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  #1   Report Post  
Ray
 
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Default TS Splitter

I haven't used the guard or splitter for my Jet Contractor saw since
I bought it. I didn't think it was needed because I primarily cut
plywood and smaller pieces and rarely needed to rip any lumber. Last
week I needed to rip some 8' 2x4s so I thought it would be a good
idea to install the safety device. Worked fine and probably saved me
from injury since the 2x4s twisted and bowed like crazy as they were
ripped.

After that I went out and bought a decent blade (Freud finishing blade)
because I was installing a new kitchen and had to cut finished
materials - fillers, toe kicks, etc. This is when I noticed a problem,
even though the splitter was lined up with the blade, the wood would
bind between the splitter and the fence. The finishing blade is the
same width as the splitter.

I want to keep the splitter and guard so what do I do? A few thoughts
I have a

Sand the splitter to make it thinner
Add an auxiliary fence that stops short of the splitter
Aftermarket splitter and guard
Zero-clearance insert with 'splitter'
Adjust the splitter further away from the fence side of the blade

I like to hear any thoughts on these or any other ideas. I want to
keep the safety of the splitter and guard.

  #2   Report Post  
tom
 
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Ray wrote: I haven't used the guard or splitter for my Jet Contractor
saw since
I bought it. I didn't think it was needed because I primarily cut
plywood and smaller pieces and rarely needed to rip any lumber. Last
week I needed to rip some 8' 2x4s so I thought it would be a good
idea to install the safety device. Worked fine and probably saved me
from injury since the 2x4s twisted and bowed like crazy as they were
ripped.
After that I went out and bought a decent blade (Freud finishing blade)

because I was installing a new kitchen and had to cut finished
materials - fillers, toe kicks, etc. This is when I noticed a problem,

even though the splitter was lined up with the blade, the wood would
bind between the splitter and the fence. The finishing blade is the
same width as the splitter.
I want to keep the splitter and guard so what do I do? A few thoughts
I have a


Sand the splitter to make it thinner
Add an auxiliary fence that stops short of the splitter
Aftermarket splitter and guard
Zero-clearance insert with 'splitter'
Adjust the splitter further away from the fence side of the blade
I like to hear any thoughts on these or any other ideas. I want to
keep the safety of the splitter and guard.


Get a bandsaw? It's much safer for ripping. I think your set-up on the
tablesaw is fine, just the wood is outta whack. "Reaction wood" I've
heard it called. Tom.

  #3   Report Post  
Unquestionably Confused
 
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on 7/20/2005 10:32 AM Ray said the following:
I haven't used the guard or splitter for my Jet Contractor saw since
I bought it. I didn't think it was needed because I primarily cut


Same here but for a different reason; the Jet cabinet saw I bought
didn't come with either. Original owner tossed them and I've yet to
come up with a replacement.

even though the splitter was lined up with the blade, the wood would
bind between the splitter and the fence. The finishing blade is the
same width as the splitter.

I want to keep the splitter and guard so what do I do? A few thoughts
I have a


Zero-clearance insert with 'splitter'


I opted for this solution. Took a good quality phenolic zero clearance
insert and will mount the Micro Jig Splitter on it. Picked mine up (I
bought the 1/8th ") at Woodcraft last weekend. Haven't installed it yet
but the install appears straightforward and well thought out.

http://www.woodcraft.com/family.aspx?familyid=5067

Couple this with the pair of Board Buddies that I'm mounting on the
Excalibur fence and hopefully I won't have a problem with kickbacks.


If you have a Woodcraft near you, might want to go in and check their
clearance table. Mine had a couple of Biesemeyer quick-release
splitters for thin kerf being blown out. Price was down to about $85
IIRC and those looked like a very nice, solid unit that also has
anti-kickback pawls.

Unfortunately they didn't have one for my saw.
  #4   Report Post  
Leon
 
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"Ray" wrote in message
oups.com...
I haven't used the guard or splitter for my Jet Contractor saw since
I bought it. I didn't think it was needed because I primarily cut
plywood and smaller pieces and rarely needed to rip any lumber. Last
week I needed to rip some 8' 2x4s so I thought it would be a good
idea to install the safety device. Worked fine and probably saved me
from injury since the 2x4s twisted and bowed like crazy as they were
ripped.

After that I went out and bought a decent blade (Freud finishing blade)
because I was installing a new kitchen and had to cut finished
materials - fillers, toe kicks, etc. This is when I noticed a problem,
even though the splitter was lined up with the blade, the wood would
bind between the splitter and the fence. The finishing blade is the
same width as the splitter.

I want to keep the splitter and guard so what do I do? A few thoughts
I have a


If the blade indeed leaves a kerf that the splitter will fit into correctly
and the splitter is indeed aligned to the blade, It could very well be the
stock you are cutting. It could be bowed and that will create this problem.
I would not modify the splitter until I ruled everything out.


  #5   Report Post  
Lee Gordon
 
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From what you describe, I'm guessing that the new Freud blade you bought is
a thin-kerf model. So you end up with a 1/8" splitter trying to wedge
itself into a 1/16" saw kerf and it won't fit. The simple solution is to
swap the thin kerf blade for a full thickness one. Then the two sides of
your workpiece should slide neatly around the splitter.

