   
   

   ---

   Edited 11/15/2004 2:29 pm ET by Pat

4. 
   macalex | Nov 16, 2004 12:36pm | #4

   I've made box carcase mitres every which way ... from table saw to radial arm saw to mitre saw to hand shot with a jointer plane on a shop-built 45 degree shooting board. Up until I bought my Makita compound slider a few months ago, the only consistently perfect mitres I could get were shot by hand. Now, I go straight from the big Mak to glue-up! Just lovely, and so bloody fast!

   New Zealand | New Thinking
5. 
   desertrat | Nov 16, 2004 06:21pm | #5

   I usually rough out my 45's on the tablesaw and then move to a shooting board and plane the joint to absolute accuracy.

   Been making boxes for quite awhile and have not had problems with this method.

1. 
   scooter1 | Nov 16, 2004 08:12pm | #6

   My second table saw is a model-makers, and is great for small boxes. Rather than fuss with miters and the arbor, I made a auxilary table set at exactly 45 degrees. My Hitchai Sliding miter saw also does a pretty decent job.Regards,
   Boris"Sir, I may be drunk, but you're crazy, and I'll be sober tomorrow" -- WC Fields, "Its a Gift" 1934

2. 
   Dick38 | Nov 16, 2004 09:23pm | #7

   Hi Dick,

   What exactly is a shooting board? Is it like a straight edge? How do you use it?

   Thanks

   Dick38

1. 
   BG | Nov 18, 2004 02:21pm | #11

   dick38,

   The link below is just one example of a shooting board...

   http://www.amgron.clara.net/planingpoints/rampedboard/rampindex.htm

    

     

2. 
   desertrat | Nov 18, 2004 06:36pm | #12

   I'll take a couple of pics this evening and post them for you.

6. 
   lwj2 | Nov 18, 2004 06:37am | #8

   I use a Starrett machinist's combination square (which has a 45 deg. angle) to set my blade for mitres and perpendicular. Takes a few moments longer, but eliminates a lot of problems.

   A bandsaw might work, but you still have to set the angle accurately.

   Regards,

   Leon Jester, Roanoke VA

   Q: How do you know when a politician is lying?

   A: His lips are moving.

1. 
   macalex | Nov 18, 2004 02:00pm | #9

   Leon

   Hate your signature. I'm a politician. But I don't take myself too seriously. At a recent Rotary dinner the MC asked (I was the guest speaker) "what do you do when you run over a politician?"

   I knew the answer: "Back up"

   http://www.macpherson.co.nz

    New Zealand | New Thinking

1. 
   lwj2 | Nov 18, 2004 02:18pm | #10

   Mac, belike things are a tad different in NZ.Had you the experience of our most recent election, you might feel differently. Kim Philby was beginning to look like a viable candidate.Regards,Leon Jester, Roanoke VA

1. 
   Malcolm2 | Nov 19, 2004 07:19am | #13

   Leon

   Nowhere in the world was immune to your recent election! Even here at the edge of the world it dominated our media for weeks.

1. 
   lwj2 | Nov 19, 2004 02:32pm | #15

   Pity. Can you sue the Beeb for abuse?Leon Jester, Roanoke VA

2. 
   Malcolm2 | Nov 21, 2004 11:12pm | #18

   Ha! CNN more like. I've got a son at Ohio State and he quite enjoyed being at the epicentre of the electoral firestorm.

7. 
   DennisS | Nov 19, 2004 09:59am | #14

   Future ....

   Another test that's easier to manipulate that what Jamie (Forest Girl) advised is to cross cut a 45* through a fairly thick piece of stock, flip one piece over and bring them together on a known flat surface. Such as the top of your saw. You can then verify how accurate the 45* angle is - the two pieces should meet at a hairline joint both top and bottom and all the way through.

   If you're using a miter gauge to hold the work through the blade, try making a cross cut "sled" to hold the work. If this is a foreign idea, shout and I'm sure there will be any number of suggestions on how to make one.

   ...........
   From Beautiful Skagit Co. Wa.
   Dennis
8. 
   larrmartin | Nov 19, 2004 10:38pm | #16

   The current issue (just out) of American Woodworking has a tip on how to set up a stop block for cutting miter joints att perfect lengths.

9. 
   TomHigby | Nov 20, 2004 04:16am | #17

   This from a ten finger Dr.  Your mention of a band saw caused me to wonder if you considered the "band sawed box"  It's by far the easiest way to make small boxes.

   You take a block of solid wood the size of the finished box, slice off each side, turn the center block on it's side and  take a slice from the top to form the lid, cut out the inside hollow, glue the sides back on,  drill and pin the lid to make hinges.  There are infinite variations on this theme, with books written about it.  You are then left with the center cut-out, from which you can now make  smaller boxes ad infinitum. 

   If it were I, I would carve the recipient's name on the lid.

   Tom

10. 
    desertrat | Nov 23, 2004 06:39pm | #19

    Steve;

    Here's those photos I promised you last week.  Sorry, but they say that the memory is the first thing to go and I can't remember what the second one is.

    These are two different angled shooting boards, they're simple to make, just make sure of having perfect angles, and every once inawhile you'll have to true them up.  One is 45 degrees and the other is 22-1/2 degrees.

    The photos are pretty self explanatory, but if you have questions, holler.

     

    Dick

    
1. 
   Malcolm2 | Nov 24, 2004 04:52am | #20

   Hey mate, that's a really useful contribution. Surprising how many people haven't come across shooting boards. Once you've made one that works (mine tend to be great big Heath Robinson contraptions) and got in some practice, they're a great way to make clean, sharp, perfectly fitting mitres, even in difficult stuff.