DIY People: Table saws

[_Jersey Girl]

If you do go the miter saw route, make sure it's a sliding one. I don't think they cost much more, and they add several inches to the width that you can cut.

Okay, I'll check that out when I watch youtube videos.

ETA: If you want to go the absolute cheapest route, and aren’t afraid of the extra work, you could just get a buzz saw, and build yourself various jigs for all the things you are going to make. Not the route I would go, but that's because I'm lazy and don't like building something in order to build something...

Do I look like someone who wants to build jigs?

No, Steuss, no. I'm "If you give a mouse a cookie" type person in my thinking. I binge think. Example. It's almost Christmas, I should be wrapping, baking and putting the tree up instead I have myself camped out in the living area painting wood projects---->because I couldn't wait any more. And as I'm painting the fence posts, I'm thinking----> hey wait, I have a mess of fence posts out there, I could cut them up myself, assembly line out projects that I know will sell, clear the property of excess fire fuels, and make a buck off it at the same time, painting a wood frame thinking---->hey I can build one of those, sitting on a shower curtain on the laminate thinking about how----> wanting to start tipping it all up and replacing it...and then----> I start thinking about saws (because that's the answer to everything) and post an OP about saws on MDB.



No, I'd rather spend the money on a good saw so I can be self sufficient and not monkey around with additional steps that will only kill my vibe.

Thanks for the suggestion though!

[_Dantana]

As a professional builder, and professional tool snob, I have to disagree with Dr. Stuess, in that I consider Harbor freight tools to be pretty much holographic in nature. I wouldn't recommend them to even the casual handyman. One can often pick up name brand tools at a good price with plenty of life left in them on craigslist.

If you value your fingers, stay away from a table saw for a while. Start off with a chop saw with a good working guard, as it is the safest for getting acquainted with running power tools.

For ripping stock to width, instead of the table saw there is the option of the circular saw with saw guide. Google it.

[_honorentheos]

Hey Jersey Girl -

Regarding the fence posts: Are these 6" Denver International Airport. posts of a given length such as 6-feet long that you are wanting to rip so they remain the same length but have a flat edge? Or when you say you want to cut round country-style fence posts, you mean you want to cut lengths of them down but the pieces will remain 6" Denver International Airport.?

When I read your OP originally I envisioned you wanted to rip them length-wise so you would have two pieces, both the original length but each being a cut so they were only half-rounds instead of full round posts. If that is the case, I think your original idea is correct and you would be best off with a table saw. The same goes for cutting any of the other boards so they maintain lengths of 16-inches or more. But if you are looking for something that can cut boards into shorter pieces, the miter saw sounds like it is what you are looking for instead. Shopping in the $200 range should buy you one that can extend enough to cut a board 16" wide max. But 6" thick posts could really eat up your blade, especially if you are trying to get a factory-like edge for the projects you have in mind.

To my mind, the 6" posts seem like the thing that could drive your purchase decision depending on how many and how often you plan on cutting things like that. Thick pieces of aged work that need to have a nice finished cut that can't be ran through a planer that you want to cut often and in some quantity would suggest you want some horsepower and durability along with a serious piece of equipment able to cut wood that thick. You might not find that at the $200 price point.

[_Jersey Girl]

honor think of a tootsie roll. :-) You know the lines on a tootsie roll? I want to cut through the lines.

I've got a bunch of old posts left over from replacing fencing. So...what I am doing is something like this only it's not pumpkins right now--though pumpkins are a possibility.

https://chickenscratchny.com/fence-post-pumpkins/

I'm making a snow people family with fleece hats and scarves. I've got a family growing in the house already. They're taller than the pumpkins. I can't find a good enough pic to post. They have to stand up like the pumpkins in the pic.

So...the plan regarding the fence posts is to get the type of saw that I need by summer so I can cut up fence posts and have the final products ready for fall selling. Clear off the posts from the property and make a little buck off them in the process. I already know that my work sells.

I figure that whatever cuts through the posts will cut through whatever else I want to use it for.

[_Jersey Girl]

As a professional builder, and professional tool snob, I have to disagree with Dr. Stuess, in that I consider Harbor freight tools to be pretty much holographic in nature. I wouldn't recommend them to even the casual handyman. One can often pick up name brand tools at a good price with plenty of life left in them on craigslist.

If you value your fingers, stay away from a table saw for a while. Start off with a chop saw with a good working guard, as it is the safest for getting acquainted with running power tools.

For ripping stock to width, instead of the table saw there is the option of the circular saw with saw guide. Google it.

You're scaring me.

;-)

[_Markk]

Sounds like you need a miter saw as well as a table saw...

I'm not sure I need a miter saw or a box of some sort. I'd use it to replace molding in the house though it's not a huge priority at the moment. I have a hunch I'd use it for some kind of frame making.

What is your budget?

Welp. If you really want to know, I'm free to get whatever the hell I want. I'm pretty frugal about money though, so I'd like to keep the table saw somewhere around 200$ if that will buy me a saw that will do the work that I listed. I don't need top of the line. Just something functional.

I'd buy on sale and with a discount on top of it because that's how I roll.

:-)

Get a miter saw, your fingers will appreciate it. Table saws are very dangerous, even to the seasoned wood worker. I saw a great deal at Lowes for a level entry miter saw, with a free stand, it is only a 10" but that okay in that it is a sliding saw.

https://www.lowes.com/pd/DELTA-SM-10-in ... mnEALw_wcB

[_Jersey Girl]

Get a miter saw, your fingers will appreciate it. Table saws are very dangerous, even to the seasoned wood worker. I saw a great deal at Lowes for a level entry miter saw, with a free stand, it is only a 10" but that okay in that it is a sliding saw.

https://www.lowes.com/pd/DELTA-SM-10-in ... mnEALw_wcB

Thanks Markkkkkkkkkk!
:-)

[_honorentheos]

I'm not sure she'd be able to cut a 6" post with a 12" let alone a 10". Might want to check that.

ETA: I guess both can at the 90 degree angle but the 10" wouldn't be able to cut an angle cut according to a woodworking page I googled into. So good to go.

[_Jersey Girl]

I'm not sure she'd be able to cut a 6" post with a 12" let alone a 10". Might want to check that.

ETA: I guess both can at the 90 degree angle but the 10" wouldn't be able to cut an angle cut according to a woodworking page I googled into. So good to go.

I'm gonna die. I didn't know this would be so hard to figure.

[_MeDotOrg]

There was a style of humor called Tom Swifties. They were double-entendres:

"I need a pencil sharpener," said Tom bluntly.
"Oops! There goes my hat!" said Tom off the top of his head.
"I can no longer hear anything," said Tom deftly.
"I have a split personality," said Tom, being frank.
"This must be an aerobics class," Tom worked out.

So what does this have to do with table saws?

"Be careful with that table saw", said Tom offhandedly.
"I use my table saw to make table tops," said Tom counterproductively.
"If you're using a table saw, make sure you have plenty of current," said Tom amply.