A table saw is one of the most versatile power tools out there. It does more than just ripping or crosscutting. Some of the things to make with a contractor table saw include a wooden food tray, bird feeder, cornhole board, cabinet doors, pot racks, and more.
If you have a good contractor table saw back at home/yet to purchase for your commercial workshop, you will need to learn a few tips and tricks to help you enjoy the most of it.
With the proper table saw hacks, you will not only get the most of your power tool but also avoid unnecessary injuries.
That being said, let’s have a look at some of the tables saw tricks and techniques that you should consider applying.
- Add a Fence to the Miter Gauge For Accurate Crosscuts
If you want to make some angle cuts, your able table saw will let you accomplish that effortlessly. Unfortunately, the miter gauge will often interrupt the crosscuts since it comes with a narrow width. But you can solve this by adding a fence to the miter gauge.
- Make use of Feather boards for Straight Cuts
The feather board, in this case, will help to keep the board straight against the fence. As a result, you will be confident in making straight and accurate cuts on your boards. Normally, feather boards feature a set of wooden ‘fingers’ that will hold the wood piece firmly against the fence.
- Use a Push Stick to Protect Your Fingers
Even though you need to execute both hands for maximum control and comfort of the machine, you still need to keep your hands away from the blade. It can be tricky to use your two hands to guide the wood piece towards the saw blade and also avoid the blade slicing through your fingers.
In this case, a push stick will come in handy. The table saw push stick comes with a hook over the end of the board and they are made to push the board through and hold it down immediately. Always activate the push stick when you are one foot away from the table saw. A half an inch of plywood is always an ideal push stick.
- Use an Outfeed Support for Long Boards
When you want to rip longboards and you don’t have a helper or support at the other end, you will need to make use of simple outfeed support. Well, you can choose to purchase the costly roller support, if you can afford it. But if you don’t have the money for that, you can set up simple outfeed support with clamps, plywood, and two 2x4s.
Here, the 2x4s that are clamped to the saw table will maintain the plywood perfectly with the surface of the table.
- Keep the Saw Clean and Rust Free
This is one of the tables saw techniques that are too often ignored by many woodworkers. Most of the tabletops will be made of cast iron. But you can find some that are made of aluminum and steel. In that case, you should use rust protective grease on the table whenever you are cleaning it – if it is made of cast iron. For the tabletops made of aluminum or steel, try using wax once every month.
Final Verdict
Always ensure that you observe proper safety precautions when handling the table saw. This table saw cutting techniques are meant to educate you more on how to get the most out of the saw. Before using or purchasing any kind of saw always ensure that you know the information about that saws. To get all types of saw information you can follow some of the saw experts like toolscritics.com. Knowing the exact information of saw mean you ensured lower risk of making mistake while using/purchasing it.