In article .com,
wrote:
I just purchased my first table saw this weekend and I'm trying to get
a better handle on how to most effectively (and safely) use it. I need
to rip some 2" wide pieces of 3/4" plywood and I'm trying to figure out
the best way to do it where I don't end up wasting a bunch of wood.
Say the plywood is 4' x 4' and I want to cut (4) 2" x 4' strips from
it. It would seem the most accurate way to do this would be to set the
rip fence (which is to the right of the blade) 2" from the blade and
then run the board with the majority of the board to the left of the
blade. My concern is that I'm asking for kickback with the waste side
being so much larger than the piece I'm trying to create. On the other
hand, I've never heard of someone (but I'm new so this doesn't mean
much) putting the waste on the fence side. What's the proper way to
make these cuts?


First off, if you are new to using the tablesaw, I strongly recommend
either reading a good book on using it (I really like Kelly Mehler's
book myself) or taking a class/finding someone experienced to get you
started.

That said, for the example you cited, cutting 2" wide strips off a 4'
long piece of plywood, I wouldn't hesitate to set the fence at 2" and
rip away, using a push stick as the end of the stock approacheds the
blade. Now, if you were cutting such that you were getting 2" X 2'
long strips, i.e. the stock with the 2 ft edge parallel to the blade,
then you would likely experience the trouble you mention in your post.
It would be difficult to keep the stock propery aligned using
only a miter gauge. A sled or panel-cutting jig, both described in
Mehler's and most other tablesaw books, would be appropriate. An
extension fence on the miter gauge would also help, but not as much as
a sled. OTOH, if you were cutting 1/4" plywood, as opposed to 3/4", it
would probably be light enough that you could maintain enoug control
using only a miter gauge with fence extension.

Again, I really recommend one of the many good books on using the
tablesaw. They will help you work efficiently and safely and explain
how to do many jobs on the TS that do not have obvious methods.


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Larry Wasserman Baltimore, Maryland