Lee

--
To e-mail, replace "bucketofspam" with "dleegordon"




  #6   Report Post  
 
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Ray wrote:
This is when I noticed a problem,
even though the splitter was lined up with the blade, the wood would
bind between the splitter and the fence. The finishing blade is the
same width as the splitter.


I'd double check the alignment before doing anything else. If the kerf
is not binding on the splitter itself, then the blade and splitter
thicknesses should be compatible.

If wood is binding between the splitter and fence, it suggests that
distance from the fence to the blade is bigger than the distance from
the fence to the splitter. This would be an alignment issue.

The other cause that has been mentioned is the particular board you're
cutting has internal stresses that are being relieved during the cut
and deforming the board. Try other lumber and see if the problem goes
away. If you do have some wood that is moving this much, bandsawing it
would be safer.

Good luck,

Tim

  #7   Report Post  
 
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Aw come on. That's not a very helpful reply. He's cutting cabinet
materials! You can do that on a tablesaw safely all day long and tens
of thousands of woodworkers do it every day. There is something that is
fundamentally wrong in his setup.

Bob

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Ray
 
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Thanks. I think.

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James \Cubby\ Culbertson
 
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Lots of good info so far. I've got the same saw and had a heck of a time
getting the splitter aligned. My pieces would bind no matter what I did it
seemed. I cut a kerf into a board, shut the saw down, and tried to slide
the board over the splitter only. It fit. That told me that I wasn't
aligned properly. I actually had to bend the splitter a little to
straighten it out (came a bit bent from the factory). That said, I've gone
to zero clearance inserts and bought the micro jig splitter (but haven't
installed it yet). I intend someday to build an overhead guard and use the
stand alone splitter in the zero clearance insert. A couple of other
random thoughts, make sure the splitter is perfectly 90 degrees to the
table. That was one area that I had to fiddle for what seemed and eternity
before it sat right. I also had to add a few washers to move the splitter
to the left a bit. After all this, it cuts great. Hope you figure it out!
Cheers,
cc

ps. I usually run with an extra board on my fence kind of euro style if
you will. More out of habit than anything else. I have it extending to
just inside the rear edge of the blade. Not sure if it helps or not but
hasn't hurt anything.



  #10   Report Post  
DIYGUY
 
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I have a Delta CS. I almost always used the splitter and the
anti-kickback pawls that came with the saw (minus the shield which broke
fairly early in the life of the saw). Recently, I wanted to rip some
5/4 x 6" boards in two and without a BS figured I could do it on the TS
by flipping the boards over and making several passes per edge. I did
not want the board to close up on the spinning blade while it was buried
in the board so I made a new splitter out of some 3/32" flat metal stock
purchased at the BORG. The splitter is about an inch shorter than the
max height of the blade. That way I could make two passes per edge and
spare the load on the blade and saw. Worked so good I do it all the
time now (still hankering for a BS though ...)

Anyway ... the splitter I made worked out such that I now use it almost
exclusively. And while it probably makes sense to use the factory one
with the anti-kickback pawls on it this "mini-splitter" works so well
with a zero-clearance insert that I don't worry about it very much.

So go get yourself a piece of 3/32" x 1 1/2W" metal stock, make yourself
a splitter and mate it with a zero-clearance insert and see if my
solution works for you ...

Ray wrote:
I haven't used the guard or splitter for my Jet Contractor saw since
I bought it. I didn't think it was needed because I primarily cut
plywood and smaller pieces and rarely needed to rip any lumber. Last
week I needed to rip some 8' 2x4s so I thought it would be a good
idea to install the safety device. Worked fine and probably saved me
from injury since the 2x4s twisted and bowed like crazy as they were
ripped.

After that I went out and bought a decent blade (Freud finishing blade)
because I was installing a new kitchen and had to cut finished
materials - fillers, toe kicks, etc. This is when I noticed a problem,
even though the splitter was lined up with the blade, the wood would
bind between the splitter and the fence. The finishing blade is the
same width as the splitter.

I want to keep the splitter and guard so what do I do? A few thoughts
I have a

Sand the splitter to make it thinner
Add an auxiliary fence that stops short of the splitter
Aftermarket splitter and guard
Zero-clearance insert with 'splitter'
Adjust the splitter further away from the fence side of the blade

I like to hear any thoughts on these or any other ideas. I want to
keep the safety of the splitter and guard.



  #11   Report Post  
Jeff Gorman
 
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Default


"Ray" wrote

I want to keep the splitter and guard so what do I do? A few thoughts
I have a

Sand the splitter to make it thinner
Add an auxiliary fence that stops short of the splitter
Aftermarket splitter and guard
Zero-clearance insert with 'splitter'
Adjust the splitter further away from the fence side of the blade



UK Safety regs:

'Riving knives should have a chamfered leading edge, and should be thicker
than the body of the saw blade, but slightly thinner than the width of cut.'

For an auxiliary fence and its benefits, please see my web site - Circular
Sawbench Safety - Fences.

Jeff G
--
Jeff Gorman, West Yorkshire, UK
email : Username is amgron
ISP is clara.co.uk
www.amgron.clara.net


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